Saddle Stitch Is This Correct ?

[RStevenson]

When I stitch the way Ian Atkinson does in that video I do find that I am getting angled stitches on both sides. However the angle is not as great and I find that on one side my stitches are very high and sit at the top of the hole making a big gap under them.

[grmnsplx]

Sorry, my fault for not explaining correctly maybe. Nigel's method with the stitch marks leaning away from the stitcher is like this. Awl in right hand . Second (right) needle enters at the lower part (ie closest to the stitcher) of the hole while the other videos show the right needle entering on the highest (farthest away from stitcher) part of the hole. Also the Serge method seems to create a knot.? Am I right?

I'll have to experiment. I stitch the same way regardless of which way my holes go and I have't noticed a difference.

[Mikewhy]

Hi guys,

right straight to the point.. Can anyone explain the difference between the two obviously different techniques showcased here.?? Nigel inserts the SECOND needle IN FRONT (LOWER PART OF THE HOLE) of the first thread, while Django inserts at the needle BEHIND (as farthest away from himself)..I seem to be able to achieve more slant using Nigel's approach , however the back side can be messy. Any insights pls. Practice is key but I guess one wants to be practising the correct way.

Hello Sticks.

The idea is for the first needle to follow the awl as it is withdrawn. This is less important when both sides of the work are readily visible, as when held upright and centered in Nigel's stitching clamp or American-style ponies. With the Continental-style stitching clam shown here, the back side is hidden underneath and behind the work. Visibility to the back side is blocked, so finding the awl with the needle tip helps it hit the hole. Al Stohlman also writes in his leather sewing book about this technique. There, he discusses briefly the difficulty of sewing through the wool nap of lambskin. Ian does something similar -- I'm pretty sure it was he -- by inserting the second needle before completely pulling the first needle through.

Edited April 20, 2015 by Mikewhy

[DavidL]

try ians method on thicker leathers (4-7 ounces), it should be identical look to non cast technique.

peter nitz, who is a luxury bag maker pre awls the holes in his videos.

[Mikewhy]

Many thnx for all the replies.

So basically it must be my awl technique that is lacking.! Is pre-awling the holes really frowned upon.?

Nah. Your stitching looks fine. The only way to see the slight, and I mean really tiny, misalignment in the hind stitches is to stare at them fixatingly as only we do here. I do take some issue with the awl technique, but perhaps not in the way you might think.

All this attention to forcing the threads apart is working a bit too well, in my opinion. In your pics, the awl gash on the front is huge, There's little to be done about it. That's just what the tools we use do. The end result is as you see it: gaps between each stitch. The long gash is at least a third to half the pitch distance, making the little bit of thread showing look chunky, to borrow a word.

I went along with everyone else, too, taking the ride on Nigel's words and advice. Long story short, my stitching looked like your photos: all gaps and stumpy looking threads. I hated it, gave up, and went back to stitching in an edge crease. That is not to say I didn't get anything from the exercise. It's just the opposite. The deep focus and re-think on fundamentals cleaned up my bad habits and, with help, I "discovered" Tiger thread.

As a suggestion only, just to see if it's moving you in the right direction, try stitching a row in a groove. Use 0.8mm Tiger, 7 or 8 stitches to the inch. Sew the row as Nigel teaches it, wrapping the front thread over to put the needle through the loop. The groove helps to fight the tendency to gap, even if the awl mark is a bit wide. What you should get is pleasingly proportioned stitches, each stitch touching the next, and the ribbon-like thread pinching nicely at the ends to make a pleasant eye shape. I would post a picture, but my gear and lighting aren't of the same class as yours. I think it's the eye shape more so than simply the induced slant that makes it say "hand sewn saddle stitch."

[multivitamins]

I think the thickness of the leather, the pitch, size of thread and how you control when you pull the thread does affect how the stitch will look like. I believe this has been explained by Nigel in some other thread. I use the same technique like what the french guys do. Per my experience, stitching thin leathers (2-4oz total) will sometimes give me less slant on the other side especially when using thin linen threads. For me, as long as the stitch is consistent, this is fine.