From Page to Purse: DIY Interchangeable Faux Leather Book Bag

Calling all bookworms and fashionistas! This instructable is for you. Imagine carrying a stylish sling bag that transforms into a classic book whenever you set it down. Sounds magical, right? Well, get ready to turn that dream into reality!

In this instructable, I'll guide you through creating a one-of-a-kind faux leather sling bag with interchangeable covers designed to resemble book covers. It'll be the perfect conversation starter, letting you express your love for literature while sporting a trendy accessory.

This project is achievable for crafters of most levels. I'll provide detailed instructions on working with faux leather and crafting a realistic book cover facade for your bag. No prior bookbinding or leather crafting experience is necessary!

So, gather your supplies and unleash your inner bookworm! By the end of this instructable, you'll have a unique and functional sling bag that combines your love for reading with your fashion sense. Let's craft a story you can carry with you!

Supplies

Materials and tools I used in this project:

Ruler
Scissors or cutter
White faux leather or leather
Light Brown faux leather or leather
Lining fabric (optional)
Tracing wheel (I used a plastic fork, ink, and a stamp pad as a substitute)
EVA foam 3 mm thick
Thread (regular or wax)
Needle
Thimble (optional)
Paper clip
Sewing machine (optional)
Polychloroprene Yellow Glue
PVAc glue/white glue
Zipper
Zip stopper (optional)
Magnets
Round velcro or snap button
Bag chain and D rings
Double tape/masking tape
Chipboard
Cardboard tube
3 mm thick EVA foam or leather lace
Pencil
Rotary tool
Book press (I used Chopsticks, paperclips, and rope)
Book corner protector
Heat resistant tape
Direct Transfer Film (you can use HTV)
Heat press machine/iron
Teflon sheet
Sublimation paper
Sublimation ink
Sublimation printer
Sublimation vinyl (optional)
Hot foil (optional)
Fuse tool (optional)

Step 1: Making the Purse

Materials and tools used in this step:

Ruler
Scissors or cutter
White faux leather or leather
Lining fabric (optional)
Tracing wheel (I used a plastic fork, ink, and a stamp pad as a substitute)
Eva foam
Thread (regular or wax)
Needle
Thimble (optional)
Paper clip
Sewing machine (optional)
Polychloroprene Yellow Glue
PVAc glue/white glue
Zipper
Zip stopper (optional)
Magnets
Round velcro or snap button
Bag chain and D
Double tape/masking tape

Dimension and Material

For this project, I decided to make a sling bag that can bring my book because I can't bring my book in my current sling bag, the book just wouldn't fit in. Thus for this particular bag project, I decided to use some of my books to make the measurements of my bag. I decided to go with a dimension of 22 cm x 15 cm x 5 cm(the overall size of the purse). Thus, I can put my handphone, wallet and a book inside.

Before we jumped on the cutting of the leather, I chose a white faux leather with 0.3 mm thickness, because I wanted to make the sublimation cover from the same faux leather. That's why I needed it in plain white and thin. If you want to make the purse from thicker faux leather or even actual leather, it's not a problem.

To the right path

After a while in the making process of the purse, I realized that I might make some mistakes and that I needed to go through some quite challenging steps (related to hand-sewing and gluing the materials). It all started from my stubbornness that "I want the stitches on the purse to be invisible". Based on that experience, if you don't mind the visible stitch thread on your purse (just like any leather bag), I suggest you use some other tutorial to continue this part:

If you are using thicker leather of faux leather, and you don't need any lining fabrics inside your purse, you can use this tutorial as a guide to make the purse
If you are using a thin leather/faux leather, and need to use EVA foam and lining (fabric inside the bag), you can follow this tutorial (especially if you are blessed with a sewing machine)

But, if you are open to some unnecessary challenges, and have unlimited patience and time, I won't stop you. Here we go!

