Sew Leather With Regular Sewing Machine

Learn how to Sew Leather With Regular Sewing Machine!

This skill is a LIFESAVER for big leather projects! I can't wait to show you what I made with this one!

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[familywilliams]

So, the machine you own will determine how thick the leather you can work with. The reason you friend warned you about the timing getting off, is because some machines especially those on the budget end, do NOT have metal housings on the inside. In their case, the outer frame itself is the housing, in a honeycomb plastic structure on the inside, and if those are working under too much force or trying to pass through too much thickness, then the housing will "warp" slightly and throw off the alignment. This can result in things like spun bobbin cases and such, but most often, the bobbin hook will not catch the thread from the needle because of the misalignment. If you plan on sewing leather regularly, then it may be important to invest in a machine that has a cast metal housing beneath the outer shell to prevent this warping.
On a side note about needles. You mentioned that sewing machine needles are designed to go around the fibers of the material, through the weave, instead of through the fibers themselves, and this is true of ball point needles that are needed in sewing stretchy knit fabrics. There are other needles, called sharps, that are often used for quilting that do have a very sharp point so as to penetrate through the fibers and leave a perfectly straight stitch, with no wandering around the weave of the fabric. Most machine needles you can buy, that are sufficient for the majority of sewing projects, are called Universal needles, they are halfway between a ballpoint and a sharp, and can be used for most fabrics.
One other thing to be aware of, if you do put tape on the bottom of the foot, it is important to cut away the tape from the hole the needle goes through, as Cl3ver did, so you don't get adhesive on the needle or bobbin. There are specialty needles for working with adhesives, and leather needles are not them. However it is just as important to also ensure that you remove the tape promptly and clean any adhesive off the bottom of the foot right away, or the adhesive may dry out and harden in place, and then it will NEVER come off unless you scrape it off with something metal and sharp, like a razor blade, which will also scar the bottom of the foot, which may cause it to catch on fabrics down the line. I had to scrape old adhesive off of WAY too many machines when I was cleaning/selling them, and it is not fun.

[evepaludan]

I've used waxed paper under the bottom layer of leather to reduce friction and help the leather glide through the machine, then gently tear away the paper after sewing. This trick worked for me when I was sewing suede. Test it on a scrap first.

[crystolslimbracey]

It actually worked!!! This whole time I’m like… I gotta get a heavy duty.

[Lukiel]

That Scotch magic tape is also what you use to tape down a pattern to the leather. Trust me trying to pin a pattern to leather is a futile endeavor.
Good job recommending using the longest possible stitch length. You are perforating the leather, and just as when perforating paper that will make it easier to tear with close together perforations.

[michellesteffens]

Short and to the point! Thank you for the quick tutorial!

[caspenbee]

To get your foot started on thick material, just put a square of cardboard under the back end of the foot to even it out. Excited to try this!

[helenparker]

Use polyester or nylon thread with chrome tanned leather as the chemicals used in the tanning process will rot through cotton thread

[chrisparkins]

My mother-in-law gave us an old Bernina and gave me a sewing 101 primer. She said I could sew leather on it, to which my wife immediately said no. Apparently quilts are more important that cool leather hoods in this household. :)

[olapejufemigomez]

Wow! This is superb. I tried it and it worked like magic...

[karkat_plus_bucket]

Thank you so much!! I’ve been trying to get into sewing my own kink wear and I’ve really been struggling with sewing with learher

[toysoldier]

I recently did a little stitching on thin leather. I used a Singer treadle machine, and put a little hand lotion on the leather surface. It went smooth and easy.

[ShaneTallon]

I absolutely love your personality. Oh my God you’re cute and informative, knowledgeable funny and I love how theatrical your content is because it keeps me engaged while I’m trying to learn this all.

[CorsoWorkshop]

Nifty little hack! If you ever get your hands on a hand-cranked sewing machine for leather, I'd like to see you motorize it 😂 One point about machine stitching vs. hand-stitching: Machine stitching is definitely useful and very quick, but machines make lock-stitches, which basically means if one stitch breaks, it eventually all unravels, while something like a saddle stitch is more likely to hold up to wear and tear. Both have their applications, but people should keep in mind what wear the stitch may be exposed to. It's very easy to re-stitch something which was stitch by hand (albeit tedious), but it's very tough to re-stitch something with a machine, as it's tough to line up with the original stitching holes, especially on a motorised machine (vs. hand-cranked). That being said, I'm looking forward for your projects using this neat hack man 😉👊

[tonyd]

Spot on, just mention adjusting the tension next edit

[demaslumba]

You are simply adorable! Your presentation is captivating👌

[OmarRamahi]

You are soo cool dude. Thanks for the tips

[jvin]

You can also find a 'large wheel' foot (looks like a US Nickel tilted 30deg to the side) to fit some sewing machines and make leather much easier to sew. I'd also suggest finding a used Singer from the 1940s to 1950s straight stitch typically black finish of the time, Model 15 or 66 or 201, sometimes working machines are under $50 and far exceed durability of anything new sold for ten times as much.

[scarcreations]

Clever thank you for having your fantasy crafter come out in full force, your videos are great references and a true tail wind for my own goals. cant wait to see your next new video.
(Nov-16-2022)

[mjp]

Also, another tip…I just used my Juki TL 2010q to make a purse. It wasn’t leather but vinyl. Pretty heavy vinyl. It’s a kinda heavy duty machine, but I did use very heavy thread, that I use only on my industrial machine and it did well, except for the bobbin thread. I have to loosen up the bobbin screw. It was really messing up. Looks great now. Thanks for your videos. Very helpful.

[terabyte]

Excellent and informative…!!! Really helped me get started on my leather project.