What To Do With Belt Blank Off Cuts.

[Handstitched]

G'Day from a very hot Western Australia, and a belated Happy New Year to all.

Its been quite a while since I have been on here, but quite some time ago I was wondering what to do with the belt blank off cuts besides turning them into book marks , wrist bands etc.

I did experiment joining two off cuts together by skiving the ends and glueing them together to make one long piece,( I also tried rivets) I wasn't happy with the way those experiments looked...needless to say....that failed !!

But then I came across some 'belting dee's', made of solid brass ( no doubt you may already have heard of them?, just keep in mind I am still learning), however, I can't find any in nickle plate or stainless steel....yet.

They came in 3 sizes 25mm, 38mm & 32 mm and approx 2.5mm thick, and slip nicely through a standard size belt loop on a pair of jeans, as they are just the right size and shape and thickness, and being brass, look quite nice too.

I have just made 3 different styles of belts to experiment with, and so far so good, they do look quite good.

They are a 3 piece belt, the billet end , centre piece, and the buckle end.

When I am finished, I'll take some pics and post them on here.

Anyway, all the very best to all, and I'll post those pics hopefully in the near future.

HS

[Gawdzilla]

Lady I know cuts them into odd shapes and puts something on each one, then links them into chain for hair bands, necklaces, etc.

I've used them for mosaic's, glued various colored bits to wood to make pictures. You can do this with thin wood to make unique coasters as well. You can use the smallest of scraps for that kind of thing.

You can also cut them into fancy shapes and glue them to the inside of a lampshade to make a shadow show.

[Gawdzilla]

Another thing I've been doing with stray bits of leather is to glue them onto a bottle cap. I've been experimenting with dyes and when I get one I like I put the "formula" on the bottle with an Avery stick-on label covered with tape to keep it from being dyed over. Then I stick a bit of leather on the cap and dye it with the contents. I can easily see the color I'm looking for and I can compare a new batch to the old one before I put it on my project by dying another bit for comparison purposes.

[Historybuff]

Use a large or medium leather punch and make leather buttons. These are great for a friend who knits or historical reenactors.

[pete]

place you makers mark on it an make a keychain fob. Give it free with your belt- you will get referrals and repeat business!

I have one myself on my car keys- I write my phone umber on the back with a sharpie.

[Handstitched]

G'Day again,

Thanks for the responses and the great ideas.

I have taken some pics of the belts I've made using the off cuts, as well as the brass 'dees' that I used.

My leather working skills may not be up to the standard of a more experienced leather worker, but you'll get the idea.

I do sometimes make key rings, fridge magnets etc from the off cuts, but making these 3 piece belts, I can get a much higher return from them, and being 3 piece, the style, pattern and colour combinations are endless.

Enjoy:thumbsup: