Constructing a Leather Pen Sleeve

When a former coworker asks if you can do pen sleeves for hand turned pens for their new side project, you say yes!  The request here was to do something simple enough, but not skip on quality materials or construction, which should only enhance the customer's experience while using the expertly crafted pens.  Well, let's get started!  

Above is a photo of one of my thick card stock templates I made, and yes, the letter "E" designates how many versions I took to get it just right.  Honestly, I both love and hate the creative process. Mainly because in a time where everything is handed to you immediately and without effort, you become accustomed to demanding results and having this impatient outlook, even when crafting leather goods.  I love the process because it allows me to problem solve and look outside of the box for new was to use my creative talents.  But I hate the process sometimes because it turns me into this impatient and grumbly crafter wishing he could just skip to the end! Heh,  I just don't like wasting materials and time getting to the final result, but that's apart of the process, as is failure.  Nevertheless, this project turned out great and I'm very happy with the results.

Once I had the template where I wanted and had made a few samples leading up to the final version, I cut the remaining sleeves for the small batch run.  Here we're using Horween Leather Company's Natural Dublin leather, showcasing a lovely whiskey/honey color and accented pull-up when stresses are put into the leather by creasing the leather.

Then the stitch groove was placed on the proper edges and the pieces were glued up and set to dry.

Stitching holes were then set with a diamond pricking iron set on all pieces.

All stitched up with Topaz Gold medium weight waxed polyester thread. 

Then the sleeves were burnished and sealed with beeswax for a protective and professional look.

Here's the final result!

I hope you've enjoyed my construction of this leather pen sleeve project.  As far as leather pen sleeves go, this isn't crazy, nor do I feel like they should be anyways.  But I hope you've taken either something away from the process or gained some insight or motivation to complete your next project.  

If you're interested in one of these pen sleeves, please let me know and reach out via the Contact page.  Thank you!

Ted