You Did It: Tracy's Notebooks!

Tracy has really done it again. First, with her apron and now with these notebooks. I can tell she's a woman after my own heart by her choice in fabrics. I would totally go for these.

Here what she said in her email:

Once again you inspired my "naptime sewing time"!

I made these two out of two fat quarters! I'm all about the fat quarters, huh?! You are able to have the body of the notebook and then have about 6" left. So, I used the ruffle from one pattern on the main body of the other and vice versa. I cut my ruffle pieces at 2" and since my material was fraying on one of them I sewed two pieces wrong-sides together then turned them and pressed them. There wasn't enough width to hem them, so I did it this way.

On my second one I used my handy dandy 1" Clover bias tape maker! I made two ruffles and I really like how it turned out (and liked that it was easier)! Since you can get 3 strips (and then your fat quarter would be completely used up) I may try it with three as well!

I hemmed the top and bottom after I cut the corners and before I flipped it. I hope this helps them be a little more durable and long-lasting!

These will make great teacher gifts and they are way cheap to make! Right now the notebooks are just $.25 at Wal Mart! Maybe now that I have a cute notebook I will be inspired to take notes at faculty meetings and trainings! .... maybe not?! :)

Don't you love that fabric? And I love how she squeezes these little projects in at naptime. I suppose that's how lots of us have to do it, right?

Here is an inside shot. I like how Tracy hemmed the top and bottom for durability. Good idea!


Thanks for sharing these, Tracy! I can't wait to see the other 20 you make for your teacher friends. :)

Yards and Yards Original: Fabric Notebook Cover

This one was a super fast and cute project to do. I'd say it took about 30 minutes start to finish, and that includes my kids "helping" out.

One neat thing about this is that you can easily adapt it for a boy or a girl, depending on the fabric choice.

It's also an awesome gift because it costs a grand total of $3 dollars (or less since you have leftover fabric). I'm going to give you maesurements for the one I made, but it is super easy to adapt this tutorial. Here we go...

1. Gather your materials.

You will need:

Fabric A: 22"x 12"
Fabric B: 22" x 1.5"
1 Notebook (I picked mine up at WalMart for $1) I wanted one with a stiffer cover.


2. Center your notebook on Fabric A on the wrong side. Trace it lightly.




3. Iron in 1/2" on both ends. Then sew along the 2 shorter sides.

4. Make your ruffle. Cut your fabric 1.5" wide if you haven't yet.

Now for the fun part. Sew down the center of your fabric. about every inch or so, fold a bit of the fabric under itself to form ruffles. Do this to the whole piece.




5. Attach ruffle to your notebook cover.
This is the trickiest part and it's easy! Fold your fabric around your notebook right side out. Place it where it will be when it's all done. Then place your ruffle when you want it. Go ahead and wrap it around the back and it can go on the inside flap as well. Pin it in place.


6. Sew that ruffle.

I sewed my ruffle on about 1/8" away from my first seam. It just added that extra detail having the two parallel seams. No tucking or edge finishing necessary.


7. Sew the pockets.

Fold in your side flaps, right sides together. Fold them along your tracing line.

Now sew along all 4 openings. (2 on top, 2 on bottom). I put some lovely black dashes to show you where. Remember that those stitches should also be right along your original tracing lines.

8. Clip your 4 little corners.


9. Turn right side out and iron.


Notice how I just iron the loose fabric along the top and bottom too. You can tack these down by sewing right along them, but I don't think it needs it.

10. Insert your notebook. You can make a cute little pen to go with it or add a flower and a name. Whatever you want.


Enjoy! These would make a fun Idea Journal for you, a birthday gift for a friend, or a back to school gift for a child. I love these things!

PS. Thanks to these great party hostesses!