Gems By Jenny

Gems By Jenny I make unique wire-wrapped jewelry and unset cabochons. I work with leather. I love beautiful things!

A bit ago, I found a little polyester satin wristlet at Goodwill. It had no brand name in it, and wasn’t even particular...
08/14/2026

A bit ago, I found a little polyester satin wristlet at Goodwill. It had no brand name in it, and wasn’t even particularly nice polyester; it may even have just been a little gift bag that some piece of jewelry or something came in. But the folded dumpling shape was fun! So I dissected it, made a pattern, and here it is in some lovely grained chocolate brown cowhide with cream-colored stitching.

Another Row Margeaux-esque purse made from a painting! This one is (as best as I can tell) sheepskin leather. A wintery ...
08/05/2026

Another Row Margeaux-esque purse made from a painting! This one is (as best as I can tell) sheepskin leather. A wintery bag.

A legally-distinct Row Margaux-style bag! This one I made from a vintage painting on canvas (fifty years old this year, ...
06/20/2026

A legally-distinct Row Margaux-style bag! This one I made from a vintage painting on canvas (fifty years old this year, actually) that I found at Goodwill, along with some pale pink leather. Classic grandma chic.

For this one, I also finished and protected the decorations with Mod Podge and polyurethane, and replaced the latch and ...
06/17/2026

For this one, I also finished and protected the decorations with Mod Podge and polyurethane, and replaced the latch and hinges. The handle is a big cabinet pull from Home Depot, and I lined the bottom with some pale pinky-blush leather.

I have discovered that one can go to a good cigar shop and ask for empty cigar boxes! And moreover, cigar boxes are stil...
06/17/2026

I have discovered that one can go to a good cigar shop and ask for empty cigar boxes! And moreover, cigar boxes are still made of nice wood and often richly decorated! So, without further ado, a couple of experiments in cigar box purses. For this one, I finished the outside and lid inside with Mod Podge and polyurethane, and lined the bottom with some reclaimed hand-tooled leather. I also replaced the original latch and hinges with sturdier ones, and I made a red leather handle.

I found a (very cheap, terrible quality, made of pleather) Chanel Boy Bag dupe at my favorite thrift store, and decided ...
05/27/2026

I found a (very cheap, terrible quality, made of pleather) Chanel Boy Bag dupe at my favorite thrift store, and decided to give it new purpose by dissecting it and using it to make a pattern. I used that pattern to make this! The exterior is some very beautiful berry-colored deerskin suede.

This messenger bag uses one of my very favorite leathers: milled veg-tan cowhide. Veg-tan leather (which, when very posh...
05/09/2026

This messenger bag uses one of my very favorite leathers: milled veg-tan cowhide. Veg-tan leather (which, when very posh and premium and from Italy, is called vachetta) is normally pretty stiff with a lot of body. But *milled* veg-tan has been tumbled as part of its processing, so it has a striking pebbled grain and is beautifully supple. Also, because it’s bare and unfinished, it will patina with sun and use; one of veg-tan’s loveliest features!

Some time ago, I found an old, extremely worse-for-wear canvas bowling bag at my favorite thrift store for $3. I dissect...
05/02/2026

Some time ago, I found an old, extremely worse-for-wear canvas bowling bag at my favorite thrift store for $3. I dissected it and traced patterns from the pieces, and now I have finally used the pattern to make a new suede bag! It ended up gathered at the bottom, because somehow I got the size of the base wrong, but otherwise, perfect!

More Tiny Bag Energy! This little lady doesn’t hold much, but she’s so cute! I made it from a Vogue pattern designed for...
04/16/2026

More Tiny Bag Energy! This little lady doesn’t hold much, but she’s so cute! I made it from a Vogue pattern designed for non-fraying fabrics with a lot of body, like felt, and I modified it for leather. The perfect bag to go with an Easter bonnet.

Same pattern as the last bag; same material even, sheepskin! But very very different vibe. For this one, I used reclaime...
04/10/2026

Same pattern as the last bag; same material even, sheepskin! But very very different vibe. For this one, I used reclaimed sheepskin leather from an old, battered, worn sheepskin jacket I found at Goodwill, so the wear and distressing is 100% genuine, which I think is so cool. I also used sheepskin for the accents, though not distressed, so there’s some contrast between the worn black and the fresh black. I also added studs down the middle, and a cabochon made from a very unexpected material: megalodon tooth fragment! (It turns out that yes you can lapidary megalodon tooth fragments, and yes they look really cool.)

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Odessa, TX

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