Sewing leather: The best tips & tricks!

In this post, you'll learn everything you need to know if you want to sew leather. By the way: These tips also work when working with faux leather and cork fabric!

The most important points at a glance

• Leather is a very special material and therefore requires special treatment when sewing
• Leather is a natural material - and although it has such a robust exterior, it has a "soft core"
• Leather only stays beautiful (and, above all, beautiful for a long time) if it is well cared for
• If you want to avoid animal-derived leather: there is now a multitude of leather alternatives made from various raw materials

Tips and tricks for sewing leather

Are you also a fan of cute baby shoes made from leather? If you sew soft crawling shoes from vegetable-tanned and naturally dyed leather, the little ones can wear the shoes without socks without any worries - a wonderful feeling!

Or would you like to create bags and pouches from this noble natural material? Then you need my tips to get a professional result!

Just like my simple Mattea leather bag, feel free to take a look at it.

Leather is a very special fabric, and therefore requires special treatment when sewing. It is a natural material - and although it has such a robust exterior, it has a "soft core." That means: it only stays beautiful (and, above all, beautiful for a long time) if it is well cared for.

Alternatives to leather

If you want to avoid animal-derived leather: There is now a multitude of leather alternatives made from many different raw materials. You can learn all about them in my blog post about vegan leather!

Measure and adjust accurately

Leather - especially smooth leather - is sensitive and does not forgive needle punctures. Because it is almost impossible to rip out stitches in leather without leaving an unsightly stitch mark, you should measure as accurately as possible and check from time to time that everything fits.

Sewing leather with a sewing machine

My tip: First try it out on a small test piece to see if the stitch length and thread tension are correct. Experience shows that sewing works best with a stitch length of 3.5 mm.

For some types of leather, it is worth playing around with the thread tension a bit. Often, a lower thread tension is the better choice - and creates nicer seams!

The choice of sewing thread is also important. Sturdy leather demands sturdy sewing thread. And this, in turn, needs to be sewn with a leather needle, through whose eye it can glide easily.

Since I have had such bad experiences with cheap sewing threads, I can recommend Gütermann Extra Strong^*, which can be used especially for heavy materials such as denim, tarpaulins, and leather (or U.S. mail bags!). It is available in many different muted colors - matching most common leather colors.

So: Simply thread the sewing thread onto the needle and let it "slide." If that works without any problems, you have the right needle for your project!

Special leather sewing machine

There are special sewing machines that are designed not only for the challenge of sewing thick, multi-layered fabrics. They are also suitable for processing leather.

Perhaps the best-known heavy-duty machine is the SuperJeans by Toyota^*, which is available for little money.

Depending on the model, it has 15, 17, 36, or 34 stitch types. Its presser foot is equipped with special gliding properties and is also suitable for sewing leather.

Grain and growth direction

Just like fabric, leather has a grain line. This is across the direction of the hide's growth.

In the grain direction, the leather is stable and practically indestructible. In the growth direction, some leathers can tear.

For small sewing projects, this is not necessarily worth noting. But even when cutting baby shoes, you should pay attention to which direction the grain is pointing. It helps to stroke over it to determine which direction is the grain direction: If the leather darkens and smooths out when stroked, this is also the grain direction.

This is important because otherwise you might end up sewing one crawling shoe that looks lighter and one that looks darker. :)

You should also avoid cutting the leather diagonally to the grain direction. This can cause your sewing project to warp later on.

Even if you want to cut cords or strings from leather, you should make sure to do it only in the grain direction. Otherwise, your new backpack straps will tear very quickly.

Markings on the back

Some leather also resents markings with Frixion^* or chalk^*. Even after the color has disappeared, unsightly streaks can remain in the leather. Therefore, markings should only be made on the back.

A Koh-i-noor is well-suited for this. Read more about it in this article.

Blog reader Daniela, who works a lot with leather, recommends using a silver pen for marking. It is easy to see and can be erased without any problems, she writes.

I have found the silver pen in a 10-pack on Amazon^*.

Which needle for sewing leather?

Leather is usually sewn with a sturdy thread, which then also requires a sturdy sewing machine needle. A good investment is special leather needles, which are not only stronger but also cut particularly precisely into the leather. Through the hole created, the thread can glide easily.

