Leather shoulder bag. February 21, 2008

For this shoulder bag I used 2  brick-red leather hides, both were about 7 ½ foot large. This bag is a rectangle shape, zippered pocket on the front partly hidden under the flap and one zippered pocket at the backside for easy access.

Plus an inside pocket at the backside of the lining bag and a key lash stitched at the side seam of the lining bag.
I drafted a rectangle shape on paper with a fold over flap and measured my leather to see if I had enough leather, copied the rectangle paper pattern and add the several pieces for the pockets front and back and added a small piece to attach the shoulder straps, added seam allowances (3/8 inch (1 cm)  for the side seams and 5/8 inch (1,5 cm)  for all the other seams).
After  cutting out the pattern parts from the interfacing I taped the paper pattern still with the interfacing pinned ontoo the leather with some medical paper tape.

 The small pictures are all ThumbNail , just click and you see a larger image.

I made a long shoulder strap so I could wear this bag also crossed over. The strap is sewn with 3 pieces to get that extra long length.

The size of this bag is 17 inch (43 cm) wide, 12 inch (30 cm) high.
The total height is 17.7 inch (45 cm). Bottom depth is 2.4 inch (6 cm).
Shoulder strap is 59 inch (150 cm) long and 1 ¼ inch (3 cm) wide, so I also can choose to wear it crossed over. Outside pockets are 13 inch (33 cm) long and 6 1/8 inch (16 cm) deep.

I started with fusing leather interfacing to all the parts except the shoulder straps.

This non-woven interfacing is special made for leather because it can be fused with a low heat iron.
The bottom part and the part where the shoulder straps are sewn between are fused with a heavy hair canvas interfacing for some added strength.

All the seams are stitched and glued and flattened down before any stitching from the right side.

The zippers are sewn at the pocket openings, between the already closed seams.

    

I marked the seam allowance wide with a pencil (by folding the allowance back to the inside with the zipper teeth just inside the fold line) and glued the fold line of the zipper/pocket opening. The marked pencil is a guidance line only.
 
Then I used craft double-sided adhesive tape cut in half (because I only needed a narrow piece) to attach the pocket lining over the zipper-tape. Raw sides of the pocket lining and seam allowance match.

From the right side I sewed the zipper and the lining pocket (sandwiched stitched)

 

 

Now the other side of the pocket lining and zipper are stitched. The next step is sewing the pocket lining pieces together to form a pocket.

The lining for the bag is interfaced with a woven interfacing for adding some strength.

The leather is sewn with my new purchased “used” Singer 20U machine, Güterman strong polyester thread size 100 and sewing machine needle size 14/90.

 

I used several sewing machine feet for sewing this bag.

The Teflon and roller feet are great for sewing leather. I also used the Right Hinged Narrow Cording foot and glued some Teflon tape under the foot for top-stitching the shoulder strap at the center.
The Right Compensating Top-stitch Foot was great to edge stitch the shoulder strap.
Lining leather for reinforcing the magnetic snaps and to cover them so the metal parts will not weaken the lining.

  

The inside lining pocket 7 x 7 inch (18 x 18 cm)  is from a double layer of lining with the opening at the fold line which I glued down with a strip of double side fusible hem tape. The pocket is stitched around right sides together but I left a small part open at the bottom to turn the pocket inside out. Pressed and edge stitched at the lining bag.

There was some leather left but it was damaged, but I could use this part and cut around the damaged spot and add some color to the inside pocket. I made a template 3/8 inch (1 cm) wide and 3/8 inch ( 1 cm) wider than the length and wide of the pocket so the edges of the pocket is covered by nearly 1/4 inch (1/2 cm) and stitched the leather around the pocket edges.
I used a Pritt glue stick for temporarily securing the leather around the pocket edges and used the zipper foot to stitch it close to the edges.

For the bag opening I used a different zipper a non-separate one which can be used for garment sewing like in a a dress. This zipper has a smaller and narrower zipper coil, which does not add weight and is more flexible for the purpose of this bag.

