[Shadowmanrider]

Finished the M-Sport contrast stitching at last ( I started it before Xmas ) and happy with the result….hopefully it looks OEM+ rather than aftermarket but I like it which is the main thing and it lifts the interior without being too ‘in-your-face,…... Pics below….

[johnung]

Originally Posted by Shadowmanrider

Finished the M-Sport contrast stitching at last ( I started it before Xmas ) and happy with the result….hopefully it looks OEM+ rather than aftermarket but I like it which is the main thing and it lifts the interior without being too ‘in-your-face,…... Pics below….

Very nice touch! Did you sew these yourself?

[Shadowmanrider]

Yep….and believe me, I’ve got the dexterity of a brick so anyone could do it.

You don’t actually sew as much as weave under the thread that’s already there, but the effect is the same as if you’d sewn it…..you just need a lot of time and loads and loads of patience !😉

[celsdogg]

Originally Posted by Shadowmanrider

Yep….and believe me, I’ve got the dexterity of a brick so anyone could do it.

You don’t actually sew as much as weave under the thread that’s already there, but the effect is the same as if you’d sewn it…..you just need a lot of time and loads and loads of patience !😉

Looks great!

Can we get a close up so we can see how it goes through?

[Shadowmanrider]

I’ll go one better than that…..next weekend I’m going to do just the edge pieces of the rear seats, so I’ll get some pictures done as I’m actually doing it so it should make it clear how you do it 😉👍

[fortythirtyfive]

Nice, although how are you locking the stitches? Surely they're going to loosen as the fabric is squashed and moved by passengers..

Typically your bobbin thread would be looped to the top side of the fabric to create a gap in-between each stitch, but also to lock it in place with tension to stop it moving.

[Shadowmanrider]

Hi Fortythirtyfive…..at the start, you loop the needle through the existing stitch while only having one thread through the needle….once through, you then fit the other end of the cotton through the eye of the needle so you effectively form a fixed loop through the existing thread to fix it…..then you thread this double-thread through the remaining factory stitches and at the end, you literally go back through the last loop twice, once with the double thread, then again with only one and tie a knot which you can tuck away or hide ( you therefore have to plan which end you start and which end you finish to enable you to hide the knot ).

Hopefully that makes sense, but if not, search in ‘you tube’ for ‘contrast stitching’ and it shows it clearly on a Porsche door handle.

Hope that helps 👍

[Shadowmanrider]

As promised, I have put together some pictures to show how you loop one end of the thread under the original BMW stitches before then putting the other end of the thread through the eye of the needle to hold the thread at the start. You then continue to thread the new double-thread through the original BMW stitches until you reach the end, where you then go through the final loop as usual, but then go back through the same loop with only one end of the thread ( you just pull one of the threads out of the eye of the needle ) and then tie a double-knot to secure it before cutting the thread and standing back to admire your work.

I can’t quite believe I’m putting a guide together for sewing/weaving but there you go 😁👍.

Hopefully the pictures make it clearer than the words above.

If you like it, then have a go but don’t rush it…it’s much easier to do than it is to explain.

[beefyman]

So do you sew through each loop from the same side or do you alternate side to side?

It looks fantastic BTW

[Shadowmanrider]

Thanks Beefyman…..yes, if you keep the direction of the thread the same, so loop through the same way each time, then it keeps everything uniform and looks neater.

You have to pull each loop through one at a time or the thread will get snagged up, but if you start on the headrests, you can take them out and do it indoors at the kitchen table to hone your technique before starting on things you can’t remove from the car….by then you’ll have it sorted out 👍

[Revoltos]

Some effort and commitment that is. Very well done on your efforts mate. It really lifts the grey leather.👍