Because I needed yet another hobby to soak up my free time, I decided to take a stab at making my own steampunk accessories. Recently, I finished up work on my first steampunk wrist bracer. Check it out!

Now, I’ll fully admit I know next to nothing about leathercraft or metalworking, and I’m sure there are about a hundred things that I didn’t do the “right” way on this project. I was also very limited in regards to the tools on hand; I live in a rather small apartment, so power tools aside from a cordless drill are pretty much an impossibility for me right now.

More or less everything here had be worked by hand – the brass plates, for example, were cut using a scribe and metal ruler, then sanded to take the rough edge off. The faux-antique compass is the only pre-bought part, and even that had to be modified for use in this piece. I do still need to properly finish the edges of the leather with some beeswax and possibly dye, too.

Anyway, I’m pretty happy with how the bracer turned out, even if I can see a few things I would do differently next time. And on the topic of next time, I’m looking at some patterns for a piece to wear on the left wrist. Onward!