Tablet, etc. Organizer

Today I completed my tablet holder using the Little Scraps pattern from This & That, Original Quilt Pattern by Sherri K. Falls.

The inside:

The good:

This is a cute idea.  The right side was originally designed for a tablet of paper, but I put my tablet inside and added the fastener at the top so it wouldn't drop out.

The bad:

There's a lot of wasted opportunity.  The pocket where I tucked the small notebook could have been modified to hold a phone, and the brown area above the pink zippered pocket is totally wasted.  I think I'll add a photo area there and maybe a key fob.  Since I used the blue pocket for holding my tablet instead of an 8 1/2" x 11 3/4" paper note pad, I should have added multiple pen holders (maybe with a piece of elastic?) across the outside of the pocket.

The ugly:

The instructions.  Ugh.  They were good at the beginning but the final assembly and the zipper pocket directions lost me.  Maybe it was just me?  If I do this again, I would not close the whole zipper pocket.  First, I would cut it slightly wider and then line it up after adding the zipper with zipper facing up and the outside edges lined up with the edges of the brown fabric.  After lining up the tablet side, seam the front to back with the right sides together.  Turn it and everything lays nice and flat around the edge.

I cut out all the pieces before starting.  There are some odd sizes so next time I'll probably cut as I go.  (I cut the wrong size on more than one piece! plus the brown interior lining fabric didn't cover the whole length.)

I'm not sure why I ended up with an inch or so in the middle with no fabric covering the interfacing.  The pattern's picture doesn't show that so I don't know if I cut something wrong or put it together incorrectly.  That was probably the problem because I definitely did NOT want to seam 8 layers of fabric at one go.  As it was, I broke 3 jeans needles!    

What the pattern got right:

I also highly recommend getting an ultra firm interfacing like the pattern called for.  It makes a difference.

Additions:

I added the tab at the top of the large blue pocket on the left to make sure my tablet won't drop out.  (It's actually a green pocket, but my computer shows it as blue.)  

At last:

I love how bright and happy this booklet is and how it allows me to keep everything together when I go out.  It uses scraps from several quilting projects too!

Helpful notions:

I used clips to hold the pieces together after getting frustrated with pins.  Best move ever!