Brandt's Boulevard Sew Along, Step 4 - Outside!

For the next part of the sew along we will be working on the outside.  When sewing the wrap around strap part, I like to mark my seam allowances on the pointy end to make sure it's nice and even.  I won't say how many times I've had to 'fix' my sewing when I got a little wild and wasn't paying attention, but it was enough times that I now mark it every time!

hey, my sewing is even mostly straight!

I use a chopstick/stuffing tool (came in a bag of stuffing but looks like a single chopstick), and as long as I don't take out my frustration and attack the fabric, it is great for working out the sharp corners.  Don't go too crazy or you can push that sharp end straight through your fabric!

I have several different 'clear' rulers

When you are putting the strap on the outside, you can either do marks (in something that erases!) or just use 2 clear rulers and keep adjusting to make it even.  The benefit to the 2 rulers is that if your seam allowance wasn't perfect, you can still get this centered!  I will say that for wallets you need to take your time and do your best to stay on the same seam allowance.  They are definitely more precise and if you sew a generous 3/8" seam allowance, you'll find that cards and other things may not fit.  Or if you keep changing, it will make aligning everything at the end much more difficult!

I like to stick the pieces of my lock together after I have one side installed, it makes it MUCH easier to find later!

For the closure strap, you should be doing a 1/8" and 1/4" sewing line.  I've discovered I have several different feet for my sewing machine that make it easier to stick to my seam allowance since I have a habit of looking up while I'm sewing.  I'm not actually sure what they are for, but the left one does 1/8", the middle does 1/4", and the right one has both 1/8" and 1/4" sides on it!

Don't be afraid to switch feet!  It takes only a few seconds for most modern machines!

I'm not doing the wrist strap on mine, but if you are, go ahead and get that sewn now as well!  I'll be adding the next set of steps in pretty soon, since I need to finish mine this weekend!  The sew along will be available in the group forever (or until FB decides we don't need to have groups or erases everything, or crashing and leaves everyone in limbo...)


Timeline:

Step 1 - prep (should be done - buying and reading the pattern)
Step 2 - gather supplies (should also be done - be sure to jump in the group and share your fabrics!)
Step 3 - cut out the pieces, interfacing, and fuse it all together - Try to finish this by Wednesday!
Step 4 -  Outside and wrist strap (optional) (Thursday/Friday)
Step 5 - Inside pockets (Weekend)
Step 6 - Put it all together! (Weekend)