Sewing the faux leather of the main body

After I decided on the dimensions, I printed and cut the template on a regular HVS paper to ease the cutting process of the material. First I cut the leather to the size in pict.1. Then I applied some double tape on the wrong side of the faux leather as you can see in pict. 2. Then I folded the sides (pict. 4). I did this because I felt that I needed to make sure the sides of the faux leather were strong enough to hold the stitches since the faux leather I used was quite thin. Then I marked the stitching line using a plastic fork, a stamp pad, and a ruler (pict. 6) (this is just optional). Please note that I only used this fork stamp method for the invisible-stitching line because if I use it on the visible-stitching side, the stamp might make the faux leather look dirty/messy. If you have a tracing wheel, it works the same, moreover, it is safe to use on the visible-stitching-line side (no ink marks). Remember that the stitch shouldn't be too close since it might tear the faux leather. I clipped the three pieces of the purse together, the wrong side out, and sewed them. I used the backstitching method to give strong stitches (pict 9). You can use a thimble to help you push the needle through. After that, turn the purse right-side out.

D ring straps

I cut a 4 cm x 8 cm strip from white faux leather (pict. 11). Then I folded it in half. After that, I stitched the longest sides together with backstitching (pict 13). Then I slide the piece to make the stitch line the center of the strap piece. Make sure the strap would fit the D ring. Make two of these pieces.

Zipper

I measured the length of the zipper I needed for my purse as you can see in pict.18. The length I needed was about 26 cm.Then, I made the zipper stopper by cutting a 4 cm x 5 cm piece of white faux leather. But you can skip this if you already have a zipper-stopper. I fold the piece into half, false-side out. Then I stitched the sides (pict. 20). Turn the stopper right-side out, place the end of the zipper inside the stopper, and then stitch it (pict. 21 & 22).

For the zipper wings, I cut a 17 cm x 5 cm piece of white faux leather and also from the lining fabric (pict. 24). I put a double tape along the side of the wrong side (yellow highlight) and then folded the sides to strengthen the faux leather for the stitches (pict. 25 & 26). Then I stack the faux leather, the zipper, and the lining fabric based on pict. 27, and secure them using paper clips. I put double tape on the faux leather to mark the stitching line (pict. 28) and then I stitched them. Repeat this step for the other side of the wings (pict 31).

This video is the reference for this zipper part.

Stiffening the purse

Since I used thin faux leather, I added EVA foam to stiffen the purse. You can skip this if you use thick leather or faux leather. For the closure of the bag, I used a plain magnet that won't be visible from outside. That's why I placed it between the faux leather and the EVA foam on the front side of the purse (pict. 35). You can also use the usual magnet for a bag/purse.

I cut the EVA foam using the size guide in picture 32. Then I applied Polychloroprene Yellow Glue to the EVA foam and stuck it inside the purse. With this contact glue, you have to apply the glue to both sides (the faux leather and the EVA foam), not just one side. Then when they dry a little, you put them together. Don't forget to roll them out to fuse the gum. I didn't do the rolling because it was a little bit difficult when the faux leather and the EVA foam were already in the purse shape. I think that's why the is some air trapped between the faux leather and the EVA foam.

Lining (inner fabric)

The lining, it's almost the same size as the main purse, only a bit smaller. I put a double tape on the fabric as a guideline, then I hand-sewed it (backstitching) (pict. 40 & 41). I also added a pouch to the lining for my phone (pict 42).

Sewing the parts

This is quite the challenging part, because I needed to sew the parts through 3 mm EVA foam plus some layers of faux leather, and it wasn't that easy. The first one was to sew the D ring strap to both sides of the purse. I put a double tape on the sides of the purse to be a stitching line guide. For this part, I sewed through the faux leather and the EVA foam until you could see the stitching line from the outside, just to make sure that the stitching was sturdy enough to hold the D-ring straps. (pict. 43).

The second one was to sew the zipper wings and the lining to the purse. I arranged the zipper wings and the purse as you can see in picture 44. Then I put some books in the purse to give some volume and shape (pict. 45). I applied the Polychloroprene Yellow Glue on the bottom side of the lining fabric and also on the EVA foam base inside the purse (pict. 46). I put the lining fabric inside the purse carefully (pict. 47). The books inside the lining fabric helped me to give pressure so the lining would stick to the EVA foam. I removed the books and I pressed down the lining fabric with my hand.

After that, I put some double tape as a stitching line guide as you can see in picture 48. This timeit's quite different from the sewing method in D ring straps that I sew through the whole materials. For this part, I didn't want any visible stitching line on the outside of the purse. That's why I needed to sew only until it touched/grabbed the EVA foam, but not through the outer side of the faux leather if that makes sense. Thus the stitch will be strong enough to hold the zipper wings and the lining fabric, but also won't be visible from the outside. I didn't have a thimble to help me sew those thick materials, so I wrapped some fabric around my middle finger and then secured it with masking tape. It worked just fine.

