leather vests custom handmade braided

leather vests with braiding

I have custom designed and braided several hundred of these handmade leather vests like these. I have been making them for many years. This leather is often called moccasin cowhide or chap leather. This non-toxic American made leather is about 4 ounces in weight/thickness.

I have individually designed and personally handmade each of these vests. Everything on my web site is truely hand made - no electricity is used in its construction. Patterns that I have designed are laid out and traced, holes are punched one at a time, I cut the laces and then it is braided together. Any sewing used is done by hand. Most all are made with personal features that make them quite different from one another if not truely one of a kind custom pieces. People describe to me what they would like and I can usually accomodate them. None of them have a lining as they are very durable and would far outlast most any lining I would put in them. The cost of these vests can be $400-$500 or more - larger sizes, many / elaborate features, etc. may affect that cost.

I make them with (or without) several different features such as lapels, yokes on the front and/or back. Different lengths, too. People like pockets.

There are tips near the bottom of this page about how to order one.

I encourage you to read my guest book to see what others have said about the leathers they have purchased from me.

There are lots of larger views by clicking on the thumbnails. More vests are added to this page every once in a while.

Things to consider when ordering a vest:

(1) Size - a chest measurement. This measurement is better than a jacket and suit coat size as those sizes can vary from one manufacturer to the next. A good way to assure the best fit is if a person already has a good fitting vest that can be sent to me to get a pattern from - alterations to that vest can be made.

(2) Colors of leather that I offer - Swatch Card

(3) length- normally a measurement from the base of your neck to the middle of your belt.

(4) Do you want lapels or yokes on the front? There are close up pictures of lapels on several different pages.

(5) Do you want a yoke on the back? A pointed one, double pointed, or one that is straight across the back.

(6) Pockets- Most often I use a patch pocket and recently I started attaching them in a new way that can be seen here. Often these are built with a flap. These patch pockets also have an pocket on the inside - in the same location using the same holes. I also use what I call a slit pocket. I have also built variations of this slit pocket with a flap over it. I'll probably inquire as to the angle a person would like these slit pockets to be on the vest.

There is another style of pockets that I build and call panel pockets. It is made on the lower inside of the front panels.

(7) Vest closures, fasteners, ties, snaps, or a large brass zipper are pictured on this page: leather vest closures

(8) When these vests are going to be used to wear over a jacket, let me know and I will make the arm holes a bit larger and the back of the neck a bit lower to accommodate for this.

(9) I make vests with what I call a draft flap (a longer back). Usually, I make them 3" longer. Recently I changed the line that draft follows - here is the previous way I've done ...and often still do.

I consider every vest I've made a one of a kind. Even if I had an order to build two vests exactly alike - there would be differences.