Tips for Cutting Corners

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Tips for Cutting Corners

Cutting corners in leather can be tricky if you don't have a corner punch, especially when the leather gets thicker. Scissors tend to angle and slide and leave a messy edge, although they will work on very thin leathers. We hope the following tips might help.

If you don’t have a corner template make your own by collecting up some objects to give a flat round smooth hard edge – old buttons, lids, plates work well.

Difference in methods between thin leather and thicker:

Thin leathers such as suede, lambskin nappa, metallics (up to around 0.5mm) use leather shears, or a rotary cutter.

0.5mm-2mm thinner leathers such as firm calf, veg tan calf, oil tanned calf or bullhide use a precision craft knife.

For thicker leathers you can still use the precision craft knife but start with a new blade and strop often, or use a click knife such as the Industrial Craft Knife.

Thicker leathers

With thicker leathers it is important that you cut straight down as you cut your curve to avoid a bevel to the edge. Use a good sharp knife and strop before starting. Don’t try to get through the leather in one move unless your knife is very sharp.

Blog - tips for cutting corners in leather

Template Method – cutting around a hard edge

* strop the blade – work with a good sharp blade and tip (see our Guide to Stropping)

* carefully work around the template ensuring it doesn’t move. Use light strokes and keep working through the layers, trying to go into the first cut channel made.

Strop the knife to aid cutting corners in leather

Straight line method

  • Light score the curve shape into
  • the leather.
  • Take a series of straight line cuts
  • Each at slightly different angles

Cutting a corner with straight lines

With this method on thicker leather, you might will need to lightly sand off the leather edge with a piece of fine grit sandpaper before edge slicking.

For a video tutorial watch our demonstration here:

Did you know we stock corner punches? - Click here to shop


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