DIY Camera Strap

For our trip to Italy I succeeded in borrowing my Dad's DSLR camera. I can tell you it wasn't easy - he guards it like a treasure although he rarely uses it - but I had the advantage of being his only daughter. It's hard to deny me something... at least I hope so. I love this camera so much that I'm secretly forging out plans how to keep it forever.

So now I had a camera with a not so nice camera strap and a not so nice camera bag. I can't do much about the bag in this short time, but there had to be a new strap! I made a quick search through my supplies, and here's what I came up with!

[1] Supplies: Some sturdy fabric that you like. Another piece of sturdy fabric or old fabric suspenders you never used. 2 small key rings (try them out before you sew them in!). Scissors. Sewing machine. Iron. Pen. Pins.

[2] From the first fabric cut a piece of ca. 6cm x 100cm (2.2'' x 40''). Fold right sides together and sew it close.
[3] Iron flat like shown in the picture.Turn the whole piece right sides out and iron once again.
[4]-[5] At the ends of the strap push the edges inside like you can see in the picture. Iron flat and sew the opening close.

[6] Sew along both edges of the strap to give it some definition and stability. I also think it looks better.
[7] Cut two 9cm (3.5'')pieces from the fabric suspenders or fold and sew close two 8cm x 9cm (3.1'' x 3.5'') pieces from a second fabric.
[8] Fold and mark the middle with a pen.

[9] At the mark, fold both edges into the middle and sew a short line over it.
[10] Put the key rings on!
[11] Fold the ends of the suspender pieces over and sew a short line over it to fixate it. Doesn't have to be perfect! Then fold the piece and place the long strap in between. Fixate with a pin or two.
[12] Sew the two fabric pieces together by sewing a box first and then sew the diagonals.

Voila! That's it! I'm very pleased with the result. I now have a strap that looks cute and will go well to my outfits. Perfect! And here's the before and after picture. The strap in the before picture actually looks much longer, but that's not true. Must be the perspective or something...

Say cheese!