Condo Blues: Make an iPad Cover and Stand

Friday, April 8, 2011

Make an iPad Cover and Stand

I won an iPad from ConAgra* in a drawing at Blissdom.  I’m still pinching myself! I never win anything super cool like that.



Now I know what the heck Angry Birds is and why it’s insanely addictive.

Bonus.

Griffin Screen Care Kit for iPad, Matte
Seriously, order one of these. You won't regret it.
The first thing I did is order a screen care kit. I had sectors on a screen kill a just-out-of-warranty PDA (remember those?)  As a precaution, I always buy a screen protector to my touch screen devices and recommend you do the same. It will be the best $13 you spend to protect a $500 investment. I'm not joking, go buy one. I'll wait.



Hi, you're back!

The next thing I wanted to do is buy a cover to protect my Precious. I wanted a cover that held the iPad securely, held the power cord and cleaning pad from the screen care kit (better than using your sleeve and less prone to scratch the screen and make you cry in your oatmeal.), and double as a stand when I attended a conference or something and wanted to type or keep an eye on Twitter.

Naturally, I couldn’t find anything close to that in a store.   

When I can’t buy, I DIY!

I made a cloth iPad cover from fabric from my stash. I chose cotton for the outer layer, fleece for the padded layer and felt for the lining layer.

The pattern is simple. I taped two sheets of 81/2 x 11 inch paper together and cut the flap to size. I eyeballed the cuts on the front pocket to make it slightly smaller than the iPad itself.


Originally I planned to serge it and sew seam binding over the serged edge to finish it off.


It looked horrible.

Just keeping it real.

Not everything I make looks awe-inspiring, or even passable, on the first try.

Or second.

Or third.

Or…I lost count.

At 3 AM  I had something I was happy with.

A funky button from Grandma’s button box and an upcycled loop of elastic that originally held a tag on something I bought keep the cover closed and my iPad snug as a bug in an iPad cover.


I added a pocket to the front to keep the power cable and a stylus. I love the pocket! I don’t understand why more covers don’t have pockets to hold the cords and accessories when traveling and to keep them from getting lost.  



I sewed more upcycled elastic ( from another purchase) on the outside corners of the iPad cover.


When I close the cover and slip the iPad in the outside elastic, the iPad sits at a slight angle for typing, or displaying Twitter on my desk.  Are you following me on Twitter? You should. People say I’m funny. Unless you’re only here to look at photos of Blitzkrieg. Blitzkrieg is not on Twitter. Don't click away!  I upload photos of Blitzkrieg on Twitter all the time so if you follow me it’s like a two for one deal.


I’m still a bit new to the iPad thing.  I have iBooks, Kindle, Angry Birds and that’s pretty much it.

What are your are other favorite apps? Do you have any good sources for ebooks?


*Say what you will about "Big Ag" but me and Orville Redenbacher have always been tight.  I pop it old school - in a pot on the stove.


Did you enjoy this post? Get more like it by subscribing to the Condo Blues RSS Feed  or to Condo Blues by Email.

18 comments :

julee said...

This is a great idea and it's beautiful to boot!

Amie {Kitty Cats and Airplanes} said...

I think it turned out wonderfully! A few crafting fails are good learning experiences right?

Jeanna said...

I love it! I have been telling myself to make one for a few months now and still have not. Yours is great...


Jeanna @ dramaqueenseam.blogspot.com

Melanie said...

Suhuper jealous! But, this is great and I'd love for you to come link this up at my Tuesday Time Out Linky Party! The link is below!
Smiles,
Melanie
Reasons To Skip The Housework
Tuesday Time Out Link Up Party

Otter Hill Designs said...

Your project turned out fantastic! Wish I had an iPad then I'd make one too. I really like that you made it so it becomes a stand as well as a case.

Becky Perry said...

I LOVE the Home Routines app. Very handy.

Chameleon Girls said...

I will have to give this a try.

Nancy @ Wrapped In Love said...

Love your I pad holder! I saw yours after I had just made mine. I was searching online for a holder to carry my IPad in my purse and finally gave up on something I liked! So I made my own!

Nancy

Katie said...

I've had my iPhone for about 4 months and I'm still fairly incompetent using it, don't feel bad! Your case is bee-yoo-ti-ful, and the fact that it took you a couple tries makes me feel immensely better about my epic stash of failures. Something helpful might be to subscribe to a blog or two (I like Lifehacker!) that has some helpful IPad suggestions. Also, I've FINALLY started using my Pandora app and it is really the bees knees because I'm a horribly ADD music listener.

Katie said...

I've had my iPhone for about 4 months and I'm still fairly incompetent using it, don't feel bad! Your case is bee-yoo-ti-ful, and the fact that it took you a couple tries makes me feel immensely better about my epic stash of failures. Something helpful might be to subscribe to a blog or two (I like Lifehacker!) that has some helpful IPad suggestions. Also, I've FINALLY started using my Pandora app and it is really the bees knees because I'm a horribly ADD music listener.

AllieMakes! said...

Great job! I am a huge fan of the thin screen and phoen covers too. Great way to tilt up the pad too!
Thanks for linking up to Making It With Allie! I can't wait to see what you have for next week!
AllieMakes.Blogspot.com

Unknown said...

I don't have an iPad, but I love this idea for an iPad case/holder. I really like the fact that the elastic holds it in place and it can be sitting in/on top of the holder while you use it. Way cool, thanks for sharing Lisa. :)

Kemmei said...

Check out Plants vs. Zombies. Given your Evil Dead laundry room, I'm pretty sure you'll like it!

heather said...

i love the elastic corners! great idea! i might have to add that onto mine...

looks like a new (or refurbished!) cover is in my near future...

:)

Deana@CountryMommaCooks said...

So cool thank you so much...cases and stands are so expensive....I'll be making this for sure...

Jen @ Craftincowgirl said...

What a great project, thank you for sharing!

mollymambo said...

Beautiful cover! I've started to crochet a cover for my iPad but have the attention span of a hummingbird so am easily distracted by things that are more fun (such as reading somebody's blog about their iPad cover!). Favorite iPad app: Flipboard.

Christine said...

This is FABULOUS!!! I'm going to have to get myself an iPad just for an excuse to make a case like yours!

Thanks for sharing this at The DIY Dreamer.. From Dream To Reality!

Post a Comment

I love comments and read them all! If you’re shy and don’t want your opinions made public, you can always email me at condoblues [at] gmail [dot] com.