A piece of #9 wire, sharpened on one end and folded to make an eye on the other can be used as a needle. white
light cord can be used as the thread.
I have used this method with great success.
The following is of a 1978
Scamp on which I used the method described, had I been more patient or even less lazy
I could have concealed that bit which shows but this is the only picture I could find where I did this with elephant hide
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