Minimal Card Holder

This is my first instructable, I hope it will be clear enough to follow. please forgive the bad photos. Carrying a wallet in the back pocket can be a pain and since I never actually carry cash in my wallet only the necessary identification cards and insurance information, I thought I would make a small card holder that I could carry in my front pocket or jacket pocket.

The first thing to do is to get a card ( credit/ gift card or whatever is handy) a ruler and a sheet of copy paper, construction paper or thin cardboard.

Trace around the card then measure 1/2 inch off of one side ( I measured 1/4 inch, drew a line then measured 1/4 inch again). Place the edge of your card on the mark that you just made and trace around the card again making sure that it is even with the first tracing. Now measure 1/4 inch from the outside edges and frame the drawing. Now measure 2 7/8 inch from the bottom on each side and make a mark. Draw a line from this mark up to the line from the edge of the card then do the same on the opposite side. Now you are ready to cut out the pattern.

trace the pattern onto the backside of your leather ( I used 2 oz veg tan) then cut the leather. You will need two pieces of the leather. Using dividers adjusted 3/16 inch, mark along the sides and the bottom edge of each piece of leather. This is used as a guide when you punch the holes to sew it all together. Now, using an edging tool, trim the edges all the way around the leather. If you are going to dye the card holder, now is the time to do it.

Now that the dye is dry it's time to put it together. Apply a thin layer of contact cement about 1/8 inch wide on the outside edge of the top piece and the matching area on the bottom piece(see notes in photos). When the glue is dry, using the line you made earlier with the divider as a guide, take your punch and hammer and punch the needed holes to sew the card holder together. when the first side is finished, turn it over and glue, punch holes and sew together. I used a sewing awl to sew this together . If you have never used one , there is a great tutorial on the Tandy Leather website. http://www.tandyleather.com/en/using-the-sewing-aw... When you are finished with the sides it is time to form the card holder. I know, the bottom is still open, it will be easier to sew together after the forming. Dip the card holder into a pan of water for just a few seconds. Using your fingers, make sure the holder is squared up then flatten. I used some scrap leather to protect the holder and clamped it together and let it dry. When it is dry you can punch the holes and sew the bottom. When you are finished sewing just seal it up with leather sheen and you are ready to go.