Super Easy DIY Embossed Leather Drink Coasters

How to make the easiest embossed leather drink coasters in just two easy steps. They are so easy that you'll have a set of drink coasters made in less than ten minutes! This is a great DIY project for recycling old and worn leather or pleather jackets, skirts, purses, or pants. Thrift stores are a great resource for inexpensive recycling potential.



With wedding season upon us, these unique leather coasters paired with a bottle of wine and a set of wine glasses add a wonderful handmade touch to a bridal shower gift. For someone moving into their first place, package these with a set of coffee mugs, a bag of coffee beans, and if you're really generous, a coffeemaker for a thoughtful housewarming gift.



How to make DIY leather drink coasters in two easy steps!

DIY Embossed Leather Drink Coasters In Two Easy Steps

It's time for another monthly International Bloggers Club Challenge. We are a group of bloggers from South Africa, Australia, the Netherlands, the USA, and Canada who come together on the third Monday of every month to share a DIY project with a common theme.



I was so excited when I learned that our challenge this month is pleatherable leather. Just the motivation I needed to finally do something with a leather remnant leftover from my upholstered headboard bench and embossed leather footstool.



I had just enough to make a set of six leather drink coasters for our home and another set for a friend. All twelve coasters were made in less than ten minutes - my kind of DIY!



Last month our challenge was cardboard creations and I made a set of pretty recycled cardboard tube napkin rings for Spring/Easter. You'll find our talented group's pleatherable leather projects at the bottom of the post. Please be sure to check them out before you go.



Easy two-step DIY leather coasters.

So if you are looking for an easy handmade gift idea or your home could use a new set of coasters, then this craft project is for you!



What You'll Need To Make It

This post contains affiliate links so you can see what products I used or recommend for this project. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from any qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support!


What makes these coasters with intricate designs so easy? Make them with embossed leather or faux embossed leather remnant.



How to make drink coasters with an embossed leather remnant.

The other thing that makes these coasters so quick to assemble is using self-adhesive 4-inch cork circles for the base - no glue required!



Self-Adhesive cork circles for leather drink coaster bases.

Supply List

Embossed Leather, Pleather, or Vinyl
4-inch Self-Adhesive Cork Rounds
Brayer Roller
Cricut Maker Machine (optional)
Cricut Rotary Blade (optional)



How To Make Embossed Leather Coasters The Easy Way

And yet another reason the coasters are so quick to make is by cutting the leather circles with a cutting machine like a Cricut Maker. But no worries if you don't have one because I've included instructions on how to make them without as well.



Option 1: How To Cut Leather Circles With Cricut Maker

  1. Open a new project in the Cricut design space.
  2. Click the shapes icon for a circle template.
  3. Resize the circle to four inches.
  4. Duplicate the circle shape for a set of coasters. Note that the cutting mat only fits four four-inch circles so you will need two mats or reload the mat for a larger set of coasters.
  5. Also, note that I used a standard grip cutting mat rather than the recommended strong grip mat and had no problems. But if your mat has lost some of its stickiness, then tape the leather onto the cutting mat first.


How to make leather coasters with a Cricut Maker machine.

Before cutting them, select the heavy fabrics (like denim) in the materials list setting and change the pressure setting from default to more. I used a rotary blade to cut the leather and it worked like a charm!



Cutting embossed leather coasters with a Cricut Maker machine.

If you are not using embossed leather or pleather you can add an embossed design to the leather circles with a Cricut Maker before cutting out the circles. I found this instructional leather engraving video on YouTube that you might find helpful.



Easy handmade embossed leather drink coasters.

How To Clean Your Cutting Mat

You can see in the photo below how dirty my cutting mat was after cutting the leather. Here's an easy tip for cleaning the mat so it's as good as new again.



How to clean cutting mats the easy way with baby wipes.

Wipe the mat in a circular motion with baby wipes. It's important that you apply gentle pressure to avoid removing the sticky adhesive on the mat. Let the mat dry about 5-10 minutes before using it.



Option 2: How To Cut Leather Circles Manually

If you don't have a cutting machine, trace four-inch circles with a pencil on the wrong side of the leather. Cut the circles with a sharp craft knife, rotary cutter, or scissors.



Next, we'll add the cork to the bottom of the leather circles to make them more rigid and flat so they don't curl. You can do this one of two ways as outlined below.


Option 1: Self-Adhesive Cork Circles

The easiest and quickest way to do this is by using four-inch self-adhesive cork circles found on Amazon (see supply list). I was surprised by how strong the adhesive is - no glue required!


  1. Simply peel off the paper backing from the self-adhesive cork circles.
  2. Carefully line up the wrong side of the leather to the cork. There is an instant bond so you want to get it right on the first try.
  3. Use a brayer or the back of your hand to press the leather firmly onto the adhesive cork.

Make easy DIY leather coasters with cork and leather circle cut outs.

Option 2: DIY Cork Circles

Alternatively, you can use thin sheets of dense cork from the dollar store to cut bases for the coasters like I did for these wood tile mosaic coasters.


  1. Trace four-inch circles with a pencil on a sheet of dense cork.
  2. Cut the circles out with a sharp craft knife or scissors.
  3. Glue the cork circles to the wrong side of the leather with contact cement.


Super easy embossed leather drink coasters to make.

And that my friends are how easy these DIY drink coasters are to make! What I also love about these leather/pleather coasters is that they are so easy to clean with a damp cloth.



Thanks for stopping by the Interior Frugalista today! I hope you were inspired by this DIY embossed leather drink coaster idea.



