Most leather goods you see in shops are machine-stitched. There's nothing wrong with that — it's efficient, consistent, and affordable. But it's not what I do.
I use a traditional saddle stitch. That means:
- Two needles
- One thread
- Each hole stitched individually
- Each stitch tied and pulled tight by hand
Why it matters
A saddle stitch is stronger than a machine stitch. If one thread breaks in a saddle-stitched seam, the other thread holds the entire seam together. It's the same reason saddles and horse tack have been stitched this way for centuries.
It's also slower. A lot slower.
A bag that takes me 8 hours might spend 3 of those hours just stitching. But that time isn't wasted — it's the difference between something that lasts 5 years and something that lasts 50.
The rhythm of it
I don't listen to music or podcasts when I stitch. I find the rhythm of the thread, the pull of the waxed linen, the slight resistance of the leather. It's meditative. It's the part of the process where I'm most present.
That might sound like romanticising it. But it's genuinely the reason I keep doing this work.
What you see in the final piece
A saddle-stitched seam has a slight slant to the stitches — they angle slightly, like a row of wheat. Machine stitches are straight and flat. If you look closely at an HBL piece, you'll see the hand-stitched character: the slight variation, the consistent tension, the care in every hole.
It's not perfect. It's better than perfect. It's human.