project: kindle cover

FINISHED! phew. after much agony (haha, okay it wasn't TOOOOO much) the kindle cover project is complete. it is by no means perfect - but i started and finished it so for that, i am proud :D after joining the blogging world and seeing all you creative people - i was inspired! so i had my nana bring me a sewing machine up so i could join in on the creative/crafty fun! so, the sewing machine sat on my kitchen table for about 3 weeks ... even after i made the trip to the fabric store to aquire all the needed supplies! well, this weekend i was determined to at least START my project. on saturday night, i got out my fabric, measuring tape and scissors and began cutting the required amount of fabric!



thats 2 pieces measuring 6 1/4″ x 23″
and 1 piece measuring 6 1/2″ x 5″

after that, it was time to cut the cardboard which i took from the inside of an old binder i had. problem is, i have no more binders lying around so i'm going to have to find something else to use for next time. i'm sure i can find cardboard or something similiar at the fabric store or perhaps even an arts & crafts store!

piece 1 - 4″ x 5 3/4″
piece 2 - 3/8″ x 5 3/4″
piece 3 - 8 1/4″ x 5 3/4″
piece 4 - 3/8″ x 5 3/4″
piece 5 - 8″ x 5 3/4″


so, yeah - that was the easy part! now for the FUN. ;]
from there - you take your smallest piece of fabric and fold it in half. then fold the two corner down and pin in place. then take one of your 5 3/4" boards and line it up in the center. using a pen, mark the two sides. then sew a straight stitch where you've marked and trim off the extra fabric (corner pieces) you should have a little 'pocket'-like piece.
that part was pretty confusing to me so, of course, i forgot to take pictures. ha!

after that - line your 'pocket' up at the bottom of one of your long pieces of fabric. make it as flat as you possibly can and then pin in place.


then place your other long piece of fabric over top, line up bottom edges and pin in place. then sew a horizontal line across the bottom of the fabric, allowing 1/4" for seam.


fold your top piece of fabric back and you'll see the little 'pocket' sewn inside.


using your fingers, puff out the corners of the pocket and line them up with the edge of the fabric. make as flat as possible and pin in place. once pinned, fold back the top piece of fabric. on both sides - measure 2 1/2" up from the bottom and mark with pen. slip your elastic in between the two layers of fabric at the marks and pin in place. you should have a little extra elastic sticking out on both ends.


allign your sides all the way up, using pins to hold them together. now - sew up the right side and then the left - leaving the top part open!


now, flip the entire thing inside out. you'll have a loose 'tube'. your elastic will be on one side and your pocket will be on the other. unfortunately - mine went a little wrong here. my pocket did not get sewn to the sides, it must have been too short. =/ so, you may want to make the pocket a little bigger because you can always trim off the extra!


now, you want to insert the carboard into the tube. starting with piece #5 - and push it all the way down to the bottom.


sew a horizontal line across, as close to the cardboard as possible. repeat this with the remaining pieces. insert and sew up. once you get to the last peice, you can do a fancy stitch or close it up however you like. since i am a beginner, i just did a regular stitch and trimmed the edges. hopefully, as i get better, i can make it a little more neat. and your finish product should look something like this:




taaaadaaaaa!!! not perfection but not bad for my first attempt ;) i plan on going to joanne's sooooon so i can make another! haha!
and since i was feeling crafty - i sewed up a strap cover for my camera. again, nothing fancy AT ALL. next time i will sew up around the edges to make it look a little better but for now, it'll do :D

ew, please forgive the trim in the background. we need more white paint!!!! hehe!