Having the right tools and adhesive for leather projects will make it easier to create stylish accessories. We will show you the basic tools for cutting leather and the types of adhesive to use when adding clasp ends to leather.
Leather Cutter Tools
When cutting leather, you want a precise and straight cut. This will help with adding clasps and keeping your measurements accurate.
Flat and small round leather (i.e. 1mm, 2mm, or 3mm) needs a pair of scissors. Before making your cut, measure your piece of leather and mark with a pencil lightly.
Licorice and round leather are thicker and need a heavy-duty cutter. Below, we have a two cutter tools you can use to cut thicker side leather.
The Little Cut (TL0053) has a sharp angle blade that cuts leather by squeezing the handles together.
The Licorice Leather Cutter (A015862) has narrow handles, but cuts a perfect edge on your leather.
Pinch the handles to open the cutter. Slide the leather under the cutter, lining it up with the middle groove. Bring your blade down to wedge the leather in place. Grasp the cutter towards the front and squeeze down.
NOTE: Make sure to always have your angle blade facing down.
Leather Adhesive
We have two adhesive options to use when adding clasp ends.
Super New Glue
We like to use super new glue (A015821) for its quick drying and superior holding quality.
Precut your leather. Put 1-2 drops of super new glue inside your clasp ends and swirl the glue inside to cover the edges and corners. Insert your leather and let it dry lying down on a flat surface. Dry time should take a few seconds to a minute or two.
E-6000
E-6000 (A011455) is used on heavy-duty beading and crafting projects. While it has a slower drying time, E6000 is a good filler especially when filling excess space or gaps around your leather when inserted into the clasp.
Precut your leather. Scoop up some E-6000 with a toothpick. Swab the inside of your clasp end. Repeat if necessary. You want to apply enough to coat the inside of the clasp. Insert leather ends and let it dry for 12-24 hours lying on a flat surface. Wipe excess glue cleanly if it flows out after leather is inserted.
Extra Note: You can use rubber bands to keep licorice leather in a round shape as the glue dries. And always use E6000 in a well ventilated area.
Important Notes:
- Make sure the inside of your clasp end is clean and dry. This helps ensure that your leather end sits flushed inside the clasp. You can swab the inside with a toothpick or cotton swabs to clean any dust or moisture.
- If you find your leather cords have extra space in the clasp end, you can coil thin wire or beading thread like SuperLon thread at the ends before insert clasps.
- Leather is stored in spools, which in time will create a natural curve. Use the natural curve of your leather to wrap around your wrist. Licorice leather will have a slight curve which you will need to bend to create a round curve.
- Having more length of leather is better than not having enough. This is because the inner size of the bracelet may decrease depending if you are adding beads, charms or other embellishments to the leather. First, plan out your design. Next, without using glue, slide on clasp and test it on your wrist. Measure and cut your leather to the desired length. Glue other side of clasp and let dry.
- And always, always don’t glue your clasps until you’re sure you’ve added your design elements and your measurements are correct.
