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delia creates

accessories, free pattern, sewing, sponsored, tutorial, women · February 20, 2015

Four Step Leather Tote TUTORIAL + Free Pattern

I’ve teamed up with HP and Meghan Trainor to help promote her “That Bass Tour” and the new HP x360!

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.comI would call it a lap top, but that wouldn’t be quite accurate. It flips open like a lap top, but you can also stand it up or tent it for easy video streaming; OR you can flip the keyboard all the way back and use it like a tablet. So it’s kind of more of a….lapstandtentlet. haaaa. šŸ˜‰

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.comI prefer to tent it and set it up next to my sewing machine, so I can binge watchĀ shows and movies while I sew and craft. It has Beats Audio built into the speakers, so the sound is muy bueno.

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com

Inspired by the four modes of the HP x360, I’ve come up with a super simple sewing tutorial:

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com

A four step leather tote tutorial, that holds an HP x360 like a boss.

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com

MATERIALS

  • 2 pieces of medium or medium thick upholstery leather cut to 15 x 15 inches*
  • matching all-purpose thread
  • leather needle*
  • rotary cutter and self healing mat
  • Free Four Step Tote Handle PatternĀ – Save and print by clickingĀ HERE
  • sharp heavy duty scissors (preferably sewing scissors)
  • chalk
  • sewing machine and basic sewing supplies
  • clover clips or small binder clips (pins create permanent holes and may not be able to handle layers of leather)
Ā 

*NOTE

Almost any leather will work. You want toĀ make sure it’s not too flimsy, like suede, and not so thick that your home sewing machine can’t sew it. Vinyl or most faux leathers will work as well. A leather needle is absolutely key to helping this project feel like a fast and easy project instead of a frustrating one.

TUTORIAL

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com

1|| CUT. Cut our your leather pieces to 15″ x 15″ and then, using my free pattern,Ā cut away the corners to make the handles. First, print the pattern up from Google Drive. Print it at “actual size” and then cut the two pattern pieces out. Trace out the patterns with chalk Ā at the top of each leather piece. Then cut them out with sharp, heavy, duty scissors. For the center oval cut-out, be sure to place it approximately 1.75- 2 inches below the top of the bag, so there is a substantial handle. Note: If you are having trouble accessing the pattern or prefer not to use Google Drive, you may email me for a copy: [email protected] Please expect email delivery to take up to 10 days. 2|| TOP STITCH. Top stitch along the curved top edge of each bag piece and around the oval shaped handles, close to the edges. It helps to lengthen your stitch to 4.5 or 5 mm. This produces a prettier top stitch and helps the leather move through the machine without getting stuck as easily. This step is optional, but it strengthens the handles and creates a more finished, polished tote. 3|| SEW. Sew both bag pieces together with a 1/2 inch seam allowance and about 3.5 or 4 mm stitch length. (The shorter stitch length will provide more strength to the seam.) Place the bag pieces together with wrong sides facing. Clip them in place with clover clips or small binder clips. This is such a simple project, it can be tempting to skip the clipping step. Keep in mind that leather can shift and stretch while you sew. Clips are a good way to help ensure you sew the bag evenly. Sew all the way around nice and slow, taking care to back stitch at the start and finish several times, to reinforce the seams at the top of the bag. Optional: Sew the corners rounded, instead of square, for an extra polished touch, as I did with this gray tote. 4 || TRIM. Trim the seam allowances down to 1/4 inch. This cleans up any minor shiftingĀ that may have occurred during sewing, and gives the bag nice finished looking edges. ALL DONE!Ā 

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.comSchlep some books in it, make it your farmer’s market tote, or use it for your lap top. It’s a great, slim all-purpose tote.

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.comHP is sponsoring Meghan Trainor’s “That Bass Tour”Ā which is going on right now through March. If you want to follow along, check out Meghan’s tour pageĀ for more info. Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.com

Easy four step leather tote tutorial via www.deliacreates.comDisclaimer: This post is sponsored by HP. All opinions are genuine and enthusiastically my own. The HP Ā x360 is all that and a bag of chips and Meghan Trainor is the bomb diggity….What?… The nineties are totes back in style. See what I did there? šŸ˜‰

Previous Post: « Toddler Coloring Dice
Next Post: DIY Leather Travel Tissue Pouch TUTORIAL »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Marian Booth says

    February 20, 2015 at 5:12 PM

    This is a real cute tote project. Its cute enough to make and use as a tote bag to put your things like a wallets and other things us women carry, but with a lining. Do you think it would be cute to do as so? Thank you šŸ˜€

    Reply
    • Delia says

      February 23, 2015 at 10:24 AM

      Thanks Marian! Totally. It’s a great all-purpose tote. If I were to use it as a purse, I might add a lining and zipper for extra security, but you certainly don’t have to!

      Reply
  2. Charity says

    February 20, 2015 at 10:13 PM

    That x360 looks like it would be really nice to have around! I’ll be it’s great for displaying pattern instructions too. =)
    Love the handles on the tote. =)

    Reply
    • Delia says

      February 23, 2015 at 10:20 AM

      Yes! Totally great for following a pattern. I’m glad you mentioned that!

