Best way to fix imperfections in purse seam?

[bluekush]

I was thinking either sand it down or cut it off but I'm not sure how it's going to look after. figured i would ask here for some advice. 

[TonyV]

lf it were me, I would decide that this is now a practice piece.  Looks like I could carefully trim off the overhang witha very sharp knife, then very carefully sand it as smooth as I could.  Will take some patience.  

Then I would slick the edge and decide if it warranted any more judicious sanding.   You might get away with trimming and sanding, but you might not.  I would anticipate having to make it again, learning from my mistake.

Next time cut the edges together, as if they were 1 piece.  Leaving a little bit of extra trim space and gluing them together, then making the final cut of both pieces gives a great result.  Then make your stitch groove, chisel and sew.  

 

Edited March 15 by TonyV

[bluekush]

7 minutes ago, TonyV said:

lf it were me, I would decide that this is now a practice piece.  Looks like I could carefully trim off the overhang witha very sharp knife, then very carefully sand it as smooth as I could.  Will take some patience.  

Then I would slick the edge and decide if it warranted any more judicious sanding.   You might get away with trimming and sanding, but you might not.  I would anticipate having to make it again, learning from my mistake.

Next time cut the edges together, as if they were 1 piece.  Leaving a little bit of extra trim space and gluing them together, then making the final cut of both pieces gives a great result.  Then make your stitch groove, chisel and sew.  

 

Thanks for the response. It's all practise at this point as I'm only a month or two into the craft. Im making this for my girlfriend, she doesn't seem concerned about the imperfections but they do bother me. 

I traced and cut this from a pattern pack so I would have to change the dimensions to cut it after, I made my phone case that way so I understand what you mean. 

 I'm going to try cutting sanding and burnishing the edge. Hopefully it works well.I had a really hard time using the contact cement. It wasn't sticking at all when I tried on a sample piece so I just went without.

Anyways this is my first project like this and I'm pretty happy with how's it's coming out and I know the next one will be better.

[TonyV]

No need to change the dimensions, just cut slightly outside the pattern line, a 1/8 inch or less, then cut both pieces together to the proper line.  That leaves room to cut both pieces together.

Alternatively, when you have 2 identical pieces cut 2 layers of leather at once right at the pattern line.   If left/right handed, reverse the faces.

[Mablung]

1 hour ago, bluekush said:

I had a really hard time using the contact cement. It wasn't sticking at all when I tried on a sample piece so I just went without.

You may know this already, but make sure you put the cement on both pieces, let it sit for several minutes (until it feels mostly dry to the touch, just a bit drier than tacky), then put the two together. I tried to use my EcoWeld contact cement more like glue at first and got subpar results. Then the directions clicked and it worked. 

On that note, something like EcoWeld or, I understand, Aqualim has a consistency in the bottle more like white glue, so it is tempting to apply it the same way. Barge and Tanner’s Bond look and smell much more like epoxy, so it’s easier to grasp how to apply it properly (at least for me). EcoWeld also tends to stay in little puddles like glue, too. So, make sure you spread it properly, whichever one you use. I’ve also had Barge and Tanner’s Bond sink into some nappier oil tan more than in some shoe leather I have and into that more than into loosely-grained veg tan. Each leather takes cement a bit differently (and each cement will interact with different leathers differently), so keep that in mind when figuring out how much to apply. Trial and error is your best friend, with generous helpings of both “trial” and “error”.

[Deanr]

Did you paint your edges before sewing?  If you have a belt sander you can use a finer grit and sand the excess off, then refinish your edges. Just remove enough so both edges are flat. Use a beveler after sanding. Then burnish the edges together.

As mentioned before when using contact cement, make sure you let both pieces air dry before pressing together. Depending on the application sometimes I use basting  tape instead of cement. Doesn't hold as well but is alot easier.

[bluekush]

8 hours ago, Deanr said:

Did you paint your edges before sewing?  If you have a belt sander you can use a finer grit and sand the excess off, then refinish your edges. Just remove enough so both edges are flat. Use a beveler after sanding. Then burnish the edges together.

As mentioned before when using contact cement, make sure you let both pieces air dry before pressing together. Depending on the application sometimes I use basting  tape instead of cement. Doesn't hold as well but is alot easier.

Yes I did paint and burnish the edges before sewing is that not the order you are supposed to do it In The pattern pack told me to finish all dye and painting before stitching.

Yea it was like tacky dry maybe I didn't wait long enough. If I take the thread put and try cementing it before stitching will it come out better or is just because of the way it cut  and finished the edges already? I was thinking about undoing it and adding a piece of leather in the middle, I think its called pipping ? Not to sure. I've already took it apart once so I don't really want to do it again.

[Deanr]

That is not the purpose of piping. Piping is used when the seams are turned in.

I may be wrong but I don't think the directions referred to the edges when they specified to complete this before sewing. Look at edge finishing videos and most should sew before painting or burnishing the edge. Then it takes the appearance of a single piece of leather.

I would not take it apart. I would hold the edges against the belt sander to even them up. Then use edge beveler to clean the fuzz up. Then burnish. Then paint if you desire. Be careful when sanding to not get too aggressive beyond making both pieces even and straight.