DIY Personalized Leather Coaster Set

On the 1st day of Craftmas, my true love gave to me… a Personalized Coaster Set.

What is Craftmas? It is 12 days of Handmade Christmas Gifts, brought to you by Making Joy and Pretty Things, Meet Our Life, North Country Nest and myself. I’m so excited to bring you this series, as it fits perfectly with my focus this year, to Give Creatively.  We hope to inspire you, over the next 12 days, to get your hands dirty, to create and to make… in order to give handmade.

I’m kicking off the series with a set of DIY Personalized Leather Coasters. Last year, I bought a set of Leather Coasters from an Esty Shop. The coasters weren’t personalized, but we have loved them. They look stylish and luxurious — since it’s leather — without being breakable. For Christmas 2016, I wanted to make several sets to give as gifts; but with the added detail of monogrammed personalization on each set.

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DIY Personalized Leather Coaster Set : Supplies

Olfa Circle Cutter
Fiskars Self-Healing Mat
Walnut Hollow Wood Burning Tool
Walnut Hollow Hot Stamps
Leather Scraps

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DIY Personalized Leather Coaster Set : Instructions

First, gather the leather for cutting. You can actually purchase leather scraps online. However, I was concerned that the scraps might be too small. Instead, I went shopping at Goodwill for leather items and purchased a pair of black leather pants and a brown leather jacket. If you do this, make sure that there is enough fabric in between the seams to cut out coasters that are 4 inches in diameter.

In order to “deconstruct” a leather jacket or pants, cut along the seams with scissors or a rotary cutter. If there is a layer of lining, it will separate from the leather after the seams are removed. You will finish with scraps similar to what is shown in the photo below.

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Next, cut 4-inch circles from the leather scraps using the circle cutter on a self-healing mat. Check the directions on the tool to set the measurement correctly. For example, to cut 4-inch circle, the tool is set to 2 inches. Hold the leather taut with one hand, while using the other hand to rotate the tool.

Once the coasters are cut out, prep the wood burning tool. Attach the first hot stamp letter, and turn it on to warm up. Once hot {about 5 minutes according to directions on the package}, press the first letter into the coaster. You won’t need to press very long, because it will burn quickly in the leather. Test this on a few scrap pieces of leather in order to get a feel for how long and how hard to press.

As a note, the wood burning tool worked great on the soft brown leather, but not on the glossy black leather. I decided to mix the two types of leather for the coaster set, but only personalize the soft brown pieces.

Once the first letter is burned into the coaster, turn off the wood burning tool. Then, let it cool for approximately 5 minutes. Once cool, attach the next letter and repeat the process.

As an option, package the coaster set nicely in a cellophane bag. I use 5×7 bags with cardboard inserts for my craft shows, so they were a handy option to package this gift. It gives the Coaster Set a handmade, but professional, appearance.

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I created several of these coaster sets for some of the men in our family. Men can be hard to buy for at Christmas and this is a great “Gift for Him” that is simple, yet unique. My husband liked them so much, he requested a set of his own. We’ll see what Santa brings….

Until then, we’ve got more Handmade Gift Ideas for you through the 12 Days of Craftmas. Each day, I’ll be popping in to share another gift idea, so make sure to check back! If you’d like, follow Craftivity Designs on Facebook, where I’ll be sharing the posts each day.