The Look of Leather

I love the look of leather. It is distressed. It can be vintage or masculine, or swanky and trendy! Here is a quick and simple technique to give the look of leather to your projects.  The list of supplies you need to gather is below.


Cardstock of your choice
2 different inks, one darker than the other.
Water spritzer
1. Spritz cardstock with water. Some people say not to saturate, but I find that I really love the look that is acheived when you get parts of the cardstock very wet. It feathers a bit, aging it more.

2. Crumple and carefully unfold the cardstock, if the edges tear a bit, fantastic! You want a bit of a rough look. Repeat this until desired distressed effect is achieved.

4. Allow cardstock to dry a bit, but not completely. (This will allow the inking to take on a faded appearance.) Your cardstock will now look like this:

5. While still damp in some areas, sponge the lighter color ink all over your cardstock. Then lightly go over with darker ink, highlighting the creases. For further vintage effect, ink the edges of your cardstock.

6. Now it’s time to flatten your cardstock. You can use your hands, a heavy book, whatever you like,  just let sit until desired flatness is achieved.
7. To achieve the shiny leather look, as I have done below, paint with your cardstock with a light coat of Modge Podge Gloss-Lustre and allow to dry.

This should be (somewhat) like your finished project. Of course, if you crumpled much more or less, or used a different color, it will be a bit different!

I hope you have enjoyed this technique!

xx Heidi