Quiet Book Sew-Along: Page Assembly – Materials & Tutorial {Week 21}

by Sherri Sylvester | Apr 4, 2016

This week I’m making good on a promise I started a long time ago, I’m posting the last few tutorials for the Quiet Book Sew-Along! They have been in the works for so long. I have been delinquent in finishing the Sew-Along, and I apologize for that. I have learned a lot about what I can and cannot accomplish in a reasonable timeline in the last few years – and this was definitely something where I bit off more than I could chew.

Thankfully, the instructions for the pages are finished! So all we need to do is bind them and make the cover. After these two instructional posts, I’ll post a final overview of the whole Sew-Along. During today’s tutorial we will finish each page set for the book. Add the ribbon loops that will secure the pages to the book, stitch on the fun ribbon tabs and finish the top and bottom with bias tape.

(If you are just starting find all the information you need on this Sew-Along page.)

Materials: (Note – the word “Ribbon” is used throughout the final assembly. I have used Grosgrain ribbon or Twill tape. Be sure to finish all ribbon ends to prevent fraying by using Fray Check or melt them carefully with a flame.)

• Double Fold Bias Tape: 3 1/2 Yds, from the Yardage Overview
• Ribbon Loops: Cut 1, 3″ long 1/4″ or 3/8″ grosgrain ribbon per page (if you are making all of the pages you will need 12, 33″ in total)

Assembling the Pages:

• Stack and match your quiet book pages based on how they will fit together best. For example: Placing two very fluffy pages together might cause an overly-high bump in your book. This is the order I used, the first page mentioned is the top page, the page after the slash (/) is the bottom page – these are arranged wrong sides together. It is also good to pay attention to which side of the page will be on the outside edge of the book and which will be near the middle/spine. Pages with ribbons attached on one edge (ex. puzzle page) look best when the excess ribbons are in the centre of the book.
  • Purse or Pocket Photo Album  / Puzzle
  • Race Track (single page) / Race Track (double page – folded right sides together) / House
  • Teddy Bear / Rainbow of Colours
  • Abacus / Mitten
  • Buckle Up / Telephone
  • Tie a Shoe / Button the Flower

Finish Each Page Set:

• Race Track Set:Since this page is different from all the others we will cover this one first.
  1. Place your single pages RST (Right Sides Together) with the double Race Track page. The Car Garage must be on the right, the other single page is whichever one you have chosen (called the “House Page” below because that’s what I used) and must be on the left. Make sure all the pages are the same way up!
  2. Remove the ribbon tabs from the House and Race Track pages and pin them on the left side of the House page. Pin as you like. I alternated my tabs so they did not all end up at the same spot when the book was finished.
  3. Fold two of the Ribbon Loops as shown and centre them on 3″ and 6″ on the right side of the House Page. They should stick out about 1/4″ over the raw edge.
  4. Set the double Race Track page aside. Align the ribbon loop side of the the House Page and Garage RST. Stitch with a 1/4″ seam, back-stitch over each ribbon loop as you sew over it to strengthen the seam. Press the seam allowance open carefully, not to melt any ribbons or embellishments.
  5. Match the double page and stitched single pages with right sides together. Trim the double page to the width of the sewn single pages if necessary. Pin the short ends and stitch with a 1/4″ seam. Again, double-stitch over the ribbon tabs to secure.
  6. Turn the pages right side out. Press and align the seamed edges, top-stitch about 1/8″ away from each edge.
  7. Align the centre seam between the single pages. Pin and stitch down this seam (stitch in the ditch) to secure it to the back page. The stitching will show down the centre of the racetrack, so choose your thread colour carefully. I used white thread and coloured over the road stitches with a black fabric marker.
  8. Trim all pages if necessary to make them even. Make sure they are still close to 9″ tall.
  9. Open the bias tape and lay it along the bottom raw edge with 1/2″ extra on each end. Stitch at 3/8″. Cut off the excess if needed, being sure to leave 1/2″.
  10. Turn the bias tape over to the other side. Fold the extra 1/2″ in to hide the raw edge, pinning or gluing to hold in place.
  11. Fold the bias tape up and stitch to finish the edge. Repeat for the top edge of the pages.
  12. Fold the pages in half and secure using the velcro on the Racetrack page.
• All Other Page Sets:
  1. Choose a set of pages to sew together based on your assembly stack from earlier.
  2. Remove the ribbon tabs from the pages and pin them on the right side of one page (this will be the outside edge). Pin as you like. I alternated my tabs so they did not all end up at the same spot when the book was finished.
  3. Fold two of the Ribbon Loops as shown and centre them on 3″ and 6″ on the left side of the same page. They should stick out about 1/4″ over the raw edge.
  4. Place the two pages RST. Stitch the tab and ribbon edges with a 1/4″ seam. , back-stitch over each ribbon loop as you sew over it to strengthen the seam.
  5. Turn the pages right side out. Press and align the seamed edges, top-stitch about 1/8″ away from each edge.
  6. Trim pages if necessary to make them even. Make sure they are still close to 9″ tall.
  7. Follow steps 9-11 above to finish the top and bottom edges with bias tape.
  8. Finish all page sets in this way.

** As usual: This tutorial is for personal or charitable use only. Please do not sell items made with the Quiet Book Sew Along posts. If you wish to sell these please contact sherri@threadridinghood.com for information on how to purchase a license. Thank you!