Many beginner – and experienced- sewists are intimidated by working with leather, and for good reason. It requires special tools, a lot of patience, and a good bit of practice, but with these handy tips stemming from years of experience, you’ll be well on your way to sewing your first high-quality leather piece!

1. Use the right kind of needle

It’s no surprise that there are different gauges of needles for different materials, but you might not have known that a “heavy duty” gauge needle is still not enough to smoothly sew through most leathers. You’ll want to make sure you’re using a 120/19 gauge needle when working with thick leathers and don’t forget that leather dulls needles quickly, so get a few spares that you can swap out as you’re working on your project.

2. Swap your presser foot for a roller foot

Leather’s tacky surface make it nearly impossible for your sewing machine’s feed dogs and standard presser foot to move the fabric evenly. By using a roller foot, the leather will be able to move more freely through the machine without getting stuck.

3. Use polyester thread instead of cotton

Cotton thread is known to degrade over time, and when sewing with leather, you need something strong that can hold up for a long time. Use polyester thread instead to ensure that your seams hold tight.

4. Reinforce corners and openings

Leather tends to pull apart at the corners with use and the best way to make sure your seams don’t break is by reinforcing your stitches in these areas. Backstitch several times over areas that are prone to pulling apart such as pockets, the bottom corners of a bag/pouch, and any place where you’re attaching straps. You spent a long time creating your new piece; take care to make sure it lasts a long time!

5. Use double-sided tape instead of pins

When working with most fabrics, you’ll hold your pieces together with pins or clips as you sew them, however clips often don’t hold thicker leathers very well, and pins will leave permanent holes. Instead, use double-sided tape to hold your leather pieces together as you sew. This will ensure that your pieces won’t shift around and the tape is undetectable once you’ve sewn your seams!