You know, it’s really hard to take a picture of your camera when you only have one camera.
For years I’ve been seeing all those cute decorative camera straps floating around the internet, and I had it in the back of my head that I needed to make one some time. I’ve seen some that took apart an existing strap and replaced it with fabric, but I couldn’t bring myself to go that far. I give my camera such a beating, I wanted the security of a big nylon strap and some industrial sewing.
So I decided to make a slipcover.
I tend to hoard scraps of home dec weight fabric, so I pulled out some of my favorites in complementary colors, and sewed enough scraps together to make two pieces:
A back piece measuring 5″ wide x 27″ long
and a front piece measuring 4 1/2″ wide x 27″ long.
Sew each piece into a long tube by matching the long sides, right side together, and sewing with a 1/4″ seam allowance.
Turn right side out, and iron the tubes flat with the seam running down the middle of one side.
Fold the raw edges inside the tube, iron down, and sew straight across the end.
Lay your tubes on top of each other, centering the seams against each other, and pin in place. Sew as close as you can steer to the edge of the top piece, down both sides. You may want to reinforce this part, because this is wear the most stress will occur.
Then you just unbuckle your strap from the camera, thread it through the space between the two tubes, and rebuckle the strap.
I think that camera straps are relatively universal in size, but it wouldn’t hurt to take a few measurements with what you’ll be using before relying on my measurements.
I made this pretty much just because it was pretty, but I discovered an added benefit. The home dec cotton I used is really comfortable, and the slip cover cushions my neck from those hard nylon edges. Now I may actually leave it hanging from my neck instead of slung over my shoulder like a purse, banging into everything I pass. I think my camera will be grateful.
