Clash and Contradiction: Knitted iPod Cover

Posted at A Soft Place to Land DIY Day, visit Kimba to see some more DIY projects!

Also posted here, go check out some more craft projects! -

Oh man, I am so pleased with how this came out. It was super fast and easy too, I whipped it up over the weekend.

You need:

For the case:

Yarn, 1 skein

Knitting Needles (straight. I used size US8, but it will depend on your gauge and what yarn you use.)

Tapestry Needle

2 small safety pins

For the Embellishment:

felt

a button

Thread

Sewing needle

Instructions:

Mine is just a plain knit case, you can really do whatever pattern you like. I liked plain knit because it's simple and doesn't detract from the embellishment.

Cast on the amount of stitches you think you will need for the case to be wide enough. For a snug fit you'll want to use yarn that has a bit of stretch and knit the case slightly smaller than your iPod (or iPhone, or other MP3 Player/Phone). I cast on 14 stitches for mine, I didn't do a test swatch beforehand because I'm lazy, but it might be a good idea so that you can work out how many stitches you need to cast on to get the correct width.

Now, you want to knit until it is long enough to double over the length of the iPod and then leave enough for the little top flap. I just kept measuring mine against the iPod as I was going.

Now, two rows before the end you need to start reducing. That is if you want a nice rounded edge for the top flap. I reduced one, knitted until the last two stitches on the needle and then reduced again. Do this for two rows, then cast off.

Now you have a short, weird looking skinny scarf that would only ever fit a doll or someone with a very small neck. Sew in the tails with the tapestry needle.

Take your iPod and place it in the middle of the knitting. Fold the cast on end up over the iPod and arrange it to the size you'd like it to be, taking care to make sure the flap (cast off end) will fold over the top correctly.

Use the safety pins to hold the shape in place (do not pin down the top flap! Why when I use the word flap do I keep feeling dirty?!).

Now you can do one of two things, you can sew on your embellishment if you think it would be easier to do this now or you can sew together the sides of your cover.

To sew the cover together, thread some leftover yarn onto the tapestry needle and carefully sew over the edges. Firmly secure the yarn on the inside of the cover and sew the tails into the knitting. Remove the safety pins.

For the embellishment I cut two pieces of felt in a curved shape, one larger than the other. I did a running stitch through the bottom edge and pulled it tight to make a rosette on each piece and then secured them. I placed the rosettes one on top of the other (large at the back) and placed the button on top before sewing the entire thing onto the case, taking care to not stitch the insides of the case together (this is why I said it might be easier to do this before stitching the sides together, I however, like to live dangerously.)

Done and done. Put your iPod inside.