Presidents Day Crafting...

I had the glorious fortune of having President's Day off work on Monday and it provided the perfect wide-open day for crafting. I spent the morning doing Wedding Crafting, that Mr. Fiance has asked me not to post about until after the wedding (seeing how so much of the wedding is going to be DIY this is a reasonable request or I'd give away everything!), but the afternoon was focused on some other crafting just for myself!

Starting next month I will be full swing into my travel-heavy Tradeshow Season and during the city hopping, plane boarding, and long hours on a Tradeshow floor (man that sounds glorious... it's not), my laptop and my shoulder bag get a beating. I spent a couple of hours sewing up a laptop case and naturally forgot to take photos every step of the way. Luckily, it's so very simple you shouldn't need step-by-steps photos, hopefully my words will do!

Step 1: Find two fabulous fabrics either from your stash or your nearest fabric store (WalMart often has good finds in their $1 bin).

Step 2: Measure your Laptop. Just An Idea Blog helped me out with this aspect: I have a 13" MacBook and used these final measurements Side A: 15.35" x 11.02". Side B: 15.35" x 14.75" (converted from cm).
If you don't have a Macbook use the following guide (also from Just An Idea):

"Side A: Length + height (from the table up, how thick it is) + 3cm for seam allowance. That’s your length. Now take the width + the height +3 cm = that’s your width.

Side B: Same Width as A. Length is the same as A, but add however long you want the flap of your sleeve to be."

Step 3: Cut out a Side A and a Side B from both pieces of fabric (total of 4 pieces).

Step 4: Put the two outside fabric (black polka dots) right sides (printed side) together and sew a 5/18" seam on the 15.35" side, do the same with the inside (paisley) fabric. Yes, this defeats the purpose of cutting out two separate pieces, but I had followed Just An Idea blog until this point so I had two pieces.

Step 5: Press down the seams of each side.

Step 6: Put the two right sides of the fabrics together, pin together and sew a 5/18" seam all the way around leaving about 3 inches open on the last side.

Step 7: Snip the fabric at each corner without cutting into the thread.

Step 8: Pull the pocket inside out through the open 3", make sure to poke out the corners so they are sharp.

Step 9: Press the outside edges so the fabric lays flat.

Step 10: Now you have to find the perfect fit for your laptop. Place the fabric outside fabric down on a flat surface. Place your laptop with the bottom edge on the middle seam (hah, and you thought cutting 2 pieces had no purpose!). Pull the fabric below the computer over the top and adjust the laptop so the bottom edge of the fabric pulls up even with the top of the laptop. Make sure your laptop is center left to right. Pinch together the fabric on either side of the laptop to find where your side seams should be. Use a pin to mark that spot. I left the "raw edge" (where the outside and inside fabric meet) on the outside instead of sewing inside out because I loved the peep of bright color in the black.

Step 11: Sew the sides using 1/4" or whatever makes for the best fit for your laptop.

Step 12: Place your laptop inside and pull down the top flap. Figure where you would like your button and mark the outside. Now there are two ways to go:

• If you have a button hole attachment: Stitch and rip a button hole in the right place. Sew a button underneath the upper flap and VOILA! you have a laptop case.
• If you don't have a button hole attachment or you're hand sewing. Sew a decorative button on the top flap. Underneath flap use velcro circles to secure the flap down and VOILA! you have a laptop case!