Phone Home Leather Smartphone Case from Busy Girls Guide to Sewing

Measure your phone, then add 5mm (1/8in) to both the length and width measurements to arrive at the dimensions you will need.

Cut your leather, felt and tear-away stabilizer into 20cm (8in) squares. Cut two of leather, two of felt and one of tear-away stabilizer. You might find it easier to cut your leather using a leather or craft knife and cutting mat.

With a pencil, sketch a rectangle (according to the dimensions calculated in step 1) onto the tear-away stabilizer. Add a simple line drawing of your desired motif into the rectangle, positioned just where you want it.

Layer one piece of felt on the bottom, one piece of leather in the middle and the tear-away stabilizer with your drawing on it on the top and secure the fabrics into your padded embroidery hoop.

Using a sharp large-eye needle and coloured embroidery thread, stitch over the outline of your drawing using a decorative running stich. Alternatively, stitch over your drawing outline using your desired decorative stitch on your sewing machine fitted with a leather needle.

Once you have finished stitching your design, un-hoop your fabric and layer the stitched pieces together with the remainging pieces of felt and leather so that the leather is on the outside.

Sew the pouch along the three edges of the rectangle you have drawn onto the tear-away stablizer leaving an opening at the top.

Place your pouch onto the cutting mat. With a leather knife or craft scalpel, trim the pouch along the edge of a metal ruler leaving 2mm (1/8in) at the bottom and on each side and 1cm (3/8in) at the top. Make sure not to cut through the stitches holding the pouch together.

Finally, tear away the stabilizer to reveal your stitching on the leather. Use a pair of tweezers to remove any small pieces around the intricate parts of your embroidery.