A friend wanted to save the buckle from his old belt, so I made him an upgrade! Fully handstitched.
this post was submitted on 28 Jan 2026
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leathercraft
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Thats a nice belt, but must have taken ages to make with all those stitches!
I understand why he wanted to sabe the buckle, its a nice one
Well the edge work is clearly not my best, but overall he was happy with it! Didn't take that long to stitch (a couple of houra) although working with such thread length is a bit of a pain.
Do you have any neat ways to work with such long threads?
When I've sewn with long (or just annoying) thread I like to hold it between my fingers close to the last stitch and then gently pull out, letting it run between my fingers to straighten it with the needle dangling at the end. For some reason it likes to twist.
Yeah, the curling and twisting come from the coil. There are a couple tips to work with lengthy thread.
1/ work with shorter thread. I know it sounds dumb but I wouldn't recommend working with more than twice your arm span. You can work with shorter thread, pull the thread out through the edge when it gets too short, tie a very thigh couple of knots, and push the knots back deep in the edge with an awl dipped in a drop of glue. Then clamp the edge to ensure it's all invisible. Then start from your last stitch with a new thread (obviously it works if you end with a nice and clean edge work afterward, and won't work with fabric).
2/ if you want to work with the full length of thread, first you should hold the thread at one end, then go around some kind of stick or handle (a hammer handle is fine), like once or twice and pull the thread gently all the way to kind of straighten it. Same as you would do for curling a ribbon on a blade, except you go around a couple time and pull gently.
3/ also, every once in a while, especially when you get too much curling/twisting, pull gently on the thread letting it run between your thumb and index, from the stich to the needle. Additionally you can let the thread hang, see how it twists, and roll the needle between your finger in the opposite of the twisting.
Working with long length increases the risk of thread breaking, so you should wax is properly and pull it through a rag then, to kind of melt the wax and get rid of the excess before stitching.
Wow, thank you for all the info! You must have worked with leather for a long time?
What is the longest thread you have worked with?
This is not relevant at all but I dreamt that I sandpaperd my doc martens to remove the plastic coating 😅
I'm mostly self taught, this started as a hobby back in 2020, but in 2024 I applied and got hired at Hermes, and I've been crafting handbags for them since then. All the work I share here is from before Hermes, and I must say it has helped me improve the quality of my work a lot, as the eye for details is crazy there. But I don't have time to practice at home anymore haha
The longest I have worked with is about 2 arm span, I could do more if I had too, but I'd avoid it if possible.
Wow, very fancy handbags, some designs are really fun! I understand the eye for details is crazy with those prices :o I'd expect them to outlive me about 10 times or so. But I'm just a humble peasant haha
2 arm span is a lot, I have at most used about 1,5 arm span