The zippers I used for the pockets are separate ones which are sturdier.

     

The only hand sewing I did was finishing the last inch ( 2,5 cm) from the pocket lining seams towards the top side,

 prick stitched the lining bag at the zipper tape at the bag opening so it will stay put,

secured the lining side seams about halfway down with a couple of stitches towards the leather side seams and sewed a few stitches at the bottom of the bag to attach the leather and lining bottom together.

I closed the opening in the lining bag side seam, (which was needed to turn the bag inside out) with a ladder stitch.

Since the inside of the shoulder strap was not as nice butted together as it should be, although I tried to do it right by marking a line at the center where the edges would meet eachother.

I noticed that after stitching  a hairline away from the center edges with the zipper foot and topstitch from the right side along the outer edges there was a small gap which showed the natural leather color.

 I bought some leather colored polish to fill in the gap. I was lucky that the color brick red is the same as the bag. Used a narrow tiny brush to “paint” the gap between the folded and stitched edges to cover the natural brown suede leather which on some spots was visible.

Also a bag stop was glued at the center of the inside shoulder strap. This bag stop prevents the strap from gliding of my shoulder.

            

 This last thumbnail picture reflects the true color of my new bag the best.   

Leather bag. January 13, 2008

My store bought black leather bag was worn out so I made a copy because I still liked the design and the size. This was one of my first leather bags I made.

Sewing is done with a commercial sewing machine and regular sewing machine needles.

 The size of this bag is wide 13,5 inch ( 34,5 cm) height 12,5 inch ( 32 cm) bottom depth is 4 inch ( 10 cm) and the shoulder-strap is 45 inch long ( 112 cm)

I used a printed sturdy leather , several interfacings , lining leather to reinforce the bottom, leather glue , leather tape to reinforce the zipper opening, medical paper tape to secure the patterns on the leather while I did cut the leather with a Kai cutter. A hammer for flatten the seams.

Hansel leather interfacing which can be fused on a low temperature.

Front side zippered pocket.

The inside pockets, one welt pocket with a snap, one zippered pocket, pen holder, cell phone holder and key ring holder.

The dark green lining is interfaced to give it some more durability, because this lining is not a sturdy bag lining.

The bag closure is done by 2 bag snaps and a piece of Velcro which acts as a pickpockets alarm.

Back view

Bottom view.

 Added a bag stop at the inside center part of the shoulder bag so the strap stays on my shoulder .

Evening wear, bustier and skirt December 31, 2007

My last post for this year is about a bustier and 8 gore godet skirt I made 2 years ago, one of my nieces is the model so the patterns are drafted on her measurements. 

The fabric I used was stretch polyester satin and viscose embroidered tulle,  polyester habutai lining. Interfacing a lightweight woven stretch for the top, bustier interfacing and soft tie interfacing for the extra bust padding. Petersham ribbon for the skirt waistband,  Rigilene boning and spiral steel boning. Invisible zippers for the skirt and the bustier. Because there are no instructions or pattern to review I add pictures so you can see some details for those who are interested in some techniques I used for this outfit.
The skirt was easy to sew I used a 60 needle and alterfil thread which prevents puckering, due to the coating of the thread .

To read more about how to use the alterfil coated thread see AlterFil®S Sewing Thread for Pucker-free Seams

Pressed the seams open and used a 3 thread serger to finish them, just as the lining skirt.
The skirt and lining are sewn together at the waistline, pressed a fusible stay tape just above the stitch line for the waist and I used petersham ribbon for a facing at the waistline.Since I only had brown petersham ribbon in my stash I covered the ribbon with a bias cut fabric after I pressed the petersham outer edge in shape. The cover is pressed open by using the edge of a wooden paint spatula since this was narrow enough to get inside the fabric cover. I thread marked the waistband for corresponding seams and stitched the facing at the waistline of the skirt.

