How handy and sweet is this? I hate it when cute notebooks don’t come with a pen holder (especially after that lipstick becoming unlidded in my handbag and all my click pens got all lipstick inside them incident). This is a super cute and practical solution to that. Plus you can use to mark your page or to secure a loose page. Awesome! I made this one to match the hippy boho diary/notebook cover I made for my sister. You can get the tutorial for the cover right here.
This is such a quick little DIY, you could really make a ton in an hour! Add a notebook from the cheapy shop and a cute pen and you have your gifting needs all sewn up. This uses sew in magnets, strong round magnets that have a square of plastic (the sew in bit) around them. They are sold in pairs and you can buy 10 sets for around a $1 on eBay. They are my first choice because they’re nice and strong like a handbag closure. I had some sew in magnets just chilling in my sewing room but I hear business card style magnets work. You just want to make sure that the magnets attract each other or this won’t work. Other than that, just some fabric scraps and if you feel fancy, some ribbon or trim. The size you make this is really up to you, I have to say I didn’t actually measure mine but I’ve tried to work back from the finished thing to give you an idea.
You’ll need:
2 x sew in magnets (or a magnetic business card)
1 x fabric 2.5” x 6”
1 x lining 2.5” x 6”
Ribbon/trim etc – optional
- First I centred the ribbon on my outer fabric piece and stitched it down both sides.
- Next, I laid the outer fabric on top of the lining fabric, right sides together. I stitched around all the sides, leaving a fairly large turning gap on one long side.
- I turned everything right side out, pointing out the corners. I pressed it flat, being sure to fold the seam allowances of the turning gap neatly to the inside. Through the turning gap, insert a magnet into each end of the rectangle. Make sure the ‘sticky’ side of each magnet is facing the lining side, so that when they snap together the lining is on the inside. Position one of the plastic magnet edges, right up against the short side, so when you topstitch around, it is sewn to the fabric. Do this for both sides. You may find that the magnets stick to the feed dogs and do strange things to the bobbin thread. So sew with the ‘sticky’ side up. If you have a plastic or Teflon foot, now is a good time to use it! Topstitch around the rectangle, closing the turning gap and securing the magnets as you go.
- Fold the bookmark in half, so the magnets grip and decide where to sew to create the pen holder. I just clipped a pen in the fold and used a pin to mark where to sew. I was sure to backstitch a few times at the top and bottom of the line for security.
And that’s it you’re done! It took me about four minutes to make and I swear writing this blogpost and adding pics took about an hour! I know you’ll be knocking these out like crazy. I’m not sure if that whole ‘teacher gift’ thing has made its way to Australia but if it has, you know what you’ll be making! And this would also work for anyone who ‘does meetings’ or is studying or loves stationery. Okay, I’ll stop now! I think mine looks super fine in the hippy boho diary cover I made. I know Sister Ask loved the cover but somehow I think the magnetic pen holder made the whole thing. I love a little detail like that. Now go and put pen to paper, it’s a magnetic combination! Groan……………..
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