Leather Vanity / Coin Tray - Mondrian Style

This is a useful square leather tray that can be used for coins or jewellery.
You can decorate it any way you like but I chose to go with a style similar to the painter Mondrian. This uses rectangular blocks of colour to make a bright cheerful piece.

Like many leatherwork projects - the make time is in the order of a couple of hours, but elapsed time is about a day as you need to allow drying time, for the paint and the finish.

For this project you will need:

1 printed pattern
Pencil
20cm x20cm piece of veg tanned leather approx 2mm thick
Scissors - good ones that will cut leather
Leather paints (Angelus / Lumiere or equivalent)
Pot for your water and diluted Resolene finish (Yoghurt pot or similar)
Piece of cardboard to protect your table while painting and coating with finish.
Permanent marker pen (Black)
Paint brushes
4 rivets (6mm), setting tool and hammer (or hand held riveting tool)
Chopping board or similar as a base for when you are setting your rivets if using a hammer.
Hole punch (2.5 / 3mm) - hand held or metal punch and hammer
Protective leather finish (Resolene acrylic or similar)
Beeswax
Wooden burnishing tool

Print out the paper pattern and cut it out. When printed on A4 paper the pattern piece should be 18cm x18cm.

Place the cut out pattern on the wrong side of the leather and draw round it using a pencil. Using a ruler will help keep those lines straight.

Carefully cut out the pattern from the leather using good scissors. Alternatively the straight edges can be cut on a cutting board using a ruler and sharp blade.

Using a ruler and the thick permanent marker pen mark out a random set of boxes similar to a Mondrian painting, Just make a random set of boxes - copy my layout or design your own.

Protect your work surface with a piece of cardboard before starting to paint.
Using leather paints - paint the "Mondrian" rectangles in a random selection of colours.
Colours I used are:
Angelus - Chilli Red, Flat White, Dark blue, Pacific Blue
Lumiere - Sunset Gold

TIP 1: Dilute the leather paint with a little water - it goes on more evenly. You may need more than one coat but the effect is better.

TIP 2: Rinse your brushes and change your water after each colour.

Leave the paint to dry - preferably overnight.

Using your black marker pen colour the edges of the leather black

Mix a small amount of Resolene acylic finish with water (half and half) in a pot.
Make sure your work surface is protected with a piece of cardboard and using a broad brush paint the Resolene on the back of the tray first. This sticks down any suede bits on the back.
Now turn over and paint the front of the tray with a very thin coat of Resolene.
Leave to dry for at least an hour.
The Resolene acrylic finish provides a water resistant coating.

TIP: Wash your brush and pot thoroughly immediately after using.

Wax the edges of the leather using a block of beeswax then rub the edges using a wooden burnishing tool until the edges look shiny and feel smooth.

Lay a ruler across the tray from notch to notch.
Carefully bend up the edge along the ruler.
Run your finger or the wooden burnishing tool along the back of the edge to get a nice crease.
Do this for all 4 edges.

Test your holepunch on a scrap piece of leather to find which hole is the right size for your rivets. This will probably be 2.5mm or 3mm
Punch a hole in each corner tab of your tray

Fold each corner tab round so that the top edges are parallel.
Mark with a pencil through the existing hole for where the matching hole needs to be.
Repeat for all 4 corners.
Now punch the matching holes using your hole punch

Use a chopping board to protect your surface when setting your rivets.
Line up your matching holes on one of the tray corners.
Insert the long part of your rivet from the back and cover with the rivet cap.
Make sure the curved metal base is under the bottom of your rivet.
Placed the curved post over the top of the rivet cap and hammer to close.
Repeat for all 4 rivets

(Alternatively you can use a hand held riveting tool if you have one of those)

Your coin / vanity tray is now finished.
Pop it on your dressing table or hall table and enjoy using it.