Vera Bradley Bible Cover Makeover

Update for Vera Bradley Good Book Cover

When my Bible cover that I had owned for years fell apart, I needed to replace it. I hoped to find a nice quilted Bible cover, similar to a Vera Bradley. But… with finances being tight, I didn’t want to pay the price of a Vera Bradley.

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E-bay to the rescue!

With careful searching and much patience, I landed a nice, used Vera Bradley Bible cover. The brand didn’t actually matter to me, but I had such a difficult time finding a floral, quilted Bible Cover with the handles placed in the way that this one has them. Many had one handle located on the spine, which I hoped to avoid, knowing my tendency to grab the Bible by the cover–if not zipped up, everything spills out! Anyway, I was excited to pay just $5 for my Bible cover!

I received the Bible cover, and was pleased with it. The only thing I wished could be better was to have some substance, as it felt a bit floppy. I like to hold a small reference book, a little notebook, and a ruler and some pens in my Bible case. With only the quilted fabric, these items would slide out. It’s not a big deal, but since I’d gotten used to a vinyl/Leather Bible cover, I liked how that one would hold its own shape and give some support to my Bible when I opened it. I hope this makes sense to someone besides me!

I’m a simple person.

I just wanted to find a solution that would make my Bible case exactly like I wanted. Basically, I wanted some stiffness.

This is nothing fancy, but it is a good, inexpensive fix, and I’m very pleased with my Bible cover now.

What I did:

Assemble the supplies–
- Bible Cover Any brand or design will be fine. I show the type I own, but one-handled , two-handled, or any type can be stiffened up in this way.
- Elastic–1″ or 3/4″. I used 1″, but the 3/4″ would be fine
- Laminating Sheets–I used 5 mil, and laminated three layers together. Alternatively, any stiff clear plastic would work. I improvised with what I had, and it worked.
- Hole punch–mine shown is 3-hole, but a 1-hole would work better
- Pins, needles, scissors, thread to match your Bible Cover interior
- Sharpie or similar marker to mark on plastic

Place your thickly laminated sheets on top of your Bible Cover interior. Tuck it into the flap, then use your Sharpie to trace on top of the plastic where you want to cut. I wanted mine very snug so it would not shift around or pop out.
Cut with scissors, and round the edges to match the curves of your Bible Cover.

Vera Bradley Bible Cover makeover — Push the laminated plastic into the flap, and cut to fit tightly inside the cording

Pop it into place, then punch holes in the corners of the laminated sheets.
Sew the corners into the Bible case, if desired, so there’s no chance of the plastic coming out. Sort of like sewing on a button–go through the hole to secure down.
Repeat for both sides

Measure your elastic to hold in the Bible (the plastic is slippery, so I wanted to make sure mine didn’t slide all over. The elastic goes inside the back Bible flap and is secured to the cover.

Vera Bradley bible cover makeover inside — Fit your elastic to hold your Bible in place so it won’t slip

Vera Bradley Bible Cover project — Pin the elastic securely in place, and make sure that it’s snug

Sew it into place
Make your pen loops
My Bible Cover came with a pen loop made of fabric, but I could only fit a skinny pen in there. I like fat pens in my Bible.
Fit the elastic where you want your pens to go
Pin it all down like you want it.

Vera Bradley Bible Cover makeover--pen holder — Pin elastic into the left side flap to hold your pens and highlighters

Vera Bradley Bible makeover pen loops — For the Pen Loops, Sew by hand where the pins are. This will give loops so your pens won’t flop around. Make as many as are practical, and that you want to sew!

Sew the elastic down securely

Vera Bradley Good Book Cover makeover — All Done!

Insert your favorite Bible, and enjoy your improved creation!

My favorite Bible pens:

Bic 4-Color Just like from my teen years!
Ink Joy 4-color pens. These actually are my new favorites! They write very smoothly, and the colors are more vibrant! Same colors as the Bic.
Gel Bible Highlighters My husband got my a pack and got himself a pack too! These are not wet and don’t bleed. They don’t dry out. My only complaint is that they are so thick, so it’s hard to underline with fine lines.
My favorite highlighters are actually pencils. They underline fine, won’t bleed, and aren’t super dark. I keep mine at my beside for my Bible study time.