How to Sew Leather Purses

Sewing leather can be difficult, but with the right equipment and technique you can produce beautiful leather purses. Taking the time to adjust the sewing machine and practice on scrap leather, you can create sturdy stitches in one try.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Sewing machine
• Leather needle
• Thread
• Leather and pattern
• Leather scissors
• Rubber cement

Prepare Leather for Sewing

1. Lay out your leather and pattern to prepare it for cutting.

2. Avoid pinning. Because leather is much thicker than fabric, it will be hard to pin--and pinning can leave holes in the leather. Therefore, mark on the back side of the leather with a pencil where to cut.

3. Cut the pieces with leather scissors. Be careful when using these very sharp scissors.

Prepare the Sewing Machine

4. Change the needle to a leather needle. A leather needle cuts a hole in the leather rather than poking through it.

5. Adjust the pressure foot and thread tension as light as possible. Because leather is much thicker than fabric, it tends to distort and stretch under more pressure.

6. Use a heavy top-stitch thread; a tight tension and a thin thread is more likely to cut through the leather.

7. Set the stitch length wider to avoid perforating the leather--which could cause the leather to fall apart.

Sew

8. Practice on spare leather to adjust the thread, presser foot tension and stitch width. Avoid ripping seams on your purse. Each hole made in the leather compromises the integrity.

9. Place the pieces to be sewn together with either the right sides facing so the stitches are seen on the inside, or wrong sides facing for a visible seam.

10. Use rubber cement to hold the leather together. Rubber cement dries quickly, is easily removed and won't gum up your sewing machine.

11. After completing the sewing, flatten seams with a rubber mallet. Conventional ironing is not an option.

Tips & Warnings

• Use a new leather needle for each project. A dull needle can bend or break. Finishing the edges of leather is not necessary like fabric; they can be left raw.
• Leather scissors are very sharp. If the scissors won't cut, stop and check to make sure nothing foreign is caught, then proceed. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions for using rubber cement.