Making A Bishop Bag - Alec Steele Returns...

The skills of Westley Richards’ gun makers are now widely appreciated but few realise how skilled our leather workers are, or acknowledge the years of application involved in graduating from making relatively simple pieces, like rifle slings, to very complex and difficult constructions, like a Sutherland Bag.

"In another life, I would've loved to have been a leatherworker." Alec Steele

An enthusiastic metal-worker and aficionado of bench-work, Alec was understandably nervous about attempting to make a Bishop Bag. This is a multi-stage process and each bag takes our best people many hours to complete.

However, how better to demonstrate Westley Richards’ dedication to implanting the idea of ‘best’ into everything we do than to film each part of the construction process?

Alec’s travails underscore the inherent value we build into our leather work; achieved only through the selection of the very finest materials and putting them in the hands of our carefully trained and experienced makers.

The challenges of Alec’s journey is eased by the meticulous guidance of Alice, who has made over forty Bishop Bags to date. She prepared all the component parts and panels in advance, leaving Alec to concentrate on the sewing; a skill he admits he is yet to master.

Alec’s appreciation for our design, as well as our construction, is clear, Alice explains that to create a template for each part of each bag and to produce the numerous panel sections necessary requires not only artistic but maths ability in calculating the correct dimensions for flat panels that will be sewn into curved objects, like pockets or linings.

Not only does every piece have to be perfectly cut to perfect shape, it then has to be flawlessly stitched in strict order, as the bag is built from a pattern into a three-dimensional piece of luggage.

Alec’s frustration is sometimes palpable, as what appears to be a straightforward task beats him repeatedly and he has to start again. Throughout the process, Alice guides him and explains what is happening and the importance of every detail in ensuring the finished bag is perfect.

In the factory, each Bishop Bag is made to order by an individual, who makes the whole bag. Alice explains this helps ensure the highest level of quality control. To see how Alec’s Bishop Bag takes shape and what he learns about the staff, products and crafts involved in Birmingham’s premier leather workshop, watch the film here.