DIY Busines Card Holder

As you may remember, I recently purchased some beautiful business cards in advance of the blogger conference I am attending in the fall.

However, I need something to hold them in, unless I want to hand out a bunch of beaten up cards at the conference! I did some research on what style I liked, and I really liked this simple one I found by Jaden Design on Etsy.

But of course, I decided this was something I wanted to attempt to DIY! Mostly because I already had all the materials and the design seemed pretty simple to me. I often waver over whether to DIY or buy (clearly Jaden Designs will have cleaner lines and look nicer than something I could make!). In this case I figured I would give it a shot.

I should mention here that I did not measure anything except to hold up a card to it and say "eh, that looks close enough".

First I picked out my materials, settling on a zig zag pattern (I have soooo much...need to use it up!), and a thicker cotton napkin to give it a little structure.

Next I cut out two rectangles that gave me enough room to make the wallet, allowing for seams. No measuring, I just eyeballed the size and trimmed as I went.

Next I sewed them right side together, along three sides. I clipped the corners (helps it lie flatter), turned it inside out, tucked in the open side, and then sewed along all four sides. That last step is done right side out, so you are not doing hidden seams.

Then you just need to fold in the sides, leaving a small gap in the middle so you can access the sleeves and allow room for folding shut. Then you just sew along the sides so the flaps stay shut! I did my best to stay along the original sewing line.

FYI, my sewing machine hates sewing through thick material and I got a few bunches of thread on the back (no one will notice, right?). Anyone have any tips on that?

After I finished that, I realized I needed to add some snaps to help it stay shut (I really need to plan project steps better). I happened to have a snap on hand, but one side would NOT attach, no matter what I did. I think it was a faulty snap. I gave up and sewed it on! No one will notice that either, right?

So there you go, a DIY business card holder you can throw together in about 30 minutes (while cooking dinner!). It ain't perfect, but I am pretty proud of it! Be sure to compliment it if you see me at Blog Podium 2013 and I shall hug you ;)