I’ve had embroidered leather on my mind for some time now.

I bought these iron on embroidered patches in Hong Kong for this project and was inspired by Gucci’s over-the-top embroidered and embellished pieces.

How To:  Embroidered Leather Dress DIY

*Important TIP*

If you buy faux leather or pleather you cannot iron on the patches, it will melt the pleather.

Nor can you use the iron on patches on leather as it will crack the leather.

 

Poo!

So much for the simple version of this DIY.

 

Originally I tried to use glue to adhere these patches…that didn’t work either.

During the photoshoot I noticed a few black specks on the ground around me. Those were the rhinestones popping off like popcorn.

You can even see where a few had popped off at the bottom of the dress on this photo.

 

Insert very unhappy face here.

I noticed later that if I just lifted the edges of the patches a bit they also popped right off.

So this is what I learned…

Glue is essentially useless on pleather.

Be prepared to spend some serious time sewing these patches on by hand or with a machine if you are very skilled.

I lifted all the rhinestones off and replaced them with serious metal studs and sewn on jewellery rhinestones.

I also sewed on square sequins by hand. I machine and hand stitched the patches on and I have the pin cushion poked fingers tips to prove it.

This thrifted pleather dress was a real labour of love!

What I thought would be a quickie DIY turned into a long term dedication of time and energy.

I wore this on my recent blogger meet-up with Sherry, Sue and Mel in Vancouver.  We were at Talize thrifting here.

 

Here I am showing off the dress on the sky train on the way back into the city.

Never let it be said that I turn down a dare! Ha ha!

Have you ever started a DIY project that turned out to be much more labour intensive than originally thought? Did you complete it? Or give up?

 

If you liked this embroidered project make sure to see the recent embroidered blazer DIY, the embroidered bomber jacket DIY, my painted jeans DIY and my fun floral clutch DIY.

 

 

Linking up with the lovely Patti over at Visible Monday.

 

 

Links à la Mode, June 15th

• Aesthetic Distance: The Pros And Cons Of The Gig Economy
• A Mused Blog: Burberry Beauty Liquid Lip Velvet
• April Was Here: Wedding Guest Attire: Cocktail or Semiformal
• Blushing NoirOPI California Dreaming Nail Polish Collection Swatches + Review
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• Everyday Starlet: How to Shape Eyebrows at Home with Tweezers + How to Grow Eyebrows
• Five Foot Nothing Shopping: Timeless Summer Fashion
• Hampton Roads Fashion & Style: Classic Shift Dress x Triangle Cutout Sleeves
• Have Clothes, Will Travel: Sydney Shopping Spree
• Hello Alley: Ruffled Pink Perfection Casual Chic for Summer
• Lil Miss JB StyleTravel Diaries: Barcelona
• Style Splash: A Skirt with Sleeves
• Suzanne CarilloHow To: Embroidered Leather Dress DIY
• Tales of Two Blog: The Power of Perfume Featuring Unique Fragrances
• The Curvy Edit: Palm Springs Vibes – One Set Two Ways

SPONSOR: Amazon’s Shopbop Fleur du Mal, Calvin Klein Underwear, VETIVER Dresses, We Are Kindred, Vatanika, Emma Pake, Hobo Bags, Loafers, Floral Lace Dresses, Men’s Stussy