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I have four children and over the years, I have learned that one of the best ways to keep everyone happy and occupied is with two things: snacks and drawing supplies. Seriously, as long as no one feels as if they are starving and I can produce a small pad of paper and either crayons or markers, my kids will be relatively happy.
I have this travel crayon holder that has come in handy soooooo many times and now I have a new way to carry markers and paper that work fantastically on the plane, in the car, at restaurants, waiting for other siblings at lessons, church etc. If you have a child in your life that enjoys coloring, drawing, doodling, or playing tic tac toe, I have a fun sewing project that will be the perfect gift.
The Moondance Notepad Holder is a paid pattern by Sincerely, Jen with instructions for making the most fabulous Jr. legal pad (and A5) holders. I love, love, love them. The one downside for me is that I don’t have very much vinyl fabric and I’m too cheap to buy the really cute stuff online. What I DO have in abundance is cotton woven fabric. So, I decided to modify the pattern a bit so I could use cotton fabric and while I was at it, I thought it might be nice to add in loops to hold markers. And then I needed a strap with a snap on it so I added that too.
I used heavy chipboard in the cover of the holder so it is very firm and can be used to draw without finding a flat surface first (such as on a child’s lap). I really love the finished project and have plans to make soooo many more.
Watch the video tutorial here:
Supplies:
This post may contain affiliate links which means at no extra cost to you I may receive a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links.
Cotton fabric for the exterior – 1/3 of a yard will work if your pattern can be cut from the vertical length of the fabric. If your print looks better cut from left to right (horizontally), you will need ½ yard.
Cotton fabric for the lining – 1/3 of a yard
Pellon SF 101Shape Flex or similar interfacing – about 1/3 yard total
Chipboard – I used Cricut 2 mm Chipboard
Craft knife for the chipboard
Cutting mat and cutting ruler for the chipboard
1/2-inch-wide elastic trim cut to 13 3/4 inches
Sewing machine
Matching 100% polyester thread
Crayola Pipsqueaks Skinnies markers – the notepad holder has room for 15 markers
Ironing board
Zipper foot for the sewing machine
Optional Strap:
Small bit of cotton fabric
Small bit of SF 101 interfacing
The template you can get down below for the strap
A snap for the strap or Velcro
If you are adding a snap - a snap table press OR handheld snap press
Optional for the project:
Name/bag tag – I buy mine here
Notes for sewing the Moondance Notepad Holder from cotton fabric:
I use the templates from the Moondance Notepad Holder Pattern but I do alter them slightly to suit my needs. I can’t give you the specific measurements for the templates after I cut them because I don’t want to give away all the details of this paid pattern. I recommend printing out the templates and cutting them as described below.
Prepare all your fabric pieces for the cotton Moondance Notepad Holder:
Prep the Moondance Notepad Holder pattern templates
Print out the pattern templates on paper.
Cut out the pattern templates.
Alter the pattern templates:
Cut 1/8 inch off the top and one side of the Moondance Lining Main template.
Cut 1/8 inch off the top of the Moondance Lining Center template.
Cut 1/8 inch off the top and 1/2 inch off one of the sides of the Main Stabilizer template.
Prep the pieces that use your interior fabric:
Make two of the Lining Main pieces using these steps.
Trace the Moondance Lining Main template onto the wrong side/back of your interior fabric.
Use a ruler to add ¾ of an inch to all the edges with a fabric marking pen/marker.
Cut your fabric along the second line you added.
Cut out a piece of SF 101 using the Lining Main template as is (without the added 3/4 of an inch).
Center the interfacing on the back of the fabric piece and iron on.
Use the glue stick to adhere the extra ¾ inch onto the back of the fabric. I apply the glue to the extra fabric on the long sides one at a time and then fold them over and press them onto the SF 101.
Next apply the glue to the extra 3/4 inch of fabric on the short sides one at a time and fold them over and press down.
Apply a small amount of glue to the side of the corner flaps and fold toward the middle of the fabric piece. Make sure the corner is pointed and press down. Repeat for the other corners.
Make one of the Lining Center pieces.
Using your interior fabric, repeat steps 1-3 using the Lining Center template but only add 1/2 inch to the sides.
Cut out a piece of SF 101 using the Lining Center template as is (without the added 3/4 of an inch).
Repeat steps 5-8 from above.
Make one of the pocket pieces to hold the notepad:
Cut out another piece of interior fabric that is 7 1/8 inches wide x 14 inches tall.
Fold this piece in half wrong sides together on the 14-inch side and iron the fold.
Cut out a piece of SF 101 that is 5 5/8 inches side and 6 1/8 inches tall.
Iron the SF 101 onto the back of the pocket fabric placing it in the center and flush with the fold at the top which will leave ¾ inch at the bottom edge with no interfacing.
Prep the pieces that use your exterior fabric:
Trace the Moondance Exterior template onto the wrong side/back of your exterior fabric.
Use a ruler to add ¾ of an inch to all the edges with a fabric marking pen/marker.
Cut your fabric along the second line you added.
Cut out a piece of SF 101 using the Exterior template as is (without the added 3/4 of an inch).
Center the interfacing on the back of the fabric piece and iron on.
