Tuesday 12 January 2010

iPod Touch Case

You know how I said I got a fancy new Christmas present here.  Well after using it for a little while I became convinced it was missing something.  What it really needed was a case to keep it snug and safe and free from scratches.  I decided that this little beauty is going to be permanently attached to my person as it is so useful, and because it was going to be toted about so much it really did need protecting.

I think most people I know assumed I would knit a little case and then possibly felt it.  In fact I saw a really nice pattern here, without the felting.  But as I have been really focused on knitting recently I could hear my sewing machine call to me.  I scoured the internet looking for a nice tutorial or pattern that showed me how to make a case.  I couldn't find one so I decided to wing it.  As you may know, I am NOT an experienced user of the sewing machine.  Most of my sewing has been done through trial and error, but I am slowly reading more sewing blogs, more sewing magazines and more sewing books.  I am picking things up, and what I haven't read about yet, I just "bodge".

I decided to use some soft furnishing fabric scraps that I bought from ebay.  Most of the scraps were actually quite big chunks of fabric and I put those aside for larger projects.  I then found the perfect combination of fabrics to use.  I used a black and white print for the outside and a devore type fabric in black for the inside of the case.

I wanted to make sure that there was adequate protection for my iPod Touch, so I used a thin wadding between the layers of fabric.  I just eyeballed the size of fabric I would need, which was determined mainly by the size of the black fabric I used.  I then layered up the fabric and wadding and pinned it together around the edges and in the centre to ensure the layers did not shift while sewing.

I cut strips of fabric for the binding around 2 and 1/4 inches wide and then folded them wrong sides together.  I didn't iron a fold.  I pinned the binding with cut edges lined up with the short edge of the "sandwich" and sewed a seam a 1/4 inch from the edge.  I cut the ends of the binding so there was 1/2 inch of the binding fabric overhanging each end. I turned the sandwich over, trimmed the edges of the sandwich and folded the overhanging ends of the binding in towards the centre of the fabric.  Using ladder stitch I folded the binding over the raw edge of the sandwich and stitched it down.





I repeated this procedure for the other short edge of the sandwich.  I then took one of the short ends and folded it so the right sides of the black fabric were facingtogether.  I used the iPod Touch to gauge how far to fold it so that the the iPod Touch could be held inside the case, with the ear buds still plugged in.  I then pinned the folded edge in place.





I cut a strip of the outer fabric that was around 1 and 1/2 inches longer than the short edge of the case.  I folded one of the long edges towards the wrong side of the fabric, approximately 1/2 inch deep and repeated to hide the raw edge of the fabric.  I ironed the edge and then ran a 1/4 inch seam down this edge.  On the opposite edge of the fabric I ironed a 1/2 inch fold and then ran a 1/4 inch seam to hem the bottom.

I lined up this fabric with the short edge of the case, opposite the pinned pocket, around 1/2 inch from the bound edge.  I pinned the short edges along the raw edges of the sandwich so that a loose loop of fabric was formed.  I repeated the binding technique used on the short sides to hold the pocket and the loop of fabric in place.




Using the the ear buds and cable as a guide I  placed a pin in the loop of  fabric to measure out two pockets.  Following the line of where the pin was, I stitched the loop onto the black fabric by hand using back stitch, ensuring the stitches did not show through to the outside fabric.  After removing the pin I held the fabric on either side of the line of back stitch taut and then folded the edge nearest the binding to make that edge lay flat and straight.  I pinned the edge in place and then back stitched by hand over the seam that had been machine stitched.  This made two pockets that opened up towards the centre of the case.  The pockets hold the ear buds and cable and also the strap for the case that detaches.




The strap was made by taking a strip of fabric and folding it in half longways with the wrong sides of the fabric together.  I unfolded the fabric and then folded the edges of the fabric to the centre marked by the iron.  The fabric was ironed again and folded down the centre mark and ironed again so that the raw edges of the fabric were folded inside the "tube".  I then ran a seam 1/4 inch from the open edge of the "tube", stopping and starting 1/2 inch from the ends.  I inserted one end of the  "tube" through the clip ring and then opened the ends of the "tube".  I inserted one end inside the other and then laying the fabric flat sewed across the join several times.   I pulled the loop of fabric made flat over the clip ring and stitched several times again 3/4 inch from the join to hold the clip ring in place.  Using perle cotton I sewed a jump ring onto the inside of the case, up next to the binding where the case folds.  This jump ring is big enough to hold the clip, but it is small enough to be un-noticed if the strap is not clipped to the case.



I decided to use velcro to close the case.  I took a strip slightly narrower than the case and cut a width that would fit between the ear bud pocket edge and the binding strip.  I stitched the velcro in place on both edges of the case and it holds it closed very well.




I love my case, it is neat and pretty and it does it's job very well. It protects my lovely new toy and makes it easy to carry around when I have my hands full of other things (like knitting).  As a lucky side of effect of it's design I can even plug in the charger and have the iPod Touch still in the closed case.  I can hang it from the drawer handle next to the PC so it is out of the way and safe from harm while it syncs and charges.  It wasn't intentional, but it is VERY convenient.

I am sure there were easier ways of making this case that would be more "correct" but over all I am content with my methods and I love the result!

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