Leather is considered to be one of the most difficult materials to work with. It usually requires special tools, a sewing machine able to sew thick materials and a lot of patience. Let me show you that we don't have to invest enormous amounts of money to make a leather corset  - we can do it using objects that we already have access to.

I have been working with leather for a few years now. Most of the techniques I am going to describe are the result of my on-going process of trial and error.

Before you start...

... it is good to check your equipment and, most importantly of all, design your future corset with as many details as possible.

Tools

Apart from the usual corsetmaker's tools, like

• scissors and/or rotary cutter with mat
• chalk and pen
• a hammer
• a chisel (for cutting bones, you may also use bolt cutters)
• a file and pliers (unless you are using pre-cut bones) and
• an awl

you will also need

• a teflon foot
• a hole punch (to make holes for grommets in leather)
• needles for sewing leather (these have a triangular cross-section and are thus less likely to rip the leather when piercing it) and
• a thimble (if you use one).

I also find a metal ruler with a handle really handy.

Materials

• leather (one coat or two pieces of new genuine leather will do)
• coutil (for lining: consult your corset pattern to find out how much you will need)
• fusible interfacing (as leather is stretchy I usually interface the pieces)
• thread for sewing leather 
• bias tape and twill tape (in this project I will use fake leather bias tape for external boning channels)
• bones (consult your corset pattern for details)
• end caps (if you are going to cut the bones yourself)
• two piece grommets
• busk (or or swing hooks and a pair of pre-drilled bones – I will use them in this project)

Now, a brief comment on some of these tools and materials.

Leather

Apart from being a tricky material to work with, leather is also expensive. Many people refuse to wear it, as they are against killing animals. I try to recycle leather whenever it is possible. Very often, instead of buying pieces ready to work with, I re-use jackets or skirts. People often buy leather garments and then they find them uncomfortable, unfashionable and simply useless. Sometimes they sell them online and you can find a real bargain. You may also ask your friends or family members if they have any unwanted leather garments. Recycling ready-made leather clothes can be more time consuming, but at the same time it leads to exceptional effects. Yet, be careful and check the condition of leather that you are going to transform into a corset - a good method is to pull it and find out what happens. If the leather is too old or damaged and it tears, it is better not to use it for corset making. If the leather is dirty, dry clean it first.

Note that leather is not fabric. First of all, it is sold by the square meter. It does not even have edges and may differ across the surface in hue, texture or thickness. It is natural, so this should not bother you, but if you want to maintain symmetry you can use a method I will describe later on.

Leather does not 'tolerate' mistakes. Be very careful while stitching the panels together, as you should do it only once. Leather is not woven, it doesn't consist of threads which can be separated and after a while come back to the original place. You should treat leather as a piece of paper – once you pierce it, the hole stays there. It is important to remember this while stitching, because if you make a mistake and undo the seam you will not stitch again in the same place. Machine needles will simply cut leather, or it will tear. Another thing to bear in mind is the stitch length. Use a longer stitich length for the same reason as mentioned above – too dense a seam will weaken the leather and it will be more prone to tear in future.

Teflon foot

Sewing leather with a regular metal foot can be - to put it mildly – de-motivating. Because of its texture, leather 'sticks' to the metal foot and it's almost impossible to move it forward while sewing. It is vital to use a teflon foot for your project. Because of the material it is made from, it moves smoothly on leather and you feel as if you were sewing fabric. It will save you frustration and lots of tears.

If, however, you do not have a teflon foot, you can use really thin, transparent paper. Put the piece of paper where you intend to sew and secure it in place. Sew the pieces together. This technique lets you sew the pieces, but it has some shortcomings. Firstly, as you do not see your actual seam line, it is easy to lose it. Secondly, it is possible to damage the seams while removing paper, and thirdly, it can only be used easily for straight seams.

Thread

There are a variety of threads meant for sewing leather to choose from, but you must remember to test them on a scrap of leather before you start the project. Take a scrap and fold it (right sides together), and stitch across the piece. Then do the same with another scrap, this time folding it wrong sides together. You need to check it both ways as you will sew on both the right and the wrong side of the leather. Now open the seams and pull them, but not too strongly. See if the seams are in place and if the thread does not fray. Sometimes regular thread works best. [I was always told that 100% polyester thread is best for leather, but do experiment for yourself - Cathy].

