Draw a miniature diagram of the leather saddle horn bag that you want to make. Make notes about saddle horn bag measurements. Purchase a piece of deer leather; you will probably need a whole hide. Choose a size and color that is not too thick nor marred up with lots of holes in it. For the size of saddle horn bag recommended in this article, a 20-square foot deer hide will suffice.
Draw the measurements and shape of the bag body out on a piece of tag board or cardboard to scale. Do not include the handle, unless it is a flat handle. If you want fringe on the bag, consider the measurements of the fringe before it has been cut. That component will be added on to the main part of the bag body. Recommendation for saddle horn bag size is 4 x 5-inch for the main body, with an added 4-inch fringe.
Check the tag board drawing diagram for exact measurement and straightness. If using the recommended bag size, you should have a drawing that is 4 inches across by 9 inches down in a rectangular shape. Modify the shape to include rounded areas for the bottom corners of the bag body and fringe shape. Cut the tag board pattern out. Measure and draw a line on the pattern to distinguish between the body of the bag and the fringe area. Cut the pattern on the line where the body of the bag separates from the fringe. Using regular scotch tape, butt the two pieces of the pattern against one another without overlapping them, and tack them back together with a piece of tape that can be easily removed later on.
Lay the soft deer leather hide down on a table with what will be the outside of the bag facing down. The inside of the bag should be facing you. Position the tag board pattern on the deer leather hide, making sure that you have enough room on the hide to fully draw out two tag board patterns -- one for the front of the bag and one for the back. Using a piece of chalk, trace the tag board pattern out on the deer leather hide.
Cut the two parts of the deer leather saddle horn bag out of the deer hide, with the full pattern in tact.
Remove the tape from the two parts of the tag board pattern. Lay the body part of the pattern back down on each section of deer leather pattern that you have just cut out. Using the chalk, trace along the pattern to designate the distinction between the bag body and the fringe part of the bag.
Glue a seam of glue along the edges of the bag body and bag body sides where you will be making holes to stitch the bag together. From the remainder of the leather, cut out a circular shaped piece of deer leather about 3 inches across. Starting on one side of the circular leather, cut around it in a spiral working toward the center to create a length of leather lace for stitching the bag. Trim off the leather lace after cutting it out to make it as straight as possible.
Punch holes along the sides and across the bottom of the bag where the seam is glued together, using the pattern as a guide. Twist and wet the end of the leather lace into a spiral shape. Using the leather needle, twist the end of the leather lace up in to the leather needle firmly. Stitch the lace through the bag holes. Punch an even number of holes across the top opening part of the bag on both sides. Using leather lace and needle, stitch across each side to create a draw string type of closure.
Cut out three long pieces of leather lace to braid a handle strap for the deer leather saddle horn bag. Knot the three pieces together on one end. Braid the three pieces of leather together. Knot the end of the braid strap leather lace pieces together when the braid is finished. Attach the strap to the leather saddle horn bag body by punching holes on the sides of the bag. Cut the fringe section up the middle, stopping when you reach the bottom of the bag body. Cut fringe on one side of the bag at a time.