Collaring the jewellery storage - part 1!

Nick and I restored a $5.00 leather hat box at the beginning of 2021 and then took it with us on our anniversary splurge. It's a beautiful piece and only cost $10.00 in total!

I saw a leather collar box on FaceBook marketplace around that time but missed out on buying it.  I found another one later in the year, during our Byron Bay trip and purchased it for $50.00, which seemed a good price given my quick research - and we can't always nab $5.00 bargains!

Some projects require a fair bit of pondering, so the collar box has sat in our dining room since May, awaiting inspiration and motivation.  I had thought of using it for jewellery storage (particularly brooches) but wasn't sure how I would go about the transformation.

I have a small jewellery case, purchased during an overnight trip to Dalby in 2020.  It was a $20.00 find at a second-hand shop in Oakey.  I like the design more than the colour but it's not really intended for brooches - and there was a fair bit of overflow on a recent trip. 

I've been working on the collar box these past few days.  I do a bit, then wander off for other missions while I think about the next step.  There's no rush and I'm enjoying the slow pace.

Collar boxes were used to store men's collars, back in the days when those detached from shirts (held in pace by collar studs).  I googled and found one very similar to mine, described as being an early 20th century piece (with 1910 mentioned).  

Given it's age, there are some flaws.  The strap was broken and the buckle piece barely hanging on.  I decided not to replace those, so removed both.  At some stage a dodgy repair had been effected to the bottom band, using too much glue - and I took that off, also.

A spa treatment was long overdue.  I did a gentle saddle soap clean and  followed that with some deep conditioning.  I then applied shoe polish to even out the colour on the outside of the box.  

The lip of the bottom section was very dry (with some damage) and I gave the interior several coats of neatsfoot oil, which were rapidly soaked in.  As expected, the oil darkened the leather but little of the interior will be seen when the box is in use.