Leather jerkin help

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celegon
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Leather jerkin help

Post by celegon »

hey guys, I would like to make a jerkin like aragorns and I had a couple questions, what type of thread does everyone recommend?i would prefer to avoid nylon and fake sinew, also what type of eyelets should I get ?

thanks for any tips or suggestions!
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Elleth
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Elleth »

Welcome celegon!

You're right about fake sinew: I used it early on, and while it looks more-or-less okay at first, as it wears it looks more and more like the nylon it is.
I think there is no better answer than waxed linen, but if you're in a mood for adventure real sinew is a very appropriate option.

I've gotten real sinew here:
http://www.grannysstore.com/Wilderness_ ... d_glue.htm

If you want to keep it simple, waxed linen thread is both period-correct and VERY good for the task.
I personally get most of my linen leather-sewing thread by picking apart soft linen canvas:
Unbleached 14 oz. Coarse Linen WLG 101

And then waxing it with beeswax as I go.

That's mostly old habit from when I had tons of it on hand from doing a run of knapsacks and such though.

If you'd rather start with thread on a reel (the sane choice) I'm partial to "Crawford Waxed Irish Linen" thread:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Crawford-Waxed- ... qMINhs-Csg

I'd recommend sticking with natural colored thread: although one *can* dye linen (and walnut dying leather does interesting things to the thread as a byproduct) - as a rule modern dyed thread looks kinda weird once you develop a historical eye.


Regard eyelets: don't bother. Use metal eyelets, and your stuff will always look like a low-tier Ren Faire costume.
Just open up the hole (ideally with a awl rather than a punch) and sew in the reinforcement with thread.

That said - looking at alleycat's site, I don't see eyelets in Aragorn's jerkin: where are they?
Our own Manveron has done (at least one) crazy-researched copy of Aragorn's Strider getup: I'm sure he'd be the one to hit up for nitpickery details if you want film-accurate.


edit: for finer leather sewing work (gloves, purses, etc of thinner goatskin and such) I've recently started using this (waxed of course)
http://www.wmboothdraper.com/store/inde ... ts_id=1920

It allows wonderfully small stitches for fine work while still being tough enough for leathercraft. Those skeins are a pain though, so be prepared to reel it onto a spool or something before you start sewing, or you'll end up with a rat's nest. :)
Last edited by Elleth on Mon Sep 04, 2017 3:40 am, edited 1 time in total.
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celegon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by celegon »

thanks for your reply!

I've used real sinew and gut before on some stone age projects where I tried to be primitive as I could be but in this case I think ill use the thread that you linked, it looks like great stuff! and maybe ill be able to use that for some arrow fletching also,
I was thinking of ordering thread in a couple different colors so it would be like repairs were made with whatever thread was on hand, so maybe ill order brown and natural. and about the eyelets..i think I have just seen them on other jerkins and assumed that's how the strider jerkin and coat sleeves were made and that the awl holes would need to be reinforced somehow, ill go back and look at the pictures again
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Manveruon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Manveruon »

OOOOOOH BOY DO I HAVE A LOT OF FEEDBACK! Haha...

First of all, I want to say I wholeheartedly agree with almost everything Elleth has said above. Spot on.

One question though: are you looking to reproduce Aragorn's film costume as exactly as possible, or are you trying to make something *inspired* by his film costume, but for an original ranger impression? I can give you TONS of info on the screen-used jerkin (mostly photos, screencaps, etc.) but if you're looking to make something similar to it but not exact, this might be a bit superfluous.

Anyway, as for thread, I completely agree with Elleth. A nice waxed linen has become my go-to thread for pretty much every project. For most of my own jerkin, I used this wonderful 2-ply linen thread in walnut brown I bought from Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/484755773/ ... s_search_3
I bought one spool a couple years back and it's showing no signs of running out anytime soon!

Here's a photo of me using that thread to bind the edges of my Gondorian bracers. Using a saddle-stitch like this works really well, and doesn't look that far off from machine stitching, as long as you use something to evenly space your holes.
20161229_224636.jpg
20161229_224636.jpg (247.71 KiB) Viewed 19464 times
For a thicker linen thread, I just went to my local Tandy Leather Wearhouse and grabbed some of theirs in brown and black. I used this on all of the visible patches and stitches so it would stand out more, and I also use it on heavier-duty projects in general when I think I'm going to need a heavier thread. Here's a photo of me using that on some of my jerkin's patchwork:
IMG_20161210_140251.jpg
IMG_20161210_140251.jpg (152.34 KiB) Viewed 19464 times
As for eyelets, once again, I agree with Elleth that metal eyelets don't usually look authentic. This is because, historically speaking, they just aren't - metal eyelets like the ones we use today are a very modern invention. That said, there were still a number of costumes in the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings films that used them - most notably, costumes from Gondor. Boromir's bracers had metal eyelets for the lacing holes, and all the Ithilien Rangers had metal eyelets up the front of their jerkins for lacing. That being said, Agagorn's various laces appear to be woven through simple holes in the leather with no eyelets whatsoever. However, this can cause your leather to stretch and tear over time, so Elleth's suggestion of sewing reinforcement stitches is probably a good call. You can find tons of tutorials for this by Googling "hand sew an eyelet" or something similar.

