Professional Leatherwork Course

This is a 3-day (16 HOURS) theoretical and practical introductory group tuition during which you will be taught common, essential leather crafting and sewing techniques and understand how working with leather differs from working with vegan leather or fabric.

You will be taught how to correctly use hand tools, how to sew leather by hand, with an industrial machine and understand the most common finishing and construction techniques used in bag and accessory making.

You will learn about different types of leather and vegan leather and understand how to select the correct type of material(s) for your project.

You will receive an overview of the technical aspects of working with leather and constructing bags and accessories such as marking, cutting, glueing, reinforcing, skiving, debossing and more.

You will receive professional sewing training on industrial machines, you will learn the basic of saddle stitching and produce your own samples of work to take home with you.

At the end of the lesson, you will create a hand-sewn simple leather item such as a purse, card holder or clutch to take home with you.

This is a professional course delivered by a prototype maker and manufacturer, with the aim of providing an overview and hands-on experience on more common leather working practices.

During the course, you'll learn:

Leather, vegan leather and hand tools:
– Understanding leather: overviews on types of leather, tanning, finishings and best use
– Vegan leathers: different types and features
– Leather vs vegan leather: pros and cons from a manufacturer’s point of view
– Understanding the importance of choosing the right materials for your project and the right tools for your materials
– Leather preparing, pattern placement and marking on leather
– Cutting complex shapes using a variety of tools
– Using leather punches
– Understanding the us of skiving, beveling and creasing
– Finishing leather edges: painting vs burnishing
– Using various leather glues and tapes
– Understand the use of reinforcements, fusings and stabilisers to back leather
– Prototyping and manufacturing leather goods: mentions of different working methods, machines and tools

Machine and hand sewing:
– Industrial machines: differences and main features
– To choose the right sewing machine for a specific type of material or construction
– To operate a lock stitch walking foot machine
– To thread industrial sewing machines
– To understand how to obtain the correct tension in your sewing
– To understand thread types and needle sizes
– To learn how to correctly sew leather and how this differs from sewing other materials
– To learn how to sew straight lines, curves and create parallel seams
– To produce a range of seams and seam finishes
– To learn the basics of saddle stitching leather and understood the different the tools and materials used in the technique

Construction techniques:
– To sew and finish a simple zip on leather.
– To cut, assemble and sew simple straps/handles.
– To incorporate basic types of lining in your project.
– To create a small, simple leather item to take home with you.

IF YOU REQUEST A PRIVATE CLASS:
If you are interested in booking a private class, please note that we typically schedule sessions 4-8 weeks from the booking date.

This course is suitable for total beginners, beginners with some experience and intermediate.
You should be able to use measurements and understand verbal and written English instructions. You'll leave the class with the samples you've made each day and a hand-stitched leather item made on the final day.
  Feel free to bring a notepad, if you would like to take some notes, we will provide the rest.
 

This class series runs over 3 consecutive days.