How to Cover Elastic Cord
Covering elastic cord is a simple matter of creating a fabric tube also called a fabric casing to cover the cord. Elastic cord is used for many things: in clothing, holding back curtains, even in jewelry. Cording is available in different thicknesses, colors and strengths. Elastic cord can be used inside the home or for exterior purposes such as securing garden hoses. With moderate sewing machine skills, you can quickly cover a length of elastic cord no matter what your project or purpose for covering the elastic cord might be. Remember to leave an inch of fabric at each end of your elastic cord to secure the covered elastic cord in the manner dictated by your chosen project.
Things You'll Need
- Elastic cord
- Fabric measuring length of cord plus 2 inches by width of cord plus 1 inch
- Sewing machine
- Thread
- Straight pins
- Tweezers
- Unsharpened pencil
- 2 safety pins
- Glue gun & glue sticks
Instructions
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Sewing a Fabric Cover for Elastic Cord
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1
Place your fabric strip on a flat surface, with the right side of the fabric facing you. Fold the fabric in half vertically so the right sides of the fabric are touching. You'll be looking at the folded, wrong side of the fabric. Pin.
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2
Sew the folded strip using a straight stitch and a ¼-inch to ½-inch seam allowance on the open, long side of the strip. Leave the two ends open or finish according to your project. Remove pins. This is the fabric tube--commonly called casing--to cover the cord.
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3
Turn the cord right-side out. Grasp the edge of one open end of the tube with the tweezers and insert the tweezers inside of the tube while firmly grasping the fabric. Work the tube over the tweezers until the tweezers and fabric end emerge from the other open end.
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4
Grasp the fabric that was in the tweezers and pull it until the tube turns right-side out. Use the unsharpened pencil to help poke the fabric through the opening.
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5
Insert the elastic cord into one open end of the tube. Attach a safety pin to one end of the cord. Attach another safety pin to the other end of the cord and to the fabric edge of one of the openings. Work the safety pin with the cord through the opening until the pin and cord emerge from the opposite open end. Secure at least one end of the elastic cord to the fabric tube to keep the cord inside. The covered elastic cord is ready to be used in your project.
Gluing a Fabric Cover for Elastic Cord
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6
Place your fabric strip on a flat surface with the wrong side of the fabric facing you. Fold the fabric in half vertically so the wrong sides of the fabric are touching and you are looking at the right side of the fabric.
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7
Fold the two outside fabric edges of the folded strip inside 1/4 inch so no raw fabric edges are visible. Pin the outside edges.
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8
Use the glue gun to place a line of glue along the inside folded edge of the strip, removing the pins as you work. Press the fabric edges together as you move along the tube until you've made a tube by gluing the long side of the strip.
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9
Insert the elastic cord into one open end of the tube. Refer to Section 1 Step 5 for further tips to thread the cord through the fabric tube.
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