Making a Shoulder Bag with A lot of Help of my Friends

Words can not express the gratitude I have for Dori Village(in Korea) for helping me take my braintainned leather and turning it into a shoulder bag and to Alex Foreman who taught me months before how to make natural leather.

I came as a Wwoofer to work on their farm for room and board in the second week of September. Wwoofing stands for Willing Workers on Organic Farms.

I brought some materials with me to work on in my free time.

I had with me a piece of leather that I had naturally tanned. (The process is a bit icky for some people, but it was a very natural way. Let's just say that it is called braintanning for a reason. The advantage of this method is that no chemicals are used in the whole process and the whole animal is used. 

Well, I took my leather piece out and the mother of the family was enthusiastic that I was interested in leather making. I discovered she was a leather maker at some point in her life and she was very happy to help me make my bag. 

Yangjae님(nim), (Nim, mean's sir. It's polite and necessary), her son translated for her mother and advised me that instead of cutting the leather, fold it. His mother showed me where to put the seam and how to use the tools she gave me. Instead of the needle and thread I was using, she gave me a hammer and aw to make holes so I finished the bag with those.

The measurements were taken and special leatherworking tools were given to me.

The final result. 

I sized the strap by checking it against my body.

I kept the flap uneven to give the bag a bit of an edgyness to it. 

It was a beautiful learning experience and I'm very happy with the result. This bag had been something in mind since July. It could have been the time that my needs were supposed to have been met by a good teacher. Yay for making things.