Use the glue stick to adhere the extra ¾ inch onto the back of the fabric. I apply the glue to the extra fabric on the long sides one at a time and then fold them over and press them onto the SF 101.
Next apply the glue to the extra 3/4 inch of fabric on the short sides one at a time and fold them over and press down.
Apply a small amount of glue to the side of the corner flaps and fold toward the middle of the fabric piece. Make sure the corner is pointed and press down. Repeat for the other corners.
Create the exterior of the notepad holder:
If you want to add a tag to the notebook holder, do so now. I sewed mine in the center of the front panel at the bottom.
Adding the optional strap:
Go here for the Notepad Holder Strap Template.
Trace the strap template onto the back of the strap fabric and cut two pieces of strap fabric and one piece of SF 101 interfacing. I used my lining fabric for contrast.
Iron the strap interfacing onto the back of one of the pieces of strap fabric.
Place the two right sides of the strap fabric together and sew around the two sides and curved part with 1/8-inch seam.
Use scissors to cut tiny slits in the rounded section but do NOT cut the line you just sewed.
Flip the strap right side out, press the seams and iron flat.
Top stitch around the strap at 1/8 inch.
Now is the time to add the snap. I have a tutorial here if you need help with snaps. I placed mine in the center of the strap and about ½ inch in from the rounded end.
Add the snap to the exterior - find the center of the side of the exterior the same way you have before by folding it in half and finger pressing.
Install the other side of the snap about 3/4 inch in from the edge to the center of the snap along the center line you just created.
Pin/clip the completed strap centered on the right side of the exterior. Put the unfinished straight edge of the strap itself ¾ inch in from the edge on the wrong side of the exterior fabric. Clip in place.
The exterior is ready. Set it aside and move on to the next step.
Create the left side of the lining:
Once you have the fabric cut, interfaced and you have glued the ¾ inch extra around the interfacing, you are ready to start adding the loops for the markers.
Find the center of the left lining piece by folding in half the long way and finger pressing or using a seam roller to create a line.
Along that center line, start from the top of the fabric and measure 1/2-inch down and draw a line with a fabric marker/pencil. You can make these lines fairly dark because you will be sewing directly on top of them and they will not be visible.
Now measure and draw lines every ½ inch until you reach the last 1/2 inch at the bottom. There should be 16 lines total.
4. Take the elastic trim that you have cut to 13 3/4 inches and your fabric marker and mark ¾ of an inch down on the front of the trim.
5. Then measure every ¾ inch down the length of the trim and draw lines on the front of the fabric with a fabric marker/pencil. There should be 17 lines total.
6. Center the trim over the center of the lining piece and fold the end to the back at the first 1/2-inch line – the first line on the trim. Clip or pin in place at the top.
7. Use pins to secure the lines you made on the elastic trim to the lines you made on the lining piece. The second line on the trim gets pinned to the first line on the lining and then just match up the next line on the trim to the next line on the lining.
8. Once you have it all pinned in place, sew across each line twice. I insert my machine needle at the top of the line, put down the machine foot, remove the pin from my fabric and then sew across to the other side of the trim and reverse back to the start.
The left side is done! Set it aside and move onto the next step.
Create the right side of the lining:
Once you have the lining fabric cut, interfaced and you have glued the ¾ inch extra around the interfacing, you are ready to start adding the loops for the markers.
Sew a 1/8-inch top stitch line across the fold of the pocket fabric piece.
Fold the open end of the pocket to the back ¼ inch and iron in place.
Place the pocket piece on the right-side lining main piece and flip it over so you are looking at the back.
4. Fold the extra ¾ inch on the sides and ¼ inch on the bottom of the pocket piece to the wrong side of the lining main and clip in place. I sandwich the main lining piece between the pocket piece and the ¼ inch fold at the bottom.
Sewing all the pieces of the Moondance Notebook Holder together:
Find the center of the Exterior and the Lining Center by folding in half and finger pressing or using a seam roller to create a line. Line up the two pressed lines and clip the Lining Center in place at the top and bottom.
Place the right and left sides of the Lining in place overlapping the side edges of the Lining Center.
Make sure the strap is clipped in place if you are adding one.
Now sew around the entire outside edge of the notepad holder with 1/8 inch seam allowance. DO NOT sew the two center edges that overlap the Lining Center yet. I switch to a zipper foot to sew past the snap on the exterior and then continue on with my regular foot.
Cut your chipboard for the notepad holder:
Cut 2 - Use a craft knife and cutting mat to cut your chipboard using the altered Moondance Main Stabilizer template. To do this I draw on my measurements and use my cutting ruler and Cricut TrueControl Knife on a cutting mat to cut along the lines I drew. Then I go back over them 5-6 more times which cuts completely through the chipboard.
Insert the cut chipboard into the "pockets" on the left and right side between the exterior and lining fabrics (the center area you did not sew shut). Make sure you have about 1/4 of an inch of lining fabric toward the center of the notepad holder to sew shut the pocket. If not, cut 1/8-1/4 of an inch off the chipboard and test again.
Use your zipper foot to sew as close as possible to the chipboard and close the openings on both the left and right sides.
Just think of all the cotton fabric possibilities!! I have these notepad holders all over the place and my daughter has already requested some for friends. These are so fun and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
Click the button below to get the strap template printable!
Happy crafting!
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