Cork fabric book cover

Olá! Some weeks ago I made available a free pattern in my weekly post . It was a Japoneira, a traditional Portuguese pattern commonly used in Viana do Castelo typical embroidery.

At the time I embroidered that pattern on cork skin (cork fabric or cork leather), a Portuguese great eco-friendly material. I promised I would show the final work using that piece of embroidery and that's what I'll do today.

Last year when I was on a Christmas craft show I was asked many and many times if I was selling bookcovers. And I wasn't!! I said to myself that the next time I couldn't have no as an answer. A few months later I created embroidered book cover kits made of burel, another Portuguese traditional material, and I can say they were the winter season success!

When I finished the Japoneira pattern I thought that it would be great to apply it in a bookcover made of cork fabric. I remember seeing many book covers made of leather in "old times." A friend told me that many years ago it was not common to see someone reading a book that was not protected by a bookcover and usually they were made of leather. I confess that a cork bookcover reminded me of those old bookcovers and I loved the idea.

One of these days I'll make a tutorial on how I make my embroidered bookcovers. It's very easy but I only use fabrics that don't unravel.. That's my secret...

Embroidered bookcover made of cork fabric

I always add a bookmark to my bookcovers and I can assure you that it is very useful. 

Although they are not "universal", the measures I usually use make the bookcover adaptable to almost all books.

If you want you can take a look inside...

Take a look inside the cork fabric bookcover...

I'm happy with the final result. But I confess myself desperately in love with cork... So I'm suspicious...

This one I offered to a friend. But I've already made two more. And one of those was for me... My holidays would not have been the same without it.

If you want to try this pattern it is still available and free... You may download it here.

And to end with our Portuguese lesson let me tell you how we say "book", it's "livro", one of my favorite words...