How to Make a Mending Book

When I got into zero-waste several years ago, I learned the importance of choosing quality over quantity, not just to invest in things that last, but to feel compelled to repair them too. If you’ve ever had a really nice pair of socks or a hand knit sweater, you know how attached you can get - the tiniest little hole can send your heart sinking and your hands reaching for a needle and thread.

Often, I mend and make in front of my children and, over the years, they’ve picked up where I’ve left off. It’s not uncommon to see them bounding over to the craft table to sew up a tattered blanket or stitch the loose, unraveling seem of a stuffed animal. Last year, I started experimenting with making mending books and, this summer, taught Eloise how to make one herself. The one in the photo is hers and, though I helped with the cover, she cut all the wool, stitched the edges, and sewed on the button. I would imagine that a child age 9 or older could make one from start to finish all by themselves. Once you or your child make it, you can fill it with all sorts of mending materials: needles, pins, buttons, what have you. Here’s how to do it! Enjoy.

Materials

100% wool felt sheets

scissors

pinking shears

embroidery needle

embroidery thread

button

pins   

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut two pieces of wool felt 4 1/2” X 6”. These will be made into the book cover and should be the same color felt. 

2. Cut two pieces of wool felt 3 1/2 X 4 1/2”. These will be the inside pages of the needle book. They can be any color you like and don’t have to match the cover. If you want them to have fancy, wavy edges, you can cut their edges with pinking shears. 

3. Embroider a design on one of the pieces of felt you cut in step one. To do so, fold one of the pieces in half width-wise to determine the mid-point. Mark the middle lightly with a pencil. Then draw the outline of a design on one half of the piece of felt. (If you’re a parent, you may want to draw something simple for your child to stitch - A heart, a stick tree, or the letter of their name, for example). Embroider the design using a simple backstitch. This will be the cover of your book.

4. Once you’ve embroidered the cover, stack the two cover pieces you cut from step one so that the embroidered piece is on top, with the embroidered image on the right half of the top piece, right side up. 

5. Add the button and loop to the cover. The button will be sewn onto the right side; the loop will be sewn onto the left side. 

6. To sew the button on the cover, thread a needle with embroidery floss that coordinates with your design. Place the button on the right side of the cover of the book, centering it on the 4 1/2” side. Once the button is where you want it to be, sew it onto the felt and secure it with a double knot. Cut the excess thread.  Don’t worry if the knot isn’t pretty. It will be covered by fabric when you sew the interior and exterior two cover pieces together.

7. To sew the loop on the cover, thread a needle with coordinating embroidery thread. Push the needle and thread through the exterior cover, first from bottom to top and then from top to bottom to create a loop. Be sure to create your loop so that it lines up with the button on the opposite side of the book. Double knot the loop on the wrong side of the cover and cut the thread. Before you double knot and cut the thread, be sure to adjust the loop so that it is loose enough to fit around the button but taut enough to stay fastened. Again, don’t worry if your double knot doesn’t look pretty. It will be hidden when you sew the interior cover to the exterior cover.

8. Stack the interior and exterior cover pieces evenly and sew them together using a blanket stitch along the edges. For blanket stitch, i use three strands of floss and a coordinating floss color. For a video demonstrating blanket stitch, click here.

9. Once you’ve stitched the border, orient your book so that the embroidered cover is facing down on the left side. 

10. Now you’ll add the inside pages. To determine the center of the pages and the center of the book, fold the pages in half and crease them to mark their center. Then folder the cover in half and crease it to mark the center. Pin the pages in place, then sew down the center spine with a double running stitch (click here for an example of double running stitch). Use three strands of embroidery floss and a coordinating floss color. 

11. Finally, add your embroidery needles to the pages of your book. Close and secure your book, and store it away until you’re ready to use it.