      Reply
  3. Anne says

    February 21, 2015 at 8:33 AM

    I love this! I’ve got a Craft Gossip post scheduled for later today that links to your tutorial:
    http://sewing.craftgossip.com/free-pattern-4-step-leather-tote/2015/02/21/
    –Anne

    Reply
    • Delia says

      February 23, 2015 at 10:08 AM

      Thank you so much Anne!

      Reply
  4. scooterphoenix says

    February 23, 2015 at 9:18 AM

    I’m in LOVE with your tutorial! Thanks for posting. I’m running home to make one in some vinyl to practice, but leather is in my future ASAP!

    Reply
    • Delia says

      February 23, 2015 at 10:06 AM

      Thank you! Vinyl is a great place to start. Have fun!

      Reply
  5. Laura j. says

    February 25, 2015 at 8:24 AM

    You totally look like a college kid in those pictures!

    Reply
    • Delia says

      February 25, 2015 at 9:33 PM

      ha! It must be the glasses and the lap top ;)…but thank you! I’m actually 31, so I’ll take that as a high compliment.

      Reply
  6. dana says

    February 25, 2015 at 1:10 PM

    That bag is amazing Delia. So creative and chic. And I love the peek of your studio space. Darling!

    Reply
  7. Heather says

    February 25, 2015 at 5:15 PM

    love, Love, LOVE the way this looks! I’m totally making one for my next trip. Thanks for the inspiration.

    Reply
    • Delia says

      February 25, 2015 at 9:28 PM

      Thank you Heather! You are so kind.

      Reply
  8. Hilde says

    March 1, 2015 at 2:38 AM

    Thank you so much for the tutorial! I made one yesterday, as a gift for a little girl that turned two (I know, not the best gift for a toddler, but her mom seemed quite pleased with it). I was in a big hurry, so I only noticed when it was finished that my thread tension was off for the top stitching.. Hope it won’t fall off too soon.
    I used smaller dimensions and made it out of one continuous piece of leather that measured 30×60 cm.
    I thought you might like to see a photo: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/376965431285985320/
    Thanks again!

    Reply
    • Delia says

      March 2, 2015 at 9:35 PM

      I love it! A mini one is SO cute! What a lucky little girl. If the tension was a little tight that is better than too loose (probably…in this case). It looks great to me anyway! Thank you for sharing a link.

      Reply
  9. rhonda says

    March 25, 2015 at 9:52 PM

    When you said “not to flimsy, like suede” , did you mean suede is too flimsy OR suede is not too flimsy?
    Would love to make this and have a suede jacket I could recycle.

    Thank you,

    Reply
    • Delia says

      March 27, 2015 at 4:07 PM

      I meant that suede is usually pretty flimsy. If your jacket feels substantial enough though, you might be okay. I hope that helps!

      Reply
  10. Enamul Hoq says

    November 15, 2015 at 12:42 PM

    nice and helpful tutorial

    Reply
  11. Lauren says

    December 16, 2015 at 5:02 PM

    Hey, cute bag..i need to make one for my daughters lightboard..could we make it out of fabric? Maybe i could put a stiff type of interfacing…fusible fleece? What are your thoughts?

    Reply
    • Delia says

      December 21, 2015 at 8:15 AM

      Thanks Lauren! That is a GREAT idea! You could even use felt and interfacing so there would be no fraying. Kind of like with this basket: http://www.deliacreates.com/diy-faux-industrial-felt-basket-tutorial/

      I hope that helps!

      Reply
      • Lauren says

        December 28, 2015 at 11:16 AM

        Yep..but now daughter really liked the leather samples from toto fabrics.com. I just hope they are medium thickness…I have an email in to them to clarify! Will let you know if we go the fabric route…thanks for your help!

        Reply
        • Delia says

          December 29, 2015 at 10:18 PM

          Ha! Oh fun. I hope it works out!

          Reply
  12. Eva says

    January 26, 2017 at 7:57 AM

    I love this bag! This would be so nice in a heavy weight linen with some reinforcing!

    Reply
    • Delia says

      March 22, 2017 at 4:34 PM

      Yes! That’s a great idea!

      Reply
  13. Elizabeth says

    July 9, 2017 at 6:16 PM

    This is the best purse. Thank you for sharing. Have the perfect leather to try and with the great instructions I might be done tonight.

    Reply
    • Delia says

      July 10, 2017 at 3:14 PM

      I am so glad you like it! I hope it turned out how you wanted! <3

      Reply
  14. Shakimono Veras says

    November 9, 2020 at 6:09 PM

    Incredible tutorial! One of the best tote bag patterns thus far!!!! I’m making some for the holidays!!!!

    Reply
  15. Catherine Gibson says

    July 15, 2021 at 11:44 AM

    Fantastic easy tote to make. Took me less than 1/2 hour from start to finish. More please. I’m going to give it a go but using Upholstery leather. Thanks again

    Reply
    • Delia says

      July 15, 2021 at 12:37 PM

      You are a machine! Half an hour…that’s amazing! So glad you like the pattern. I bet it will work up beautifully in upholstery leather!

      Reply

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