Almost all of our DIY ideas have step-by-step tutorials so why not get your budget DIY on and subscribe. You can also find us on PinterestFacebookInstagram, and YouTube.



If you have any questions, please leave them in the comment section below or the Contact Me tab at the top to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!



Easy homemade embossed leather drink coasters in ten minutes!

If you enjoyed this easy leather coaster craft, I'd be so thankful if you shared it with a friend and pinned it to your favorite board on Pinterest.




These unique handmade embossed leather drink coasters are so easy to make in less than ten minutes. #drinkcoastersdiy #leathercoastersdiy #recycledleathercrafts

I invite you to click on the links below to visit our talented group members' pleatherable leather projects. If you don't have time today, you can bookmark the page by clicking the pink heart icon on the right to come back later.


Pleatherable Leather Challenge by the talented members of the International Bloggers Club.

Boho Leather Tillandsia Planter | A Crafty Mix
DIY Remote Control Holder | Birdz Of A Feather
Geometric Lion Wall Hanging | Unique Creations By Anita
Succulent Planters | Kippi At Home
Easy DIY Embossed Leather Drink Coasters  | Interior Frugalista (that's me)



I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.



Share

Comments

  1. 10 minutes works for me!!! And they are so gorgeous. Now can we talk about you maybe moving to S Africa where it's warm and sunny and we can do a house warming gift swap. I have a coffee maker so I'll just take the coasters ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for starting my day with a chuckle Michelle! I'm half asleep with coffee in hand and reading your comment is a great way to start my Monday. Oh my goodness the trouble we could get into if I came to S Africa! But just to be witness to your creative genius would be absolutely amazing. xo

      Delete
  2. These are fabulous Marie! That really was quick and easy, but looks so high end! The Cricut Maker really makes short work out of cutting those too; it looks really versatile.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I still have so much to learn about the crafting potential of my Cricut Maker but oh my goodness, it cut the leather circles out in less than a minute!

      Delete
  3. Glad to hear your feeling better. These are so nice Marie Pinning for Fall I love them

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much Leanna, I haven't been that sick in a very long time. Glad you like the leather coasters and thrilled to hear you're going to make some in the fall.

      Delete
  4. Love that embossing! And that you're using up that awesome scrap as I remember the beautiful bench. 😍

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I remember, Larissa, that we both got to play with some gorgeous embossed leather! I'm thrilled to finally use up what was left. I hope you and your wonderful family had a blessed Easter weekend. xo

      Delete
  5. Your embossed leather coasters turned out gorgeous. I am inspired to try to make a set for a gift.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Kippi, they were fun to make and I'm so glad I finally found a use for the leftover leather.

      Delete
  6. Your coasters are gorgeous, Marie! Good to know you can cut leather with the rotary blade, I thought you'd need the knife blade for sure. Love my Maker!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I thought so too Ann and for the fun of it I decided to give the rotary blade a try and to my surprise it worked! I did try a sample cut with the "default pressure" setting and it didn't cut all the way through but when I changed it to "more pressure", it cut through the leather like buttah!

      Delete
  7. 10 minutes is awesome for a project like this. I had no idea you could buy embossed leather it is something I will definitely be looking into. Your coaster are pretty and look very expensive and great gift idea.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yes and it's less expensive if you can find a remnant or faux embossed leather. But you and I can emboss leather with our Cricut Maker too. I haven't tried it yet but I definitely plan on giving it a whirl sometime.

      Delete
  8. Those are so cool and I love it that they are easy! Glad you're feeling better :o)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Tania, it feels good to be vertical again! LOL The coasters were fun to make and I have enough leather leftover to make a couple more coasters for my office.

      Delete
  9. I love the coasters! Thanks for sharing. Pinned so I can give it a try.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad you like them Virginia and thrilled that you might give them a try!

      Delete
  10. What an amazing project to salvage those scraps - brilliant! And I have to say that Cricut facinates me. I think I need one. hehe Enjoy your day my friend! XOXO

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much my friend, they have become my favorite coasters in the house so I made a couple more for my office. I LOVE my Cricut machine and haven't even scratched the surface of it's crafting potential. I hope you get one, Denise. xoxo

      Delete
  11. You're so creative Marie! These look amazing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are very sweet, Kim, I'm glad you like them! They've become my favorite coasters and I wish I some leather leftover to make more.

      Delete
  12. I am always amazed Marie on the fun things you make. These are awesome. Great that you had the left over leather to re love into these coasters. Happy May Day to you too. xoxo Kris

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much, Kris, these coasters have become our favorites to use in our living room. I know you are as excited as I am for the arrival of May - enjoy!

      Delete
  13. Marie, Thanks for sharing over at the Creative Crafts Linky Party! We will be featuring you this week, starting on Wednesday! Have a great week! CHEERS! Team Creative Crafts

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm thrilled to hear about the feature, Beth and thank you so much! Wishing you a great week too. xo

      Delete
  14. Your coasters turned out amazing Marie! I would never have thought to use leather for a project like this, but they look great.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Tuula, they're now my favorite drink coasters in the house!

      Delete
  15. These look fabulous and a great upcycle. I've got some leather scraps myself and this has given me an idea. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Claire, I'm glad you like them and that they gave you inspiration for your leather scraps!

      Delete
  16. You are so creative Marie! These would make awesome Christmas gifts with a bottle of wine like you suggested!😊

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Cindy! I ended up making a few more as they've become our favorite coasters in the house. Easy to wipe clean.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Don't be shy, I love reading your comments and reply to every single one! If you want to be notified when I reply back to you, click the "Notify Me" button below the comment box.