How to Make a Tote With Leather Handles

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Learn how to make a tote bag with leather handles. It’s a quick and easy sewing project that is perfect for carrying your essentials!

These tote bags with leather handles are perfect for any fun outings you’ll be going on. I love putting a couple of essentials in my tote bag when I take my kids to the splash pad for the afternoon.

I love carrying a fiction book about sewing to read while my kids play. Let’s learn how to make a tote bag with leather handles! This is such a great beginner sewing project!

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The simple design of the bag makes the print and leather show off. I made one bag with a subtle pattern and high contrasting leather, and I made one bag with a busy print and a subtle leather. I love the contrast of leather against the canvas fabric.

This tote bag is so useful! I use it for everything! It’s one of my favorite back to school sewing projects that I’ve done! If you love tote bags you can also make a mermaid tail tote bag!

I got these two gorgeous canvas fabrics from Sewing Studio. I taught these bags in a class and Sewing Studio sponsored the class. There are lots of fun canvas print fabrics available. You can use the code “HEATHER” to get 10% off your next order.

I wanted to use a small piece of leather for this tote bag to keep it affordable. I used these embossed Craft Cuts from Tandy Leather because they are pretty and affordable. It does mean you have to have seams in the middle of your straps, but it’s hard to see.

Another bag that is really fun to make is to upcycle jeans into a tote bag or a tote bag with a fold up pocket. Bags are so fun to make! Here’s a great list of DIY tote bags you can make!

How to make a tote with leather handles

Supplies

• 1/2 yard of canvas fabric*
• 9×11 piece of leather
• Sewing tools
• Leather sewing machine needle*
• Optional: gluestick* for holding leather together instead of pinning

1. Gather your supplies. 

   

2. Cut your canvas 33 inches wide and 18 inches tall. Make sure you cut off both selvedges.
3. Cut the leather into 1 inch strips.
4. With WRONG sides together sew around three sides of the canvas leaving a short side unsewn.
   • We are going to sew the bag with a French seam.

     

5. Trim seam allowances to 1/8″.
6. Turn wrong side out and press seams flat.
7. Sew around the same three sides with a 3/8″ seam allowance.  You now have a nice enclosed seam.

   

8. Line up the bottom seam with the side seam at the inside corners and sew 2″ in perpendicular to the seam. You will be creating a little triangle.

   

9.  Fold the top of the bag once at 1/4″ and then again at 1″.
10. Press and pin.
11. Sew around the top edge 7/8″ from the top fold.

    

12. Add a tag on your hem if you want.

    

13. Change your needle to a leather sewing machine needle.
14. Take the eight strips of leather. Sew two together on the short side with a 1/4″ seam allowance. Do this to the other six strips.
15. You now have four strips of leather. With the WRONG sides of the leather together sew two straps together making a double sided strap. Offset the seams so there’s less layers of leather to sew through.
16. Do it to the other two straps. 

    

17. Trim the edges of the straps so that they are all the same length.
18. Sew the edges of the straps in a square onto the hem of the bag. The straps should be in the middle of the bag and six edges apart.
    

    

Have fun pairing leather and canvas for the perfect tote! Happy tote-making and toting all your stuff!