It's Monday and I'm done with work (hooray!). I have a great big pile of projects that need to get done before Wednesday in front of me (I have 3 projects to start and one to finish), but I like to procrastinate, so.... here we go. :-) I'm sure I'll be just fine. I'll post pictures of them when they are completed, and I might even add a tutorial for one of them. We'll see.
August is a hectic month for me. It is my mom's birthday, my sister-in-law's birthday, my nephew's birthday, my niece's birthday, and Dave's niece's birthday all at once. It's also back to school time, so I have to get all of those crafts started and finished.... Eep! So this year since I'm totally broke they all get handmade gifts - mostly crocheted, because I have a huge stockpile of yarn. If yarn could ever be used as currency I'll be sitting pretty. :-)
In my procrastination, I decided to quickly do my second tutorial. Over the weekend I wanted to make a needlebook (needle book? One word or two?), and as I love hardcover books more than paperback, I decided that my needlebook had to be hardcover as well. It's only right. I will admit, the pins and needles are a little trickier to get into the felt, but it's so cute that it's totally worth it. This project took me a long time to make, but I had to work out the measurements and kinks, so it will probably take you less time. I also hand-sewed the entire thing, so if you decide to use a sewing machine it will take no time at all.
Feel free to leave a comment or email me at littlecraftyfox@gmail.com if you have any questions! Keep in mind I am fairly new to the photo tutorial world, so any helpful hints you may have would be fabulous! I apologize in advance for the poor photo quality. I'm not a photographer (obviously). :-)
So here we go!
First let's look at the supplies you'll need....
1. An old cardboard binder (I have been madly in hate with this one for so long. Finally I get to get it out of my house).
2. Felt. You'll need two rectangles that measure 6" x 9.25" each. (Have you seen the cool patterned felt they have out there now?? Possibilities are endless!)
3. Ribbon to match your felty colour scheme.
4. Scissors (of course).
*Not pictured (mostly because I'm lazy)*
5. Needle and thread (Easily thread the needle using your handy-dandy Wine Cork Needle Threader! :-P)
6. Any embellishments you would like (fabric paint, buttons, embroidery floss, etc).
**I had all this stuff on hand, so total cost for me was $0!!**
Let's get started!
2. Cut two rectangles that measure 3.75" x 5". Set them aside.
3. Cut 21" of ribbon and stitch it onto the felt you are going to use as the outside cover of your needlebook (or I suppose you could glue it). Make sure you match up the middle of your ribbon with the middle of your felt so that the extra ribbon is even.
4. Embellish the cover any way you like. You can use felt pieces, embroidery, crochet appliques (like me! I used this pattern to make my flower out of embroidery floss), fabric paint, beads, or pretty much anything else you can think of. Just be certain that you are really happy with how it looks before you continue with the project. Trying to decorate the cover after you continue gets a lot harder (as I discovered).
5. Pin the two pieces right sides out (as in you will not turn them inside-out after you're done stitching) and sew three sides together using either a matching or contrasting thread. I recommend sewing the two sides and top of the felt, leaving the bottom open. I used a basic running stitch.
6. Slide the two cardboard pieces into the felt pocket and stitch up the bottom.
7. You're so close!
**At this point if you would like to add pages to your book now would be the time to do it. Cut felt that is 8.5" x 5.25" and run a quick stitch around the edge. Add pockets, elastic, buttons, pouches, whatever you want to those pages. Then pin it to the inside of your book and do the next step through all layers of felt at once. I was going to put a page in mine, but I'm a beginning embroidery enthusiast, so I don't have many pins and needles that need organizing. :-)
8. Sew along the outside of the cardboard that is inside the felt. This creates a good foldable middle for your book.
9. Fill your book with all manner of pins and needles! (As you can see I wasn't kidding when I said I don't have many pins and needles that I use!) I crocheted another flower and stuck it into the corner of the inside as a little extra bit of happy. :-)
All finished!
Obviously you can see that I tried to decorate my book even more after I had stitched the book together. I had to use fabric paint because I couldn't sew anymore, but I still like it. :-)
If you use this tutorial to make your own, please post a link to the picture of your finished product! I would so love to see it!!
And because I can....
This is my cat Oliver. He loves to hug and play fetch (not kidding). I think it's hilarious that he plays fetch, so I decided to offer some photographic evidence (it's blurry because he wouldn't pose for me). He will play until he gets so tired that he collapses and pants - it's so great. :-)
Enjoy your week!
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