I decided to try my hand at the diary case/shot pouch on pages 34-37 of Jim Webb's book on shot pouches and powder horns. This is my interpretation of that bag and I made it for myself. I doubt anyone would pay me to make such a small and expensive bag.
I made a few changes. I only put one extra layer of leather in the flap instead of three and only created one front pocket instead of two. This reduced the number of layers of leather I had to sew through to a max of five. I also used 2 oz veg tan cow hide instead of buckskin. I used 6 oz veg tan cow hide for the strap.
It took a while to work out the pattern, but the bag actually went together much easier than I expected. I cut out the leather very precisely making sure all the mating edges (and punched holes) lined up exactly. I punched all the holes for the embroidery and used my own design. Once the embroidery was done, I glued the pieces together along the edges using white glue. I think this was the key to being able to easily sew it all together; that and the precise matching of the holes.
The bag is stained with vinegar and iron. That was done right after the parts were cut out. I just put some Mink oil on it once it was all done.
By the way, the bag finished up about 7" x 7".
I don't think the bag turned out too bad. I will take better photos once I am finished oiling it inside and out. It still has to dry out a bit from turning. I always soak my bags in warm water to turn them. That also dissolves most of the glue I used.
Let me know what you think.
