I wanted to design little notebooks that were simple and unpretentious, while still being fresh and modern. Black pages seemed like a good way to go!
How to:
made with
1
Begin by cutting sheets of 8.5 x 11 black card stock in half. Each full page of card stock will yield a total of 4 mini notebook pages, so cut two or three sheets.
2
Stack the cut card stock and fold in half. Try to keep all of the edges evenly aligned. You can use the handle end of a pair of scissors to help you crease the fold.
3
There are many ways to bind a handmade book, but for these little notebooks I’m opting for one of the simplest, called a 3-hole pamphlet stitch. You need a heavy-duty needle for this, try to find one that says “doll making needle” on the package. Pierce the middle of the center fold with a large needle. Twist the needle in a circular motion to widen the hole a bit.
4
Add a hole on the left and another on the right, about 1 inch from the edge of the paper.
5
Cut a piece of twine or a full strand of embroidery floss to about 3x the length of your notebook. Thread the needle with the twine and poke through the center hole. If you start from the inside, your knot will be on the interior of your notebook. If you start from the outside, you can tie a bow on the outside of your book.
6
Pull through the center hole, leaving a tail about 3 inches long, or 4 inches if you’re tying a bow.
7
Poke the needle through another one of the other holes— it doesn’t matter which. Pull the thread taut.
8
Then poke the needle back through the center hole. Be careful not to pierce the thread already there, as that will cause your stitches to tangle. Pull the thread taut.
9
Poke the needle through the remaining hole.
10
Join the two ends of the thread with a square knot in the center of the notebook, or with a bow on the outer spine. Trim off the excess thread.
11
Finally, protect the notebook with a piece of cloth, then lay something very heavy on top of it, like a brick. Or, use a book press. You can learn how to make a $10 book press in 10 minutes here. Leave for a couple of hours to flatten the book.
12
Fill these notebooks with favorite quotes, sketches, or poetry. Or leave them blank and give them as gifts. Don’t forget to include a Gelly Roll Moonlight pen so they can take notes!
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Finished?
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uper cute journals….I think I’ll make one for my daughter….the only thing is I’ll have to give her my jelly roll pens….hehe!!! TFS…
ool! I will try this! Always running out of notebooks.
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Hi! Thanks for your interest. You may use one photo along with a description of the project. Please don’t copy and paste entire tutorials or embed my videos. Thanks for asking!
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