Kindle Cover

     As I mentioned in a previous post, I am the *very* happy owner of a Kindle Fire. As much as the thing cost, I want to be sure that I take good care of it! But when I looked at covers online, I was rather disheartened. There was really nothing that I could afford. So I decided to try and come up with something on my own. I rifled through an assortment of random things that I never throw away (I could write an interesting post on that collection... empty spools of various sorts and sizes, torn paper, holey socks, etc etc etc) What did I come up with? Two sheets of really thin foamy stuff. They were barely big enough, but I sewed them together and to a scrap of denim I found. 

     I went through our fabric box downstairs and picked out two fabrics that I liked. I had no clue how I was going to use them, but I figured that it might be nice to be experimenting with two colors instead of just one. lol The main fabric I decided to use was green.

     Well, it's certainly not perfect, but I finally made a little pouch to put the kindle in. It's rather lumpy in places because the foam bunched up a bit. I decided to make a strap, too, though I might take it off later. I made the strap by braiding strips of the brown fabric together.

      My mom's sewing machine is really awesome, so I added this cute little flower design:

     I'm a little afraid that the edges will fray a lot more over time, but I like the look of it right now. And it will serve it's purpose for awhile... until I can buy or make something better. Or just fall completely in love with it lumps and all!

Wrap-up

Well, here I am to wrap a couple of things up. I forgot to post the movie quote answers (nobody guessed on them anyhow...), I forgot to answer that last question in the literary character quiz, and I promised to tell you what I did with my book vase. 

First up: The movie quotes

1. "Why can't they just say, 'go to this place, and here is the treasure; spend it wisely'?"

Riley Poole in National Treasure

2. "She batted them pretty little eyes at you, and you fell for it like an egg from a tall chicken!"

Tex in Charade

3. "I don't believe that intelligence can be accurately quantified, but I do have an IQ of 187, an eidetic memory, can read 20,000 words per minute.

[beat]

Yes, I am a genius."

Dr. Spencer Reid in Criminal Minds

4. "Just stop calling it a mushroom."

Victor in Letters to Juliet

5. Character one: "Look at that demure little head. And all of us wondering what's inside it."
 Character two: We'll find out soon enough. 

Duchess of Sutherland and Lord Melbourne in Young Victoria

~*~*~

Next: I forgot about number twenty-one in the quiz I did the other day. Oops!

21. Margaret Hale and Beth March reluctantly team up to save the world from the threat posed by Inigo Montoya's sinister secret organization. Lady Catherine volunteers to help them,but it is later discovered that she is actually a spy for Inigo. Meanwhile, Inigo has kidnapped Edmond Dantes in an attempt to force their surrender. Following the wise advice of Molly Gibson, they seek out Jane Eyre, who gives them what they need to complete their quest. What title would you give this fiction?

The Wayward Spaniard 

~*~*~

Last: I found something to put in my vase! A collection of feathers that I found at Michaels. There were so many great things that were small enough to fit in the vase, but this is what felt right to me. =)

Projects for a Bookworm

Every once in awhile you may end up with a book that you don't want or already have. You may even end up with a book that's in bad condition. There are many ways to deal with these situations: eBay, paperback swap, the recycle bin, donating to the thrift store, etc. Today I'm going to share three projects that I have done with books that I didn't need.


Project One: The Hideaway 
You need: A book, a 3x5 card, an X-acto knife

This is probably the simplest of the three projects. Simply find a book that you don't want and open it up several pages in (I used an old beat up copy of The Count of Monte Cristo and started at page 100). Grab a 3x5 card and trace it on the page, then take an X-acto knife and cut through the pages until you reach your desired depth (I did 250-300 pages).

Project Two: The Invisible Shelf
You need: A book (I prefer hardcover), an 'L' bracket, a carpet knife (or other tough knife), small flat head screws, large screws, tape measure or ruler, glue

This is a more detailed project. Here are the instructions that I used! My shelf won't hold as many books as one of the pictures shown because I bought a cheaper/less sturdy 'L' bracket. That's okay with me, though... it's still pretty cool!

Project Three: A Novel Vase
You need: A novel-length book (preferably paperback) , glue, X-acto knife, vase template (I used this for my template)

First: Remove the cover of the book.
Second: Cut your vase template in half and line the flat side up with the binding side of the book. Trace.
Third: Using the X-acto knife, cut along the traced line a few pages at a time.
Fourth: When you have cut through the entire book, use the glue to affix the back and front to each other to round out your vase.

Note: I used an old 735 page copy of Daniel Deronda. It was the thickest book I had that I was willing to cut up. Even so, the vase barely fits my index finger... so if you want a vase that will hold a bouquet of flowers, you're going to need a GINORMOUS novel or several novels of the same size. =)

I just made my vase this week, so I don't have anything to put in it yet. I'll let you know when I do find something! I'll also see if I can come up with a few extra ideas on what to put in a vase that's no bigger than a finger. =) Do you have any ideas?