When I start a project there is some direction I'm considering going. I'm going to keep it simple for now. let say we are making a check book cover outside to cover a ready made interior. Let me take you through some steps. first the measurements. for the length it should be the length of the interior. But for the width since there is a fold I want to close the interior as it would be when it is in a pocket or purse,. Using a sewing tape measure I measure the closed interior this will be slightly longer than if i measured it open.
Now i take these 2 measurements and transfer them to the back side of my leather hide. I use a 3 to 4 oz. tooling leather. Using a steel square and a steel ruler I lay out my measurements with a pen. After I am satisfied that everything is accurate and square I lay my cutting board under the marked lines. I prefer using a box cutter there are other cutting tools to use. I lay my steel ruler along my ink lines. i prefer to put the ruler inside the project so if the knife cuts off the ruler the project will non be ruined. Cutting carefully from corner to corner. If the project would have curved edges I would use my leather sheers to cut these cuts.
Once the project is cut out I apply masking tape, takes time to find the right tape something that can come off easily but strong enough to keep project from stretching. The next step is rounding off the edges using a tool called an edge beveler ( there are different sizes) I use the smallest size for this thinner leather. Using this tool rounds the face of the leather for a smoother finish. After the beveling is complete I wet the edges and use a round plastic wheel to smooth the bevel edges.
The next step is laying out the stitching lines and design area on the project. Wetting the leather ( This called casing the leather) using wing dividers I set the width to match the desired stitch point on my interior usually around 1/16 to 1/8 in from edges of the project. After this line has been traced around the edges I expand my wing dividers to around twice the width as before and trace another line around my perimeter. This is for Stamping a boarder and to designate the tooling area that I will be using.
Well time to get back to work I will expound on the more at a later time Check back in about a week or so.

We are very thankful to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ He has blessed us abundantly this year as all years in the past. Things don't always go our way, or the way we want them to go. But being people of the Lord, we accept thing as they are, knowing that His will for us will always manifest itself to us, as time goes by. Our family is grateful for the little things and big things, the bad things and the good, the sorrows and the joys, for we know that all these things let us grow in Jesus Christ. We wish all well and many blessings poured out on you and your families this holiday season.