Hand-Stitched French Calf Holdall

[bissetdesign]

That is one beautifully made bag, very classy

[Rogueshadow]

Well done! Impressive construction.

[seanafk]

Well done! That leather looks really nice too and I like the color reveal on the inside.

For the pillowing you can taper the width in more at the top to help get rid of that.

Also when you're gluing the inside and outside together, you can put glue down over more of the leather instead of just at the seams to make the top more rigid. Or you can also use a filler.

[edd]

You certainly put that leather to good use. Really nice work

[midwestislander]

beautiful work, beautiful material, amazing painstaking detail. Gives us all something to shoot for! Thanks for the lead on the french calf. It's difficult to find french tan like that.

[purplefox66]

I would love to know how you did the handels? was there some kind of filler or is it just folded and stiched? beautiful work.

Derrill

[conceptdiba]

Also when you're gluing the inside and outside together, you can put glue down over more of the leather instead of just at the seams to make the top more rigid. Or you can also use a filler.

Thanks! If I'm understanding you correctly, that is exactly what I'm doing on the next one. It'll just be 2oz veg-tan in between the calf and the suede lining, but I will have it be 1/4" smaller all around so no bulk is added to the seams.

I would love to know how you did the handels? was there some kind of filler or is it just folded and stiched? beautiful work.

Derrill

Here's more or less my way of doing these handles:

1) Cut out strap to desired length and width

2) On the flesh side, draw a line across the width of the strap, at a set distance from each end of the strap. These lines are where the 'strap' part ends and the 'handle' begins. (it's all one continuous piece of leather). Essentially this is where the edges of the strap will meet when folded over. Draw this line on the grain side too, as long as you're sure you'll be able to erase it later. If you can't erase, just make a small mark with a pencil or awl.

3) On the grain side, use your pricking iron and/or awl to make an inch or two of stitching holes from where the line is, towards the END of the strap (not towards the middle). You'll want to do this along BOTH edges of the strap, as well as on BOTH the left and right side, like so

4) Roughly measure a piece of rope, leather, or filler to be the length of the distance between the two lines. You need to make sure rope, if that's what you use, isn't too thick for the leather to wrap around it. You'll really have to fine-tune the width of the strap and/or rope to get it perfect.

5) Apply glue to the entire area in between the two lines, like this. Also apply glue to the rope or filler you're using.

6) When ready, stick the filler/rope right down the centre, and fold the edges together. It helps to keep one edge of the strap flat on the table, so the handle doesn't end up 'twisting'

7) Use your pricking iron, starting right on the line you've made in step 2, and mark/pierce them all the way to the line on the other end. Stitch these holes, and do your edge finishing.

You're essentially done the handle, but attaching it to the bag is kind of tricky so I'll continue here.

8) As you can see in the second picture in the my original post, the stitching doesn't just end when the strap starts tapering and becomes the handle. This is the tricky part. You need to make tapering marks/holes on the main panel like this and then stitch the strap to them. This is the reason you made the stitching holes in step #3. Then glue the rest of the strap in place and stitch it to the main panel. You can always just end the stitching when the strap starts to taper, like this, but it's kind of amateur.

I honestly don't know if it's possible to do this handle stitched down the way I've done with one continuous piece of leather unless it's by hand. Most luxury bags will use a D-Ring to separate the handle from the strap. It looks good, but I like doing certain things in a way that are unique to hand-made.

You can obviously modify what I wrote to suit the way you do things, but that covers my method which is exactly what I did to make this bag. If you're anything like me you'll have trouble deciphering written instructions, so let me know if you need clarification on anything!

hope that helps.

Edited May 10, 2013 by conceptdiba

[seanafk]

Thanks! If I'm understanding you correctly, that is exactly what I'm doing on the next one. It'll just be 2oz veg-tan in between the calf and the suede lining, but I will have it be 1/4" smaller all around so no bulk is added to the seams.

Yes and also in Al Stohlman's book on leather cases volume 2, page 90 there is a construction guide for two cases that have a wide flat center with a zipper. He does his with welts which I think also helps with the pillowing but you could also probably do them without and get the same result.

[purplefox66]

Your instructions are a big help. i almost answered my own question after i posted and thought about it. I am sort of new to leatherwork i did a little as a kid and tooled a couple wallets but never put one togather untill recently. Now i am making my first gun case and was wondering how to make the handles. Thanks for the tips.

Derrill

[bdunne]

Very nice!