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Matthew Dirr

Jan 10, 2023

Long Ham - progress

in Your Results

I have gotten as far as cutting the cloth. My pattern moved the seam to the equator so that I could reuse some cloth that had previously been something else. I think that it will work fine, no different than the round ham.

I have some Sapele dust at work. It is red like Mahogany and can stain things if left to soak in water. I have a feeling that the pink may leech through with sufficient steam... Any thoughts?

9 comments

Comments (9)

Reza

Jan 10, 2023

Great stuff Matthew! Thanks for sharing the progress.

I don't recommend using any filler that risks bleeding through.

However, if that's what you've got and want to use, it may be wise to first put the sawdust in another cloth bag and rinse with hot/warm water to get some dye off. Then allow to dry thoroughly.

It will increase the workload but that would be my recommendation.

Looking forwards to see the rest of the progress!

Reza

International School of Tailoring

Reza

Jan 13, 2023

Replying to

Good job on the Baseball stitch!

Darts in the felt on top of the skeleton bag is OK but not necessary. If you're only covering the top of the skeleton bag, it can easily take the shape of the bag without any darts.

This is best done once the skeleton bag is filled up. The felt can be basted on the bag and surpluses can be compressed with the iron.

The tight outer bag will hold the felt down and flat.

If however, you want to put in darts, I recommend using a straight lining strip to close the darts with a zig zag on top of it.

A round ham is not a problem at all. You'll get used to it. A squarer ham is very good to have. I recommend our oval ham pattern that you can find in our resources page:

Oval Ham Pattern

Reza

International School of Tailoring

Matthew Dirr

Jan 13, 2023

Replying to

My plan is to sew in the felt for the long ham as it is for the round ham, included in the skeleton seams. The skeleton is actually one piece on the fold but I can baste what isn't closed in the seam. I will go ahead and try out the bias strip on the sewing machine to reinforce the dart. I wish I could go back to your video at the moment but I remember that the dart you closed was curved and that the inside of the curve was sewn first... I think that I will manage.

I understand that what I am doing is not strictly necessary but that's ok. I will (ab)use these hams and make ones that better serve my purpose in the future, when I better understand their purpose. I certainly have plenty of sawdust and fabric from failed projects to make many hams.

Thank you very much for you thoughtful feedback!

Reza

Jan 15, 2023

Replying to

I understand. Have fun and enjoy the journey 😁

Reza

International School of tailoring