Homemade Journals

 

You guys, I made all these journals in, like, an hour! I've made journals before, but this is the simplest way I've found to create a little collection in no time at all. These little guys make great gifts, and I love that it's easy to build up a stash. 

Here's how:

 

Supplies:
-regular 8.5 "x 11" printer paper (you need about 7 sheets per journal)
-Crop-A-Dile punch tool
-string or twine
-paper trimmer
-embellishments for the cover (I used letter stamps and StazOn ink)-paper, leather, faux leather, or oil cloth for your cover material

 
Step One: Trim your 8.5" x 11" paper in half. I usually trim about five pieces at a time with my paper trimmer. You are trimming the long side in half so your new pieces are 8.5" x 5.5" inches.  

 

Step Two: It's up to you how many pages you put in your book. I usually do about seven pieces, which makes 14 halves, which makes 28 pages. Just fold them in half so you can see how big your pages will be. 

 

Step Three: Use the pages to measure how big you want your cover to be. I like to leave about an extra inch so there's half an inch around every edge between the pages and the cover. 

 

Step Four: Trim the cover to size.  

 

Step Five: You can see here how that extra inch (or so) makes the pages fit more comfortably within the cover. 

 

Step Six: Use your Crop-A-Dile to punch two holes through the pages and the spine. The reason I use a Crop-A-Dile and not just a regular hole punch is that it can punch through lots of layers or thicker textiles like leather.

 

Step Seven: Next, use twine to attach the pages and the cover together. Hide the knot by tying it inside the book rather than on the spine. 

 

Step Eight: It's that simple! Once you've made one, you can make 10 really quick. It's super fun! 

 

Variations: To spice up your covers, try stamping, try using watercolor paper and paints, try leather or oil cloth, and add personal touches like names, dates, and occasions.