You’ll need:
• Enough PU (or real) leather to fit your waist OR a belt you are willing to re-purpose
• A sharp needle
• Cotton thread
• A belt buckle (if not using one you already own). You’ll find a selection at Spotlight or visit some thrift stores and score an old belt for $2.
The material I used came from an old Helen Cherry blue PU wrap skirt I bought from a thrift store and never wore. The wrap style meant it had a perfectly sized tie and buckle already, all I had to do was cut it to size. So if you’re using a belt you already own, skip ahead to making the bow.
If starting from scratch, measure the section of material you want, making sure to leave some room to adjust the fit so you have the option of wearing it on your hips or waist. Whether you hem the sides for a neater finish is up to you, but I recommend using a sewing machine or an overlocker if you have access to one.
Place the buckle at one end. Fold the material over and hold in place with pins.
Sew to secure. Do excuse my imperfect hand sewing! Use a sewing machine if you prefer. The thread on the skirt was already pink (in case you were wondering about my colour choice) so I decided to keep it the same.
Cut a thin strip of material to use as the bow. Fashion the bow by crossing each end over the middle. Hold in place with a pin. I made a mini version as a practice run, which I may use on a necklace in the future.
Sew in the centre of the bow to secure.
Cut another thin strip and wrap it around the centre of the bow. Sew to secure
Before you attach the bow to belt, put it on and adjust it to the size you’d normally wear it. Now decide where you want to place the bow and make a mark on the back. It’s up to you how close you want the bow to the buckle.
Sew the bow in place. Try and hide the stitches by sewing towards the back part of the bow. Don’t be too worried about how the underside of the belt looks, it’s more important to hide the stitches at the front.
You’re done! Wear it any way you’d normally wear a waist or hip belt. With pants, any length skirt, shirts or dresses. This is a great rainy weekend project, it doesn’t take long and you’ll be oh so proud when you can tell the first person who admires it that you made it!
– Sarah Smith