Dinotopian Librarian: Building Better Accessories, Part 2

So, if you've been following along, you may have seen the Dinotopian map tube DIY that was posted last week. If you haven't, well, it's a fun post. You should go read it.

But onward!

Anyways, after the rampant and totally unexpected success of the map tube, I decided to make something a little more creative to add to my Dinotopian cosplay. I liked the idea of having a useful, well-prepared belt (one might even call it a...utility belt? I may have read too much Batman). And since my character is something of a librarian, I wanted to have another way to carry/display the tools of their trade. What I ended making was kind of like a pocket protector that doesn't protect your pockets. but it does look way cooler, so I figured it was an acceptable trade.




Materials:

- A sheet of semi-stiff plastic or cardboard (I cut apart a plastic folder to make this)

- Enough fabric to cover the front of your panel, with maybe an inch for seam allowance, plus a little left over for the belt loops and instrument belts (I used roughly a square foot of the same crocodile pleather as the map tube for this project)

-The usual sewing notions (needle and thread, a thimble or some pliers, pins, clamps)

-A hole punch (this is optional, but pushing a needle through 2-4 layers of pleather is hard enough without having a layer of plastic or cardboard in between them)

-Whatever wacky stuff you want on the panel (I trade in and out with a fountain pen, a seam ripper, a letter opener, some random tubes, a couple pen nibs, plus some keys to dangle from the bottom


Step 1: Design Your Panel

Since I decided to make my own base here, rather than working from an existing shape, I went ahead and sketched out how I wanted the panel to look. This gave me a chance to look at different shapes, think about where to put my tools, etc.

Here it is: The Extent Of My Drawing Skills
(ignore the coffee stain)


Step 2: Cut Your Base and Your Fabric Cover

After you've made your sketches, you can go ahead and cut out your desired shape from the plastic or cardboard you have on hand. This is also where the hole punch comes in if you like. So that wouldn't have to strain my hand too much by pushing the needle repeatedly through the plastic base, I punched a whole little line of holes all around the base to sew through.



For the fabric cover, I just put the base shape on top of the fabric and cut the fabric out with a little extra on all the edges.

Step 3: Sew the Fabric Onto the Base

Pretty straightforward. Fold the fabric seam allowance over the edge of the base and sew all the way around. I used a whip stitch to give the piece a coarser look and texture.



Step 4: Finish the Piece

From here, it's just adding all the bits that make this functional. To do this, I:
  • Sewed down a variety of short strips of material to act as belts to hold tools
  • Sewed a pair of loops onto the top edge of the fan so that I can string it onto a belt
  • Sewed the little tongue at the bottom of the fan shape into a loop (for my keys)


Step 5: Add the Tools

The moment we've all been waiting for. Shove some tools in to check the fit of your instrument belts, and go to town!


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