Fabric Covered Box

Don't know about all of you, but I'm constantly trying to find a good deal.  One deal that comes around several times a year are those little activity/coloring books for kids.  Walgreens seems to have these on a regular basis around the holidays.  Usually priced 2/$1 (or something similar),  if you wait until after the holiday, they go on sale.  Sales are good. :)

Needless to say, I have a pretty good stash of activity books ready to refill the kids' drawing pad holders I made at Christmas.  I ran into a problem when trying to store these books and still keep them nice and in sight.  (You know, 'out of sight, out of mind' - if I don't see them, I'll think I need to buy more.)  I came up with a very simple solution to corral the books and use one of the many boxes destined for our overflowing trash can.

First, find a box that will hold whatever you need to hold.  You can obviously measure and cut the box at whatever height you need.  I decided to just cut the box right in half.
At this point, you need to measure around the box (circumference) and from the center of the bottom to a point inside the box.  Record these and add seam allowance before cutting the fabric.

Next, sew your fabric together to make a basic casing.

 Keep right sides together and sew the fabric to make a tube.

Then, sew a bottom seam.  Remember to backstitch when sewing.

I decide to put my box inside the fabric casing at this point.  (No sense in going too far before making sure all measurements are right and everything fits like a glove.)  I found this also helped me to determine where to sew the corners.  Mark where your seam should be with a couple of pins on both sides of the box.  Remove the box and sew the corners.

Clip excess corner fabric like in the above picture.

Put your box back in.  Is it still nice and snug?  Good!

Now,  if you like, you can clip the down the corners and trim a little of the fabric away.  This will allow it to fit inside the box a little neater when finished (below).  A spray adhesive or glue will work to keep the fabric tucked in and looking nice.

The finished product - Ta Da!

Very simple and easy to do. Thanks to this fun little box, I will no longer be assaulted in the head by flying coloring books.