Leather Tote Bag Project

Leather Tote Bag Project - August 27, 2017

Here is the finished Black Leather Tote Bag I completed this weekend.  I wanted to share with you a bit of how I made it.  I would obviously change a few things about it, most notably the height.  When I was drafting this tote bag off of a previous design, I wanted to add a stitched-on bottom base piece, and in doing so, made an incorrect measurement choice, leading to a taller than normal bag.  I was hoping to keep the bag more square, similar to previous bag I was basing my design from.  Here is the past leather tote bag I made for my wife a few years ago:

I like the sizing of the past bag, but overall I am pleased with some of the improvements I've made to the new bag design, including an interior pouch that also has a brass swivel trigger snap that allows you to keep your keys near the top of the bag.

For structural support, I added the leather washers between the copper rivets and the inside of the bag.  Over time and use, the bag wears in a bit and becomes more supple.  Besides the copper rivets holding the straps to the bag, the entire rest of the bag is 100% hand stitched.  No machines were used when crafting this bag.

Next time around, I will shorten the height.  Other than that, I'm very happy with how it turned out.  What do you think?  Let me know if you'd like one!