Necessary Clutch Sew-along Day 2

Are you ready to go for Day 2? If not, there’s still time to catch up. Read all the details in Day 1’s post, here. Lisa is back with more great experience and tips. I’d love to see your progress! Share your pics using #HappyOkapiNCWSAL.

Here’s Lisa:
Welcome to Day 2 of the NCW sew-along!  Today we’re going to tackle the flap and main body panel of the wallet.
Grab all your beautifully interfaced A, B and D fabric pieces and let’s get started. You’ll also need your Peltex piece C for this step.
Flap: Put your flap pieces pretty sides together and sew all the way around the curved edge with a ¼” seam – leave the bottom (straight edge) open for turning. A quarter inch quilting foot works great for this but if you don’t have one, find the quarter inch mark on your regular sewing machine foot to make sure your seams are as accurate as possible.  The NCW uses ¼” seams throughout construction and it’s important to maintain these accurately so the finished pieces go together nicely.

To get a nice, smooth curve, clip the curves with little v-notches. You can clip right up to, but not through, the stitch line.  Turn and press. Use a chopstick or smoother to get those rounded corners all the way out as your press.

If you are using an accent border you can prepare that now.  This, in my opinion, is optional.  I’ve seen lots of beautiful NCWs done without the border accent – just topstitched all the way around the flap.  You can also add piping in the step above as another decorative finish.  
To make the border piece fuse the Peltex piece C to the wrong side of the fabric border (piece B). At this point you’re going to clip the fabric along all the curves and corners.  Clip close to but not right up to the edges of the Peltex for a nice, professional finish. The pattern recommends double sided tape (Wondertape is great). I prefer to use a ¼” fusible tape at this step because it holds better for me.  ¼” light weight Steam-a-seam works great for this.  Just iron strips along both edges of your Peltex border piece, remove the paper backing, fold over the fabric and iron in place.  If you iron under and up over the Peltex the fabric should be nice and tight as you go.

Because I like a firmer wallet, at this point I add another piece of Peltex into the flap. I usually trace around the flap I’ve made and cut the Peltex about ¼ inch inside my tracing line. Then I slip it inside the flap through the back opening.  I don’t use fusible Peltex because it will often get a wrinkled look when the wallet flap is bent later.

Line up your accent piece with your flap and topstitch 1/8” from both edges of the flap accent.  An edge stitching or top stitching foot is great for this if you have one.  Go slow, take your time and it will look fantastic.  When you’re done, sit back and admire your awesomeness.  Sometimes, when I do this, I think I am a fussy cutting goddess.  Other times, I wonder if I may be developing vision problems in my old age.  
I give myself a 7/10 on this one…lol! <—Hey Lisa! Don’t be so hard on yourself, it looks fantastic!

Time to add your twist lock.  The instructions for these vary by manufacturer so it’s best to look up specific instructions for your particular lock.  Generally speaking you’re going to cut the hole in the centre bottom of your flap and attach your hardware. On the main body part you will attach the twist part.  Be sure to fuse a small piece of peltex where the lock will attach first.  Remember that your twist lock goes on the body side OPPOSITE where your flap is attached to the body. 

Update: Here is a tutorial from the Emmaline Blog on how to install a turn lock.  I’ve also heard that using your rivet press or seam ripper works well for creating the hole.

Now get ready to attach the flap to the body.

Brief interruption.  I like to attach my wrist strap and cross body strap anchors at this point.  To make anchors like these you need two pieces of 2”x2 ½” fabric.  Fold in half length-wise, and open.  Fold each side towards the middle and then fold the whole piece in half.  You will end up with two mini straps 2 ½” by ½” wide.  You can top stitch the edges at this point if you want.  Take a small ½” d-ring and loop the strap through it. Secure the D ring with a line of stitching. 
There is also another great strap anchor tutorial on the Emmaline blog if you’re looking for another way to attach your wrist and shoulder straps. Straps are optional but make the wallet more versatile in my opinion. 

Back to the body and flap.  Put your exterior body fabric pretty side up. Make sure the twist lock is at the bottom.  Lay the finished flap wrong side up, centred at the top of the main body piece.  This is where I add my strap anchors.  I put the unfinished bottoms flush with the edge of the flap and body just inside the edge of the flap. The D rings will be towards you.

Sandwich the other piece of the main body pretty side down on top of the flap and secure. The pattern says to leave a 4” opening. I leave an 8.25” opening for turning because I like to insert another piece of Peltex in the main body after turning.  Stitch with a ¼” all the way around, leaving your opening, clip, and then pull the flap out through the opening and get everything right side out again.  Press.  At this point I insert another piece of 8×8 inch Peltex into the opening left for turning, centred in the main body.  It adds some additional firmness to the wallet.  Turn under the opening edges ¼” on both pieces and top stitch around the entire body piece – closing up your turning hole.

And you’re done Day 2! Put your body piece aside for Day 4.  Tomorrow we’ll work on constructing the card slot and zippered pockets.

Wow! I’m amazed at how this is coming together! We’re almost halfway there now, make sure to come back tomorrow and share your progress on social media.