Quiet Book - Cover

I thought I should make something to put my quiet book pages in so made a cover for them. I have all this lovely girly fabric but managed to restrain myself in case #2 is a boy. I'm sure it wouldn't have really been as issue, but I am hoping that both kids will get some use out of it. After a rummage I came up with the fabric I used to make the fabric high chair. I thought this would work well as it is a sturdy, durable fabric and would be easy to find with the bright yellow.

I started by cutting out 2 rectangles that allowed an extra 3cm at the top and bottom and sides of the pages, as well as allowing 6cm for the 'spine'.

From the yellow fabric I also cut a smaller square that will serve as a pocket on the back for bits of notepaper or even holding pieces from the book if necessary.

I went to sew the pieces together a couple of times before stopping to realise that a) I need to sew the pocket on first and b) I need to do the buttonholes in the spine first. The buttonholes will have metal rings through them (the kind you get at a stationary store) so that the pages can be removed and shared amongst kids. I am so lucky to have and awesome buttonhole feature on my machine. I just found a tiny button to use as a guide and they were all done! I also used this same button to add buttonholes to my already finished pages in the corresponding spots.

Pocket and spine

Then came sewing the pieces together, right sides facing and leaving a gap to turn in the right way. I also top stitched around the edge to make the edges sit well. Then I sewed two lines down the middle 6cm apart to form the spine of the book. This will hopefully give it a bit more shape when the pages are in it. The cover is a bit boring at the moment but when I get some inspiration I'll just use some Heat n' Bond and add something fun.

Cover

Next step is get onto finishing the pages. I'm halfway through an apple tree page and have a page planned with a backpack and a small zip, and a shoe that laces up.