Mexican Skull Embossed Leather Patch

The calavera, the Mexican skull
A large patch in the shape of a Mexican skull, with flowers in its eyes, swirls and rows of dots. A very fine piece of work: the top leather is entirely cut out in openwork and reveals an inlaid white leather underneath. Two versions to choose from: antique brown (a light-and-shadow patina, lighter in the centre and darker towards the edges) or red and black. To sew on the back of a vest or a jacket.

Pre-punching option (+€5)
Sewing your patch on yourself, by hand, is the personal touch that makes all the difference on a vest. On a leather vest, you also need to punch the vest leather to pass the needle. With the pre-punching option, we punch holes around the patch in advance, one every 2 mm (0.08 in). The patch then becomes your template: glue it onto the vest with leather glue so it stays in place, punch the vest leather through its holes, and both line up perfectly. All that’s left is to sew with a saddle stitch, using two needles and waxed thread: it’s the strongest stitch for leather, and you’ll easily find a tutorial by searching “saddle stitch leather” on YouTube. For machine sewing, the unpunched patch is better.

Made in our workshop
In our family workshop, since 1989, our patches are cut from full-grain leather made especially for Traveller Shop by a French tanner, then embossed. The relief doesn’t really show in the photo: in real life, the design clearly stands out, and the patch looks even better.

Technical details:

• Shape: large patch in the shape of a Mexican skull, openwork over inlaid white leather
• Width: 168.4 mm (6.63 in)
• Height: 232.9 mm (9.17 in)
• Colours: antique brown, red and black
• Material: embossed full-grain leather
• Fixing: sew-on (pre-punching optional)
• Made in our workshop in France