DIY: No-Sew Leather Bow Necklace

Leather bow necklace DIY

I had a vision of a leather bow that was also a necklace. When I tried to make this vision a reality, it was sooooo much easier than I had even imagined. We are talking like 15 minutes, 20 max.

no-sew leather bow necklace

How cute does Colleen look with this sweet bow necklace around her beautiful neck? So grab a scrap of leather (or pleather, or oil cloth, or canvas, or velvet, or or or…) and your hot glue gun and come see how to make a no-sew bow necklace.

how to make a no-sew leather bow necklace

You will want to whip up a million bow necklaces to drop in the stockings of every style-loving accessory addict you know. Find out how to make a no-sew bow necklace after the jump…

First, gather your materials. You’ll need a scrap of leather (I used leftover bronze leather scraps from my DIY leather baby shoes with free pattern tutorial, which I can’t even believe was almost three years ago, and also proves that my desire to hoard every scrap of everything occasionally pays off), scissors, pliers, a wire cutter, a hot glue gun, an awl, some chain, jump rings, and a clasp.

Cut your leather scrap. We did ours 9″ by 4″ for a bow about 4″ X 2″. I think it’s cute big like this, but a smaller one would be sweet as well. Now fold each long end of the scrap into the center and hot glue in place.

Please note, I am keenly aware that I am overdue for a manicure. But you have to admit you are impressed with the stamina of my four-week-old gel nail polish (color= “skyfall” by OPI, so it’s kind of like I am wearing a little bit of Daniel Craig on my hands, right? Why would I remove that?). Actually, I am starting a new trend called the “reverse french mani.” Ha.

So, anyhoo, back to our bow. Now it should look like this from the back (sort of like in the how to make bias tape post):

Now take a short edge and fold into the center, and glue in place.

Repeat with the other short end.

It should look like this now:

Now we want to start creating our bow. Dab some glue directly in the center of the front of your bow.

Now fold the bow in half, pinching the center until the glue hardens (apologies for the blurry pic).

Now we are going to pinch the edges in to create our bow shape. So dab glue on the back of the bow on either side of the center fold.

And pinch the bow in place until the glue hardens (this is the back view).

Cut a thin strip of leather (ours is half inch wide) long enough to wrap around the center of your bow.

Now wrap it around your bow, with the ends of the strip to the back (wrong) side of the bow, so the front of your bow looks all purty like this:

Hot glue the strip in place on the back of your bow and trim any access leather from your center strip.

Now our bow is complete! Make your husband where it to work as a bowtie. The end.

Wait no, we are not stopping there. Let’s turn it into a necklace.

At one top corner of your bow, pierce the leather with an awl (through the back flap of the bow towards the back of the bow at an angle):

If your awl is not sharp enough, you can start by making a pinhole, then slide the awl down through it to widen the hole. Just be careful not to rip your bow open.

Use your pliers to open up a jump ring and insert it through the hole.

Repeat on the other side of the bow.

Cut your chain and attach it to the jump rings on one side, then do the other side. You may want to hold your bow up to your chest to measure your chain lengths first.

Now use your pliers to attach your clasp hardware (and/or more jump rings, depending on what type of clasp you are using, we used a lobster clasp on one side and a jump ring on the other):

And you’re done!
Leather bow necklace DIY

Wear it with crafty pride.
diy no-sew leather bow necklace

Or stay awhile and make a glittery version! Find out how later today. Come back and see!

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9 Comments

Arianna

Hello there! ^^
I actually made one myself (with sturdier leather, so I just cut the outer shape of the bow without folding it like you did with yours)….but it’s still uncomplete because I can’t seem to decide on the lenght of the chain.
I’m afraid it would look too big if the chain is too short…or too weird if it just lays on the chest (it’s not ‘flat’)…
sigh… yours looks so much cuter… ^^’

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