Travel Jewelry Roll

On my summer vacation I brought more jewelry than I usually do for a ten day trip.  I needed a way to store the necklaces.  Wanting to save my money for shore excursions and souvenirs, I started rooting around in my jewelry box for a solution. At the very bottom of the box I found a set of gold plated chain necklaces presented in a thin flannel jewelry roll I received at least a decade ago.  The  chains were no longer shiny or wearable, so I took them out and repurposed the jewelry roll. It kept things from getting tangled up, but it was really too short; the longer necklaces hung out of the bottom.

When I returned home I knew I needed a different solution before my next big vacation.  The project bounced around in my head for a while, then inspiration hit. I decided it would be easy to make a new one.  Here's the result:

Closed

Opened up

The big problem with the original roll was that it was too short, so I decided that the new one should have a pocket at the bottom to hold longer necklaces.  I still wasn't looking to spend a lot of money, so I used a piece of floral upholstery material from my fabric stash, which I thought also lent a vintage touch.

The steps:

• Cut two large rectangles and one small one for the pocket. 

• Lay pieces of ribbon (for the holding straps) across one of the large rectangles.  Pin them at the edges.

• Lay other pieces of ribbon (for the ties) across the same rectangle.  Pin them on one side, and roll the loose ends up in a ball and pin to the center so I don't inadvertently sew over them.

• Hem the top of the pocket piece.

• Put the large rectangles right sides together.  Sandwich the pocket between them. Pin everything securely.

• Sew everything together, leaving a gap for turning. Trim the corners. Turn right side out and hand-sew the gap closed.

• Pin the strips of holding ribbon into place across the width of the roll.  Sew several rows from top to bottom, making channels to hold each necklace.

• Put jewelry in and admire the result!