DIY Book Nook

I have been trying to bring some order to the room that is shared by my two boys and girl. It has not been an easy task, but I am slowly making progress. I have been tackling one part of the room at a time,

hoping someday to tame the monsters in the closet and the boogy man under the bed.

During one of my bouts of insomnia(which I suffer every pregnancy) I somehow got to thinking about their room and how I could make it better. Don't you think about all the things you need to do in the wee hours of the morning? Well I do... It came to my mind that I have some extra fabric and Ellie is in desperate need of a spot to put her bedtime books. Why not make her a little book nook?... before my creative juices  stopped flowing.

There is a book case in their room but at nap time Ellie insists on having most all the books in her bed so she can read them till she falls asleep. I usually read her a few since she can not read yet, but I have to draw the limit somewhere and when I am done she reads the rest by memory or makes up her own stories. I love listening at the door as she does her own little voices and sometimes can repeat verbatim whole stories.

From start to finish this little project  only took me an hour to complete,which is very satisfying for someone who wants results but doesn't want to spend a lot of time.

I started by using an old pillow case as the backing. It already had batting sewed into it so it was perfect for holding up to the weight of books. If you don't have something like this try to find a sturdy material or add quilt batting.

Lay it out and cut out some pockets and place where you want. I used some pretty napkins and leftover heavy cotton. 

Ellie thought it would  make a good blanket

Figure out where you want to place pockets

Iron all fabric and fold sides over and iron to make hem

Fold over top of pockets twice and then sew

Pin in place. Don't pin fabric to backing and then sew tops of pockets like I almost did! Make sure you hem the tops then sew them on to the backing.

Now sew pockets on to backing.

To make straps for nook I cut two pieces of fabric the same length about 10- 12in  long and 5in wide then folded half in. in to make hem and then sewed down both sides to make two straps for hanging.

I think Ellie is happy with the results! I screwed nails in the wall to hang the straps on but if you want you could use a curtain rod to hang the straps on. One of my creative friends made the one on the right.

I have a feeling that there will still be books and toys strewn all over the floor when she wakes up but at least she has a cute little place all her own to stash her books and girly stuff.