My latest bespoke piece was a kindle case. The customer wanted her kindle to be safe from knocks & scratches whilst she carried it with her. She also wanted to be able to use the kindle without having to take it out of its case. From this specification evolved a new style of kindle case for me, incorporating a hand strap and pocket for the kindle inside that had a removable screen protector for when it wasn’t in use. The case itself is also lined in a thin but quite dense foam to protect the kindle in transit.

Once I had decided on how to crop the fabric sample to make best use of the beautiful pattern, I was able to use one of the offcuts to make the strap.

I was spoilt for choice by the selection of Czech glass buttons I ordered a little while ago from eBay. I eventually decided on the final choice because of it’s asymmetric design and gold highlight, which picked up the gold stitching on the fabric itself.

The hand strap needed to be comfortable to wear but also fit sensibly inside the case when it was closed. I made this paper mock-up first to check the size and shape.

Once I was happy with the mockup, I was able to cut out the leather version. I double sided both the handle and the kindle pocket for extra durability and to help them maintain their shape.

Sewing everything in the right order is really important with a project like this! The pocket and handle needed to be sewn to the inside leather before the fabric to the other side. This avoids any unnecessary stitching being visible on the outside and ruining the effect of the lovely fabric.

Once all the internal sewing had been done, I could sandwich the foam in the centre and attach the 2 sides together.

Folding the leather over the edges of the fabric makes the finish really durable, which is essential for a frequently-used functional item like this.

And here’s the final result…

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I’ve had a busy week catching up on various commissions – I finished this one yesterday. The customer came to me needing a case for her bare essentials when going out for the evening – she was tired of lugging around her everyday bag & wallet when all she really needed to take with her was her cards and phone.

 I found a button amongst my endless collection that matched the shade of green perfectly, with a tiny bit of floral detail.

The style of her phone (Samsung Galaxy SII) meant designing a case that still allowed access to the buttons & screen but kept it safe proved a bit tricky. After lots of meticulous measuring and care cutting out, here are the results.

This beautiful piece of material was a swatch kindly donated to me. I decided it would be really effective to highlight the subtle blue from the centre of the feather with the stitching thread. I was a bit dubious at first (as doing this is very unforgiving to even slight sewing machine wobbles!) but am glad I took the plunge as I think it really ties the whole thing together.

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Introducing another new product to my range! Some of the fabrics I had been donated were much too heavy-duty to use for my purses and clutches. Through my ongoing reluctance to part with any fabrics that might be of use in some way, the leather and fabric patchwork cushions were born…each one is handmade and has a side zip  for easy removal of the internal pillow. Keep your eyes open for more of these in the coming months!

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One of my best friends asked me to make her sister a belt to take travelling. I used an offcut piece of leather from the edge of the hide, as its natural shape leant itself well to a pocket belt. After establishing the main shape and length of the belt, I was able to fashion pockets to fit. A charity shop belt gave up its buckle to the cause. I fitted it on my friend’s sister before making the belt holes so that it fit her perfectly.

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My bespoke initialled wallets have proved quite popular among the gents – here are my latest versions. As you can see despite applying the same basic construction, each personal preference of leather colour & fabric combination results in something quite individual.

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