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Online extra to Threads Magazine
Easy-Fit, Easy-to-Make Suede Pants
For your first leather garment, try this comfortable, contemporary pattern
by Sandy Scrivano
Suede leathers are soft and supple, look as good as they feel, and make terrific garments. In my article "Classic Leather Pants" in the August/September 2001 issue of Threads (No. 96), you'll find out how to make a classic leather pant with a fly-front zipper, belt loops, and welt pockets.
If you want a simpler, different style for your first leather pant, check out the aubergine suede pants shown at right. They're a good example of a close-fitting style that never feels tight in this flexible leather, which is easy to sew. The princess seamlines on these pants (Vogue 7179) also make it easy to get the fit just right, especially in the seat, because you can pin-fit each leg both in front and in back, not just at the sides and crotch. This pattern also has a faced waist that lies flat on the tummy, an invisible back zipper, which creates a sleek silhouette that's not as bulky as that with a standard side zipper. The look is comfortable and contemporary.
At the bottom of this page, you'll find a quick run-down of leather-sewing tools and techniques, from buying to cutting to stitching. And here's a tip that adds an undetectable extra inch of waist comfort to this or any other princess-seamed pant pattern, without compromising the close-fitting look: After adjusting the pattern to fit as you like, cut the pattern along each front and back princess seamline straight down from the waist for about 3 in., as shown in the drawing below. Spread and tape open each cut about 1/8-in. at the waist, making the waist 1 in. larger all around when cut out. Replace the pants facing with 1-1/2-in. ribbed elastic, cut to your original waist length. Stitch the elastic to the pants waist, stretching the elastic to fit. The suede will gather imperceptibly, allowing you to eat a big meal and still feel good and look great in your leather pants.
Add waistline ease to princess-seam pants patterns
| Step 1. Mark down 3 in. from waist on all princess seamlines, front and back, and slash to mark along seamline. |
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Step 2. Spread each slash 1/8 in., taping spread to pattern tissue underneath; trim excess paper. Making this adjustment to front and back pattern pieces adds 1 in. total to waistline. |
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Leather-sewing basics
Buying leather
- Leather is sold by the square foot, and its thickness is expressed in ounces per square foot. For example, 1-oz. leather is 1/64 in. thick, while 2-oz. leather is 1/32 in. thick.
- Buy all the leather you'll need at one time, since dye lots vary.
- To figure the amount of square feet to buy for a pattern, convert the pattern's yardage requirement for your size by multiplying the amount of 45-in. fabric needed by 11.25. Add 15 percent to that number to allow for flaws and irregularly shaped skins.
Lay out for leather
- Lay out skins right side up
- Check skins for flaws (all skins will have them), and mark them permanently or with chalk.
- Avoid placing major pattern pieces on thin spots in the leather. Instead, use thin spots for facings or smaller garment sections.
- Always lay out and cut pattern pieces on a single layer of leather, and flip pattern pieces for repeats.
- Although leather has no grain, it tends to be stronger along the animal's backbone. Lay out sections that will bear more stress in the finished garment along the backbone, with as many major pieces as possible parallel to it. Cow leather comes in "sides," that is, only one side of the cow, so the backbone area is found along one edge. Smaller animals are tanned as whole pieces, and the backbone is found in the skin's center
- Garments tend to hang better if cut in the same direction as the backbone. However, pattern pieces may be laid out in any direction except crosswise to the backbone on leather without nap. To avoid waste, butt pattern pieces together, then cut seam allowances 1/2 in. wide.
- Sueded skins usually have a nap and call for a nap layout (see Threads No. 81, p. 20), though your pattern pieces generally can be shifted up to 25 percent without affecting the nap's look.
- Because skins often don't lie flat, cut out one pattern piece, then reposition the next one on a flat area that should appear once the hide is cut.
Essential tools for sewing leather
- Sharp shears are fine for cutting out pattern pieces, but most people find it easier to cut leather with a rotary cutter with a fresh blade.
- Weights to hold patterns in place for cutting, and small bulldog clips to hold seams together when sewn (pinholes are permanent).
- A glue stick substitutes for pins, temporarily bonding leather to be stitched later.
- Permanent contact cement (I like Barge) for bonding hems and seam allowances. (Use a cotton swab to apply.)
- A fine-tipped permanent marker, Chakoner, soap sliver, or hera marker for marking on leather.
- A Teflon or even-feed presser foot (walking foot). Stick-on Teflon sheets can also be cut to fit any presser foot, including zipper and edgestitching feet.
- Leather machine needles (a Schmetz 90/14 NTW needle sews well on medium-weight leather).
- A glovers needle for hand-sewing.
- Polyester or cotton-wrapped polyester thread for construction (not all-cotton thread).
- Lining material, such as Bemberg rayon or silk charmeuse.
Sewing guidelines
- Adjust stitch length to 8-12 sts/in. The heavier the leather, the longer the stitch length should be. Stitches that are too close act like perforations, making a weak seam.
- Test-stitch through three layers of leather to check stitch quality.
- Reduce presser-foot pressure if your machine allows.
- No edge finishing is needed, and hems can be cemented rather than sewn.
- Folds and creases are difficult to remove from leather, so keep unsewn sections flat while working on others. If you won't be sewing right away, roll pieces onto a cardboard tube, then wrap with plain brown kraft paper.
- For more information on sewing with leather, see Threads No. 85, pp. 52-55, and No. 67, pp. 58-62, and my book Sewing with Leather and Suede (Lark Books, 1998).??
Sandy Scrivano sews an infinite variety of leather garments in Sacramento, Calif. She is the author of Sewing with Leather and Suede (Lark Books, 1998).
Photo: Sloan Howard; illustration: Christine Erickson
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