Looking for a last-minute gift you can whip up in an afternoon? This hand-painted leather key chain is the perfect way to say thanks to the dads in your life.
For this project, you’ll need the following:
• leather strip
• gold rivet, setter and anvil
• awl or rotary punch
• mallet
• key ring
• gold acrylic paint
• scissors or x-acto knife
1. You can start by buying a pre-cut leather strip or do what I did and cut one down from a piece of scrap leather lying around. I used my favorite pair of very sharp scissors to cut a strip that was by 5/8″ by 9 1/2″, but you can make it wider or longer depending on the look you want.
2. Next, fold the leather strip in half, leaving one side about 3/4″ longer, and fold that side over the other.
3. Using a rotary punch or awl, punch a hole for the rivet through all three pieces of overlapping leather, making sure to center the hole.
4. Add the key ring to the folded-over part of leather.
5. Set the rivet using your anvil, setter and mallet (here’s a good how-to video if you’ve never used rivets before—it’s super easy!) and your keychain is assembled.
6. All that’s left to do is paint the bottom half of your key chain. I taped off the top so that I would have a clean line, but you can freehand it if you’re looking for a more unfinished look. Let the paint dry and wrap it up for the perfect Father’s Day gift!
