Hey everyone. Today we're making a fabric cover for a paperback, and you'll learn how one layer of knit tricot interfacing turns a floppy cover into one that feels almost like a hardcover.
Paperbacks take a beating. They ride in tote bags. They get tossed on car seats. Corners bend. Covers curl. Oh my goodness, I have ruined more than one that way.
A simple fabric slipcover fixes most of that. But fabric alone is still soft. It slides. It wrinkles. That is where knit tricot interfacing earns its keep.
Tricot is a knit interfacing. It has a little give. It fuses smooth. And it adds body without bulk. Your cover stays flexible enough to open wide, but firm enough to protect the book. We're not reinventing the wheel here. We're just giving a paperback a better jacket.
Materials
- Your paperback book, for measuring
- Outer fabric: quilting cotton, about a fat quarter
- Lining fabric: quilting cotton, same amount
- Knit tricot fusible interfacing, lightweight
- Matching thread, 50-weight
- Rotary cutter, ruler, and mat
- Iron and pressing surface
- Pins or clips, and a point turner
- Optional: ribbon for a built-in bookmark
How to pick the right tricot weight
Here is the simple test I use. Fuse a small test square, about 3 inches, to your outer fabric. Bend it. Fold it. Open it like a book.
Too stiff? Go lighter. The cover should never fight you when you open it. Too floppy? Go one step up in weight. For most quilting cottons, lightweight knit tricot is the sweet spot. It supports the fabric. It does not take over.
Knit tricot also has a direction with a little more stretch. Keep that stretch running around the book, side to side, not up and down. That way the cover hugs without sagging. Completely up to you, but that is my preference.
How-to steps
- Measure your book. With the book closed, measure its height. Then measure across the front, spine, and back together for the total wrap width.
- Cut your pieces. Cut outer fabric and lining to the total wrap width plus 6 inches, and the book height plus 1 inch. Those extra 6 inches become the inside flaps.
- Cut the interfacing. Cut tricot the same size as the outer fabric, then trim about 1/4 inch off each edge so fusible stays out of the seams.
- Fuse it. Place interfacing, glue side down, on the wrong side of the outer fabric. Lift and press, about 8 to 10 seconds per section. Do not slide, or the knit can stretch. Let it cool flat.
- Add a bookmark, if you like. Pin a ribbon at the top center of the outer piece, pointing down. The next seam will catch it.
- Sew outer to lining. Place pieces right sides together. Sew around all four sides with a 1/4-inch seam, leaving a 3-inch opening along the bottom for turning.
- Trim and turn. Clip the corners at an angle. Careful here — do not clip through your stitches. Turn right side out and push corners out gently with a point turner.
- Press and topstitch. Press flat, rolling seams to the edge. Topstitch around the whole cover at about 1/8 inch. That pass closes the turning opening, too. Just like that.
- Form the flaps. Lay the cover lining side up. Fold each short end in about 3 inches and pin.
- Sew the flaps. Stitch across the top and bottom of each fold, right over your topstitching line. Backstitch at the start and stop, because those flaps take the strain.
- Fit your book. Slide the back cover into one flap, bend the book gently, and slide the front cover into the other flap. Done.
Tips and variations
Take your time fusing. It is not a race. A rushed fuse job peels later. A patient one lasts for years.
It does not have to be perfect. If one corner is a tiny bit soft, nobody will know but you. And you are your own worst critic. I say that because I am, too.
Try a padded version. Want more protection? Add a very thin layer of low-loft batting to the outer piece along with the tricot. Keep it out of the flap area so the book still slides in easy.
Make it a gift. Match the cover fabric to a tote or mug rug. Super duper cute, and it takes almost no extra fabric.
If I can do this, y'all can do it. Make one for the book on your nightstand first. Then make the pretty one. Thanks for sewing along with me, folks. We'll see you next time. Bye.
Shop Fusible Tricot/Knit-White 20in at Linda's Electric Quilters.
