Comic book brides! Here's a cool and functional item for your ladies to carry as they join you at the end of the aisle: a purse made from a comic book.
Materials:
- comic book
- spray sealant
- tape measure/ruler
- fabric
- needle and thread (clear recommended)
- scissors
- pins
- adhesive-backed magnets
- glue stick
To Create:
First, open the comic book to the middle. I had a lot of weird ads in the middle of mine, so I skipped to a nearby page with some thrilling plot.
Take your comics to a well-ventilated area and spray the cover and middle with at least three coats of spray sealant.
When dry, fold comic in thirds, crease.
The third of the book with the front cover will now be called Top Flap, back cover third is now Bottom Flap, and the third with a little of both is Purse Back.
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Measure height of the Purse Back, then measure how wide you want your purse to open, usually these numbers are close. Now take the height measurement and multiply it by two. [So say you had h:5″ w:5″; after multiplication you have h:10″ w:5″.]
Still with me?
Now before you cut these dimensions from your fabric of choice, add 1/4″-1/2″ to each side (aka a seam allowance). [So if you add 1/4″ to each side of the example, your new dimensions are h:10.5″ w:5.5″.]
Cut two rectangles with your dimensions.
Fold fabric piece in half with right sides of fabric facing each other, sew along open edge.
Flip fabric right-side out and fold in half with raw edges together. Sew along fold, as close to the fold as you can get.
Position the first seam you made touching the bottom of the purse, angling the fold you just sewed down toward the center of the purse.
Fold the top edges of the fabric into itself to create straight lines which line up with and parallel to the top of the Bottom Flap.
Use pins to tack the ends of the fabric within the pages of the comic book, making sure to place the pin in a spot where you can get to it without ripping paper, but leave out the cover page.
Using your needle and thread, carefully sew up all four corners of your purse.
Now stick your magnets near the bottom of the Bottom Flap, underneath the cover page. Then lay the cover sheet and bottom page of the Top Flap over those.
Let the other sides of the magnets naturally snap into place, peel film from adhesive, then lay rest of Top Flap over those, lining up the sides.
Gently sew the edges of the Top and Bottom Flaps EXCLUDING the cover pages.
When the sewing is finished, swipe a glue stick over the thread and smooth the cover pages over that. Hiding the seam makes it look like it's just a folded book.
Last: give it to your ladies! Let them walk down the aisle with a fantastic story in their hands… and your mascara and lipstick in their purses!
Ok, got very confused around all the sewing/fabric parts. Are there more pictures somewhere? What is the “right” side of the fabric? I don’t sew at all, but THIS… I want to do this! (For me, though, not for bridesmaids!) I love that she’s puling a gameboy out of it in the first picture 🙂
Most fabric has a top/”right” side and bottom/”wrong” side, the top being where the print is (or would be, if you have a print), and the bottom being the underlayer, which might be muted, or white, or just not as nice looking (depending on the type of fabric). 🙂 Search for something like “how to tell the right side of fabric” and you’ll find a million tricks people have!
Right side of the fabric = the pattern side or the outside facing part …not a problem usually with solids but if you are using a patterned or vinyl piece than usually one side is the “right side” and one is the back or wrong side
I do sew, and I’m a bit confused too! Super visual learner for these types of things. Where is that denim piece used? I read it over twice and can’t figure it out. The two cut pieces are different sizes, but it only lists one size for the two rectangles? Am I missing something?
But I can look at the finished project photo and figure it out. Mostly I wanted to know how to make paper last for a project like this, and now I know — sealant! 🙂 Great job, this is fantastic!
Hi Lenna! Sorry I wasn’t more clear. I replied the whole post, but in case you’re not subscribed to the rest of the responses I thought I’d answer your specific questions here.
“Where is that denim piece used?”
The piece that looks like demin is the “wrong” side of the shiny fabric I chose to use.
“The two cut pieces are different sizes, but it only lists one size for the two rectangles?”
The photo that shows two pieces of fabric represents the rectangle you should cut from your fabric and the other is what it looks like when you “Fold fabric piece in half with right sides of fabric facing each other, sew along open edge” as per instructions in the body of the post. There’s a line of gold thread along one edge.
Hope this helps!
I would absolutely LOVE this and I would love to try it, but I too find the instructions difficult to follow completely. I so appreciate the effort that went in to writing this post, but I think more pictures would be particularly helpful.
Hi OBB readers! First off, I’m very sorry I wrote this in a way that confused you. Let me try to set a few things right:
“Where is that denim piece used?”
The piece that looks like demin is the “wrong” side of the shiny fabric I chose to use.
“The two cut pieces are different sizes, but it only lists one size for the two rectangles?”
The photo that shows two pieces of fabric represents the rectangle you should cut from your fabric and the other is what it looks like when you “Fold fabric piece in half with right sides of fabric facing each other, sew along open edge” as per instructions in the body of the post. There’s a line of gold thread along one edge.
The general chorus of “moar pic pls”:
I’d love to provide more pictures, insofar as I can take more detailed photos of my prototype and do some more explaining. Please let me know which parts you’d like more pictures of and I’ll try to furnish those this week.
Hope this cleared some stuff up! I don’t typically write sewing tutorials, so your questions are very helpful for the future…but it’s extremely important that I help YOU in the here and now!
OOH! Okay, that makes sense. It totally didn’t occur to me that the gold fabric would look like that on the wrong side 🙂 Thanks for the clarification!
I love this post! Thanks for sharing 🙂
SO cute!! I really want to do this, if not for my maids then atleast for myself….also, where does that dress come from?????
hi! i’m 99% sure it’s the blueberry iced tea dress from modcloth- i just bought it a couple weeks ago and LOVE it! 🙂 hope that helps! http://www.modcloth.com/shop/dresses/blueberry-iced-tea-dress
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!
Fabulous!
This is so awesome! I’m going to make something like this for everyday use! 😀 Thanks for sharing!
I love this idea! So creative!
WHY didn’t this come up before I got married?! haha – This would have been an awesome favor to give my Bridesmaids!!…
However, I might make one for myself! 🙂
Also, make sure the comic you are using is worthless, please! Don’t use that Action comics comic!
A friend of mine makes decoupage comic related items…. and does custom work/requests
https://www.etsy.com/shop/thestayathomegeek
Shoes to wallets… purses etc… I saw this and it reminded me of what she does – just thought I’d pass it along for anyone who loves this type stuff but doesn’t have time or energy to DIY
I know this is an old post, but I am trying to make these clutches and cannot figure out the instructions on how to attach the fabric. Anyone have help or advice on how to accomplish this?
Just wondering how durable the spray sealant makes the paper? My daughter is done with her huge Archie comic collection and I am searching the internet for a way to make them durable enough to last but not so durable they cannot be sewn. I am thinking zipper pouches. 🙂