For the changeable cover feature, I use 4 round velcros that I put on the back side of the purse (pict. 53). You can use a snap button, but also mind the thickness of your material. If you are using only thick leather or faux leather, it might work well. But if the snap button is applied on a thin faux leather like mine, I am afraid that the faux leather will easily be torn. If you have any suggestions for this part, please don't hesitate to write in the comments section.

This part was so tricky, and the most time-consuming. But when I finished it, it was all worth it.

Step 2: Designing the Cover Art

For this interchangeable cover, I made two types of covers with different methods. The first one is using DTF, and the second one is using sublimation

I build my cover art on CorelDraw. But any design software will work, as long as it can export in vector image formats like SVG or DXF.

I started the process by drawing boxes that represent my covers and spine. The cover boxes were about 26 cm x 18 cm and the spine was 26 cm x 6 cm.
Art on the actual leather-bound books typically doesn't fill the entire cover. So next I draw out my actual working space with at least 1.5 cm margins on all sides (pict. 2). The spine is a little different though, with margins at the top and the bottom but not on the sides. The spine also has 0.5 cm spaces set aside for raised bands also known as hubs.
The number and spacing of the hubs varies, but four is the most conventional number.
I pick a small number of images/ornament to build my border patterns. There are millions of PNG clip art images available from a free database online. I used ornaments from Freepik. Here are some keywords that you can search for tribal, medieval ornament, vintage corner, swirls, and dividers. Don't forget to look for vector files. As for the cover from JRR Tolkien, I also downloaded the JRR Tolkien logo/signature. Once I downloaded the pattern that I liked, I edited and combined them in CorelDraw.
Inside the borders, you can add any design you want from generic filigree to detailed pictures, whatever conveys the tone and the content of your favorite book cover best. In this project, I just added the title of the cover book I want: The Lord of The Rings.
For the spine, I used a little ornament from the front cover and modified it so the spine would have a uniform ornament with the front and back covers. I also added the book title and the author.

For the sublimation, it's not too different. This time it was inspired by an episode from my favorite animated series, Avatar The Last Airbender: The Tales of Ba Sing Se. I downloaded a green leather texture from Freepik and used it as a base color of the faux leather. Then added some simple silhouette illustrations of General Iroh and the tree (an iconic scene), and also the title of the episode. The only thing that I did differently was the size of the design. For the sublimation technique, I used the sublimation as coloring on the plain white faux leather. That's why the dimensions of the design I made were a little bit bigger than the size of the cover boards (pict. 3). I needed the sublimated faux leather to be folded to the back side of the covers if that makes sense.

Step 3: Cover Board

Materials and tools used in this step:

Chipboard
Cardboard tube
3 mm thick EVA foam or leather lace
PVAc glue
Pencil
Rotary tool
Ruler
Scissors
Cutter
Masking tape

I used a heavy chipboard for my front and back covers. I cut the covers to be wider and longer than the purse. So the size of the chipboard cover was 26 cm x 18 cm (pict. 2).

But then after this project finished, I realized that this cover size looked oversized for my purse. So, I think 24 cm x 18 cm will look great. But again, it is what it is, so I will continue writing in 26 cm x 18 cm cover board.

To make the spine you can use the cardboard tube from rolls of vinyl leftovers. But it's a little bit smaller than the size of my purse. Hence, I used cardboard tubes from the marketplace (pict. 1). The diameter of the tube that I used was 3 inches, and then I cut it to fit my purse. I used the strip from the tube which is the same width as the purse + both cover boards (pict. 2). To cut the tube, I taped down a piece of paper in the desired size of the spine (pict. 3). I used the paper as a guide to help me cut in a straight line since I used a mini rotary tool (my first time!) as you can see in picture 4.

Print out the design for the spine and mark the location of each hub on the curved cardboard piece (pict. 5). You can make the bands out of leather lace but in this project, I used 3 mm thick EVA foam. The thickness was just perfect for my project. I cut 0.5 cm wide from the EVA foam and a little wider than the cover spine (pick. 8). Glue them with PVAc glue in place and wait at least one to two hours for the glue to dry (pict. 9). Once the glue has set cut the excess EVA foam off angling the knife for a beveled cut that will complement the overall curvature of the book spine (pict. 10).

