Make Your Own Leather Bow-Tie!

Leather has been used to make many, many things since its appearance. Things like wallets, knife sheaths, canteens, baseball gloves, and belts. Leather has also been used to make articles of clothing such as cowboy vests, chaps, and boots. But never, ever, in the history of leather, has anyone made a bright blue, leather bow-tie.* So this is a first. Fortunately, for all of you who don't enjoy sticking out like a sore thumb, this project can also be done with black, white, or un-dyed leather.

*This statement is an assumption, and has not undergone extensive research.
:-)

• A 1"x4" Leather Rectangle
• A 4.5"x3" Leather Rectangle
• A Piece of 1" Elastic that is slightly larger than the circumference of your neck
• Sewing Machine
• Krazy Glue

Fold the 4.5"x3" piece as shown above. Next, sew down middle of the folded leather. If your leather is extremely thick don't use a sewing machine! Once you are done, it should start to look like a bow-tie.

Sew the two ends of your elastic band together. It should fit comfortably around your neck, but not extremely loosely. Next take your 1"x4" piece of leather and sew one end to the outside of the elastic. There you go! You've got everything you need! Now all you need to do is assemble it!

Roll the 1"x4" piece of leather around your bow-tie until it looks like the pictures above (it may take a couple of attempts). Next, use some krazy glue to glue the loose end down. Make sure the end of the leather strap is not visible from the front!.

Congratulations! You are now one of the few people that have a leather bow-tie! Now go out and have a grand time showing of your fancy new bow-tie!

Hint--For a more finished look, you can try burnishing the edges.

Thank you for reading my tutorial, and I hope you like my idea! If you do, please consider voting for me in the Epilog VII Contest. If I won the laser cutter I would use it to build puzzle boxes like these. I would also be able to pursue wood projects that are too intricate for an unskilled scroll-saw user. I am also interested in building robots with custom covers, and in creating 3D layered art. Thanks!

P.S. For all you bow-tie fans, I apologize for not making an actual non-elastic bow-tie. Unfortunately, I didn't think that would work because of the thickness of the leather. If you do successfully do it, please comment and tell me how. Thanks!