Valerie Wallet

I had the opportunity to test for Porcupine Pattern's Valerie Wallet and made 3 at one go! 

From left to right: Denim (non-stretch) main /cotton lining, Cork main/cotton lining, cotton main/cotton lining

Here are some thoughts:

It is very important to trim the seam allowance when the instruction says so. The bulk is really thick especially if you are trying to sew with an ordinary sewing machine. Top-stitching through bulky layers would be better done with a 90 or 100 needle and preferably with a longer stitch length of about 3.5.

When it comes to the cork wallet, I found out that it really isn't a good idea to iron cork. So the only way is to simply hand press it as well as you can. Also, cork is not the best material to try to birth so I strongly DO NOT recommend anyone try to sew this with cork fabric. 

In fact, of the 3 wallets I made, I felt that the best materials for the wallet are quilting cottons for both main and lining. It is a lot less bulky and much easier to birth. The overall look is also prettier and you can add the foam lining to give it a lovely professional finish. 

At first I tried to 'label' the wallet with my tag. But i realised I didn't like that look so the rest of the wallets were done with the tag on the inside of the coin purse. 

Another thing that I realised was I preferred that the main fabric wraps around the card slots so that the fabric for the card slots can't be seen on the outside even at the edge. Hence, for my second and third wallet, I made sure to only use the lining fabric for the card slots and the coin purse lining. 

For the buttons, I used metal buttons that needed to be hammered in. Some testers used plastic snaps which looked good too. I didn't have the metal magnetic snaps that was in the tutorial and I wish I had slim magnetic snaps, but I had to work with what I had. Tip: Make sure you have materials before beginning the project! Chinatown is a good place to find notions!