I’ve been making these Composition Notebook covers for years. They are quick and easy, and you only need a little bit of fabric plus some trim to make one. These Composition Notebook covers make fantastic gifts for teachers, artists, anyone!
The Composition Notebook cover pattern available as a free download in my shop.
Mix It Up
One of the things I love about these notebook covers is that you can mix and match fabrics for your cover, pocket, lining, pencil holder – anything! It’s a great way to use leftover pieces from a quilt or any other project.
Here are examples of Composition Notebook covers with one piece of fabric for the cover and different lining, interior flap and pencil pocket fabrics:
First Things First. The Cover.
If you are going to take a zero waste approach and build out the cover from scraps, know this:
You can do whatever you want – use leftover blocks, strip pieces together, use embellishments – as long as the unfinished cover piece measures 10 1/2’’ x 16’’.
This Composition Notebook cover was made with leftover strips from Persephone Awaits. I used an assortment of strips that each measured 7’’ wide long by assorted heights. I sewed them together to create a 7’’ x 10 1/2’’ piece of fabric before sewing a 9 1/4’’ x 10 1/2’’ piece of fabric to have a 10 1/2’’ x 16’’ unfinished cover.
Sadly, I didn’t take photos of this as I made this cover.
Challenging Myself, Going Further
I wanted to challenge myself for this post and spent some time thinking about what I could do with leftover fabric in my studio. I knew I wanted to share the Composition Notebook cover pattern with you and I knew I wanted to take it up a notch. But how?
As I stared at my shelves, I saw a soft pink batik that I had used on the back of a quilt years ago. The quilt finished around 60’’ wide meaning I had a 10’’ x some length of fabric remaining. I never quite know what to do with these long, skinny pieces I have after a quilt has been quilted, so they either become a quilt sleeve or they sit on my shelf. That’s when it occurred to me! Embellish with thread!
No Measurements, No Problem!
I’m going to share how I put this together with general measurements because the big takeaway is that you can do this with any size scraps you have to make a 10 1/2’’ x 16’’ Composition Notebook cover. My scraps are most likely not the same size as yours. Just keep adding fabric or adjust the measurements until you get the size you need.
That said, the top piece of my composition notebook was about 6’’ x 22’’ and the bottom piece was about 10’’ x 22’’. Make sure you cut the pieces WIDER than you think because you can cut them down later.
Dress You Up With My Stitches
Now that I had chosen the fabric, I needed to figure out how to make it shine. I sat on that for a bit then, seeking inspiration, I turned to the Big Book of Feet and the Big Book of Stitches.
I recommend these books for your sewing and quilting arsenal. They are invaluable.
The Big Book of Feet shows you all the quilt feet BERNINA offers and how to use them. The Big Book of Stitches gives you tons of inspiration and shares, among other things, how to manipulate the stitches on your machine to create one of a kind creations.
The short version is that I found the inspiration I needed.
Fagoting Stitch, Part 1
I decided to attach the pieces using a fagoting stitch. I pressed each piece 2’’ to the back to create a fold along the length of my scraps resulting in 4’’ x 22’’ and 8’’ x 22’’ pieces.
To create this stitch, use the #7 foot. Set your machine for a 5.5 width zig zag stitch, 0.3 stitch length and an upper thread tension of 0.75-1.0 (you may need to play around with the tension).
I placed a piece of lightweight stabilizer behind the fabric for some added stability. The two pieces of fabric should butt next to one another when you are sewing but you can see the stabilizer peeking through here before stitching.
Part 2
I used my 20C foot to create the heirloom look. I adjusted my upper thread tension back to normal and set the #6 triple stitch with a 3.5 stitch length. Next I gently pulled the fabric (and thus, the stitches) apart to open the space between the two pieces.
When I sewed, the triple stitch gathered every few threads in the open space between the fabric to create a hemstitch look.
Then I picked a decorative stitch I liked to sew on either side of the fagoting.