At this point you can connect the front and the back covers to the spine with some masking tape. Use a straight edge to ensure that the covers will be aligned properly. I stuck them closely as long as the cover had a space to move when I opened and closed the bag cover. Don't forget to cut a little of the masking tape that covers the hub, so the hubs will still appear nicely.

Step 4: Leathering the Cover

Materials and tools used in this step:

Ruler
Scissors or cutter
Tape
Light Brown faux leather or leather
Eva foam
PVAc glue
Book press (I used Chopsticks, paperclips, and rope)
Book corner protector

It's important to select the right kind of leather for this book-inspired bag cover. Avoid anything thicker than 2.5 oz and thinner is even better. Use a supple leather, that bends easily and has a little bit of stretch to it. Stay away from oily or waxy finishes though.

Use the board you taped together as a guide to cut the leather about one to two inches larger than the cover on each side. I applied a generous layer of PVAc glue to the outside of the book spine (pict. 1).

Actually, in this step, I was wondering why leather bookbinders use PVAc glue for the cover while leather bag crafters use Polychloroprene Yellow Glue to stick the leather. I can't find the answer, but I decided to use PVAc glue because I ran out of Polychloroprene Yellow Glue. If you have the answer to my question, please write in the comment section if you don'y mind.

Next, I placed the center of the faux leather on top of the spine. As you can see I made a mistake here. I shouldn't applied the DTF design cover on my faux leather before I stick the faux leather on the cover board. That's why I had a hard time centering the faux leather on the spine. Please only apply the DTF/HTV design when the leather already covers the cover boards.

Put the purse filled with books inside the cover and gently close the cover (pict. 4). For the next part, you can use a book press but since I didn't have that so I used what I could find around my house: Chopsticks, paperclips, and rope. I clipped the edge of the cover with paper clips and used EVA foam to protect the faux leather (pict. 4). The paper clips and the EVA foam should be put paralleled with the hubs. Then I put the chopsticks inside the paper clips (pict. 5). Stretch the center over the book spine so you can see the hubs distinctly. The faux leather I used didn't have that stretchy properties so it wasn't as smooth as I expected. But I think if I use a hot gun to soften the spine of my faux leather, it might work well. But it's just my theory.

To keep the faux leather coming off the spine before the glue dries, I wrap a piece of rope around the hubs (pict 6). Anchoring it so that there is pressure pushing the faux leather against each hub from the top and the bottom. Let the book sit for at least 1-2 hours until the glue is completely dry.

Next, I glued the faux leather to the front and back covers (pict. 9). I used EVA foam and a paper clip as a brush to spread the glue so every part would stick evenly and there wouldn't be any bumps. Repeat the whole process on the other side, and I pressed the book tightly.

I flattened the cover on the table and I trimmed the faux leather to an even width around each side. Then I cut each corner off at a 45-degree angle. Don't cut right next to the cover, leave a gap about as wide as the chipboard's thick. Apply glue to each faux leather tab and fold them over on the inside of the cover (pict. 10). Repeat this on each side and then back to the book pressing.

After that, I glued a magnet on the inside of the cover and made sure it would be aligned with the magnet on the purse (pict. 11). Then I cut a piece of white faux leather to cover the rest of the inside of the cover (pict.12). Don't forget to add 4 round velcro/snap buttons to add the interchangeable cover feature to the cover and make sure they will be aligned with the velcros on the purse.

Step 5: Applying the Cover Design: DTF Method

Materials and tools used in this step:

Heat resistant tape
Direct Transfer Film (you can use HTV)
Heat press machine/iron
Teflon sheet

If you are Blessed with a cutting machine, I would recommend you to use a Heat Transfer Vinyl, because the gold would seem more realistic rather than the DTF. You can choose between a reflective gold or a subdued gold vinyl. However since I didn't have a cutting machine (yet), I needed to find another way to apply the cover design on the faux leather. I found out about hot foil, but it needed to be printed using a laser print (toner printer) to react with the gold foil. In case of hot foiling on paper, we can use laser print or a photocopier machine that uses toner. But then, I think "Will it be possible to toner-print on a faux leather?". At that time, I didn't have the answer, so I tried to figure out another way. But if you have the answer to this question, please comment below. Other than the toner, the hot foil will also react to glue, but I thought it would take a long time to apply the hot foil to my cover design using the glue method since my cover design has intricate ornaments.

