What size should a needle book be?

The Sewzy Needle Book comes in Small (3 x 4 inches closed), Medium (4 x 5 inches) and Large (5 x 6 inches). Medium suits everyday hand sewing. Large has room for a fuller embroidery kit, and Small fits a purse or a stocking.

What fabric do I need for a needle book?

Quilting cotton for the outer and lining, fusible fleece for the cover and wool or wool-blend felt for the pages. One fat eighth each of outer and lining makes 3 Small, 2 Medium or 1 Large.

What felt is best for needle book pages?

Wool or wool-blend felt. It holds needles well and does not rust them. Cut the pages with pinking shears for a neat edge.

How long does a needle book take to sew?

About 45 minutes. It is a beginner pattern; the only fiddly part is the buttonhole on the tab, which you can swap for an elastic loop or a magnet.

Can I make a needle book without a buttonhole?

Yes. Use an elastic loop around the button instead of a tab, or a sew-in magnet.

What do you put in a needle book gift?

A pack of hand-sewing or embroidery needles in the felt pages, and a needle threader, a few floss cards or small scissors in the pocket.

Needle Book Pattern: How to Sew a Fabric Needle Book

A needle book is a small fabric cover with felt pages inside to hold needles and pins. To sew one, cut an outer cover, a lining, fusible fleece, two or three felt pages, a pocket and a tab. Fuse the fleece, baste the pocket to the lining, add the tab, sew the outer and lining together and turn them, then stitch the felt pages down the spine and add a button. The Sewzy Needle Book comes in Small (3 x 4 inches closed), Medium (4 x 5 inches) and Large (5 x 6 inches), and takes about 45 minutes.

TL;DR

Sizes closed: Small 3 x 4 in, Medium 4 x 5 in, Large 5 x 6 in.
Fabric: one fat eighth each of outer and lining makes 3 Small, 2 Medium or 1 Large.
Pages: wool or wool-blend felt, cut with pinking shears.
Closure: a ¾ inch button and a tab with a buttonhole, or an elastic loop or a magnet.
Time: about 45 minutes, beginner level.

The needle book this Sewzy pattern makes, view 2 — The Needle Book from the Sewzy pattern. Photos are renders of the finished item, made from the pattern's shapes.

The needle book this Sewzy pattern makes, view 3 — The Needle Book from the Sewzy pattern. Photos are renders of the finished item, made from the pattern's shapes.

Needle book sizes and fabric

Size	Closed	One fat eighth of each fabric makes	Good for
Small	3 x 4 in	3 books	A purse or travel kit, stocking stuffers
Medium	4 x 5 in	2 books	Everyday hand sewing and embroidery needles
Large	5 x 6 in	1 book	A full embroidery kit, with room for floss cards in the pocket

A fat eighth is a small precut piece of quilting cotton, so a needle book is a good way to use a favorite print or scraps. The ¼ inch seam allowance is included; the fusible fleece and felt pages have none.

What you need

Quilting cotton for the outer and the lining.
Fusible fleece for the cover.
Wool or wool-blend felt for the pages. Wool felt holds needles well and does not rust them.
A ¾ inch button, or an elastic loop or a magnet.
Pinking shears, thread and a sewing machine.

How to sew a needle book, step by step

These are the six steps of the Needle Book pattern in short. If you have not printed a PDF pattern before, read how to print PDF sewing patterns first.

Cut. Cut 1 outer cover, 1 lining cover, 1 fusible fleece, 2 or 3 felt pages with pinking shears, 1 pocket and 2 tab pieces, or use an elastic loop instead of the tab.
Prepare. Fuse the fleece to the wrong side of the outer cover, centered ¼ inch in from every edge, so it stays out of the seam allowance. Hem the top edge of the pocket and baste it to the left half of the lining, with the side and bottom edges matching and its right edge ¼ inch past the spine line, so the spine stitching catches it later.
Make the tab. Sew the two tab pieces right sides together along the long sides and one short end. Turn, press and topstitch. Sew a buttonhole near the finished end, sized to your button, and cut it open now, before the tab is attached. Pin the raw end to the tab mark on the left edge of the outer, which is the back cover, pointing inward.
Sew and turn. Put the outer and lining right sides together and stitch all round with a ¼ inch seam, leaving the gap open. Clip the corners, turn, press, tuck in the gap edges and topstitch ⅛ inch all round. That closes the gap.
Add the pages. Stack the felt pages, center them on the lining and stitch down the spine line through all the layers, backstitching at both ends.
Add the button. Close the book, mark where the buttonhole falls on the front cover and sew the button there, or use the elastic loop.

The buttonhole is the only fiddly part. If your machine's buttonhole setting is new to you, practice on a scrap first; how to sew on a button and make a buttonhole walks through it.

Make it personal

Fussy-cut the cover: center a motif from your print on the front.
Embroider the cover: stitch initials or a small flower on the outer fabric before you cut it. See how to embroider letters and names.
Add a scissors fob: a ribbon sewn into the spine with a small charm or tassel, so the scissors are easy to find.
Fill the pocket: a threader, a few floss cards or a tiny pair of scissors.

A gift for sewists and embroiderers

A needle book filled with a pack of needles, a few colors of floss and a small pair of scissors is a complete little gift for someone who sews or embroiders. It also fits in a stocking. More ideas are in gifts for sewists and stocking stuffers to sew. For what goes inside, see embroidery supplies for beginners.

Making a batch

Needle books are quick to sew in a batch, and Small ones use very little fabric, so they suit a sewing group or a craft fair table. Cut everything first, fuse all the covers, then sew each step for every book before moving on. See Christmas sewing projects to sell for more small makes.

The pattern, with printable pieces for all three sizes and a photo for each step, is in the Sewzy app. It is a Premium pattern.