Leather Belt Wrist Cuff

I was at a chocolate party a couple weekends ago (don't you just love it when a friend sends you an invite to a party and chocolate is the only thing being served?) Anyway, she was wearing this fun leather cuff that looked a lot like an old belt that had been up-cycled. So I thought I'd give it a try. Finding the old belt was easy (closet), getting the right snaps and embellishment a little more tricky. Turns out that Michael's crafts had the best selection (although Beck Leather goods did have lots, they are pretty far from my house). I tried using snaps and the snap pliers that I already had, but it didn't work because the leather is too thick for the types of snaps you use on fabric. Instead, the ones I got at Michael's have a longer post to accommodate the thicker leather. I learned a new vocabulary term during this process, concho, which is the name for the metal decoration that can either have a screw-on back like mine or a rivet style (you can also buy fancy rivets that have crystals or turquoise or decorative silver).

Find a fun belt (mine conveniently already had holes to put the snap through)


Get a snap setter and anvil kit plus snaps (I used size 24 for the thick leather)-got the kit at Michael's for 7.99 (use your 40% off coupon for an even better deal). I put the 2 pieces that go together in the picture for when you are ready to assemble the snaps.

Place the button (nice side) of the snap upside down on the curved anvil.


Put the leather on the button part of the snap (upside down) and put the piece with the ring on it and set with the setting tool and a hammer. You will need to keep things straight in order for the snap to set correctly.

Duh, I had meant to put the button part of the snap on the other side of the bracelet so that the finished edge of the belt ended up on top, but its ok. Just make sure that before you set the snaps you don't have them both facing the same side, otherwise they won't line up to snap.





The concho has a screw back, so I just threaded it through a hole and used a screwdriver to tighten it up.