Pencil Case
The school year has gotten into full swing for lots of children and adults, and that means lots of books, papers, binders, pens, etc. need to be toted around. Pens and pencils are easily lost and can get broken at the bottom of backpacks, but here's a project that will keep them handy and have you looking organized in a fashionable way.
For the fabrics I chose a stiff twill and a black nylon mesh. Any sturdy fabric would be good, but don't go with one that is too thick. You could also use a stiff cotton fabric if you backed it with some interfacing. If you can't find a close-weave mesh you can also use clear vinyl in its place.
Cut all your fabrics to the measurements listed.
Sew the smaller fabric piece to one edge of the mesh along the 9" (23cm) side, using a ½" (1cm) seam. Fold the other long edge of the fabric piece in ½" (1cm), fold it around the seam you just sewed and top-stitch it in place close to the folded edge (fig.A). Attach one side of the zipper along this edge. Set aside.
Fig A.
With the large piece of fabric fold in one short side at 6 ½" (17.5cm). Attach the zipper to this folded edge (fig. B). With a ½" (1cm) seam allowance, sew the remaining 9" (23cm) side of the mesh to the 9" (23cm) cut edge of fabric that sticks out further. Turn this seam in towards the fabric (away from the mesh) (fig. C).
Fig B.
Fig C.
You've sewn what is now a bit of a tube. Turn it inside out and lay it flat so that the edge of the zipper tape is along one side and the cut edge that you turned in 6 ½" is along the other side. Sew along the top and bottom with a ½" (1cm) seam. Clip the corners a bit (fig. D) and turn right side out.
Fig D.
Poke the corners out nicely and press the pouch flat. Sewing through all layers, topstitch where indicated in figure E below.
Fig E.
Lay a piece of hole-punched paper over the pouch and transfer the hole marks, here in Sweden our binders have four clasps, in the US they mostly have three. Follow the directions on your grommet packet to set the grommets in the marks you just made. Now you can put the pouch in your binder and always have your pens handy, neat, and encased in your own personal style.
If you don't want to use grommets you could make small buttonholes instead, or make that edge of the pouch a bit narrower and sew ribbon loops along the edge at the location of the clasps.