How To Make A Wallet?

[TexasLady]

7/7/11

I've had that happen to me on some 'legal' sites, johnggrg. It's very disconcerting. And I'd also posted it on a forum, the time it happened to me. One lawyer on that forum found the info a different (better) way, and posted a more permanent link for everyone. He said something about there being some sites that change their links daily. Anyway, I'm going to re-paste your above link, which is working great at the moment, in a way so that it's all 'visible'. Then, if it stops working, some clever person might still find a way to make it work, even if it's through Googling the components of the link and finding an 'archived' copy. - TexasLady

http(colon)//www.classicbells(dot)com/verlane/projects/Walletpatterns(dot)pdf

Tried the link yesterday and it worked now it's not. Don't know what happened. Try thjis one worked today. John

http://www.classicbe...letpatterns.pdf

Edited July 7, 2011 by TexasLady

[TwinOaks]

The Kevin King tutorial explains and shows how to make pockets for the interior of the wallet.

The one I put up has the measurements on it.

Would you like someone with a clicker to cut out the pieces and mail them to you?

[johnggrg]

Twinoaks thank you for the offer but not neccesary. I was just trying to find a wallet pattern that included a ID or picture window in it as well as Card holders in a bifold wallet. I should have included that information in my post but didn't. I coppied the plans for a future wallet but mine will be hand stitched not laced. A how to on the picture or ID holder would be nice but I can figure that out. Thank you TexasLady for fixing the link for everyone else.

Let me ask you this. I know most people use a thinner leather to make there wallets. Do you think it would be ok to make the outside peice from 6-7 oz. Then make the inside peice that the card holders are attatched to use 2-3 oz? Would that work well? That is all I have on hand at the moment. I was thinking of doubleing the 2-3 oz inside peice so it has a smooth side on both sides. This way the pocket were the bills go has a flesh side and would sturdy up the interior peice. It sounds like it will work good but would like your opinions on that. Thank you for all the help.. John

[electrathon]

Let me walk through this one step at a time.

The pattern I posted is a billfold design. You can use it as a 4 pocket with cards on both sides or a two pocket with ID window on the other side. If you want more card slots add more of the angled pieces, make each one a little longer.

You will need one of the larger pieces and one angles piece, two of the rectangles. This is for a ID window wallet.

The back (carved part) of the liner is 9 5/8 X 3 1/2, glue a liner directly to it is you like.

[electrathon]

Cut out the pieces, the line in the pattern is a fold line. Fold it over and sew it (you can likely use a home machine for this, you should be using the thinnest leather you can find. I usually use pig from tandy for this part. If you are using the ID window you will have three seams to sew, one on the inside of the angled end and two along the top.

[electrathon]

Add the rear to the wallet and you are done. The tooled piece I usually use is 3-4 oz. The thinner the better. I always keep my inserts minimal, if you use thicker leather or more layers you end up feeling like you are sitting on a 2x4 even before you add cards. If you want more slots leave out the ID window and duplicate the right side in reverse for the left. If you want two bill compartments then add a second layer of leather behind the insert. Always leave the insert at least 1/8" shorter than the back, this allows for the bend in the center.

[electrathon]

You can either sew or lace this wallet. Lacing looks more classy (when done right) but it does add slightly to the overall size. The reason the wallet needs to be bigger than money is because of the card slots. If you make it money size you will have no card size storage in it. I usually cut the outside edges over sized (by about 1/4") and trim them to size when I assemble it. Otherwise it is almost impossible o get the edges completely straight. Glue the pieces together with rubber cement to hold it when you sew or lace it.

[TwinOaks]

6-7 for the wallet back is too thick. That's 3/16ths of an inch of leather when it's folded......and that's before figuring in everything else.

[Dwight]

I just took a pair of calipers and measured my 12 -15 year old, . . . $8 wallet I bought in a dime store.

The back measures .033 thick, . . . which would translate to 2 oz leather. The pockets inside are in the .04 range which is about 3 oz.

Use what you want, . . . but there is no way I could make and use a wallet that was thicker than 4 oz on any of it's pieces, . . . unless I wanted to do some "serious" stamping and tooling.

May God bless,

Dwight

[TexasLady]

7/8/11

Electron, you've gone 'above and beyond'. Thanks for your explanation. I've got some pigskin for my (soon to be) wallet's interior, and I haven't worked with leather enough to have learned the 'weights' jargon yet, anyway. I pulled out that Tandy Premier Wallet kit that I bought to copy. I wanted to 'make sure' before saying anything. The 'already assembled' interior on the Tandy model has fabric glued to the leather, replacing part of the leather, and making it lighter weight. The lower interior card holder is leather. But the next one behind it is different. Rather than being all leather, it has about 3/4" of leather showing, but then has a light brown taffeta glued to the back of that top edge of leather. It's the taffeta that goes all the way down to the bottom, not the leather. The third slot is the same, in it's front,... a strip of leather at the top edge, but taffeta continuing to the bottom. The front three slots continue on down to the bottom. But the back one (the third,... the 'tallest' one), has a fold of fabric on it's back side, and that fold does not go to the bottom. Rather, it dips down into a fold, and loops back up, being then attached to the 'straight', and final, bottom edge of leather behind it. Each strip of leather folds it's top edge backwards over the taffeta, making a nice finished, rolled, edge. The overall effect is to 'look like' it's all made out of leather, but really, about half of the leather is replaced with taffeta fabric. Also, there is an extra, length-wise divider in the bill compartment, made of taffeta, but with a leather strip on its upper edge. Tandy probably uses some special fabric which is heavy-duty, or more longer lasting than what I'm describing as 'taffeta'. I just wanted to add this to the Thread as a 'possibility' for others to look into, for making a lighter-weight, thinner, wallet. Disclaimer: I've never made a wallet. <smiles> - TexasLady

Edited July 8, 2011 by TexasLady