Leather belt making - great crafting fun

I like making crafts and have done a variety of them with my kids over the years but I had never made anything with leather. Well, I've done some leather lacing projects with the girls but had never ventured in to the realm of leather stamping. So when the opportunity arose for the girls to take a class at Maine Line Leather in Lewiston to make leather belts, we jumped at the chance to give it a whirl.

Everyone - including parents - had a great time and learned a lot about leather crafting.

Making a leather belt is actually a very do-able project for kids 5 and up (with younger kids getting some assistance from a parent). The kids in the class the day we visited ranged in age from 5-15 and each one left with a unique belt and a request to take another class.

The kids were offered a couple of different width strips to make their belts and the option to use simple buckles or purchase more fancy options from the shop.

The instructor lead the kids through the steps of sizing the belt to their waist and then securing a buckle on the leather before the stamp designs were applied.

The younger kids needed a bit of assistance with the hole punching and buckle assembly but the stamping was no problem for them to do on their own.

In order to get the best embossed impression of the stamp, the kids were instructed to use a wet sponge to dampen the area. This needed to be done every few minutes to ensure the leather didn't dry out.

L. wants to make a pocketbook and G. thought a new collar for her cat would be fun to make. One of their friends plans to make a leather halter for her cow to match the belt she made. Fino would like the girls to make an arm band and sling to wear for target shooting. A source of creative inspiration, the possibilities seemed endless by the time we left the place.

There is not a formal class schedule at Maine Line Leather but the owners said they were happy to offer classes to groups when requested. So if you're one of those moms who work with youth groups who might be interested in this sort of project, just FYI.