Working with leather for the first time

[rjlatham]

Hi,

Ive just managed to get some off cuts of 0.8-1mm leather and want to make some tinder pouches. Was just wondering about sewing. Do people think i can get away with a machine on this thin leather or by hand with an awl. if a machine then perhaps a special needle? I dont want to start breaking things before i start.
thanks for the help

RIch

 

[Macaroon]

If ther machine is a good one and it has a leather needle in it you should be ok. You can buy the leather needles easily and cheaply, and use ordinary good polyester thread.

 

[Toadflax]

For that thickness, you can just use a triangular point hand sewing leather needle and poke it through without needing an awl hole. As an example (no recommendation intended) this sort of thing: http://www.amazon.co.uk/JTL-Haberda...qid=1413539724&sr=8-1&keywords=leather+needle


Geoff

 

[cranmere]

Most domestic machines will handle soft leather OK, as people have said, get some leather needles which are available at most sewing shops. Try to experiment on a scrap if you can because you will probably find that you need to adjust the thread tension - lower as well as upper - and possibly the foot pressure.

 

[rjlatham]

great advice people cheers. ill get me some needle then. the playing with the tread tensions sounds complicated but im sure the book will tell me how to do it. so i assume from that you want it tight enough but not so it snaps. in fact i was getting that normally and didnt know why. perhaps you have now solved other problems too. cheers
ill post some pics when ive had a go.

 

[Seagull]

A, Glovers needle, is designed for handstitching in just that sort of material.
The end opposite the eye, is triangular in section, and, un-like a sail-needle, it is sharpened on the flats, right next to the tip. This will easily handle the leather you have, but, if you have very large mitts and fingers, you my find it fiddly to handle.
You will need only the most basic form of protection, just a large thimble will be fine.
With thin material, try to avoid overtensioning the stitches, it buckles the line like mad.

Regards
Ceeg

 

[cranmere]

There will be some kind of adjustment for the top tension on the top or front of the machine. You adjust the bottom tension by turning the tiny screw on the bobbin case, do it quarter of a turn at a time. You are aiming for the threads twisting around each other in the middle of the fabric/leather, if you can see one or other of the threads being pulled right through then loosen off the tight one slightly and tighten the loose one. The stitches should look smooth, not loose and not pulling tight.

Snapping threads can be several thing, often an old needle or a needle the wrong size will do it so try changing the needle if adjusting the tension doesn't help. Dust and lint in the mechanism will do it too, open up the bobbin area, remove the bobbin, you should also be able to remove the shuttle part (you might need the instruction book for that) and use a paintbrush to get out the accumulated lint. It's surprising how much builds up there. Be careful when you're delving around int he shuttle mechanism because even slight damage can stop it from linking the thread properly, it really must be smooth and unscratched.

 

[Joe tahkahikew]

Leather should be softer when soaked. You can also shape it better too.

 

[rjlatham]

This is all good advice. Thank you so much. I'm all ready to go then. Have finished the antler work for the toggle and the button. Now maybe I'll make it in cotton first. I'm sure I'll mess it up