Okay, so I just wrapped up this project – it was a bit of a doozy. I decided to try and remake that PRADA Medium Galleria Saffiano Leather Bag, you know, the one you see on the official store? Yeah, that one.
I started by looking everywhere for this bag. I went from my area and searched for local shops, even used that Verizon stuff to find stores nearby, but no luck. One place even had a smaller version for, like, 2 bucks, but that’s not what I wanted.
Then I hit up some leather shops around Pittsburgh. There’s this Roberta Weissburg Leathers, a Tandy Leather place, and even MM Parts & Leather. I mean there is even a place named Bare Bottom Leathers of Washington, so I have been to these places. I felt a bunch of different leathers, trying to get a feel for what the real bag was like. I went to a few more leather stores to find the most suitable leather.
After I got my leather, the real work started. I carefully cut the leather into the right shapes, you know, all those different panels that make up the bag. Then I started stitching. Let me tell you, stitching leather is a whole different beast compared to regular fabric. It’s tough, and my fingers were definitely feeling it by the end.
The next part was putting it all together. Attaching the handles, lining the inside, getting that signature PRADA logo just right. It was a lot of trial and error, a lot of undoing and redoing stitches. I used some tools to punch holes and some other tools to hammered rivets. I even messed up a couple of times and had to start over on some parts. I kept doing it because I like doing it, and I want to make this bag, even though it’s really hard and takes a long time.
But, you know what? I finally did it. I finished that bag, and it actually looks pretty darn close to the real thing. I’m still stitching, and I like to do this. It’s not perfect, of course, but I’m pretty proud of how it turned out. It is really a challenge, but I learned a lot.
- Find the right leather: This took some serious searching.
- Cut the leather: Like a tailor, but tougher.
- Stitch it all together: My fingers still hurt.
- Assemble the bag: Handles, lining, logo, the whole nine yards.
It was a fun project, even though it was tough. Learned a ton about working with leather. Maybe I’ll try another bag next! Or maybe I’ll just take a break and rest my poor fingers.
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