Tutorial Tuesday

You CAN Sew: Key Fobs!

You CAN Sew a custom key fob!

A key fob is essentially connotative of the fabric webbing style key chain. When you hear the term “key fob,” your mind has been conditioned to conjure up a short, thick, doubled-over strap connected to a key ring. These trendy key chains can be incredibly fun, useful, and they are very simple to create. There are two basic methods: sew and no-sew.

If you’d prefer to sew your key fob, you’ll need:

1.  9 inches of the following items:

• 1¼” Wide Webbing (the stuff you make a belt out of)
• ⅞” Wide Grosgrain Ribbon

2.  A lighter or Seam Sealant

3.  Sharp Scissors

4.  Satin Pins

5.  Sewing Machine and complementary top thread (or embroidery hand sewing needle and doubled thread for a running stitch)

6.  Mini Glue Dots

7.  1-1¼” Key Fob Clamp

8.  1-1″(or larger)Split Ring Key Ring

9.  Rubber Mallet (for soft, non-marring pressure)

Here we go: You CAN Sew! (Time = about 10 minutes)

Cut a 9″ piece of webbing and seal the ends. You can seal them with liquid seam sealant (just wait for them to dry before moving on), or you can melt them with a quick pass of the lighter along the raw edges.

Repeat this process with the accent ribbon.

Layer and center the two pieces. Pin them together.

Using a straight stitch with about 5-8 spi (stitches per inch), sew along the two side edges of the top ribbon. Remember to lock your seams. (Alternately, you can hand sew using a simple running stitch. Try to keep your stitches consistent.)

Fold the piece in half. 

Where the two ends meet, place 2 mini glue dots between the pieces to help hold them together for the next step. Then, place 2 more mini glue dots at the same end on one of the sides. This will help hold the piece in the fob hardware while you are pinching it closed.

Place the fob hardware over the raw end of the webbing piece, and press the glue dots to the metal.

Using a solid surface, press the mallet down on the top of the fob clasp in order to pinch it closed. You may or may not find that you need a light pound or two of the mallet to tighten the hold.

Attach the split ring and you are done!

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