Wuta wallet pattern, build, review.

[bikermutt07]

I am making a new wallet from a wuta pattern. This particular pattern is a card holder/coin purse. These are acrylic patterns available on Amazon. I'm not associated with the company. I'm pretty sure they are out of China. 

Please keep in mind I am a newbie just trying to help other newbies. My next post will include assembly. Enjoy.

Initial impression:

1. Acrylic seems to be non flexible.

2. Appears to be laser cut.

3. No instructions.

4. Plenty affordable.

5. Patterns seem pretty unique (and I like that).

Here is what we get.

Here are the pieces cut out of w&c 4-5 ounce chestnut.

Here are how the pieces line up.

Edited August 13, 2016 by bikermutt07

[bikermutt07]

 

EDIT: You may find it easier to bevel your edges before you skive.

We are all learning this together.

 

Ok, now we are moving on to step 2.

We are going to make a gouge in our main body.

Notice when lining up with our reference template, the template is longer than the main body. 

Now we mark the line of the fold. See picture one.

If you have not run a gouge yet, never fear because I haven't either.

Use a test piece to set your depth. Also, figure out how to sharpen the thing. Took me a minute but I got it.

Edited August 16, 2016 by bikermutt07

[bikermutt07]

Now we will skive.

Haven't ever tried it? Well, don't feel like the lone ranger. I haven't done it either. So let's get going.

This is the only skiver I own. Is it the right one? I don't know but let's try it. I believe this one is a French skiver.

Before I started practicing I grabbed my sandpapers and sharpened it up.

It seems to work a little better if you don't try starting at the very end of your piece. Just work it up one way and then turn it around and clean up the end.

I had to hit the strop a few times during this part.

Now we will mark the main body for skiving. Notice the provided reference template is longer than the main body. I marked the 2 card slots as x and o. 

You don't want to skive past where I have my awl sitting on the main body. I'm pretty sure it will show if you do.

And here are all the pieces skived on the flesh side. Next we will burnish our edges of our pockets.

Edited August 16, 2016 by bikermutt07

[billybopp]

You might find that a skiving knife works better and easier for what you're doing than a French edger does.  But no matter what tool, skiving takes some practice.  

Bill

[bikermutt07]

It didn't seem like it was very hard to do. What is a French skiver normally used for?

[billybopp]

First off, I want to say thanks for posting this.  It's awesome to see a project progress from beginning to end, and can't wait to see the end product!

Whatever you use to skive with has to be really REALLY sharp, probably moreso than with any other thing you do in leatherwork.  It becomes even more important when skiving thin or stretchy leather.  

There are a lot of different tools that you can use to skive, and they each have their advantages and disadvantages.

The "safety skivers" that you get that use razor blades have the advantage of being really cheap and possibly a bit safer than an exposed cutting edge.  That's about it.

 The French skiver works well for many things, but it's advantage AND disadvantage is with the lip at the edge.  That lip helps to make it easier to follow the edge of the leather, but at the same time it makes it very difficult to get that edge really thin since it holds the cutting edge up off of the surface some distance.  That makes a bit more bulk at the edge than you might want.  For some things that IS what you want, but on a wallet it could make the edge a bit bulkier than you'd like.  What I've done with my cheap little Tandy French skiver is to take the right side lip mostly off so that there is now a much smaller lip there to let me get much thinner at the edge.  I don't mind modifying that skiver, but I ain't touching the antique ones!

Some folks like to use a round knife to skive with, but I find them pretty hard to use that way.  They work best for heavier leather as far as I can tell.

There are a number of types of skiving knives, but I find that a knife that has the cutting edge at the tip easiest to use and best for getting a thin edge.  Mine are straight ended and single beveled with a very long bevel, and are SHARP!  They work well on both thick and thin leather allowing me to get down to a really thin edge.  I also like the end-edged skiving knives that are angled and single beveled, but find that I need one a righty and lefty for different situations with those since they seem easier to use with the beveled side down.  I don't have any that are double-beveled, but they would be usable right or left.

Check out these videos to find a little more info:

LWN member gmace99 showing the use of a French skiver.

LWN sponsor Lisa Sorrell shows using a skiving knife.

 

Hope that helps!

Bill

 

[bikermutt07]

Thanks, I'll look into getting a better one down the road. I was able to get my pieces down to around a 16th so that should be ok. I think.

[bikermutt07]

On to sanding and burnishing.

First, I beveled the outsides of the tops of my pockets. For now we only want to finish the edges that we won't be able to get at once we assemble everything. Make sure and spend ample effort on them now, because once we start sewing we can't get to these spots. 

If you have some brown or tan sandpaper, use that. I used grey automotive paper and it turned my edges grey. I sanded from 400 to 1000 grit.

