DIY Leather Studded Boot Chains
I've always seen boot chains in photoshoots and online stores but the shoes they come on always look ugly and the chains are never really what I want. So I decided to make my own. I made a pair here but I wanted to make a leather pair. They look hard to make and the tutorial is long but I made it quiet detailed so it can be easily followed. With the right tools it took me less than 2 hours. I must admit that this project did take a bit of planning and it wasn't all stuff I had lying around. I did have a shopping list and waiting for the pieces to arrive in the mail was annoying but I wanted to make something that was good quality so I had to be patient.
So here are the materials you need:
(the lengths are to the size of my shoes, add 2cm extra to allow for different shoe sizes. Its better to be too long than too short, you can always cut some off)
- 2 x strips of leather 6cm x 24cm
- 2 x strips of leather 3cm x 18cm
- leather glue, you can buy this at any leather or craft store
- 14 pyramid studs, I buy all my studs from studsandspikes.com
- 4 flat top cone studs, I found mine on ebay
- 4 D-rings, also bought from ebay. Key rings would work just as easily though.
- 130cm of chain, I bought some key chains from a discount store, use your imagination
- 4 sets of snap studs, I found mine in a discount store by accident but most craft and fabric stores will stock them.
And the tools you need:
- hammer
- hole punch
- stanley knife
- paint brush or just a stick of some sort
- 2 pairs of pliers
1. Firstly take the 2 wider pieces of leather and fold one third over. Use the paint brush to paint the leather glue on then fold the leather over and flatten it lightly with a hammer. Cover the end of the hammer with a piece of thick fabric so you do not damage the leather. An elastic band will hold the fabric easily.
Then mark the centre of the double layer with a white pencil, mark dots 2cms apart until you have 7 dots. Use a ruler so the studs are in a straight line, mine ended up a little wonky haha whoops, I'm only human though, everyone makes mistakes, how else do we learn? :-) Use a hole punch to make holes for the studs then screw the studs in. Repeat this process with the other piece. Leave to dry.
2. Now take the thinner pieces of leather and spread the glue across the inside, fold both edges to the centre and glue then hammer as above. Repeat again with the other piece of leather. Leave to dry.
3. This is what you should have now. Take the studded pieces and fold the edge to cover the stud bottoms (this will protect your shoes from damage) hammer the edges as best you can around the studs.
4. Read the back of the snap stud packet for how to put them together, they are quite simple. The packet should also come with the little tools you need.
5. This is what you should end up with. Take the D-rings off after this, it makes the next steps easier.
6. Take the small strips and wrap one end of each piece around the curved part of the D-ring. Use the stanley knife to make a slit to insert the flat top stud. Some might be screw back so in that case use the hole punch, if its like mine open the prongs and flatten them across the back.
7. Attach it back to the studded piece.
8. Wrap it around the boot or shoe your planning to wear it with to ensure its going to fit. Cut the leather to the correct length and repeat step 6 on the open end of each piece.
9. This is what you should have now.
10. Put it on your boots or shoes to double check the size. When I put mine on they were a little bigger than I had liked so I had to readjust them. If you need to adjust, do it by redoing 1 side of the back piece.
11. Then using the pilers, add the chains into the D-rings.You can add as many chains as you want.
This is my final finished project. I love them, I must admit I was quiet proud to show them off. They turned out exactly as I had hoped.
Can't wait to see what everyone thinks. Also I'd love to see photos if anyone makes these. xx
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