One of the things I love about the North Pond Notebook Cover pattern is that it can be personalized for almost anyone! For Christmas, I made 2 North Pond Notebook Covers, each with slight modifications and personalized fabric choices. My 14 year old sister and my 4 year old nephew each received their own notebook cover. Few gifts are versatile enough to give to both a teen girl and a preschool boy, but both of them enjoyed their gifts.
For the 4 year old, I chose fabric with cars on it. He loves Hot Wheels and playing with cars. I looked at some other car fabrics that were brighter and more juvenile, but I chose this one because it will grow with him. My 11 year old would still be willing to carry this around without embarrassment.
I used denim for the accent pieces and canvas on the interior (just trying to use what was in my stash) but with heavier weight fabrics throughout, it was a bit bulky to sew. You can see around the edges where the thickness made it difficult to sew straight.
Since the metal snaps can be hard for little hands, I decided to use hook-and-loop tape for the closure.
I made a second notebook cover for my teen sister, who loves pink, feminine, sparkles, etc. That made it really easy to find fabric she would like. I chose a home decor fabric with fashion scenes from Paris for her cover.
I left the binding piece off of this cover to showcase the scenes on the fabric. Adding it would have covered up most of the pink and pretty parts.
Personalizing handmade gifts for the recipient makes gift-giving fun! Though neither of these are fabrics I would have chosen for myself, they made the kids happy. I used scraps from my stash for the contrast and lining pieces, and I substituted hardware and closures to make use of what I had. The North Pond Notebook Cover is great for using small pieces of fabric and leftover hardware!
Have you made any modifications or personalized your North Pond Notebook Covers in some way? Share them on FB, Twitter, or IG and tag me! #northpondnotebookcover
These are really cute variations, Sara! The black/white stripe accent fabric was a super great choice–I’m going to show that one to my girls.
I’ve made many of these since this pattern was released, and no two have been exactly alike! I haven’t tried varying the basic design of the pattern yet. It works wonderfully just as it is, but it might be fun to try something different, too.
I’d love to try some kid-themed ones (Frozen…Star Wars…). I found a notebook at OfficeMax that is the same size as a composition notebook, but its pages have space for drawing and then lines for printers. It would make a really cute “beginner’s journal”.
These are so fun to sew up, such a great pattern! I really appreciate your tip in the pattern to trim the corners under the overlay; it really helps. I also leave my turning hole at the top, rather than the bottom, where the pockets are, and I find it a bit easier to get a nice topstitch.