A fun little leather heart keyring… just in time for Valentine’s Day. Makes for a cute handmade gift for your best friend, sister, mom, daughter, or maybe even a fun clue in a Valentine’s Day scavenger hunt… something along the lines of …the key to unlock my heart sounds perfectly cheesy to me, but also very romantic.
* Thin leather
* Key ring
* Chain
* Scissors
* Bead reamer
* Pink thread
* Beading pliers
* Draw or trace 1/2 of a heart onto the suede side of your leather. Fold your leather to cut a perfect heart.
* Use your first heart as a pattern to draw your second heart.
* Place your hearts together, suede side touching. Using a bead reamer or pen, mark a pattern of dots around the edge as a guide for your stitches.
* Begin first stitch on the inside to hide your knotted end within the heart.
* Using a simple overcast or hemming stitch, stich your hearts together, making sure to keep them aligned. Tip: use a thimble on your thumb to push your needle through the leathers then grab it and pull it through with your pliers.
* Pull cotton balls apart and fill your heart for padding.
* Close your stitch again, by hiding the knot inside.
* Separate a few links from your chain.
* Attach one end to your keyring.
* Create a new hole in the corner of your heart.
* Slip a link through and then attach it to the rest of the links.