 

Tailor's Chalk vs. Ballpen

It is vital to choose an appropriate tool to trace the pattern onto the leather. Tracing the lining is not complicated as you may use whatever suits you, but it is a bit more complicated with leather.

• A disappearing pen is of no use as the wrong side of leather is rough, and the line fades much faster than on fabric - within minutes, in fact.
• A regular pencil that you can find in any stationery shop is usually too sharp and scratches leather instead of drawing on it (you can use a softer one – usually found at art supply shops).
• Tracing wheels leave a nice and visible track, but the mark disappears the moment you scrub your piece of leather.
• Felt tips or markers may leave ugly stains on your leather, your hands and the lining, which excludes these too as useful tools.

What I find best is a ballpoint pen. It leaves really sharp lines and does not stain or smudge. If you are working with really dark or black leather you may use special tailor's pens for marking on leather or a pencil which leaves sharp lines and also 'scratches' the inside of the leather. The lines are more visible from a given angle then, but be careful not to rub the marks, as they will disappear.

Preparing the Leather and Cutting Out the Pieces

When you have all your tools and materials ready, you can start cutting out the pieces. I like to start with the lining. If you are working with pieces of a garment, it is vital to prepare useful and rather big pieces. Unpick the garment to create flat pieces to cut from, but if the jacket or skirt has some decorative seams, I do not recommend trying to unpick them. These seams are usually flat and really strong, and it will save a lot of effort if you leave them alone - you might even use them as decorative elements in your new garment. You will need to cut the main, ordinary seams of the garment, however, to end up with basic elements like sleeves, front and back. Remove the lining, get rid of all pockets or zippers and try to make the pieces as flat as possible. Do not throw away scraps, you may need them later on, if not during this project then maybe in the future.

 

Now it is time to give the project some thought and arrange the pattern on the leather. Remember to divide your material in half (one sleeve, half back and half front) as you will need mirror pieces for your corset.

Arranging your pattern pieces on the leather may take some time, but do not be hasty; take your time and try to find the best alignment. Be careful to take seam allowances into consideration. You should leave them rather wide (I like to make them at least 2cm (¾") as leather is stiff, and it may be more difficult to press the seams flat and topstitch if you leave them too narrow. Cut out corresponding pieces one after another using a simple trick to make them identical mirror images. It is especially important to cut out centre front and centre back panels really carefully as they are close to each other and any difference will be clearly visible.

Avoid cutting out two identical pieces by drawing arrows. I mark each side of a pattern piece with a number and an arrow pointing to the back of the corset – the usual order of sewing the pieces together from 1 to 5, 6 or more. After you have prepared the pattern in such a way you will not get confused if you are forced to flip the piece in order to find the most economical alignment.

Here is a simple trick to end up with mirror images when you are re-using leather garments and want a decorative seam from the original garment to run across your pattern pieces:

Trace the panel (add seam allowance). Then trace the decorative seams on your pattern. If they are straight it is best to use the ruler. Now flip your pattern piece and copy the lines you have just made. Align the pattern piece on leather according to the line you have just made. Trace the pattern piece carefully. You may want to compare it with the existing piece before you cut it out – feel free to do that, it is better to double check everything. Remember to mark the number and arrows and put the two pieces in one place. Repeat for the remaining pieces. Sometimes it is necessary to flip the pattern piece to fit the shape (like I had to do with number 1 shown in the picture below).

If you are working with new leather it is also important to cut out every single piece separately and match the corresponding pieces according to leather quality – its texture and hue. Moreover, as leather is rather thick, your scissors or rotary cutter may not be able to cut through it easily. Leather will move and crease if you try to cut two pieces at a time, so cut each piece individually.

 

Putting It All Together

You have prepared all the tools and materials, you have the pieces cut out (facing and lining!) and your head is full of 'dos and don'ts': now you can start putting it all together.

You already know that piercing leather with needles will leave marks that will never disappear. This almost excludes basting, especially as leather is too heavy and thick to baste. As it is rather firm, you only be able to use a few pins to secure the pieces in place. I usually start with the place where waist line crosses seam line. I pin in on the mark and head outwards towards the edge, first one way and then the other. I repeat that with a few pins. Thanks to that the marks will appear only in places hidden later on and, what is more, it will not affect the strength of the material. I recommend using curved pins to keep leather as flat as possible while stitching. [You can also try masking tape (painter's tape) to hold pieces together, but you may prefer to tape only on the wrong side - Cathy]

You probably have your favourite order of sewing the pieces together. If you like to press the seams to one side and topstitch, first check if your machine will manage to sew such thick layers. I recommend pressing the seams open.

