My First Project! Black Italian Calf Double-Gusset Clutch Lined With Suede

[asj713]

Hi all,

I've learned so much from this forum and community and wanted to share my first big project! I've been leathercrafting for 3 months now, starting just before Christmas. I've mostly done wallets and cardholders.

This is a black Italian calf clutch with two gussets, a front pocket and a zipper. It is hand-stitched using 3.38mm stitching irons (slanted Pro-line brand from China) and Gutermann Mara upholstery thread with beeswax. It is lined with an olive/sand suede split from Pergamena. I still have a lot of work to do sanding the edges, but am happy to wear this in public while I am finishing up.

The gussets were the hardest part (and now I know how ambitious I was to try this as a beginner) but I learned a ton. Plus, I love having gussets on bags for all the storage, so it's actually a very functional bag for me, even with the imperfections. For structure, I used Pelltex Ultra-Firm stiffener, which is just enough structure, yet still left the leather softer. Next time, I will make the gussets much wider so that I can extend them out more when I need to stitch or sand the edges. And I will prepare the edges much better before edge painting -- I used Vernis wax from Rocky Mountain Leather Supply. Also, the clasp hole is a little ragged because I used a plain hole puncher -- I might look for a grommet. I did buy a set of oblong/shape punches -- maybe that will make a cleaner cut next time. I used an arbor press to push the stitching irons into the leather because hammering them made too much noise in my small apartment. For thinner edges (like the front), I pushed the iron all the way through but for thicker edges (like the middle gusset edge), I just marked with the iron and used an awl to push all the way through.

Thanks for looking!

Edited March 21, 2016 by asj713