Most of my local ladies have made these and I think a few others in the district as well - after a 5 minute Show and Tell in the shop one day. They are the handiest of accessories, especially at a workshop, and can be completed in about 20 minutes.
REQUIREMENTS
2 pieces of 5mm craftwood 13" x 9 3/4" (available from hardware stores in a large sheet - if you're lucky, they will cut it for you)
Cutting mat 8" x 11"
Felt or sandpaper (not shown in photo)
Duct Tape, PVA Glue, Bulldog Clips
Approx 50cm fabric and 2 pieces of wool wadding, approx 22" x 30"
Lay your 2 pieces of craftwood, side by side with a gap between, using a pencil as a guide.
Cover with the duct tape on both sides to create a hinge.
Cut a piece of wadding, the exact size of the folder you have created, and a second piece, slightly larger, just enough to fold over the edges. Slather the top side of your folder with PVC glue and fix down the first piece of wadding. For the second piece, I cut out some little segments at the hinge, to make it easier to fold.
Cut a piece of fabric 3" x 9" to cover the duct tape hinge and glue down - don't worrry about the raw edges, they will be covered. Fold the edges of the wadding over and glue.
The rest of the process, is just like covering a book. Cut your fabric to suit your folder - I like about 3" overlap, but as you can see, I was a bit short on the bottom end. It's still OK, just a bit more difficult to handle. Stretch it over the edges, glue down and hold with bulldog clips. Check to see that your folder still closes and adjust if necessary.
Give it a little time to dry, then stick down your cutting mat and felt or sandpaper.
The first one I made, I used felt just to cover the exposed area, but I have used fine sandpaper for this one - handy when you wish to trace around templates.
I hope these instructions are clear enough for everyone, please contact me if there is anything you don't understand.
Your mini ironing board/cutting mat compendium will be a very useful addition to your patchwork accessories.
Talk soon, Sandy.
That's great! I've had the stuff to do this for months, probably years now, but haven't got around to it. Will do it in the near future with all this free time I'll have on my hands after next week. Ha Ha. Be talking to you, Margot
Posted by: Margot | February 04, 2010 at 08:04 PM
I don't know how I found this blog but am glad I did!
The mini ironing board is a great idea, and I have added it to my Links to Lessons page on my blog.
Thank you!
Judy B
Posted by: Judy B | February 05, 2010 at 09:03 AM
My friend has one of these and loves it. Maybe it's time forme to have one too.
Thanks for the tutorial!
Love all you quilt pictures, BTW.
Posted by: MaryLu | March 27, 2010 at 01:51 AM
I have a question. Did you leave the pencil in to make the hinge or did you just use it as a spacer? I am re-doing mine because it needed a new cover. I didn't use duct tape on the first one but will this time. Thanks for the tutorial. Now I can send people here when the compliment me on mine!
Posted by: joan | June 01, 2010 at 04:08 AM