 

Turned the waist face band under and pressed in place. Attached the waistband to all the seams with invisible hand stitching.  

The bustier is supported by an inner bustier made of a special heavy bustier woven interfacing. The bust padding I used is to add some more “body”, but also can help as a support for a more voluminous bodytype.

 I used a soft tie interfacing for this padding and this is stitched onto the inner bustier interfacing, see diagram pattern.

The stitching line is a sewing foot away from the previous line. Start and finish the padding 3/8 inch( 1 cm) from the centerpart and side panel.The depth depends on the bust depht. 

 

To prevent stretching out I used strips of bias cut lining which I steam pressed first.This so called stay-tape is sewed at the upper and bottom edges of the inner bustier.I marked the measurings from each panel at the seam allowance.

The rigilene boning is stitched over the bust seam allowance till under the bust there I split the boning and removed the covering partly and cut off the center plastic tubes till I left 2 tubes at the left and right side.

Those tubes were sewed by using a zigzag stitch but only at the seam allowances (left and right side).

Piping filled with a tiny cord which is sewed at the bustier around the edges.

The excess wide of the lining stay tape is cut off later.

 

Tulle lay out using the already interfaced fabric parts as a guide. Hook and eye tape which I used but covered with lining fabric.

I did cut 2 additional panel parts to use as a tightening piece of strength, so the invisible zipper would not have to hold the body tight on its own with the risk that the zipper will separately itself.

The extra panels are cut from a sturdy cotton covered with lining and sewed at the inner bustier  panels.

 The invisible zipper is too long but needed to get dressed, to keep the extra length of the zipper inside I used a snap . The “male “part is sewed at the end of the zipper and the “female”part is sewed just besides the zipper start at the lining.

 

On the next picture you can see that when the zipper is closed and the hook & eye tape panels are not closed yet, they are smaller in wide about 3/8 inch (1cm)  because when this is closed they have to hold the body tight and not the zipper.

 

To keep the lining snug under the bust I sewed a small fish eye dart.

Covering zipper for furry fabrics December 30, 2007

If you want to use a zipper with a faux or real fur fabric it can be difficult to open and close the zipper because of the hairy fabric.
You can prevent this by covering the zipper teeth with a piece of tape.
 
For the example I used a piece of satin bias tape, which was pre folded but I pressed it open and folded it again in half and sewed the covering tape with a loose tension so I can remove that stitching after I have sewed the zipper in the garment. I used a different colour because it is easier to see which tread has to be removed later.
This is not necessary, if you do not want to remove the first stitching use a matching colour thread and a normal tension. You can use any other piece of tape or a strip of folded lining fabric.
I sewed the tape that covers the teeth of the zipper with the zipper tape on top:

Alternative for real buttons, part 2 December 23, 2007

I found some more pictures I took from the blouse flower “buttons”. The underside (bottom) is shaped into a small square about 1/2 inch wide.

The bottom is attached to the blouse center front at two spots, this way the loops stay put on them.

It makes sense that the loops although they are tiny are edge-stitched too so they will keep their shape by the weight of the flowers.

Alternative for Real Buttons - Make a Dior Rose December 22, 2007

Els post on the Dior Rose reminded me of how much I love this as an embellishment.  Purchased trims are often more expensive than your fabric, and these can be made from scraps. These are easy to do and they can be made in just about any size.

You can use any fabric, but of course silk makes the showiest roses.   A drapey fabric like charmeuse makes a softer rose than a dupioni,  but really it’s up to you.  I’ve also seen them made from chiffon, wool crepe and even boucle, which is kinda cool.  Here’s how to make them:

Draw a long rectangle on paper.  This one is 2 inches wide by 10 inches long; a longer rectangle will make a rose with more “petals”.  Fold the rectangle in half and mark off a curved edge using a French Curve.  Mark a 45 degree angle as the grain line because you will cut this out on the bias. 