Now, you can feel free to burnish how ever you see fit. It's not something that has only one working procedure. 

For this project, for myself, I am going to use the gum trag. I paint very thin layers like this.

Notice how I am using the desk as a guide.

 

 

 

Now wait a good 5 minutes or so. This was revealed to me the other day in a post. No matter the method if you attack the edge to early it will mushroom like this.

 

 

After waiting 5 minutes I attacked at full speed.

I am really liking this tool over the Tandy wooden burnisher. Now remember you have to create enough heat to slick the edge. It takes some pressure and lots of speed. Did I mention wanting to get a burnisher for my electric motor yet? I am using the edge of the desk and my off hand to hold the piece from buckling.

 

[bikermutt07]

Alright, I think we are ready to start the assembly.

If you line up card panel "x" and "o" you will notice an offset where they stitch together.

I'm assuming this offset helps the main body wrap around the card pockets. But, I digress. So, line the templates up with the pieces and mark your stitching holes.

As a side note you can change the stitching up. More holes, smaller holes, whatever. Figuring out the right combination of stitch length, thread size, to needle size is practically a sub culture here. I tend to grab what I think will Work and do a test piece.

We need to put a line at this spot so we can glue it up.

I never see this glue mentioned here but I like it. It seems to be farely well set in a short amount of time. I resembles hot glue once it cures. I paint this on both sides. Very thin coat.

Just put it on between the line and the stitch marks. Just give it a few seconds and then line up the pieces. I like to love on these for a second with my hammer.

[bikermutt07]

Now that we have glued our first piece lets try to stitch a line. What's great about this first line? No one will ever see it. 

This is the first time I haven't used my chisel. In the spirit of staying in the pattern, none of my chisel sizes fit the pattern. 

So, the way to make the diamond awl work with out the premarked diamond holes is like this..... Keep a flat edge of your awl parallel to the edge of the leather.

You can see I messed up a bit at the beginning, but no one will see it in the end.

Always make sure and tap your stitches flat with your hammer.

Next step:

Mark your holes on your main body.

Do Not glue your little pockets to the main body before you mark the holes on the main body (only an imbicel living Louisiana would do that).

After, and only after, you mark the holes in the main body may you glue the tabs of your top pocket to the main body.

 

[bikermutt07]

 

Now that we have our top pocket glued and it is dry we can tackle this second pocket that seems to want to stand up.

Now if we have some small spring clamps it's not much of a problem to glue and clamp these little tabs.

So, I don't have any spring clamps, dang. What will we do? At least that's what I was thinking. Maybe you already have a fix, or better yet spring clamps.

Well, here is what I fashioned and it seems to be working.

I pushed the needles through the lined up holes. Then pulled it apart, glued it, reinserted the needles and gave both sides a little pinch.

Tomorrow I will try and figure a way to glue the rest of it. We could maybe get by without glueing the rest if we have to.

Edited August 17, 2016 by bikermutt07

[bikermutt07]

So, I decided that the wrap around area of the main body was a little fat. I did a little more skiving work and this is what it produced.

I think this will fold up a little better.

I dug around in the shed and found on pair of spring clamps. But alas, no plastic pincher covers. Well, that got me thinking........

While the glue was drying I decided to test out a tip from Kevin at Springfield Leather. You can actually make beaded lines with the plastic bone folder slicker. I hadn't tried it yet, but this is how it turned out.

This isn't a necessary step but Iliked. The wallets I've seen with this detail.

Hhere's how to do it. Start with a scrap piece. Always start with a scrap piece. It is way less painful to look at a piece of scrap then an abandoned project that I messed up.

Choose the line you want to use and guide it softly and slowly over your edge. You just want to make an impression with the first pass. Now go a bit deeper on the second pass. You should now have a good line with some definition. Once you achieve that definition you can bear down on it and start rubbing it in. With this particular leather I got almost a black line. After I did this to all the lines I went back over them with (I'm gonna call it) the knife end of the folder.

I think I got pretty good results with this technique. A more expensive approach is a soldering iron with special tips that burn the crease in.

Now we will glue one side of our fold over main body. If you are blessed with 2 spring clamps, then by all means glue both sides. I started with the stitch tab only and then I will glue the rest. This is so I can manipulate the best alignment between the 2 sides of the main body. 

I'll be back when we are ready to stitch up our 2 sides. Enjoy.

[bikermutt07]

I decided to do some digging in the art room.

Behold the Awseomeness that is my wife, "The Art Teacher".

I wish I would have thought to dig thru her goodies 2 days ago.

[cjartist]

Thanks for sharing your progress.  I use those binder clips all the time to hold my work in place.  I usually just shove a couple of small scraps under both sides of the clip so that it doesn't make an unwanted impression.

