I’ve had this nice quality cork for awhile and am so pleased to finally have a use for it!
I also have my first use for the Walking Feed that comes with my Singer Confidence Quilter. You do not have to buy a walking feed to sew cork, but cork can grip and slide and be a little difficult to sew. Some tricks for sewing cork fabric include basting tape, glue and using a Teflon foot.
Singer Walk Feed Attachment (affiliate link – no extra cost to you!): https://amzn.to/41qhETb
SINGER Non-Stick Presser Foot (affiliate link – no extra cost to you!): https://amzn.to/4lH2j7O
I started by laying out my brushes to determine the correct height and general width my case needs to be. Since I only have so many watercolor brushes, I cut the following sizes for my 3 pieces:
- Main Fabric: 10″ height x 14″ wide
- Inside Bottom: 6.25″ height x 14″ wide
- Inside Top: 4″ height x 14″ wide
I used clips for the Main Fabric and Inside Bottom and while clipped together, I took a small jar top and drew curved corners on the left and right bottom edges and trimmed them for a more refined overall look. I also left about 1″ open area in the top right inside of the case to add some elastic later. Adding elastic is optional.
I sewed a 1/4″ seam around (minus where my elastic will go) and made sure to back stick at the end.
Now I set my brushes inside the 2 pieces of material and determined where to sew the dividers for my brushes. I did pin these areas, but it’s just as easy to use chalk and draw lines where you want them to go. I used pins so I could make sure the brushes had plenty of room once the dividers were sewn, but it was a little difficult to get the pins through 2 layers. Chalk lines are much easier.
I sewed each divider making sure to back stitch and the beginning and end.
Then I sewed the Inside Top to the Main Fabric, making sure to back stitch at the beginning and end.
Then I put all my brushes in my paintbrush case and used a clip to measure how much elastic I would need to tighten it around my case making sure it was not too tight. I then sewed that along the open 1″ area making sure to back stitch at the beginning, going over the elastic a few times and then ending my stitches over the existing stitches.
I finished by adding curved edges to the Inside Top flap for a more finished look.
This would make a great gift for an artist. And if you have an embroidery machine, initials would make for a nice extra touch!