A lot of my craft projects are planned around upcycling: using up something that could go to waste, or making something that's a little plain look a little nicer. This small book cover - perfect for your 2012 pocket diary or appointment book, or just a notebook - is just such a project.
Every year someone gives me a pocket appointment book. They're really useful, but usually, erm, quite utilitarian in design. This year my dad gave me one from his office. It's a bit naff, in black fake leather with tacky gold corner studs - but it had lots of stuff I like inside (gotta love a map of the world!)
A visit to Purl Soho gave me some inspiration for dressing it up a bit. I spotted a deep navy cotton with silver geometric designs traced in an all-over pattern.
When I went to get it cut, the man behind the counter looked sheepish. "You know this washes off, right?", he asked, gesturing at the silver lines. "It's for sashiko - you know, Japanese embroidery?" Apparently the geometric lines were guides for sashiko's trademark running stitches. D'oh!
Left: a detail of the appliqué on my Planned Obsolescence book cover, before it got a good (and very necessary) ironing.
After a moment's hesitation, I bought it anyway, and started thinking about this book cover. I liked the idea of an object that could change. Maybe the lines would wear off, maybe they would wash off....who knows! But just like the New Year, they would fade away.
For embellishment, I thought about English paper piecing - a completely different craft, but just as focused on geometry. I've been wanting to try it for ages - in fact, making a hexagonal quilt is one of my New Year's resolutions.
While making this book cover, I learned how to make the basic building block of hexagonal patchwork. And, I got a nice surprise - it's very easy.
Here's how to make my Planned Obsolescence book cover.
- 1 skein DMC embroidery thread in navy blue
- Scraps of light fabric - I used Robert Kaufman 'Essex Yarn Dyed' in Flax and Leather
- 1/4 yard/metre Kokka Washaway Sashiko fabric (feel free to substitute a non-washaway fabric!)
- Sashiko or embroidery needles.
- Embroidery hoop
- Sewing needles and thread to match each of the fabrics used
- Not shown: light pencil or tailor's chalk
- A regular pencil
- Nail scissors
- Iron
- Tweezers
- Glue or fusible webbing
Left: cutting out the hexagons is your first step.
Step 1: To begin, print your hexagons. I grabbed a basic one off of Wikipedia and played around with printing it out at different sizes.
I went with uniform sizes for my hexagons, but this design would also look great with different sized hexagons.
Right: be sure to leave a generous margin around your hexagon, especially if using loose-weave fabric.
Step 2: Now it's time to trace your hexagons on the fabric. I traced around the shape itself, using a light pencil mark, and then sketched out a wider margin.
Below: an embroidery hoop is essential for this project. Colonial makes a 4" one but depending on the size of your fabric, use whatever you have to hand.
Step 4: Using the pencil, I sketched out a very light '2' in the center of the smaller hexagon.
I made a small single knot in the end of my embroidery thread (you want small knots so that they don't show up under the appliqué) and stitched over the '2' using a small backstitch.
Left: A hexagon, stitched up and ready for piecing or, in this case, appliqué.
Step 5: Once I was done with my embroidery, I cut out the hexagon around the border of the larger traced hexagon.I took a small paper hexagon and - holding it up to the light - lined it up with the smaller hexagon and the embroidery. I bent the fabric back over the small paper shape, stitching it in place through the paper using a running stitch. (For more information on how to do this, check out this YouTube video).
I worked my way around the hexagon until every edge was bent back, and the paper was completely covered in fabric. I then repeated these steps, embroidering a '0', a '1', and a second '2' on three more hexagons, and then stitching them on to paper.
Left: time to position your hexagons!
Step 6: Next I positioned my book on top of the sashiko fabric, tracing around the edge.
I then traced around that line, leaving about 1/2 inch or one centimetre.
I cut out the cover. Folding it in half to make a crease, I figure out the center line. I then used a dab of glue to position the hexagons in place, and left them to dry under a book.
Step 7: While I was waiting, I cut two smaller rectangles the same height as the first rectangle, and about three inches or seven centimetres wide. (You can use fusible webbing if you prefer, but in that case press the hexagons well and remove the paper first. For the glue method the paper is left in to protect the fabric.)
Right: whipstitching the edges of the hexagons gives a lot of extra strength - very necessary when you're making something that's going to get thrown into your handbag!
Step 8: Once the glue was dry, I removed the outer stitches of each hexagon with the nail scissors and tweezers. I clipped the ends of the thread as close to the surface as I could - because they match it's no big deal if they show a bit.Step 9: Whipstitch around the edges of each hexagons, affixing them firmly to the sashiko fabric.
Above: trim your corners so that they will be nice and neat - but leave a bit of space between your trim and the corner stitching.
Finishing off: Give everything a good iron. Press a seam on one side of each smaller rectangle, about 1/2 inch or one centimetre. Place the smaller rectangles on each end of the large rectangle, right sides facing, with the seamed edge towards the center. Pin 'em in place.
Put your book on top, as open as possible, to make sure it will fit - you may want to re-trace it at this point if the chalk or pencil has worn away. Using a small running stitch, stitch around the three unseamed sides of the smaller rectangle (see photo). Trim the corners and turn everything right side out.
Give everything (another) good iron, and you're ready to start the New Year!
[Images and pattern © Ellen Lindner. Pattern not for commercial use]