Part 3
I’m a believer that it’s not done until it’s overdone so I decided to add some ribbon to each side of the decorative stitching.
I attached the right seam guide to my presser foot so I could accurately sew down the ribbon.
I trimmed the cover to 10 1/2’ x 16’’.
Put It All Together
Materials Needed
1/2 yard fabric, 3/4 yard if fussy cutting
1/2 yard ribbon, or other trim for tying
thread to match
Cutting Instructions:
cut (2) 16” x 10 1/2” pieces*, one for the outside cover and another for the lining
*IF YOU USED THE ZERO WASTE METHOD, BUILD OUT YOUR COVER PIECE TO 10 1/2’’ X 16’’ and cut one rectangle 10 12/’’ x 16’’ for the lining
cut (2) 10 1/2” x 5” pieces for the inside flaps
cut (1) 1 1/2” x 6” piece for the pen/pencil holder
cut (2) 8” pieces of ribbon or trim for tying -or- cut (2) 2’’ pieces for pencil closure
Assembly Instructions:
Make the Inside Flaps
1. Place the two 10 1/2’’ x 5’’ inside flap pieces on a table, wrong side up.
2. Fold the right side of the left flap to the back side of the fabric by 1/4’’ along one 10 1/2’’ side. Press. Repeat with a 3/8’’ fold. Press. Straight stitch along the edge to keep the seam in place. Set aside.
3. Fold the left side of the right flap to the back side of the fabric by 1/4’’ along one 10 1/2’’ side. Press. Repeat with a 3/8’’ fold. Press. Straight stitch along the edge to keep the seam in place. Set aside.
I used the seam guide and a 1/4’’ seam to secure the flap edges but you could use a contrasting decorative stitch, handstitches or an edgestitch to secure the seam.
Make the Pencil Holder
Option 1
1. Fold the sides of the 1 1/2’’ x 6’’ pencil holder back by 1/4’’ on ALL sides, bringing the front of the fabric to the back. Press.
2. Sew the pencil holder to the left flap taking care to center it.
Option 2
1. Cut two rectangles 2’’ x 6’’. Place them right sides together and sew 1/4’’ around the edges, leaving a 2’’ opening along one side.
2. Clip corners, turn right side out, and press.
3. Sew the pencil holder to the left flap taking care to center it.
Option 3
1. Cut 2 pieces of ribbon 2’’ long. Set aside.
Adding the Ribbon
Mark 5 1/4’’ up each side of the Composition Notebook holder.
Option 1
1. If you plan to use a small ribbon closure instead of or in addition to the interior pencil holder, fold the ribbon in half.
2. Place the ribbon on the right side on top of the center mark and place the ribbon on the left side below the center mark.
Option 2
1. If you plan to use ribbons to tie the notebook closed, place one edge of the 8’’ long ribbon at the 5 1/4’’ mark. The ribbon will across into the center of the cover. Baste.
2. Repeat for other side.
Place the inside flap pieces right side together with your cover piece. The finished edges of the flaps will be facing the center. Sew a very scant 1/4” from the top to the bottom of the outside edges on the left and right sides.
Putting It Together
1. Place the 16” x 10 1/2” piece you want to use for the FRONT cover FACE UP on a table, cutting mat, etc.
2. Place the flap pieces right side together with your cover piece. The finished edges of the flaps will be facing the center. Sew a very scant 1/4” from the top to the bottom of the outside edges on the left and right sides.
3. OPTIONAL: If you would like to add a bookmark to your Composition Notebook holder, cut a piece of ribbon or trim approximately 12’’ long. Tie one end of the ribbon in a knot and place one end of the ribbon at the top of the Composition Notebook Holder. Pin in place.
4. Place the lining piece face down on top of the assembly from step 2. Sew 1/4” around all edges EXCEPT for a 2” gap along one flap.
5. Turn right side out, press, and put over Composition Notebook. Enjoy!