Then I found the Direct Transfer Film (DTF). It was mainly used for clothing/fabrics, but it also worked on faux leather. I didn't have a DTF printer, but in Indonesia, there are a lot of DTF printing services that I can look for in the marketplace. I just needed to send them my design, and they printed it using a DTF printer and sent it to me. The only challenge was picking the right shade that resembled gold. In this project, I accidentally chose the wrong shade that only appeared like yellow ornaments on my cover, LOL.

When my DTF cover was ready, now it's time to press it on the faux leather. I taped down the DTF using a heat-resistant tape (pict.1). Before, I tried to heat press using a regular Iron, but at that time I didn't know the ideal iron setting for DTF heat pressing. This resulting some damage to the faux leather due to overheating. I thought that I should start with lower temperature and build up. But it would take too much time and energy. Then I decided to use my HTVRONT Auto Heat Press machine, which has a 15" x 15" heating plate, quite large for my cover design. Here is the tutorial on how to use this machine (you don't need to preheat the faux leather). For this project, I used the setting of 260° F for 40s. After the cover cooled a bit, I checked if the DTF was completely fused on the faux leather. Then I will repeat this process when necessary.

For the DTF on the spine, this time I used an iron with the iron setting around Silk-Wool material. It worked perfectly since there are hubs on the spine, and also the area of the spine was quite narrower than the front and back cover. I also added book corner protectors for extra protection on the cover corner (pict. 7).

Step 6: Making the Cover: Sublimation Method

Materials and tools used in this step:

Heat resistant tape
Sublimation paper
Sublimation ink
Sublimation printer
Clear sublimation vinyl (optional)
Heat press machine
Teflon sheet

This experiment was intended to try various colors/patterns when I couldn't find the faux leather with the color I desired. Thus, I can simply use white faux leather. In some tutorials, you can heat press HTVRONT clear sublimation vinyl before the actual sublimation paper to make the color/design more vivid on the faux leather. But since I can't find that product in Indonesia, I just used ordinary sublimation paper. You will need a printer, sublimation ink, and sublimation paper. But again, I didn't have that, so I ordered a Sublimation printing service from the marketplace.

Next, I trimmed the plain white faux leather to 30 cm x 50 cm.

I set my press to 300° F and the timer to 40-50 seconds. Then the faux leather on top of the heat pad with the shiny side up. Lay the sublimation print on top facing down. Secure them with heat-resistant tape then cover them with a teflon sheet and press. Repeat if necessary. I would recommend an Auto Heat Press machine for this method because it will need more pressure to sublime the ink on the faux leather. That's why I thought it would take more energy and time if you use a regular iron or EasyPress.

When done pressing, peel off the paper and heat tape from the faux leather to reveal the design.

Don't forget to make the cover board like from the previous step, then glue this sublimated faux leather on the cover board.

Step 7: Finishing

After finishing all those steps, I think you can apply a seal/lacquer to protect the cover art to get a more long-lasting cover art. In a leather bookbinding tutorial, I saw he used a leather sealer Eco Flow Super Sheen to give the cover a hard glossy surface and protect it from damage. With that, your Interchangeable Faux Leather Book Bag is finished. I am really happy with how the velcro can give the changeable cover feature to this sling bag. At first, I was skeptical, but it turned out so well. It's easy to change the cover (not as hard as the snap button), but the cover can still attached to the purse nicely.

Step 8: Final Thoughts

This is my first time working with faux leather, hand-sewing, and almost all the process from this project. There are a lot of mistakes along the way, but I think the most exciting part was when I got to figure out how to find alternative ways to deal with my limitations, such as using the fork stamp method, or chopsticks and paperclips method. Although the result might not be perfect, and there is so much room for improvement, I think I would take this as an opportunity to try again and find the best method for me. Moreover, I had some ideas on styling this sling bag, even some accessories for this sling bag. I will upload some video footage, improvements, and modifications of this project on my Instagram page: @quinzyvarira. If you have any suggestions related to this project, please don't hesitate to let me know in the comment.

I would love it if you wanted to support my projects, please consider helping me to cover the cost of designing, documenting and sharing these projects on https://ko-fi.com/quinzyvarira.

I had a lot of fun and excitement during this project, I hope this instructable will give courage to all the first timers in making a sling bag with faux leather like me. I hope you enjoy this instructable and see you next time! :D