Templates for leather items

[KirsteenA]

I'm making something - under close supervision from an excellent tutor - having last done craft in primary school. It is so much fun! But I can't imagine making something without a substantial 3-d template to mark around. Is there somewhere such things can be bought? What would people recommend as simple foolproof projects please?

 

[Mesquite]

You could do a bushcraft sporran

 

[KirsteenA]

Thanks, that looks useful and the tutorial is brilliant.

 

[Tengu]

Generaly for templates I make one off of a leather item I already have.

 

[KirsteenA]

It's done.

 

[Mesquite]

Looks really good

 

[KirsteenA]

Thanks 🙂 Gussets are hard to stitch...

 

[Wayne]

Eric has an excellent tutorial on here on how to make leather drinking bottles.

Link here

 

[KirsteenA]

Another excellent tutorial! Do you know, is the hole drilled for stitching instead of chiselled because the latter holes would be too big for holding liquid? I don't have a dremmel but maybe I 'need' one.

Would still be very grateful for links to pre-made templates, and moulds.

 

[Mesquite]

Another excellent tutorial! Do you know, is the hole drilled for stitching instead of chiselled because the latter holes would be too big for holding liquid? I don't have a dremmel but maybe I 'need' one.

Not sure what you mean by the holes chiseled, do you mean made with an awl?

If that then don't worry about it as to hold liquid you have to seal the inside of the container with beeswax

Would still be very grateful for links to pre-made templates, and moulds.

I seriously doubt you'd find any pre-made templates and molds as most leatherworkers design their own patterns for the job in front of them or use the item as the actual mold if wet forming. They just wrap the item up in clingfilm to protect it.

If they're going to make repeats of things like an axe sheath for a particular model of axe they might make a more robust template or mold.

I made the template out of a plastic 5 litre bottle when I made shot glasses so it's more robust than cardboard.

 

[KirsteenA]

Ah, hadn't thought of wrapping in cling film.

The holes these made are diamond shaped and quite large, I wasn't sure the wax would plug them sufficiently around the stitching itself.

 

[Mesquite]

They'll be fine.

With pricking irons and awls they make a hole by moving the leather out of the way.

Once stitched the leather swells back up around the stitch and the wax then finishes off the waterproofing.

If you make the holes by drilling you remove the leather totally and it doesn't swell back around the stitch as well.