 

I always start with the front and back pieces. I sew them together with the lining and insert the busk or pre-drilled bones for swing hooks. This way, I make sure that I will not 'lose' the straight lines at the front and the back while ironing the seams open (as warmth and steam may change the shape of leather by millimeters). When they are ready, I continue sewing the remaining leather pieces. You can also leave the busk insertion until the end, if you wish.
I then sew the remaining pieces of lining together (anything from two pieces to four or five for me, depending on the project), attach the waist tape and then put the lining away for a while. This way I can easily work on the leather side of the corset and add buckles, decorative seams or external boning channels. After you have sewn together and pressed the seams open, you can topstitch them and then interface to make sure they are strong and firm.
I advise external boning channels over the seams, to add to their strength. You can make them out of leather, but your sewing machine may refuse to stitch so many layers (if you will try to make a leather bias tape for the edges too, that will be four layers!) What I often use is fake leather bias tape, it is really flat and easy to attach.
You are probably wondering how to attach the boning channel before sewing! However risky it might sound, I often freehand it and it proves really effective. I can also recommend using adhesive paper tape (painter's or masking tape), but be careful and do not stitch it to the corset. Remove the tape before the foot reaches it, because you can damage the seams if you do it after sewing over it. The glue may also leave ugly stains on your corset if you press the tape with the machine foot.

Once you have decorated the right side with boning channels and/or other elements, you can attach the lining. Put the facing and lining wrong sides together. Baste or pin pieces 1 and 6 with the middle part of the lining and sew them. Topstitch and sew the loose ends of the waist tape. Flip the corset and insert grommets. You may also want to trim the top and bottom of the corset.

Busk or Swing Hooks

I find  a regular busk a nice and neat front opening for any corset, but if you are looking for something extra fancy and unusual, use swing hooks. You attach them in a slightly different way and you need a drilled bones to do so. 

The first time I used swing hooks I had to have the bones drilled. Fortunately it is now possible to buy pre-drilled bones, the only flaw is that they are available in one size. For this project I had them trimmed, if you plan to do the same make sure that a professional will do it for you as the bones are really stiff.

I recommend VenaCavaDesign for details on how to attach the hooks. (FR also has an indepth tutorial on Swing Hook Closures that includes how to safely drill bones- Ed)

 

 

I always put the bones between the leather and the lining and then secure with paper clips.
Insert three rivets to keep them in place while stitching, but DON'T hammer them yet! Put the other panel beside the one already prepared and align so that the decorative seams match. Repeat the process.
Now you can sew along the edges. You can use a regular metal zipper foot, but in this case it is more secure to use the wheel instead of the pedal to sew with the machine. It takes more time but you will ensure that the leather will not crease.

 

Finishing

To attach fake leather binding I suggest using paper clips again. They will keep the bias tape in place and you can remove them easily while stitching. Remember not to keep them on leather for too long, as they may leave marks. If you are using fabric bias tape (which also works well) you can secure it in the same way or just use pins.

 

Other Leather Projects

Making a leather corset can be a real challenge, not only for you but also for your sewing machine. I once tried to make a corset out of a biker's jacket, and ended up struggling to sew two pieces together that were too thick for my machine. But I did not give up. The effects were satisfying, as I managed to incorporate metal zippers – a distinctive feature of biker jackets - into my project.

After this experience I tried working with brand new pieces of genuine leather. It felt like silk compared to my previous experience. It proved also much easier to sew, as it was thinner. It was also the first time I had used swing hooks and lacing loops for a fancy effect. You can see fake leather external boning channels and satin binding in the photo (below left).

You don't have to make an entire corset out of leather. Sometimes a few elements will do. This corset (below, right) was made from leather (front and back panels) combined with red taffeta, with fake leather external boning channels.

 

To Sum Up...

Before I say goodbye and good luck let me summarize six key points:

1. Use a teflon foot and special leather needles for sewing leather

2. Check your sewing machine's capabilities on a scrap

3. Prepare the right thread

4. Don't undo and re-do stitches (or if you really have to, don't sew again along the same line)

5. Don't pin or tape the pieces in visible places

6. Be creative and have fun!

I hope you have found this article informative and will give leather a try.

Good luck!

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