Cut out the rectangle and sew a scant seam along each curved edge; then turn the rectangle out. Do not press it  -  a soft edge makes a prettier rose (I used china silk for the sample below).  Finger press the stitching on the curved side seams (my scissors  above are just holding down the unpressed folded edge.)

Take a length of knotted thread and baste along the bottom cut edge.  Don’t cut the thread after basting ; just leave it in the needle.  Gently pull the basting to form a circle and then begin to roll the rose into shape from the inside to the outside, gently incorporating the gathers into a shape that pleases you.  Use the still-threaded needle to hand sew the rose together once you have it gathered into a shape that resembles the ones from Els’ post.

The trick in making these is to keep the shape flat like a button as opposed to a twisted cone shape.  If this is a challenge you can stitch the flower onto a backing such as ultra-suede, felt or buckram.  It’s also good to make a one or two extra so you can choose the best-looking ones for your project. 

One word of caution – if these roses are crushed or ironed they lose all of their appeal, so it’s never a bad idea to remove them from a garment before you clean it.  You could sew snaps onto them to make them easily removable, and if you’ve use a backing snaps are simple to add.

So that’s it!  This is a classic embellishment you can use on gowns, dresses, bags, hats or even as a brooch.

Alternative for real buttons December 20, 2007

Last week my mother asked me to shorten a RTW blouse. This blouse had an unusual closure which I think is worth to share. The “buttons” were made from bias cut fabric and shaped like small flowers. The flower “buttons” were closed by fabric loops  and the edge where the buttons are attached had a cut on underlay extension.

 

    

   

   

                                                                      

It’s Not Super Triple Secret Any Longer April 26, 2007

I haven’t been posting much lately because of work loads and things competing for my time. But I did just get a notice that the project, which I have been calling the “Super Triple Secret Project” has just been put out for public consumption at Threads Magazine. You can see it in the current issue of Threads, and it is online (without all the photos) here.

The article started thanks to the striped dress, which I made for myself last year for a summer dress. The pattern is New Look 6557. I changed the waistband pattern, as well as the grain alignments on several of the pattern pieces. I love this dress, and in warm weather I wear it frequently. Of course, I’m sure they had to safety pin it to within an inch of it’s life to fit the model, but it looks pretty good, I think.

The “fun” part of the project, and the Super Triple Secret part that had me tearing my hair out, was the white jacket. Now, that is one gorgeous, gorgeous jacket! I based it on a D-Squared look from the spring 2006 RTW line. I used a McCalls pattern as the basis, and you can see the process I went through to convert the pattern on my blog. It’s made from two silk fabrics, a duppioni that has nubby 1 inch wide stripes woven into it, and a novelty silk ottoman-type, that was woven in such a way that it had a quilted effect. The fabric was double faced with uneven horizontal stripes woven through it. And there was silk batting between the layers. When I opened the package from Threads containing the fabrics, I gasped in surprise and pleasure, they were that lovely.

Sewing with them? Hmmmmm, that was another issue. The duppioni was just fine. I love duppioni because it sews up well and is very easy to manipulate. The quilted silk, on the other hand, was an unmitigated rhymes-with-witch. I have two sewing machines in my sewing room. One is a Pfaff with differential feed, the other is an industrial Juki. I decided right out of the gate that the Juki would not work with this fabric. So first I tried sewing a seam with the Pfaff. Because of the horizontal quilting, I was super, super careful cutting the fabric so the lines would match across the seams of this princess style pattern. When dealing with a fabric like this, always, always cut out your pattern pieces in a single-layer layout. I did so, and it gave me control over the placement of the design and grain lines.

Under the presser foot, though, this fabric took on a Bad Diva personality. It loved to shift and move around, even with the differential feed turned on. I hand basted all the seams, and I even ended up recutting some pattern pieces to compensate for the shifting. Gah! It still didn’t want to cooperate! I did finally beat it into submission, but it cost me dearly in the number of gray hairs I got from it.

