Sewing on Leather
Ninety percent of the questions I receive from potential customers can equally be divided into two groups; how do you sew on leather and where do you buy leather. I’ve gathered a list of tips below that have helped me while sewing on leather the last year, but be sure to check out the following pages for more help:
Links page for leather resources
What weight of leather works best for soft-sole shoes?
What thread works best for sewing on leather?
Terms you may find useful when shopping for leather.
How to care for your soft-sole shoes.
How to get your leather to glide smoothly across your sewing machine.
Using glue on washable leather shoes.
How to buy, prepare, and sew with recycled leather.
Adding waterproofing to your soft-sole shoes.
Adding recycled soles from watershoes to your soft-sole shoes.
[Note: I want to make it clear I don’t consider myself an expert when it comes to sewing on leather. Nor am I an expert seamstress. So there may be better ways of accomplishing things than what I have described below. If you know of a better way to accomplish something please let me know so I can update my list of tips.]
Most people that sew on leather are going to recommend you purchase a Teflon presser foot for your machine. This is supposed to allow the leather to be fed more easily underneath your sewing machine. To be honest, I haven’t used one yet. My thought being the leather is still sticking to the bottom of the machine and the foot isn’t going to do much to help that. However, you can purchase a Teflon presser foot for around $10 from the link below: (If it’s as wonderful as they say, please let me know.)
http://www.marvelouscreations.com/presser_feet_prices.htm
For me success in sewing on leather has to do with the following items:
Leather Sewing Needles (and Non-Leather Sewing Needles)
For the most part having leather sewing needles in your machine will make your job so much easier. The needle is designed so it actually cuts the leather each time it pierces. However, because the leather is actually cut you can not use a small stitch width or you run the risk of perforating your leather and it will easily rip. Oddly enough, when working with several layers of leather I actually find my machine does better with smaller and non-leather needles. I will commonly swap between 11, 14, and 16 size needles in leather and non-leather. So if you are having problems just try a different size of needle.
Scotch Tape and Double Sided Tape
I don’t know how anyone can do appliqués without these two tapes. (The double sided I only use in the center of pieces because I do not want to sew over it.) I will tear off several small pieces of scotch tape and use them to situate an appliqué piece on the shoe top prior to sewing. Making sure it’s aligned with the other shoe top and appliqué as well. Then I start sewing on one end of the appliqué piece and as I work my way around I remove one small piece of tape at a time. I’ve found this makes an amazing difference in how evenly my appliqués get sewn on and how well they align with the other appliqué.
Baby Powder
Stumped? Actually baby powder is my Teflon presser foot. I sprinkle a little on my work surface near my machine and when I have a piece of leather that will not slide easily I either hand pat on some powder or dab the leather piece in the powder. Then I knock off all excess and it slides across the machine like a dream. If you do this, you do need to blow out any excess powder from the bobbin area of your machine after each pair of shoes. The powder will totally disappear from the shoes and it leaves a lovely fragrance behind.
Scrap Pieces of Fabric
When I have to assemble pieces of an appliqué together prior to sewing it on the shoe top I will often pick up a piece of scrap fabric to lay the base piece on. It makes it easier to maneuver it under the presser foot. Right before I sew it to the shoe top I turn the appliqué piece over and trim as much of the fabric off as I can.
Silver and Black Markers
I tried pinning the pattern pieces. Then I tried pens of all shapes and sizes. For the most part they work. However, I now use exclusively a black and a silver marker. The marker doesn’t plug up from the leather nor does it skip around on the leather the way a pen does. The silver shows up on dark colors and the black on light colors. I do use a pen when marking sewing lines for appliqués (smiles, eye brows, etc.). I tried a disappearing ink one but it disappears to fast. I just use a pen in the color of the thread I’m sewing on and it just reinforces the design and as the ink slowly disintegrates with each washing it’s not even noticeable.
Polyester Thread
You have to use a good durable thread when sewing with leather. I prefer a polyester as it doesn’t seem to break or shred as easily as cotton based or blend does. I have also used Quilting or embroidery thread and it works great also. If you are having a lot of broken thread issues try a polyester thread.
Don’t Start at the End
When sewing on leather I find it easier for every seam, on the shoe it’s self or on the appliqué, to start a quarter of an inch away from the edge. Then I either go forward, reverse to end, and go back forward. Or I just make my way around the entire area and back to where I started. It is easier to manipulate the leather under the foot of the machine with some room to hold each side of the leather.
