DIY Book Look 2 (a how to for ereader book cover)

Since the original book cover for my Kobo ereader did not work I set out to complete another. Determination is a wonderful thing!

Thus I headed to the basement for the box of old abandoned books at camp. Behold! I found a couple of books just the right size!

The one I will be showing you step by step examples of however is the one I am making for a Kindle Fire that the lovely Karlee has. I love to do crafty things for this girl! But the premise is still the same: find a book that is the right size for your ereader!

Well, this is a classic Hardy Boys book obviously. Frown at me all you want for never reading them, but this book is the perfect size for a Kindle Fire.

Open up the book all the way. This book has a binding that can be cut from the book itself. That is why a hardcover book is the best for this.

Now, grab those handy dandy scissors and cut away at the binding! Mwhahahaha! Yes, evil cackling is allowed and even encouraged here. Once you have cut away the binding you should have the book separate from the cover. I haven't found a use for the book itself yet but I am looking. Otherwise throw it out! (Mwhahahaha!)

Karlee chose a beautiful pattern from this mat stack. This paper is regular craft paper and 8x8 in size. This was doable but a tight squeeze. I used the 12x12 paper from a card stock stack for my purple ereader and I would recommend it over this. This still worked fine however.

With the cover paper chosen it was time to choose a tissue paper for the binding. I chose tissue paper because it molds well to the binding and you can glue 'through' it essentially to get a good solid hold. I chose to use first the dark blue to cover any lettering on the binding, and this lovely golden yellow paper for the bright strands in it.

Mod podge is your friend! This stuff is fabulous! Glue your binding first. Glue on the binding, the. The papers, then a layer of more glue. After that is done you can start on the cover.

While I waited for the binding to dry I drew the title on the cover. Karlee had chosen the title 'Safe Haven' by Nicholas Sparks. Good ole fine point sharpie here.

When the binding was dry enough to flip over I cut the excess off the corners and began gluing down the cover on the inside.

When it was dry enough to flip back over I used this DecoColor marker in silver to add highlights to the words and write on the binding.

Now, for the fabric on the inside I used an old corduroy I had lying around. A softer plusher fabric like fleece would work well for this too. Just be sure it is not too thick. You will cut a size slightly larger than the cover.

Now, my personal favorite friend is this little roll of no sew binding. If you want to sew your seems, go right ahead. This was more convenient for me. I folded over the edges and ironed so the seems would line up with the edges of the cover.

Now, on the right side of your fabric is where your ereader will sit. I had only measurements to go with for this one. A kindle fire measures 7.4 x 4.5. I used these to cut a rectangle of thin cardboard, and determine where my holes would go. The elastic I am using for this is 1/4" elastic. I used a headband on the purple cover. Just find what works for you. You will be cutting two holes in each corner for the elastic.

Now, poke the elastic through...

And flip the fabric over.

Now, hot glue the elastic to the backside of the cardboard like so.

And then you are free to hot glue the fabric to the cover. If you want a strap to hold the cover closed when not in use I would also cut and glue that now. When hot gluing the fabric, start at the center in the binding and then glue your sides down. This will give you an even distribution.

As an afterthought I added this little pocket with plain fabric. No sew binding again and hot glue.

To finish, I mod lodged over the entire thing, and then clear spray painted to seal.

I was so excited I had to take it over to Karlee right away!
And guess what?! It fit!

I hope you have been inspired. I think these are beautiful, functional, and I love that we repurposed something old and unwanted. Now, it's your turn! Have at it!

Update: I used a blow dryer to melt the hot glue along the right side of the ereader case. I pried up the paper and glue and pulled out the headband pieces. I then cut and replaced these pieces with the 1/4 inch elastic which seems to be holding up tighter and stronger. Using hot glue yet again I then re-attached the liner and other pieces. The ereader holds in more snug and the elastic is less bulky than the headband elastic. I hope this is helpful to you.