The Wallet.

[HenriettaMaria]

Deeply impressed!  Well done on such a neat job.

[Bill]

That looks great, Bill. Lots of fiddly bits and thick bits, all well handled.

The thick bits. Chr**t they were a bloody nightmare. 

[Elnnina]

Well done Bill that looks like a really useful wallet and beautifully sewn as well.

Now you mention the thick bits and just how difficult it is to sew through these.   Well two things spring to mind that you could use, a hammer of some sort (clean of course) to bash away at the thick parts and thus flatten them - this makes a real difference, and the other is a marvellous little gadget that is not expensive at all, and this is called either a 'Humper Jumper' or a  'Jean-a-ma-jig' or  'Pfaff Clearance Plate'.  These little bits of plastic are placed behind the needle and then the presser foot is lowered and it allows the machine to carry on stitching without changing the stitch length or bunching up.  Go and look these up on You Tube to give you an idea.  I can give you a link to the Pfaff one on You Tube and it is 'Sew a Jeans Hem with Margaret of Sewing Machine Warehouse, Australia'.  Incidentally I do not have a Pfaff machine but I was so impressed on seeing this video I just had to have one of these clearance plates, in fact I have all three of the devices I have mentioned.

For the hammer, I personally use a wooden steak mallet (never been used in the kitchen) but using a wooden appliance and steam does work wonders in flattening any part of your sewing that needs flattening.  If you are going to use a metal hammer, may I suggest you have a piece of cloth placed between hammer and what you are trying to flatten.

Good luck.

[William]

Welldone! - Very neat!

[Bill]

I got around the thickness by squishing the seams in my mini vice @Elnnina
Squishing however caused further ripples by making the seams uneven at the edges making it hard to sew a straight line and because the fabric was squished, it was harder to sew through. But the atelier hammered through and won the battle! 

[Elnnina]

Well needs must and using your mini vice was a good idea.  However, flattening thick parts, corners and cross seams still need a little extra help and the little gadgets I mentioned will help you no end, and non of them will break the budget.  I particularly liked the Australian Pfaff demonstration, Margaret shows exactly how to use this gadget, and makes it look so easy and of course there was also a bonus, shortening a pair of jeans whilst not making it look as if they had been shortened.

Keep on sewing you are doing so well, and of course enjoy your lovely new machine.  By the way after sewing through all the layers on the wallet, don't forget to change your needle, your machine will thank you for that.

[SewCanDad]

Looks nicely done Bill, impressive 

[Bill]

Janome call this a button shank plate. It raises the button for a looser fit but I think it'll do the same job as the gadgets you mention @Elnnina
I'll give it a try next time a bulky seam gives me grief.

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[So Chic]

@Bill.  Wallet looks great.  You can always use a bit of paper folded up instead of a humper jumper as a cheap option.

[Lilian]

 You have done a very good job of the wallet. It's very neat and useful.  Well done @Bill 

[Ploshkin]

Yes, that's the thing Bill.  It has a thick and thin side and you put the appropriate side under the front or back of the foot to keep keep the foot level.  If the foot is level the fabric will feed through better so you get even stitches and you shouldn't break needles.  It's surprising how many layers of fabric you can sew through (slowly) with the foot level.  I think I managed 10 layers of canvas with my Pfaff.

[Elnnina]

Yes that is like the Pfaff gadget Bill, how lucky that you have this and now you can save your pennies!  I do like this one as it has the two thicknesses.

[Sara-S]

Looking good! The edge binding is very impressive.

[Andymat]

I'm very impressed Bill.
As people say, the binding looks very neat, particularly around the corners which I think could be tricky.

I have the "The Gentleman's wardrobe" book but have yet to summon up the courage to brave any of the projects. 

[SewCanDad]

I have the "The Gentleman's wardrobe" book but have yet to summon up the courage to brave any of the projects. 

goes to check it out