This year when brainstorming gift ideas, I worked really really hard to come up with some good stuff for dudes. The stuff I thought up is really appropriate for anybody, but they fit in those categories that men often show a lot of interest in – tech, gaming, travel. So, see? Anyone, but since most DIY projects land on the frilly side of the fence, anything that’s not made out of toile seems to count as for menfolk. Anyhoo, gender theory tangent aside, my point is that I’ve got some awesome stuff coming up that would be appropriate for dudes (as well as ladies) and today is the first of those projects.
I spent the last month traveling somewhere every week. And that much travel in such a short period of time will really highlight some of the frustrations in the process. A big one for me? Cords. They turn into a snarled mess in my bag, but I might need them at any moment so I can’t pack them away somewhere that won’t lead to me unpacking my whole bag every time I need my wallet. This cord roll solves that problem, and made out of leather and suede, it’s manly enough for the manliest man. It’s also simple enough you could make it during a commercial break.
You will need:
A piece of leather or suede cut to 11″ x 4″
A strap of leather about 18″ long
Eyelets
Exacto knife
Hole punch
Eyelet setter
Scissors
Once you get your piece of leather cut to the dimensions you’d like, you need to cut the slits in them. If you’re using my measurements, cut each slit 1″ apart, and 1 1/2″ long. Then do it again 1″ directly below the first slits. I used an exacto knife to make my marks and then came back with scissors to get all the way through the leather.
Since there are no seams and no sizing, you can make this roll any size you want and it will work. My sizes were based on what was available at my craft store, and what I thought looked about right. SUPER scientific.
Then it’s just a matter of coming up with a closure. I used my Crop-O-Dile to punch a hole through the leather strap and the edge of the leather body piece, and then used it again to press an eyelet into place. My leather strap was pretty thick, so I found it helpful to use a longer than average eyelet, like the ones Darice sells. But if your strap is thinner than mine a regular eyelet will work just fine. They only trick is to make sure your strap isn’t crooked when you install it, because once that eyelet is in place it’s not going anywhere.
Bundle up your cord and slide it through the tab you’ve made in your leather
To close it, just roll the leather up and then use the leather strap to wrap around it a few times, tucking the end under the loops you’ve made.
I made sure to make extras of this project so that everyone in my house wouldn’t be fighting over it every time we went anywhere. And really, it took so little time that I could probably crank these out for everyone in line with us at the airport. It would be a way better use of my time than digging through everything I own for the right charger.
