Comments on Lindsay T Sews: Tips: Sewing Your First Leather Garment

This is so useful. I am dreaming of making the Rac...

2011-11-13T01:45:15.754-05:00

This is so useful. I am dreaming of making the Rachel Evan Woods dress with knit sleeves.

'Set your machine to turtle' made me laugh...

2011-10-24T16:03:35.334-04:00

'Set your machine to turtle' made me laugh really hard - my machine has a special 'snail' button for just such occasions. Great top and great post!

Great leather tops! You almost make me want to use...

2011-10-24T10:11:38.069-04:00

Great leather tops! You almost make me want to use two small lambskins from a Michael's bundle to make one, but what about cleaning? Do you plan to use 'professional leather cleaning' on them?

Your leather shell is awesome! We use a lot of le...

2011-10-21T14:46:41.532-04:00

Your leather shell is awesome! We use a lot of leather/knit combos at work. We often edgestitch the leather which holds the seam allowances in place. You can use smaller allowances and you don't need to worry about the grain so it can be quite economical!

Thanks for the tips! Leather definitely is in my f...

2011-10-20T13:12:34.797-04:00

Thanks for the tips! Leather definitely is in my future.

Awesome post! Great tips! I would so make somethin...

2011-10-20T12:38:33.969-04:00

Awesome post! Great tips! I would so make something in leather if I weren't deathly afraid I couldn't take it off quickly enough because of hot flashes. LOL.

Great tips. Have to admit I'm feeling tempted ...

2011-10-20T11:41:18.950-04:00

Great tips. Have to admit I'm feeling tempted to scrap my fall/winter sewing plans and sew something leather!

Amanda, I never used glue to hold my seams in plac...

2011-10-20T09:11:24.967-04:00

Amanda, I never used glue to hold my seams in place. I pounded them open first, then I topstitched them in place from the front (about 1/8" from the seam on both sides of the seam). This not only looked more RTW, it held the seam allowances flat. I trimmed the SAs to about 1/4". Hope this answers your question. When you start to play around with leather you'll see it really acts a lot like fabric, only better—like really well-behaved fabric.

Great tips. I've been told that you can't ...

2011-10-20T04:25:24.542-04:00

Great tips. I've been told that you can't let a leather seam out because the needle marks show - better to get it right the first time.

How timely, I have just hosted a PR weekend here i...

2011-10-20T02:13:19.476-04:00

How timely, I have just hosted a PR weekend here in Sydney and we all went to NSW Leather where we were amazed at the low price (compared to RTW) and frightened by the concept of sewing leather, but your tips have made it all seem so simple. Thank you.

So just pound the seam open or did you use glue to...

2011-10-20T00:36:52.911-04:00

So just pound the seam open or did you use glue to make it stick down?

It's funny as soon as I saw that on TLo I thou...

2011-10-19T18:14:54.757-04:00

It's funny as soon as I saw that on TLo I thought of you! I also think a knit back means a better and more comfortable fit. I wore my share of leather in the 80's and after about 6 months a leather skirt stretches out to an unflattering baggy mess regardless of the shape one is in. This is so much better.

I love your adventurous spirit in experimenting wi...

2011-10-19T18:05:40.705-04:00

I love your adventurous spirit in experimenting with different materials and mixing of materials!
I just wanted to chime in because I work in a professional costume studio where we build many garments in leather, and we use two products that are very helpful--Leather Fuse, and Leather Weld. Leather Fuse is a fusible interfacing specifically design for leather because it bonds at a lower temperature. It offers a little more body to really soft leathers, and can keep leather from stretching due to normal wear and tear. I love Leather Weld! It is an adhesive that we often use to glue back seam allowances, hems, and darts to get a perfectly flat, crisp seam.
I can also recommend leather needles, if not for your machine, at least for hand-sewing. The sharp end is shaped like a tiny sword and makes quick work of any basting or hand-detailing.

Fabulous hints and tips - thanks so much!

2011-10-19T18:01:48.263-04:00

Fabulous hints and tips - thanks so much!

Thank you for the tips! I've been inspired to ...

2011-10-19T17:27:59.503-04:00

Thank you for the tips! I've been inspired to incorporate leather into my sewing as accents and after seeing how lovely your 2 tops are on you I should not be too scared to take the plunge...

Yes! I'm so excited for this, especially since...

2011-10-19T17:15:32.651-04:00

Yes! I'm so excited for this, especially since McCall 6396 recommend leather panels! I didn't realize using pins would be a bad idea. Glad to know that now.

Thanks! I did try the "click here" link....

2011-10-19T16:35:24.346-04:00

Thanks! I did try the "click here" link. It is a good start.

Susan, you can try the three NYC leather stores I ...

2011-10-19T15:19:29.503-04:00

Susan, you can try the three NYC leather stores I linked to in this post (under "click here" around the middle of the post). Beyond that I don't know what leather resources are out there. I am very spoiled by having two excellent leather dealers on the next block over from my office.

I have been seeing a lot of leather lately too, e...

2011-10-19T15:06:49.350-04:00

I have been seeing a lot of leather lately too, especially with knit pieces incorporated like your top.

Do you have any online resources for buying leather. I'm hoping there's online options or places on the west coast to try.

Love the tip to sew when you're "fresh as...

2011-10-19T14:28:16.427-04:00

Love the tip to sew when you're "fresh as a daisy." So true! It's always when I'm tired or burnt-out when I make silly mistakes.