Obviously, my addiction with journaling on my layouts, rolls over to my everyday life. It can’t be helped. I love writing and I love preserving my memories. I believe most scrapbookers do.
I recently went out to purchase a couple of composition notebooks so I could journal a couple of new topics. Composition notebooks seem to be my favorite journals of choice. I like that I can decorate them, there’s plenty of room and they are the perfect size.
Decorating the journal is probably the most fun part. I started mine last night, and just love how they are turning out. I didn’t even go overboard and go shopping for supplies. I just used what I had so far. So it wouldn’t be fair not to mention that I will be jetting over to the scrapbook store today to get some additional embellishments, however I used papers I had, and on one I used a bunch of embellishments I had. Neither is completed.
If you would like to make the same type of journal, you can follow these easy steps and you will have a beautiful, decorated journal to hold all of your inner most thoughts.
Step 1 – Choose the Decorations
You need to figure out which papers you want to use, find some coordinating embellishments, gather your glue, scissors and any other tools you might need. I chose Aleene’s Tacky Glue because it holds so much better. I also purchased a container of Modge Podge Decoupage glue, but you can use whatever you want. I just wanted to seal the outside of the book and make it a bit sturdier.
Step 2 – Get Started
Take your paper, which should be about 12×12, however 8.5×11 works too. Lay your book out flat and glue the paper in place. Don’t worry about what it looks like on the inner cover, just cover the whole outside of the book. You can overlap papers, or just trim it to fit. Glue in place. If you would like to modge podge, you can do that at this point, though I waited.
Now that you have your cover in place, open the front cover and cut a piece of cardstock to fit. Glue it in place. This is where the decoupage glue would come in most handy. If you modge podge, you avoid the paper from sticking up at any point. It seals it well. Now repeat with the back cover.
Step 3 – Be Creative
At this point, you could technically be finished. However, decorating the cover with embellishments is the most creative and exciting part. You can use ribbons, fibers, stickers, letter, metals, buttons, beads, the possibilities are endless. Be sure and allow all embellishments to try thoroughly and use the strongest glue you can to avoid losing pieces to your cover over time.
Watch tomorrow for photos and tips for your journals. And then learn how to create awesome and creative journal entries.
Related Articles:
A Scrapbook Journal Making Party – a Personal Experience