DIY Sewn Book Sleeve

I don't know about you, but I love reading. I bring books almost everywhere I go. To the beach, to school, on car rides, etc. Sometimes though, my book pages get bent and creased beyond repair (especially in my book bag, other things push into the pages and mess up the book!)

Well if you can relate to this, you've probably thought that there must be a better way to keep your book safe from any other objects that are potentially a danger to the pages. I'm happy to let you know that there is a better way!

I'm pretty involved in the book community on Instagram and I have seen a lot of pictures of a thing called book beau. That's where I got the inspiration to make this sleeve! I hope you enjoy :)

Also make sure to vote for me in the Sewing Contest!

1. 2 complimentary pieces of fabric (each fabric at least 21" x 8.5")

2. Cotton batting (at least 24" x 20")

3. Lightweight fusible interfacing (at least 11" x 19")

4. 2" of an elastic cord (I used a hair tie)

5. Button

6. Sewing machine

7. Scissors

8. Sewing needle

9. Sewing thread

Cut the fabrics into two pieces each so that you have four total.

Each piece is 10.5" tall and 8.5" wide.

Make sure you know which piece will be your outer fabric and which one will be your inner lining.

Cut two pieces of fusible interfacing that extend at least 1/2" outside of the fabric on all sides.

Fuse the bumpy side of the interfacing to the wrong side of the outer fabric with an iron. Make sure that it is completely smooth and centered.

Cut out 2 pieces of cotton batting that extends another 1/2" past the interfacing and put pins through all three layers every few inches or so. This will hold the layers together while you sew.

I've never quilted before, so my lines aren't completely straight, but I think they turned out pretty nice!

I sewed a line every inch, (up and down then side to side) to make a grid pattern. This will keep the batting from sliding away from the fabric when your sleeve is assembled.

If you go back and forth on the first couple stitches (at the beginning and the end of a line) it will keep your stitches from coming out.

Repeat with the second piece.

Trim down the excess fusible interfacing and cotton batting so that both line up with the fabric. Make sure not to cut too much so that you cut the quilting stitches.

Repeat with the other piece.

Start by pinning down the elastic band so that it will be sewn down with the stitch.

Put the inner fabric on top of the quilted piece with the right sides facing each other.

Put pins along the top edge (where the elastic loop is) and sew a 1/4" seam.

Repeat with the second quilted piece that doesn't have the elastic loop.

Begin by placing the two units together, with the like fabrics facing each other (outer on top of outer, inner on top of inner).

Put pins along all of the edges and sew a 1/4" seam along the whole thing.

Make sure to leave a 3" opening at the bottom of the lining so that you can turn the whole thing inside out.

Clip the corners so that the edges won't be too bulky.

Turn the whole thing inside out through the 3" hole. It might be a little but difficult but eventually you can fit the whole thing through.

Close up the hole by sewing a line with a tiny seam.

Hand-stitch a button onto the front of the pouch. Make sure that it lines up perfectly with the elastic strap.

If you need to adjust the size of the elastic, you can cut out the old one and hand-stitch another one on.

Iron the unit flat and make sure the corners and edges are fully pushed out.

And that's it! This whole project only took me about two hours and it's already been super useful for when I want to take my books out of the house safely.

If you enjoyed this tutorial, please vote for me in the Sewing Contest!