My sons have recently started a program called Therapeutic Listening. It involves listening to customized CDs with a portable CD player and special headset. I wanted a way for them to be able to move around freely while listening to their CD, so I set out to make them CD player belts. I didn’t find any online tutorials – most likely because most people use iPods these days (I found plenty of iPod case/carrier tutorials) – so I decided to make one myself. Hopefully it will help someone else along the way. :)
Supplies:
- 1/3 yard of cotton fabric (or two scraps, one that is approximately 8.5″ wide by 11″ high and a second that is approximately 8.5″ wide by 7.5″ high)
- 1/3 yard of fleece fabric (or two scraps, one that is approximately 8.5″ wide by 11″ high and a second that is approximately 8.5″ wide by 7.5″ high)
- 1/3 yard of low loft fusible batting
- 2/3 yard of 1/2″ double fold bias tape
- One 3/4″ magnetic snap closure set
- One parachute buckle for 1″ strap with only one adjustable side
- Enough 1″ nylon strap to go around the wearer’s waist, plus 10″ (so if the waist is 20″, you need 30″ of nylon strap)
- Scrap fabric (approximately 1.25″ square) for reinforcing closure
- CD Player Belt Pattern (when printing, be sure “Page Scaling” is set to “None”)
Here is a photo of the magnetic closures (mine came in a three pack), the parachute clip, and the nylon strap:
To start, you will need to cut your fabric as indicated on the pattern. There are two pattern pieces, and you will cut each piece once from the cotton, fleece and fusible batting.
Now you will place the male end of the magnetic closure according to the closure package instructions. It goes on the fleece Pouch Back piece as indicated on the pattern. Use a scrap of 1.25″ square fabric on the wrong side of the fleece to reinforce the closure.
Next, you will fuse the batting between the cotton and fleece for each pattern piece, ensuring that the right side is out. Below shows my fused pieces. Between my fingers I have the cotton on top, batting in the middle and fleece on the bottom. Beneath my hand is the second fused pattern piece. (I was using off white fleece, which makes it hard to see in the photo). Fuse according to the package instructions.
Sew the bias tape around the pouch flap and across the top of the pouch back. When sewing the tape across the flap edge, I went a little beyond where the pattern indicates to stop so that it would get caught in the seam when I sewed the top piece to the bottom piece, which you can see in the photo below.
A mistake I made in my pouch was that I should have cut the Pouch Back with the pattern upside-down so when the pouch was closed, the patter would be right-side up. The way I did it causes my super heroes on the flap to be upside down when the pouch is closed, unfortunately. Be smarter than me!
Before you place the nylon strap, you need to prepare it. To do this, you take a lighter and lightly touch the end of the strap with the flame. You will see it melt together. This will keep it from fraying.
Once the ends are sealed, you place the strap on the cotton side of the Pouch Back as indicated on the pattern. Place it so one side of the pouch has a 6″ length of strap extending beyond the edge. Pin it and sew it into place using an “X” pattern as shown, ensuring not to sew closer than 1/2″ from the edge of the Pouch Back sides.
Place the female magnetic closure piece on the Pouch Front as indicated on the pattern. It should be on the front of the cotton side. Since it’s going through the cotton, batting and fleece, I chose not to reinforce this closure.
You’re almost ready to sew the two pieces together. Before doing that, though, you need to make sure that the straps don’t get caught in the seams. I just folded them in nicely and pinned them to keep them all in the middle.
Lay the Pouch Front piece on top of this with the cotton side down and the bias tape at the top. Pin and sew the sides and bottom with a 1/4″ seam allowance. Trim the corners when you’re done sewing.
Turn the pouch right-side out. On the short end of the nylon strap, place the non-adjustable end of the parachute buckle on the strap. Fold the strap over 2″ and sew in place with another box with an “X” in the middle, the same way that you sewed the strap to the Pouch Back. Finish by putting the adjustable strap on the other end of the nylon strap. Buckle around the recipient’s waist and adjust as needed.
Here is my son wearing one of the pouches I made. The black button on the flap is decorative because I made the mistake of putting the closure on too late, and the back of it was showing through the outside. I glued the button on to hide my mistake. You can also see that you just put the player in and let the headphone cord come out the side.
