DIY Box: The Ultimate Crossbody

The Ultimate Crossbody - your new favourite handbag, made byyou.
With this design you have the perfect bag for every occasion. The eye-catching click buckle makes the Crossbody a real eye-catcher: casual or elegant, with chain, statement strap or leather strap.

Size and details

The crossbody has the following dimensions: 26cm wide, 16cm high, 7cm deep (at the deepest point). For orientation: It fits exactly a normal 0.5l bottle, a large wallet and some small items. There is also a 20cm wide inner pocket.

Carrying options

The sky is the limit! You can choose from: Link chains in short or long, statement belt to be made in your individual length (NEW: also available in extra wide as a real statement belt!) and leather belts in three different lengths. The price of the DIY box includes the chains or the normal statement belt. If you prefer a different wearing option, you will be charged the difference. 

• Leather parts in the colour and texture of your choice, cut out and stitched with seam holes
• Tailored reinforcement parts made of leather fibre fabric 
• Cut canvas lining parts in the colour of your choice 

Metal accessories in light gold or silver

• Two-piece click buckle for fastening to the flap and the front of the bag, including screws and fastening braces
• Key for the click buckle to lock the click mechanism 
• D-rings for attaching your chosen carrying option
• A wearing option of your choice: 
  • necklace with carabiners, long (110cm) to wear around the neck 
  • necklace with carabiners, short (60cm) to wear over the shoulder
  • Statement strap with strap of your choice (1,25cm, can be shortened) in two widths 
  • Leather belt short (54-70cm) to wear over the shoulder 
  • Leather belt long (88-128cm or 129-186cm) to wear around the neck 

Supplementary materials & tools

• Sewing thread in the matching leather colour
• Saddler's needles with blunt point 
• Document clips to hold the leather pieces together while sewing 
• Leather glue for bonding lining and leather
• Brush for applying the glue 
• Edge colour in the colour of the leather
• Basecoat as primer before colour application 
• Edge roller pen for applying edge colour and basecoat
• Abrasive sponge to roughen the edge between applications of the edge paint (for better adhesion of the individual layers)
• Mini screwdriver for fixing the flap screws 

Step-by-Step Guide & Videos

• Download link to the detailed, illustrated step-by-step instructions for making your crossbody bag
• Download link to the detailed instructions for the basics of leather processing (German, English, French) 
• Access links to our three explanatory videos for the basics of leather processing (German and English)

All the materials in the DIY box have been carefully selected and tested by us in advance. When selecting them, we pay attention to high quality, but also to easy handling, so that beginners can also get along well with the DIY box.

The leather 

We source our chrome-tanned cowhide from an Italian tannery whose customers include major Italian luxury leather goods manufacturers. The chrome tanning ensures that your leather accessories are durable and resistant to scratches, water and other everyday influences. With a smooth leather version and a grain embossed leather, there's something for everyone. You can read more about our leather here read more. 

The other materials 

The metal parts create great highlights and turn your leather accessory into a real masterpiece. You can choose between two different colours, light gold and silver! The parts can be easily attached either by hand or with the included tool. 

Our edge colour comes from a renowned Italian manufacturer who supplies producers of luxury leather goods from all over the world. When it comes to edge colour, high quality is very important. On the one hand, they must adhere well to the surface and be resistant to scratches and impacts, but on the other hand, they must also retain their flexibility and not break at curves or bends. We mix the edge colour according to special formulas, exactly matched to the leather colours offered here.

Leather sewing thread is another material that is particularly important for the quality of your leather accessories. The special leather sewing thread is a twisted polyester thread that is both durable and perfectly colour-coordinated with the leather you have chosen. The enclosed beeswax piece allows you to wax the thread before sewing. We source the yarn on large rolls and have it unwound onto small cards in a workshop for the disabled, so you have exactly the amount you need. 

The tool 

Because we want you to be able to get started as soon as you receive your box, we have included all the tools you need. They are so easy to use that no additional explanation is needed. By the way, the tools are still used in traditional leather crafting. 

The preparation of the parts & the instructions  

Of course, high-quality materials that match each other are only half the battle! The preparation of the materials and detailed step-by-step instructions are also important to make your very own leather accessories with fun and without uncertainty.

We prepare the leather parts with holes so that you only have to glue the parts to the lining and "thread" the yarn through the prepared holes. A successful result guaranteed! In our video tutorials we explain all the necessary basics of leather crafting and our download instructions describe step by step what you need to do when to make your accessories. 

With the Ultimate Crossbody, you can apply different personalisation options. The community's favourite is definitely our monogram embossing.

Make your leather accessories unique and choose from the following options:

• Colour of the monogram: foil in silver or light gold, or a blind embossing without foil
• Position on the bag (bag body, inside pocket, statement strap) 
• Text or motif, e.g. made by me lettering> depending on the position you select, the appropriate options are displayed

If you choose an individual monogram, it will always be in Times New Roman font in capital letters with a font height of 8mm. You can choose from capital letters of the entire alphabet A-Z, including umlauts. You can also choose from the following symbols (simply copy here and paste into the text field above): ✈︎ ♥ ★ # & @ ? ! + - and a dog's paw. To select the dog paw, please enter the character § in the text field.If you would like to order more than one embossing in different positions, you can tick the box "Select another embossing" and select the personalisations again. Tip: A monogram embossing on the leather parts of the statement belt also looks very cool! The embossing is individually applied to the leather in our production using a machine. The letters are clamped into the machine, which is heated to over 100 degrees and the letters are then pressed into the leather with or without foil.

Want even more personalisation options?

You can also use the trapunto technique or rivets on your crossbody bag! We will explain exactly how the individual techniques work in the corresponding instructions. 

Our DIY box is designed so that you can make your Ultimate Crossbody without any previous knowledge of leather crafts. All the materials you need are included in the box, so you don't have to buy anything else (we assume you have a pair of scissors at home ☺️). 

The highlight of our DIY boxes:

The pieces are already cut and have holes for sewing. This way we can guarantee that everything fits together perfectly and you can sew the bag by hand without much effort. Also with the metal accessories, we make sure to only use parts that can also be attached by laymen without special machines - and are of course well fixed. We often work with small screws (the screwdriver is also included in your DIY box). As soon as you have put together your DIY box, you will receive an email from us with the order confirmation and access to the instructions and basic videos. You can then watch these in advance or when your DIY box arrives. And then you can get started!

Why are we so sure about that?

An important note: 

As a rough guide, the Ultimate Crossbody takes approx. 7 - 8 hours to make (including drying times for the edge colour). 

Sounds long? 

It is! But in the end, that's what distinguishes handmade things from almost fashion. Many of our customers say that they have a completely different appreciation for their handmade products and are incredibly proud to own a 100% individual and handmade handbag. And a little heads up: many customers enjoy the production so much that it rarely stays with just one bag ☺️. So if you want some me-time, a balance to your everyday life or some creative time with friends and you enjoy being creative and learning new techniques, then the time will fly by.Furthermore, you can divide the steps into different parts, for example, you can make the flap on one evening, the inner bag on another, etc. Another advantage is that it doesn't take up much space and you can pack and unpack your DIY box whenever you have time.