DIY Leather Pencil Case

DIY Leather Pencil Case  @themerrythought
A while back I saw a picture of this super cute leather pencil case on Pinterest. Sadly, it was a link that led no where. (Pinning people – please make sure your pins link correctly and stop pinning ones that go no where – drives this girl crazy!)  So I have no idea where that case was from, but it was the inspiration behind this one.
My Malacai is definitely a little artist. He spends hours drawing and coloring.  I thought this would be a perfect gift to make for my little artist this Christmas – a case for him to carry his pencils around in.  Perfect for taking along on car rides or plane rides :).  I decided to use mini colored pencils (Kid Made Modern from Target) so that the case would be small enough to throw in my purse and because Malacai loves tiny things.  It turned out to be a quick and simple project to make.  These would be perfect little stocking stuffers!
DIY Leather Colored Pencil Case @themerrythought
Leather Pencil Case Step 1
Leather Pencil Case Step 2
What you need:

  • leather
  • colored pencils or crayons
  • exacto knife
  • regular pencil
  • ruler
  • leather lace
  • pencil sharpener, optional

DIY Leather Pencil Case @themerrythought
DIY Leather Pencil Roll Case @themerrythought
DIY Leather Pencil Roll Case  @themerrythought
How to do it:

  • Cut piece of leather to size, leaving a little extra space at the top, bottom and sides of the pencils. Size will be determined by the size of your pencils and how many you want to include in your case (and whether you’ll be including a pencil sharpener).
  • Arrange your pencils and sharpener how they will lay in the case. (You will be making a mark with pencil on the leather, I found the mark showed up better on the “front” side of the leather (the smooth side), but remember that it will be reversed if you use the opposite side). You can use the ruler to get even spacing between the pencils if you like, I just eyeballed it.
  • Using a pencil and ruler, make two small dashes where you will cut a slit into the leather, measuring it to be centered according to the length of the pencil. I made my dashes about an inch apart – if you use regular size pencils, you should space your slits further apart so that there is enough leather to hold the pencil.
  • For the sharpener, just mark alongside the edges of the sharpener.
  • Using your exacto knife, cut slits into leather where you made your marks. Width of slits will depend on how big your pencils are. I just cut a small slit, tried sticking a pencil through, making the slit a little longer until the pencil fit through. You want the slit to be snug on the pencil, but not so tight it’s a battle getting the pencil in or out.
  • Repeat until you have all the slits cut.
  • On the side opposite your sharpener (or either side if you’re not putting one in), make a small hole just big enough for the leather lace to fit through. Push lace through the hole and tie a knot so that the lace can’t slip out of the hole. Roll up your pencil case (pencils and sharpener should be in it when doing this), and wrap leather lace around the case a few times. Once you have the case wrapped as desired, cut leather lace to size.
  • Secure case by tucking the lace into itself.

This also works great for crayons if you’ve got little ones not ready for pencils yet. Make a case to keep in your purse or diaper bag, along with a little notebook and you’ve got something to keep your little one occupied with the next time you’re stuck waiting somewhere.
DIY Leather Crayon Roll Case @themerrythought
I think Caitlin’s DIY Pencils would be fun to go inside this case and the “Leather” Bound Sketchbook would go perfect with this!  A complete DIY gift for the artist in your life.
DIY Pencils & Sketchbook - The Merrythought

Enjoy this weekend! Manda

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