A "Quick" Project

You know me - I can take any quick project and turn it into a major endeavor. But this time, things were speeded up when I uncovered a near perfectly sized painted and stenciled piece of Kraft Tex I'd totally forgotten about. See these posts to learn more about it: Working With Kraft Tex and Getting Comfortable With Layering. My Kraft Tex off the roll does not lie flat until it has had time to relax or gets weighted under books. When I started moving books to get to the signatures for that 5 day Fabric Journal Challenge, well, there it was partway down the stack. I quickly measured to see if it was big enough for the Midori-style traveler's notebook I wanted to make and it was. Just a little trimming and I was set to go, not having to stencil a new piece that I'd already cut. You just don't know how much time that saved me! And you just can't imagine how exciting it was to find a use for this leftover that I feared was too small for anything.

I'd originally thought to make this of leather because of the instructional video I'd found, but it turns out that the leather I had on hand was too thin and floppy. That's when I hit on the idea of using Kraft Tex, that faux leather product. The video gives dimensions for 3 different sizes, one of which is for Field Notes which is what I was looking for, and regardless of size, the basic instructions are the same. Can't tell you how many times I've tried to figure out how to neatly  add elastic for a booklet to slide under without being able to wrap my mind around it even though it really is quite simple. It's quite alright to have two pieces of elastic running along the center, one that will show in the middle of the book and one with knot trimmed hiding underneath. As you can see, I had plenty of color options to choose from and went with green. Only about a 1/2 inch shows along the top and bottom on the outside of the spine but you know how we like to color coordinate when we can. It's suggested to snug up the elastic until the cover bows slightly to make sure there is good tension when the booklet is inserted but I'm not sure that was necessary with this Kraft Tex.

It is suggested that rounding the corners makes for a nice touch and I agree. Plus it gave me an opportunity to use this corner cutter I'd gotten enticed into buying when I was playing more with paper projects. Actually I purchased 3 different sizes because, well, you never know what size you will need - bane of my shopping existence. 😏 It wasn't particularly pleased with clipping through the Kraft Tex - I really had to exert some pressure to get through it. If I'd been working with leather, I'd be making short cuts with an exacto knife using a small metal washer as a guide.

Here you can see the Field Notes slipped under the elastic. I was very intrigued to find these particular field notes made from a yupo paper in order to be able to write on a damp day. Several types of pens are recommended because not all work well on this non-paper paper. I treated the Kraft Tex with a water repellent spray to match those wet day features.

The video also shows how to add a bookmark, which I've done with a narrow black braid I had on hand, and found a bead in my collection with a hole large enough for it to slide through. Knots on either side of the bead hold it in place and I think it is a nice touch. The closure is more of the green elastic, ends knotted together to anchor the loop on the inside where it goes through a center hole on the spine. So simple but I admit, those last two bits of threading through holes and finding the right thing for the bookmark caused me to finish this up the next morning. Yes, quick projects just laugh at me! But I like this form and can see making more - more quickly now that I've worked out the kinks on this one.