Steps to make something out of leather?

[Auden]

What are the steps to make something out of leather? I recently got some leather samples and they seemed kind of dried out and dull. Am I just looking into the wrong type of leather? It was veg tanned.

Step one: get leather. 

Then what? Do I clean or condition it? Then I cut and sew. How do you finish it? Should it be polished? 

I want to sew leather bags on a sewing machine. 

Thanks!

[Rahere]

In general, if it's large enough, probably yes. 

BUT, the work involved may not be worth it. It may be easier to put what you've got aside for something needing its features, and start afresh with something more suitable.

There are many types of "bag", from a holster, which your samples might be ideal for, through a briefcase, likewise, to a handbag, getting more floppy, to a day bag, totally floppy, to a mediaeval moneybag/belt pouch, needing a suede.

Firstly, how thick is it? Anything over 1mm is probably too thick for a bag, but could be split down, expensively at this point. If it's 3-4mm, keep it to learn tooling on.

Veg tan can take water, and dry out, so before putting oils and softening agents into it, try that, to see how still it really is. If it's still board-like, it'll not machine sew easily, for starters. If it is loose-fibred enough to take oils, then folk here can advise.

[Auden]

Thank you. Handbags! 
 

I really like the "vintage Coach" leather. I did some research - it's called glove tan leather. A thread from several years ago said Buckskin Leather Company carries that, so I emailed them to order a sample.  They said it's 3-4 oz cowhide glove tan and it's chemically tanned. 

Maybe I should also look into other leathers like lambskin? 

Everyone says veg tan is the best, but it doesn't seem right for my project. Maybe a different tannery would be better. 

The veg tan samples I have start at 4 oz and go up to 10 oz. They're Chahin leather. I'll try putting water on it just to see what happens!

I think my sewing machines should be able to handle the project. I need to put a new motor on one before I can be sure. It's an older industrial walking foot Singer 111w155 that I just bought. I also got a Singer 31-15. 

[Kcstott]

Veg tan is stiff or can be stiff, and is typically not desirable for bags unless you want stiffness in say a messenger bag or brief case type bag. Chrome tanned or oil tanned is softer leather and is more suitable toward a softer crushable bag.  With the limited bag experience i have i would gather that you have your leather "finished" from the start. meaning treated and died ready to go. 
lay out your pattern, cut, edge prep, skive, etc. attach hardware,  Stitch, rivet etc. minor edge finish if the seams were exposed. maybe even dye the edges. If they are a blind seam then nothing need be done. 

[Auden]

That makes sense! Thanks - leather is kind of expensive, I want my first few peojects to at least be something I can use, even if they have a lot of mistakes so I'm asking lots of questions. 

[Kcstott]

8 hours ago, Auden said:

That makes sense! Thanks - leather is kind of expensive, I want my first few projects to at least be something I can use, even if they have a lot of mistakes so I'm asking lots of questions. 

There's a few guys on Youtube that present good info for beginners. 
Makers Leather Supply
Springfield Leather
Stock & barrel
Little king goods

all of these guys have good videos for beginners

[Auden]

On 10/27/2020 at 4:42 PM, Kcstott said:

There's a few guys on Youtube that present good info for beginners. 
Makers Leather Supply
Springfield Leather
Stock & barrel
Little king goods

all of these guys have good videos for beginners

Thank you! I'll check them out. 

[Hardrada]

If you've never made anything out of leather, a bag is more of an advanced project. Typically, the first item an 'apprentice' gets to make is a belt. The belt is not only a simple project, but it provides the foundation for making straps; if you can make straps, you can make other 'strappy' things, such as bag/briefcase closures, more advanced belts, rifle slings, and, well, bag straps.

Before you start experimenting with lambskin and other more expensive leathers, you to become familiar with weights (thickness) and temper. The latter will determine whether a given leather is suitable for an intended project. Say, the simple, humble belt: you need thicker leather (7 oz and above) and firm to very firm temper so that it doesn't stretch with pull or use. Consider intended use for such belt too: for a dress belt, 8 oz should be OK, but for a gun belt you're gonna need 12 oz or greater.

I think you need to redefine your process to:

Step 1: Decide what to make.

Step 2: Make pattern.

Step 3: Get leather.

Step 4: Get to work.

Edited October 29, 2020 by Hardrada

[Handstitched]

@Auden One of my first books I got was ' Al Stohlman Projects & Designs' . For a beginner that I was back then, it s was pure gold  . Its has simple to complex designs .  Many of which I made over the years.   Then I got ' Lucky Seven & Lucky Eight ' ...and so on. Never looked back  

Hardrada summed it up nicely. 

On 10/29/2020 at 12:07 PM, Hardrada said:

I think you need to redefine your process to:

Step 1: Decide what to make.

Step 2: Make pattern.

Step 3: Get leather.

Step 4: Get to work.

HS 

[Auden]

Thank you both for the recommendations! I'm still working towards this. I'm not sure if I can say this on a leather forum, but right now I'm making a bag out of quilting cotton and marine vinyl to get the hang of the bag making part. I've been ordering leather samples to try and decide what kind of leather to try first for any kind of project. And I'm putting a new motor on an old industrial sewing machine I'm intenting to use for all of this. I appreciate everyone's input!

[Retswerb]

Nothing wrong with that, all part of the process sometimes. Use fabric, paper, scraps, whatever it takes to figure out how the pieces are going to fit together to give you the result you want.

[Danne]

I would recommend you to start with smaller items. Even if it's just test pieces. Because when you start to make bags, mistakes cost a decent amount of money because of the amount of leather.

Someone asked me something along the line "How is it possible you have improved so much but not made a lot of things" (Keep in mind I do wallets and watch straps and small things) and I haven't done a lot of finished products, but I have done A LOT of small pieces. Like glue together two small scrap pieces, stitch it, crease it, bevel the edge and paint the edge. This way I now I feel confident in the techniques needed when I make that wallet or watch strap. Sure a watch strap is very little material cost, but it's not fun spending hours on a watch strap and making a mistake that ruin it because I lack experience of a certain technique. 

So in your case, I would use scrap leather and do test pieces of bag corners, maybe if you use zippers, just take two smaller pieces of scrap leather and stitch in a small zipper. Maybe the next step can be to make a dopp kit?