Making Viking Belt bags - the old way...

This summer, I will be participating in Viking markets around Norway, so I had to prepare many items, as authentic as possible, to be able to display and sell them at the markets.

I started making leather crafts without having any prior experience in leather work, I just gave it a try a few years ago, and it worked! Now, I just learn as I go, and I believe I am doing quite well, and people who see and buy my work keep telling me so... which is the encouragement I need to keep improving and doing new things, expanding my horizons, in a way.

A while ago, I started making viking belt bags again. I had already made a few... but working alone, when you think you have done so much... you look at the number of hours used, and then you take a look at the number of items produced... and you see that it's never enough!

Each pouch can take from 3 to 18 hours of work, depending on the size, the dying technique, treating/softening the leather, the engraving and the sewing.

It all starts with designing a pattern then choosing the leather thickness that suits the type of bag I will be making. In the above picture, it's a 1,5 mm thick leather. 

 Carving the lock out of trees is something that I enjoy. I definitely don't like using plastic replicas.

It works perfectly.

 View of the inner part of the bag. Sometimes, I decide not to dye the leather on the inner side. It will darken eventually with age, which gives it extra magic!

 The handles, hand sewn on the back side of the bag.

 Close up of the stitches, all hand sewn!

And the final touch, my signature in runes!