[bikermutt07]

Oops, thanks for the tip.

[bikermutt07]

Well, I finally made it back. My entire weekend had me married to a chainsaw. Don't ask.

I was not going to go over the stitching very much. But, I am hoping (by showing my process) a pro will jump in and show me what adjustments to make.

I just don't quite have that zig zag saddle stitch perfect yet. But, you can follow this part of the tutorial and I promise your wallet will hold together, or your money back. Let's get going.

This is my pony. I have it fastened to an old nightstand. Why? Because I have a belly. I took the opportunity Friday night and finally glued some leather to it.

 

Now we will start with our awl again. Make sure and keep the flat edge of the awl parallel to the edge of the wallet.

Pull your first needle through the first hole at the bottom of the wallet. Even the the space between your needles.

*Disclaimer* I really don't understand the left hand priorty jargon about the stitching. So, for the purposes here I will be saying outside and inside. This refers to the outside of the wallet and inside of the wallet. It seems I can only make one side look acceptable for the moment.

Back to work. Start with the outside thread and push it through the next hole. Leave some slack on the outside of the wallet. I push this thread down into the bottom of the slot. Everytime.

Now hold it down as you take the inside thread over the top through the hole. Notice how I hold the outside thread down and out of the way with my pinkys.

As you get the inside thread to the outside, tug the outside thread back a little to make sure you haven't pierced it with the inside needle.

Now slowly pull both threads taught simultaneously. I pull the thread coming to the outside up and the thread going to the inside down, like this:

Make sure you don't knot your threads together.

Now, continue stitching. Try to work towards stabbing the awl even depths throughout the piece. I read somewhere here that if you stab the awk different depths it will make the stitches look uneven. Also, be careful when sticking the awl through the leather and make sure to keep your inside and outside stitches lined up. When I get to the last three holes I make the holes a little wider to help with the backstitching. (This may be incorrect).

I don't really have a procedure to share on the backstitching. Just try to make the stitches fall on top of each other. Then snip the threads off with a tiny bit hanging out. Maybe an eighth of an inch. Then singe with a lighter.

Now repeat the process for the other side.

[bikermutt07]

Here is my almost finished wallet.

It actually fits stuff inside it.

I still need to finish the edges, bit I have already started using it. This build was out of necessity. Enjoy.

I will give my overall review breakdown in a couple of days.

Critiques are welcome as I am always learning. One of the main reasons for this tutorial was to force myself to slow down. I hope it helps some fellow newbs.

Make sure and have fun.

[bikermutt07]

*Final Thoughts*

The pattern seemed to work well enough. I like the design and am enjoying using the wallet.

I used 4-5 ounce and it came out a little thick. But this is on me. Full of cards my wallet is roughly 3/4". That doesn't feel to bad in the front pocket. I haven't been able to stuff much cash into it, but coming up with the cash seems to be a bigger problem then where to put it.

The closure strap is a nice touch. Although, it's a little hard to work in the beginning and I'm confident it will loosen up with age and use.

If I did it again I may have gone with a single or double snap closure. I thought about it in the beginning but it seemed it would make it too coin pursey. Now seeing the finished product 2 brass snaps would look good with the leather choice.

Over all finished dimensions are 4"w x 3"t. 

I also didn't do The final finish on the wallet or edges. After experimenting, the leather seemed to have plenty of oils packed into it. Water runs off the stuff pretty well. 

I did do a dry turtle stamp as my final embellishment. My three year old son picked it out.

So, in the end I am happy with this build and am looking forward to learning more. My next project will be a card holder for a friend.

Anywho, I hope you enjoyed the tutorial and review.

Keep having fun.

[YinTx]

nice write up.  enjoy the wallet.

Looks distinctly like a '68 Ford pickup.

[bikermutt07]

 

nice write up.  enjoy the wallet.

Looks distinctly like a '68 Ford pickup.

Nope, 66 Chevy long bed. That's his Paw's truck.

I'm a Ford man myself.

[YinTx]

Well, anyhow, I got it in the right century.  Ford and Toyota guy here, so 'course I wouldna picked it as a Chevy.  Shoulda noted the rust.

And I did like the wallet and write up, would like to see a less blurry image if you have it.

YinTx

[bikermutt07]

Me too. Sorry.

[bikermutt07]

Bump for fellow newbies.

[club49]

Thank you very much for taking the time to share your work. You give me the courage to attempt my firat wallet. I have different templates, not sure how to go about it. I will give it a try.

 

Jim

[bikermutt07]

You go for it. Mine certainly didn't come out perfect, but I enjoy pulling it out of my pocket.