Sewing linen and fustian

[BillinOregon]

Have a few yards of both on hand in a medium weight. Thought I would use some Barbour's 3-cord linen thread to sew a hunting wrap-style shirt. Any particular stitch or seam recommended for durability and hard wear? I know virtually nada about sewing ...

 

[tmdreb]

I hate seeing a question answered with a question (especially multiple ones) but I can't avoid it: What are you planning on making? Are you interested in handsewing or machine sewing? How important is PC to you?

 

[BillinOregon]

TMDREB: I'm making a simple single-caped mid-1700s hunting wrap and plan to do it by hand, although the post-1840 sewing machine certainly is tempting.

 

[blacksmithman64]

I use a saddle stitch on just about everything meaning pretty much just possibles bags, and a few occasions when I need some new leggins.I only use one needle though and reverse when I get halfway through the thread.They say to use two needles, but they just get all tangled up and get to stickin' ya,but thats just me talkin'.This is also called a figure 8 stitch. Its real heavy duty and PC.

 

[tmdreb]

The saddle stitch is indeed perfect for leather. For cloth, it's hard to go wrong with a backstitch. I've googled the term to try to find the best illustration, and they all seem rather small to me. It can be hard to describe, but let me know if you can't get it from the illustrations you find.

The other stitch that'll come in handy is the overcast stitch, often called a "whip" stitch. You can use it for felling the seams.

Try this site for some illustrations and detailed instructions: http://www.vintagesewing.info/19th/1892-sn/sn-toc-long.html

 

[BillinOregon]

TMDREB: Appreciate the sewing Web site. Looks like I'm in for way more work than I thought I was ...