Leather Cuff Bracelet

Chapter 2: Leather Cuff Bracelet - Making a Pattern

In this lesson, we will be making 2 beautiful leather cuff bracelets. We will be working with natural veg tan leather. Veg tan leather is great to work with because it offers us so many options. We can dye it and achieve many rich colors; we can stamp it and lay in antique to give it custom design and we can topcoat it to give it a nice gloss.

We need to take our time creating our patterns because it is critical. All processes down the line depend on getting the pattern right.

Chapter 7: Leather Cuff Bracelet - Assembling Leather Cuffs

We’ve gone through many processes with our Leather Cuffs. We have rich and beautiful leather to work with, let’s put it all together.

Adding Rivets to Leather

We will begin with adding our rivets. For the lighter leather we will use a ¼” Solid Brass Double Cap Rivet. Flip the Brown Leather Cuff over to the backside and put the post through each of the 4 corners.
One thing about the double cap rivet is that it has a crimp in the post. The crimp allows us to snap the cap down without setting it. Also, our project isn’t falling apart and pieces rolling around.
Now, flip the Brown Leather Cuff to the front side and push the two straps on either side of the Leather Cuff base utilizing the rivet posts. Notice the straps are standing up in the middle. That is how we planned it. When we bend this Leather Cuff around our wrist it doesn’t bind but lays flat.
Next, we need to set our Button Stud Billet. Either side will work to add the billet strap. Drop in the rivet on the backside with post coming through the front side. Put the billet over the rivet you just added.
Now let’s drop in all our rivet caps. Grab our rivet setter. The concave end is simply a post. Put it over the rivet cap and give it 2 good whacks with the rawhide mallet. Our goal is to keep the rivet setter as straight as possible over the rivet cap. Notice how the cap impressed down into the leather a little bit. Now set all the rivet caps.

Setting the Button Stud with Post

Take our screw post and push it through from the back. Add a dab of Leathercraft Cement on the bottom of the button.
Now screw the button on the post. We use glue because the button screw can work itself out over time.
Our gorgeous brown leather cuff is ready to wear.

Setting Snaps & Finishing the Red Leather Cuff

We will drop in Nickel Line 24 Snaps on our Red Leather Cuff. Line 24 snaps are a common size, easy to set and very durable. Pick out two males and two female Line 24 snaps. It does not matter which male goes with which female because they will work together.
Note: We need to pick a female snap that has the inside flange we will also pick a male back post that has a naked back as opposed to one with an exterior cap. This type of Line Snap is commonly used for applications such as this. See video if this part is confusing.
We are about to add the 24-line snap to the middle of our Red Leather Cuff. On our quartz or marble slab, drop the Red Leather Cuff over the male naked back line snap. Make sure the snap is flat against the slab, because when we are finished it will be against our skin and we want it to sink into the leather. Put the female inside flange line snap over the male line snap post that is sticking through the Red Leather Cuff.
Then, use a line 24 setter that is size specific, drop the setter in and on the post and give it two good shots with the rawhide mallet. We don’t want to hit the snap too hard because it could pull the flange in. Notice how the post rolled down easily in the snap. That is what we are looking for.
Let’s move to the end of the Red Leather Cuff and add our other 24-line snap. We are using our male post with a rounded cap, and we don’t want to crush the cap. So, drop the cap in our anvil and with the finished side down, push the post through the hole at the end of the Red Leather Cuff. Take our other female piece and let’s set this snap. Place the setter over the post and keep straight, then whack it twice with the rawhide mallet. The post should have rolled around clean and even. Now bring the cuff around and snap it. What a beautiful Leather Cuff Bracelet and we did it ourselves.
Now take the processes you have learned here and run with them, creating a beautiful leather cuff bracelet.