Use a new, sharp leather needle^* for your leather sewing project. Used needles can already be slightly bent or nicked, which can lead to an uneven seam.

Adjust stitch length

A stitch length set too short can lead to you practically cutting through the leather with the seam. For most types of leather, a stitch length of 3.5 is optimal. Very thin, delicate types of leather can sometimes handle a stitch length of 3.0.

Gluing works wonders

Because leather and pins are simply not friends, try attaching the sewing pattern to the leather with Scotch tape: It works great and doesn't make holes in the material!

Cutting leather

Make sure to lay out and cut all parts of your sewing project in the same direction. Cutting itself works best with a rotary cutter. If your pattern has curves or rounded edges, a rotary cutter with a small blade^* is recommended. 28 mm is great. With larger blades, it can happen that you don't capture the curve cleanly and the whole piece is ruined.

Because I have now tried many different rotary cutters (with more or less interesting experiences), I can say that the one from Olfa works best for my sewing needs. It is quite simple, makes no fuss, and when the blade needs to be replaced, I don't have to call the plumber (or the fire department) right away. :)

Leather should always be cut in a single layer, never in double layers. This also applies to cutting on the fold: due to the thickness of the material, accurate cutting is not possible here.

If it is too much effort for you to attach the sewing pattern to the leather with adhesive tape, you can use pattern weights instead. One or two doorstops also do the trick, by the way! ;)

Clips and clamps

To hold leather pieces together, you can use fabric clips or strong binder clips very well. They hold your parts together precisely without damaging the leather.

By the way, I have tried different fabric clips. In this post, you can read which ones have made it into my sewing Hall of Fame.

Sewing leather - which presser foot is the right one?

The best way to sew leather is with a Teflon foot^*. This way, the material doesn't "stick" to the foot. The Teflon foot is generally a good investment if you also enjoy working with oilcloth^*, coated cotton^*, faux leather^* or PVC film (you can find a sewing tutorial for pouches made of vinyl HERE).

Alternatively, you can also try a walking foot.

By the way, a roller foot^* also works really well for leather. With it, the leather has no chance of resisting the stitching and is transported cleanly. Which also means: the seam will be even!

After sewing: cleaning leather

If you have ever asked yourself the question whether you can wash leather, the clear answer is: yes and no. :)

Leather is, of course, made from animal hide. This is tanned and processed further according to its intended use. Depending on the processing, the material can withstand more or less moisture.

Basically, you can quickly ruin leather if you bring it into contact with too much water. This applies above all to fine suede. Here the motto is: if it gets dirty, let the stains dry and then brush them out with a special suede brush.

These brushes have short, strong metal bristles on one side that clean the leather without causing any damage. With the crepe side, which consists of a wavy rubber layer, you then roughen the leather up again.

Special washable leather, which usually comes from lamb, is pre-treated so that the leather remains soft and keeps its shape even after repeated washing.

Smooth leather can be cleaned well with a special care product. However, the cleaner should not be worked in for too long or too strongly, otherwise, it can lead to lightening or discoloration.

Nappa leather comes from calf or sheep. It is a particularly soft but durable leather often used for clothing. It is dyed through and treated in such a way that it can also resist moisture and dirt.

Often, it is enough to simply clean leather with a suitable leather brush.

What can you sew from leather?

Large and small bags are great, as they are beautifully robust thanks to the material. You can find inspiration in my free collection of sewing bags patterns.

Combining it with other materials is also brilliant, for example with felt, which has a similar thickness to the leather itself. As a starting project, you could try sewing my quick cell phone pouch.

Where can you buy leather for sewing?

If you want to gain your first experience in working with leather, buying a pack of leather scraps is worth it.

You can also check if a furniture store in your area has a set of leather samples to give away. You can also sew many great little things out of those!

You can, of course, also find what you are looking for online when it comes to leather. And I have also ordered such leather packs^* from Amazon several times. They are available sorted by color and size.

Also quite fun: Sewing a leather tassel – take a look at the tutorial :)

Did you like the post about sewing leather? Feel free to leave me a comment below!

Happy simply sewing,

your Sabine

Frequently Asked Questions