My fourth week of class and "Accidenti!"

First I would like all of you to please note (as if somehow you could've missed this), the new bright green covering on my trincetto. It is magical.. and I like the way it looks. 

Things are getting very technical now, so I will try my best to explain the process to you without intentionally confusing or boring you. What you see in the photo above is the "salpa" for what will become my first handbag, which is a clutch. The curve on the right hand side will wrap around to meet the underside of the straight edge on the left, in an envelope-style.

The first part of this process is cutting the pattern pieces in 2 different thicknesses of "salpa". Black "grosso" which is thick, and regular black.  "Salpa" is not a lining, it is the material on the interior (usually found under the lining) that gives the pieces structure. I had to slice the pieces as you see above according to the markings on the patterns. Then, I had to slice the edges of the curved cuts, "scarnice". This involves holding the (pretty bright green) trincetto at about a 45 degree angle against the marble. I have to create a smooth sloping edge, almost down to zero, which will make the seam where the two pieces of salpa meet almost non-existent. We do this so you do not see these seams through the leather from the outside of the bag. Even though there will be "gomma piuma," (a layer of foam) covering this, these are subtle lines that you will see if you have a trained eye or if you look closely.

I attached the lightweight salpa to the heavy black salpa and removed that band of black that was holding them together. I had to "scarnire" (here's a word that doesn't really exist in English, it's the verb for what I explained to you above) all of the edges where the brown salpa meets the black. Again, we do this so you cannot feel the seam where these pieces meet. Having the lightweight salpa allows the bag to move more freely and fluidly. If it were one piece of black salpa holding the bag together, it would be rigid, and over time the bag would probably fall apart as the salpa would crack or bend due to having too much stress on one continuous piece. These pieces are kind of like hidden joints for the bag. I cut all of the lining and leather for the three bags I will complete in this style, and this is where I left off on Friday.

Class is not just about cutting linings and sewing leather. In the course of four weeks (I know what you are thinking and I also cannot believe I have already been here for a month), I have learned so much more than technical skills. Here are some of this week's highlights.

"Accidenti!"

This is a word that is used very frequently in Italy, especially in the classroom, and I can imagine frequently around any jobs that involve manual labor. This word prompted an hour-long conversation about another word, "intercalare". 

"Accidenti" does not have a definition, it is used either in a sentence among other words or as an exclamation to express some kind of frustration or unexpected result. "Intercalare" means literally "to insert between other things, or to interpose," which is what you do with "accidenti" in conversation. 

Some examples:

I am sewing my samples and the machine suddenly decides to go double speed, causing me to sew too many stitches on a sample. "Accidenti!"

I am complaining about how I finished an entire package of grancereale the day before (grancereale: granola cookies that are officially banned from my apartment) and my professore shows up to class with a package of grancereale to share with the class. "Accidenti!"

I make an appointment with Vodafone at 9AM to fix my internet service and I arrive at the store to find that they open at 10AM. "Accidenti!"

Note: These are all real instances where "accidenti" was used.

Since this is my new favorite word, and it is most frequently heard around the sewing machine, we decided to name the sewing machine we use in the classroom "Acci," short for "Accidenti."