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Hands Occupied

Contemporary yarn crafts by Heidi Gustad. Knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame.

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How-to: Faux Leather Pouch

May 25, 2011 Leave a Comment

My friend over at Studio MME recently sent met this Lyle the Crocodile notebook as a thank you for helping her with some WordPress tweaks. I thought it would make the perfect purse notebook, but I didn’t want to watch it get all beat up clunking around with my keys and junk. The solution? A vinyl pouch!

Conveniently enough, I found a nice piece of vinyl on the remnant rack at JoAnn’s a few weeks ago and used that for this project. Other supplies you’ll need are: a pencil, good fabric scissors, straight pins, a milliner’s needle, some sturdy thread, and a magnetic closure.

To be honest, I wanted to develop a custom pattern based on a vest worn by Sean Bean’s character in Game of Thrones, but to do so, I knew I’d need to make up the pattern as I went along. I’m no pattern-maker, but I did work at a baby boutique (no babies are sold there, just baby stuff) in a past life, which means I can wrap a mean baby shower gift. I cut enough fabric to ensure that all sides of the notebook were covered and then some.

Using some chalk, mark any excess fabric you’ll need to trim to achieve the shape shown. Make sure to leave enough seam allowance for a seam down the center of the pouch and for wrapping paper-like seams at the top and bottom.

You can snugly wrap the vinyl fabric around your notebook and pin it in place. Then, set your notebook aside. Whipstitch the two short ends of your rectangle piece of fabric together as shown.

Next, whipstitch across the bottom of your pouch. Then secure the left and right sides of the bottom with even more whipsitching perpendicular to the bottom seam. The bottom seams of your pouch should look like the letter “I”.

Moving on to the top side of the pouch, whipstitch all the way around the raw edge that’s left. If your magnetic closure is a little bigger than your notebook, like mine was, trim it to the size you need. Then, sew or attach the closure to the pouch. Attaching it depends on the type of closure you use, but you can see how I did mine below.

To close my pouch, I fold in the ends and the magnetic closure secures it much like the tape would on the wrapping paper for a present. I’ve been running around for weeks now with my Studio MME idea notebook/vinyl pouch, and so far, it’s surviving! If any of you have other ideas about how to tweak this idea or try a different closure, leave a comment and let me know. :)

Filed Under: How-to Tagged With: game of thrones, notebook, pouch, vinyl, whipstitch

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is an artist, author and crafts designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame. In addition to running the Hands Occupied Blog and Pattern Shop, you can find her making videos & co-hosting the Very Serious Crafts podcast.

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi, an author, yarn craft designer and content creator specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. My work unapologetically features primary colors and vintage-meets-modern style. My first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is now available!

Professionally I’m most known for: advanced intarsia knitting design & modern latch hook design.

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Craft book author & content creator in love with primary colors & vintage vibes. / #latchhookbook out now!
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knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé

Heidi Gustad 🧶✂️
Head to the link in bio for an update on my 2021 p Head to the link in bio for an update on my 2021 plans for Hands Occupied. The two words that best describe this post are self-care and boundaries. 😜 
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Much love to everyone who sent supportive messages about taking time off and creative burnout. I often deflect with humor, but it was genuinely touching to connect with folks who understand. I’ll have something new for y’all later this week, so stay tuned! ❤️💛💙 
#handsoccupied 
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Pictured: An unblocked pile of four striped sweater panels in primary colors sitting on a blanket in my lap.
There’s an update on the blog today, & it’s ab There’s an update on the blog today, & it’s about how I’m going to take the next 2 weeks off to rest & recharge. ☺️🧶 No new content for y’all means I can also take a moment to zoom out & plan what’s next. Link is in bio. 
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A note on Very Serious Crafts: In the post I discuss stepping away from the @seriouscrafts podcast to give myself more time to devote to some minor medical issues. Don’t you worry - my health will be fine, & @molliejohanson @redhandledscissors and I are still pals, and after a short break of their own, the podcast will be back! Just sans moi. 💁🏼‍♀️😆 
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See you in a couple weeks! ✌🏻#handsoccupied #knitdesign #craftdesign #sofadedsweater
Been a little quiet this holiday week, as it shoul Been a little quiet this holiday week, as it should be. ☺️🎄The past few days have been filled with a lot of catching up on festive zoom calls & raising toasts to the camera. 🥂 Connecting with people has been a welcome change of pace! Now I’m feeling ready to meet my inevitable end-of-year deadlines. 😆
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Warmest wishes for the season, my friends! ❤️💛💙
Hi, I’m Heidi, the craft book author & maker beh Hi, I’m Heidi, the craft book author & maker behind Hands Occupied! 👋🏻 I’ve been enjoying making Reels a lot lately, but I wanted to bop in to share a regular photo & say hello. 🤓 
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rather than giving you my bio right now, I have a question. I just got this new sweater & I can’t stop imaging how funny it would be to wear this to a knitting class ... is that bad? 🤣🤣🤣
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Pictured: a blond woman with glasses wearing a sweater that reads “all your sweaters are ugly” standing in front of a Christmas tree.
Wet blocking, also called immersive blocking, is o Wet blocking, also called immersive blocking, is one of the most common methods for finishing a knitting project and helping ensure its final size and shape. Learn basic blocking for absolute beginners in an easy-to-follow (non-Reel!) video tutorial! Catch the tutorial on YouTube or the Hands Occupied Blog, link is in bio. 🧶 #handsoccupied #stopswatchandblockit #KPAmbassadorsDec20 #sponsored
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