I wanted a not-huge laptop bag, so I decided to use my tough cow-hide that I had purchased in the spring. I had made a handbag for my Grandma with it, but it just about killed my machine. I had to get it serviced after sewing up that bag.
I decided to hand stitch this bag, which is what I did when we went on vacation to our friend’s house in Ohio at the end of August. It was a long car trip, so I had plenty of time to get some things done.
Yes, this has been in process for a little bit.
First, I cut one long rectangle that was 14.5″ wide by 26″ long. This fits a Macbook Air (my laptop for work), a letter-sized pad of paper and a few not-thick folders. The strap measures 1.75″ by 36.5″. The other straps for the D-rings and rectangles on the straps were just cut to size.
Next, I took my little hole puncher tool (bought at Tandy Leather), and used it to hammer the sewing holes into the leather. I put the two sides together and tried to go through both layers at once, so the holes would match up. It sort of worked. Sometimes, the holes were not really all the way through, so I had to use my needle to punch through the rest of the way.
I used a waxed nylon thread and leather needles to sew up the edges.
The shoulder strap is just one layer of leather, but the lacing should help to keep it from stretching out. It is a thick leather, so I figured one layer would work fine.
The closure here is a bone button I found at Joann’s Fabric Store. I didn’t make the loop quite long enough, so it is tough to get it on and off the button. It should stretch out with some usage, though.
The decorative layer on the back you can use for just a handhold. I decorated it with some rivets.
This one was a lot of hand stitching, but I like how it all turned out.
