Book Purse

Hard back books are one of my favorite materials to craft with since they are so easily accessible and often in the trash.  This summer I taught a craft class at the Venice library on making books into purses.  Here is a quick, simple tutorial for those who came and want to make another, and for those of you who may just have a few books lying around that you would love to turn into a cute and practical accessory.  This project is especially good for young tweens who want to get creative.
1.  Remove interior pages from book by cutting at seam.

2.  Use pages to figure out how much fabric you'll need to span interior of book leaving a  1 inch seam allowance.


3.  Center, then glue to the spine.
4.  Notch fabric 1/4 inch up from top and bottom of cover.

5.  Glue to interior sides. 
6.  Make holes where handles will fall with a pin tool.  Add a page from the book to both interior sides to cover seams of fabric.

Almost done!

7.  Add 24 gauge wire for handles.

Optional: Add a paper flower for a bit of texture.

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