This little sucker is good for a bunch of things. The one demoed here was specifically made to hold 8″ double pointed knitting needles. I plan on making longer ones to hold reusable metal straws, and shorter ones as coin purses and other stuff.
Really, the only difference is how much you hack off at the end.
STUFF YOU NEED
- 2- 4 to 4.5″ wide by however long piece of pleather/ faux leather/ leather/ vinyl fabric. Whatever. Something heavy enough to not need lining.
- 2- 3-3.5″ strips of metal measuring tape. Width doesn’t matter, just change the insert size.
OTHER TOOLS
- Fabric/ quilting clips- you don’t want to pin pleather, unless you want to make a mess of it.
- Sewing machine (I prefer my heavy duty machine for pleather)
- Thread (fucking duh)
- Scissors or fabric cutter
- Marking pen (I used a Sharpie)
If you’re going to massacre a measuring tape for this, pull it ALL the way out, and cut it at the end. Why? Because otherwise you’ll lose the metal tab and the entire measuring tape will snap back and you’ll need to take the stupid fucking thing apart to get at it again.
I did not make this mistake. Be like me. For lots of reasons. Because I’m awesome.
My vinyl started as once piece, so I cut it, and the measuring tape. DO NOT USE YOUR FABRIC SCISSORS FOR CUTTING THE MEASURING TAPE! Seriously, it cuts really easily with any scissors, but you can kiss the nice clean edge on your good scissors goodbye if you use them. Don’t be a fucking moron.
You don’t have to round the corners, but given how many times I stabbed myself, you may want to.
Cover it with masking or washi tape to dull the edges.
Fold down the edge to make sure you can slide the measuring tape in when it’s sewn. Or don’t, and suffer, dealer’s choice.
Put the wrong sides together and clip.
Stitch around until just before the opening on the second side (feel free to not fuck up the stitching like I did here). You’ll want to stitch this side closed so you can slide the ruler in without it falling out. Duh..
Belatedly realize that this is too long for the project you’re actually making, and measure the proper length.
Hack the extra off.
Slide the rulers in, convex sides facing out and away from each other, concave sides facing in (for those who don’t remember basic science or math, the sides with the numbers are facing each other, and inward).
Make sure you have enough clearance to sew the edge shut without having your machine catch the metal edges. If you do, it’s going to suck for your machine, your needles and even if both of those survive the trip, the sharp edges will shred your thread. Don’t be a dumbass, trim the measuring tape as needed.
OPTIONAL:
- Be a lazy jackass and not bother covering the second piece of measuring tape with tape.
- Nearly slice your finger
- Swear
- End up using a fabric clip to push the end in to avoid further digit damage
That’s it.
Now go. Make things.
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