DIY leather-handled serving board

I love leather, not so much the fashion kind (read: leather pants), but leather interiors and accessories make me swoon! I think maybe it's the feel of it, the texture and that beautiful worn look soft leather interiors get after you've owned them for a while. Currently, in our home we have tan leather cushions, leather napkin rings (last week's blog post) and now a pretty wooden serving board with leather handles... and there are plenty more DIY projects ahead that will involve leather!

One of the great things about leather, is that (so far) I have found it really easy to work with. So hear's another little DIY project to add a little character to a sweet wooden serving board. I have a selection of wooden serving boards at home (who doesn't these days!), but this one I picked up from Kmart for a bargain... and who doesn't love a Kmart hack!

This DIY project came about after last week's DIY. I had a bit of leather strap left over after making my leather napkin rings so rather than throw it away I used every last bit of it for this.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

✖︎ Wooden serving board (I used a board about 2cm thick)

✖︎ 38mm leather strap

✖︎ Metal ruler

✖︎ Pencil

✖︎ Stanley knife

✖︎ Leather punch

✖︎ Screws (at least 30mm long)

✖︎ Impact driver or drill with screwdriver bit

HOW TO:

1//

Lay the leather strap face down on a flat surface. Using a pencil and ruler, measure two lengths, at least 10cm long, drawing a line across the width. I measured 11cm lengths with the leather strap that I had left over from the leather napkin rings project.

2//

Using the metal ruler and Stanley knife, carefully cut along the lines you've marked.

3//

Turn both leather straps over and, using the pencil and ruler, mark a spot 1cm in from one end, positioned at the centre of the width. Repeat at opposite end.

TIP: If you're using a board that is thinner than the one I used, you may need to change the length you measure from the end of your leather strap.

4//

Using the leather punch, make holes in the pieces of leather strap where you've marked at each end. Make sure that the punch size you use will allow for a hole big enough to fit the screws through.

TIP: I found it best to make a hole in one end of the leather strap then loop it over the other end to make sure that the mark you've made for the second punch hole will allow each end of the leather strap to match up neatly and evenly.

Set aside the two pieces of leather strap.

5//

Take your serving board and using a pencil mark where you'd like your first leather handle to be placed, then measure half way around the board to mark where the other leather handle should sit.

6//

Take a piece of the leather strap, loop it over so that the holes match up and place the screw through the holes. Place the leather strap with screws on the side of the board in a position that you marked in the previous step. Use the impact driver to screw the screws into the board and secure the handle.

Repeat with the other strap and screw, at the other pencil marking, to create the second handle.

TIP: Make sure that the bottom of your leather handle matches up with, or sits only slightly higher than the bottom of your serving board.