Finally, I did finish the jacket, after crying “Uncle!” to my editor, Jennifer Sauer. You can see the front view of the jacket in the magazine article (not online). But for your previewing pleasure, here’s a picture of the jacket as it sat on my dress form before I sent it off (and before I did the final press):

Happy sewing!

Bound Buttonhole Triangular Shape March 29, 2007

 

I learned about this triangular shaped bound buttonhole in 1993 when I bought the book

  Couture the art of fine sewing  by Roberta Carr. I have made these kind of triangular buttonholes several times , the one above was done in a raincoat .

 I made an example to show you the steps  how to make such a triangular buttonhole and kept my text to a minimum because of copyright issue. 

   Step 1, measure the button length and space between the edge and the buttonhole.

 Step 2, mark and transfer the lines ( horizontal and wide) on the interfaced fabric .

Step 3, thread trace the buttonhole length and wide on the patch.

 

Step 4, draw the triangular button lines.

Step 5, stitch using a tiny stitch length start anywhere on one of the long lines  and stitch 2 diagonal stitches at the corners and at the point, overlap the beginning of the stitches with a few more stitches. I used a red thread for easy viewing.

.

 Step 6, draw lines so you can slash the patch in 3 sections . The lines of the patch marked in red, cutting lines inside the buttonhole in black. 

                 

  Step 7, turn patch section 1 to the inside and press .

Step 8, press patch section 2  along the stitching line.

   Step 9, do the same with patch section 3 as above.

Step 10, wrap patch section 2 and 3 around the horizontal slit edges on the inside and press from the inside .

 Step 11, stitch the triangular tab to the patch through all the layers so it will be permanently attached.

Step 12, cut away excess fabric of the patch.

Done.

                               

                 

  

Centered Zipper Application - One Method February 5, 2007

I was working on my bias shirt today, installing the zipper in the back. It’s a centered application, which I actually like, but it can have disastrous results if not done properly. So I thought, “Hmmm, maybe there’s a tutorial here that might help some folks. So here you go. This way works for me; hopefully it can help you too.

Step 1 - Sew the Seam
You have to start somewhere, and the seam is a logical place, right? Sew your seam up to the point at which your zipper starts, or ends, or both:

Baste the remainder of the seam closed, and press the seam allowances open.

Step 2 - Hand Baste the Zipper Into Place
This is probably the most critical part of the whole operation. In most commercial patterns, the instructions tell you to machine baste the zipper in place, then sew in place. The problem is that with most fabrics, machine basting will cause slippage, and then when you sew the zipper, you will get bubbles and puckers, the hallmarks of “Happy Hands at Home” syndrome.

Instead, try this. Place the zipper at your markings, open it completely. Then starting at the top of the zipper, hand baste in place using long running stitches:

Notice something in the picture. The zipper teeth are set very slightly back from the basted seam, probably a scant 1/16th of an inch. This will keep you from getting “zipper gaposis”.

Next, close the zipper and baste the other side. Here again, you will want to pull the zipper toward the raw edge of the seam as you baste so that, when opened, the teeth are ever so slightly offset from the folded over seam allowance to keep the gaposis at bay.

Step 3 - Sew on the Outside
Once you have your zipper basted in place, sew down one side of it using your zipper foot on your sewing machine.

There is only one tricky part to this operation. To keep from getting a stitch “bubble” around the zipper pull, open the zipper before starting sewing. Once you get about half way down the zipper, drop the needle into the fabric, lift the presser foot, and carefully close the zipper (you’ll be working from the underside of the fabric). Once the zipper is closed, lower the presser foot and continue sewing. Pivot at the bottom of the zipper, and sew to, but not all the way across, the zipper, avoiding the metal zipper stop.

Repeat this step on the other side. Here’s the other important part: To avoid needless bubbles and distortion, start at the same place, but on the other side of the zipper, so you sew both sides in the same direction.

Step 4 - Finishing
Once you have the zipper sewn in place, remove all the basting and press carefully. Voila - a perfectly placed zipper with no bubbles!