Minimalist Wallet

Are you like me? Do you have scores of young men for whom you must produce holiday gifts? Do you want to give them something lovingly hand-made but fear they will find such objects deeply un-cool?

Then this post is pretty much a public service announcement. Take a look at the Elastic Wallet pattern at Thread Theory. It's not a free pattern, but it's the next best thing: only $1.50. I read about this pattern in Barbara Emodi's newsletter and it's like an answer to this Aunt's holiday prayer.

With 15 inches of knitted elastic and a scrap of leather you can sew up a cute little wallet which, at least in my eyes, is stylish enough to be acceptable to my 30-something nephews.

Here's a shot of the wallet in action. The little tab of elastic on the end is to allow you to attach the wallet to a lanyard, or to add a split ring so you can hook on your house key.

I used 2-inch wide black knitted elastic and some scraps of leather. The black leather turned out best because the cut edges of the fawn and gray leather were a different color, so my raggedy cuts looked extra messy. 

My sewing machine did not love this project. I think it objected to the layers of elastic more than to the leather. I did use a leather needle, but a few stitches were skipped. Even so, these little guys seem pretty sturdy.

I turned out eight little wallets yesterday morning. I got faster and neater with each one. Do I have eight nephews? No, I don't. But I'll be happy to have a little stash of these puppies ready for future gift-giving emergencies.

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.