After you know the different types
of handbag construction you can combine methods to get the result you
want.
It is important that you think about the construction step by step so
that
you can do the necessary operation while you have access to the part.
You
can't sew a pocket into the lining after the bag is complete. You have
to do the operation when it will fit into the sewing machine.
When someone asks me to make them a custom
leather
handbag I decide on the construction method from experience. If they
want
additional features I may have to modify the method or change to
another
method. For instance, there are a lot of ways to make the bottom of a
leather
handbag. Will the seams be on the center of the ends or on the corners.
If the seams are on the corners, an end pouch can be sewn onto the end
before the leather bag is assembled. If the seam is on the center of
the
end as on the leather handbag we are about to make, the pouch would
have
to be sewn on after assembly when that seam has been sewn. This is more
difficult. The more difficult you make the bag to assemble the more
likely
you are to sew something crooked, wrong or through another part of the
bag. When doing jacket repairs it's what I call. "sewing your elbow to
your knee".
Now fold the leather straight over and press the
edges together. Looking good...
Now lets sew it together. This roller guide is
one of my favorite tools. I got it out of a junk box years ago and made
guides for it on the bobbin cover. Other than my one good eye this is
why
my seams are straight. See how the leather and rope are controlled by
the
seam tape as they feed between the foot and the guide for a straight
tight
seam.
After trimming off the excess to the stitch
line,
we have the completed rolled leather strap for our Custom Leather
Handbag.
This is when we attach the tabs that will cover
the strap attachment. They are sewn to the handbag front and back below
the hole. The strap is inserted and lashed down by hand with harness
stitching
thread.
The tabs are then folded down over the strap
end
and sewn to the handbag. Next the edges of the bottom are skived (
pronounced
Sky ved ) and then sewn to the center bottom of the handbag front and
back.
This time the seam is sewn, then folded down and top stitched.
Here is our leather handbag with the front and
back joined. What we now have is a common bottom type of construction
though
we arrived at it by a method different than normal.
Picture what the front and back would look like
if we now cut the bottom down the center. The front and back
would
have squares cut out of the corners. Then to join the front and back we
would sew a seam where we just cut it apart to get back to the shape we
have now. With that method the handbag would have a seam down the
center
bottom only.
Now we fold the handbag together and sew the
side
seams.
Then we sew across the bottom ends to produce
this. The next step before turning the handbag right side out is to
glue
on another piece of leather to the bottom. On the left you can see the
lining behind the camel pocket.
There it is, the outside body of the leather
handbag
waiting for the lining to be inserted. Notice the bottom seams and
think
about how we arrived here and how the other method I just mentioned
would
look with a seam down the center of the bottom and no seams on the
front
and back where it makes the turn to become the bottom. See how this
allows
us to have a solid bottom in a different color than the accent trim.
For
the lining we are going to use the method with the seam down the middle
as it is smoother, simpler, and we don't need the seams that are on the
outside.
On this side of the handbag lining we install
a zipper, sewing another piece of lining material behind it to define
the
pocket. The bonded lining used here is much thicker than regular fabric
linings and gives me a lot more options. Bonded means that it doesn't
fray
or stretch in any direction. Sure, making linings seems boring, and a
big
hold up when the handbag seems so near completion, and we're getting
anxious,
but it is an important part of the functionality when the bag is in
use.
This is where we have a chance to add custom touches like the cell
phone
pocket that just fits the phone this customer has. The lining looks
purple
in the picture because of the flash, but it is definitely Black.
On the other side of our handbag lining we sew
on a pocket and a cell phone pocket with a Velcro flap closure. Notice
that I folded and top stitched the top of the pocket. Remember these
lining
pieces are more or less square with with the bottom corners cut out. We
now sew them together on the bottom and top stitch the allowance back
to
keep it lying flat. This gives a lining the same size and shape as the
body of the bag before we sewed the sides and ends of the leather
handbag
together. Next we skive and fold back the zipper facing, apply seam
tape,
stick on one side of the zipper, apply seam tape again and apply it to
the top of the lining. Then we sew once across the top joining all
three
pieces.
Here we have the lining inside the leather
handbag
body to test the fit. Notice the top stitched seam down the center
bottom.
See how this makes a smoother interior than if we had made it exactly
like
the outside.
Go to my leather
handbag page and see how many leather handbags there have the body
of the bag made the same way as we made the lining of this handbag. The
Diana, Tote, and Maxi Tote as well as the Hobo, have the same
construction.
The 2 pocket zip has similar construction except for the complication
on
the side seam that is similar to the bottom seam of this handbag.
Now we put on the slider and join the side seams.
Reinsert the lining and position it inside the
bag. Line up the end seams and sew the top of the facing to the top of
the body of the handbag. We're almost there, phew!
All we have to do now is make some binding in
the camel leather and bind over the top seam to finish it off.
There it is!! Not Bad!! Once it's together it
sure looks better than anything I could ever make! But I did, didn't I.
It's just a matter of thinking it through first, and taking it one step
at a time. Isn't it interesting that we started with nothing but
rectangular
shaped pieces and ended up with this. If you saw a picture of this and
wanted to copy it, wouldn't you think you had to make the top of some
of
the pieces wider than the bottom?
Whoa!!! I did it again! Wow that's twice. OK you
make the next one.
How about something completely different...
take
a look at this one.
Does this bag have any structural elements in
common
with the Tote we just made? Take a
look at what's available from LeatherGoods
Connection
.
Want to make
something more difficult? try Making a
Handbag from a photo.