For my own lacing holes, however, I actually used a wood burner to burn/melt the holes through the leather. The logic behind this is that the burning process somewhat hardens the leather, making the opening a little tougher. I can say from experience that this is not the most durable option, but it certainly works, and it totally looks the part.


So I think that's about it! Whew! Hope that all helps! I can't wait to see how the project turns out!
Maerondir Perianseron, also called “Mickel,” Halfling Friend - Ranger of the Misty Mountains
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Manveruon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Manveruon »

Here's a good picture that shows the contrast of the finer 2-ply thread (at the top of the photo on the binding) and the thicker 5 (I think) ply thread from Tandy. (Also, just a note - the baseball stitching I used here is NOT present on Aragorn's screen used jerkin, but I liked how it looked so I chose to use it up the back seam, since no one was likely going to see much of that part anyway).
20170121_004557.jpg
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Kortoso »

If you look at pics of the actual Aragorn/Strider jerkin:
https://www.alleycatscratch.com/lotr/Hu ... Jerkin.htm
You can see where the crafters intentionally made the stiching very crude, although the edge finish seems to have been done by machine. There also appears to be a fair bit of thong lacing, which I have done on my jerkin.
The use of sinew as a stitching thread on leather garments is, as far as I know, a Native American Indian thing, and peoples of Middle-Earth would have had access to good linen thread.

One thing I discovered somehow: I now use a "lap board" for leatherwork. It's just a wooden board in my lap. Ergonomically it makes everything a lot easier.
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Manveruon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Manveruon »

A lap board is a great idea! I may have to try that myself!

Also, I figure I should go ahead and share this - it's the Google Drive folder I've put together with every single useful photo reference photo of Aragorn's film costume I have found. Some of the photos are screencaps, some are from exhibits or behind-the-scenes features, and some are reproductions others have made, but hopefully they will be useful to anyone else who, like me, craves total screen-accuracy.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... sp=sharing
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celegon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by celegon »

thanks for the replies! :)

Ill try to stay close aragorns but if it doesn't exactly match, ill be fine with it as i am just doing my own fantasy ranger outfit
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Manveruon »

I'm excited to see the results!
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by celegon »

So I'm thinking ill just take an old flannel shirt of something and use it for my pattern, does that sound ok? I have some really cool looking leather for this, I had a heck of a time choosing to make a jerkin or a coat like bards ( but I would need some type shearling lining) so I decided to just do the jerkin

I appreciate the help and tips :P
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Manveruon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Manveruon »

Sure thing!

As for a pattern... That's where I would get kind of choosy, personally. I based mine loosely off of a pattern for an early 18th century long waistcoat, but I modified it quite a bit, particularly at the neck. Still, the overall design of the garment is quite simple. Just lots of long, mostly-straight lines. I put a slight "S" curve in the center back seam on mine in order to improve the fit somewhat, but that was just a personal preference thing.
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Kortoso »

celegon wrote:So I'm thinking ill just take an old flannel shirt of something and use it for my pattern, does that sound ok? I have some really cool looking leather for this, I had a heck of a time choosing to make a jerkin or a coat like bards ( but I would need some type shearling lining) so I decided to just do the jerkin

I appreciate the help and tips :P
You could certainly take apart a shirt to get the pattern. There are also of course store-bought patterns:
http://www.alleycatscratch.com/lotr/mak ... Humans.htm
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Taurinor »

Kortoso wrote:
celegon wrote:So I'm thinking ill just take an old flannel shirt of something and use it for my pattern, does that sound ok? I have some really cool looking leather for this, I had a heck of a time choosing to make a jerkin or a coat like bards ( but I would need some type shearling lining) so I decided to just do the jerkin

I appreciate the help and tips :P
You could certainly take apart a shirt to get the pattern. There are also of course store-bought patterns:
http://www.alleycatscratch.com/lotr/mak ... Humans.htm
It may also help to make a mock-up out of a heavy cloth like canvas (dropcloths work well) to get an idea of how it will fit before cutting your leather. Using a stiff cloth that will hang more like leather than, say, muslin will give you a feel for any bulky or ill-fitting parts that you need to rework.
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celegon
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by celegon »

got the thread ordered! now I just need some stitching tools since all I already had were punches
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Re: Leather jerkin help

Post by Manveruon »

I second Taurinor's suggestion of a mock-up! I make at least one mock-up (but often more like two or three) before I start sewing any project whatsoever, and this has seriously saved my bacon on many occasions.
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