Hi friends! Happy Tuesday! It’s March and we’re celebrating the YELLOW Palette in Tim Holtz’s Eclectic Elements fabric collection! This collection is happy, sunny, and PERFECT to craft into a new season! Check out the gorgeous Journal Cover special guest Richele Christensen created for us to share in celebration of this gorgeous fabric palette. Enjoy!

Hello friends! It’s Richele here with another sewing project. I want to show you how to make a beautiful patchwork journal cover for the new Dina Wakely Ledger Journal using the new Palette – YELLOW but you can use this technique for any book. Don’t you just love the YELLOW release from Tim Holtz it’s like pure sunshine! I think it’s such a happy color and I love the designs. I choose to use strips of fabric so the fabric designs would show well but anything will work great even a full piece of fabric or maybe the Collage design. This project is Fat Quarter friendly.

Gather your supplies. Fabric, Batting, Sewing Machine, Sewing Supplies, Rotary Cutter, mat and ruler, Thread and Pins

INSTRUCTIONS:

Cut fabric and batting

• Outside – various strips of Palette Yellow fabric from 1 1/2” to 3” x 14” I used 1 of each design
• Inside – Palette Yellow Maps 18” x 14”
• Batting – Thin quilt type batting 18” x 14”
• Inside pockets – 9” x 13”
• Fusible interfacing – 9” x 13”
• Binding for edge – 8 1/2” x 1 1/4”
• Tie – Palette Yellow 2 – 1 3/4” x width of fabric (if using a fat quarter bundle cut 4 strips and sew them together).

Arrange fabric strips how you want them. Sew strips together for the outside cover using a 1/4” seam allowance and then press seams to one side.

Layer inside wrong side up, then batting and the outside right side up creating a quilting sandwich, secure layers with spray bast or pins.

Quilt the layers together. I quilted ever 5/8”. Trim quilted piece to 17” x 13”.

Press fusible interfacing to the back side of the fabric for the inside pockets. Press in half to be 4 1/2” x 13” round corners by tracing the corners of the journal.

Pin or clip the pocket to the outside quilted piece right sides together, line up the edges with the main quilted piece.

Sew pockets using a 1/2” seam allowance. Trim seam close to stitching to remove excess and make turning easier. (Do not trim the middle section. Between the pockets) 

For the binding strip fold the ends in about 1/4” to be even with the edges of the cover like in photo. Sew binding right sides together with the inside edge of your cover.

Press the other edge of the binding strip over 1/4”. Fold strip over raw seam and stitch down close to the edge.

Turn pocket right side out. Fold the middle section (between the pockets) towards the inside and it should be even with both pocket edges. Stitch down close to the edge to secure (be careful not to sew through the pockets).

Slip cover into pocket. The fit may be a little tight. 

Create the tie for the book. Sew tie pieces together lengthwise. Press in half lengthwise open, fold edges to the middle and press, fold in half and press again. You should have no raw edges at this point. Topstitch 1/8” from the edge. Wrap tie around your Journal. I decided not attach my tie so it can be moved out of the way of paints and inks when I’m working in my ledger journal. Enjoy!

Making a fabric cover for any journal or book can be fun and beautiful. So many possibilities.

Thanks for stopping by ~ Richele

SUPPLIES:

Ranger Dina Wakley Media Ledger… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric Palette Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ] Tim Holtz Fabric By The Yard Yellow… [ SSS ]

Thanks so much for stopping by, and thanks to Richele for being our guest!