Do you keep a journal?
I always have! I am the kind of girl who still carries around dog-eared day planners, notebooks and diaries each filled with messy handwriting and notes. Call me old fashioned, but I think that there is something so fulfilling and therapeutic about spilling thoughts onto a blank piece of paper, without a soul to see. Are you like me?
I don’t know why, but I always get drawn to the journal section of a bookstore! I like to flip through the smooth, pristine pages of the notebooks and imagine them one day filled with someone’s scribbles and dreams.
I came across a blog a few months ago that listed a genius, thrifty project: A “do-it-yourself Moleskine diary.” Amazing, right? I absolutely love Moleskine journals (they are so clean cut and professional), except I tend to get a little guilty pang in the new calendar year when I dish out the cash for one of them (They run at $30 a piece on average).
This D.I.Y. Moleskine project washes the guilt away because I know now that I can make as many “wannabes” I want. Plus, the project uses up old recycling! Wins all around!
D.I.Y. Moleskine Journal
Supplies 1 cereal box, flattened xacto knife or scissors glue stick Corner Rounder (optional) sewing machine (and skills!) Pretty paper (for decorating) 25 sheets of notebook paper (for inside)Directions: 1. Lay cardboard box flat and cut off side flaps, leaving you two large rectangle pieces. Use one of the rectangle pieces, cut down to desired size and fold in half. Make a sharp crease along the fold. This will be the cover of your journal. 2. Cut out decorative paper and use glue stick to glue paper onto inside covers of your cardboard. I had fun choosing pictures from old National Geographic magazines for this step! Old photos or magazine clippings will look lovely. Flatten bubbles by running edge of ruler over the paper. Now repeat with the outside cover! 3. Collect your journal paper in one stack and fold down the middle so it resembles a book. Place crease of papers on top of crease of cover and fasten in place. You can use pins or paper clips for this. Don’t worry if your paper is too big for the cover. You can cut it down to size later on. 4. Assemble your sewing machine with a strong needle threaded with a colour similar to your cover colour. Carefully and slowly sew down centre fold. 5. Once journal has been bound, take your sharp xacto knife or scissors and trim journal pages down to size. Use a corner cutter to make your journal corners look clean and professional. I found this step hard. Try cutting pages in smaller groups to avoid frustration! Voilà– your own homemade Moleskine! Note: I decorated my journal with recycled wrapping paper and my homemade anchor stamp. Remember him? I think he looks quite cute on the cover if I don’t say so myself! Many thanks to Fine and Feathered blog for the project inspiration!
I hope you enjoy your freshly bound and pressed homemade Moleskine journals. I love this craft because you can get really creative with the decorating, paper, size, the list goes on! You could make yourself a travel journal, day planner, scrapbook, poetry musings notebook, or just a plain old diary! Oh, and it must be obvious by now, but these make great gifts. (I’ve made a ton for friends already myself!) :)
If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know and I will gladly try to help. I had a couple nose scrunch moments with this one, especially in the paper cutting stage. My scissors were so dull! Sharpen those ‘knives’ (or get out that xacto knife) before going to work ;)
PS: I’m in this brand new music video fresh off the press! What do you think?
PPS: Don’t you love that seascape in the above photograph? It reminds me of a gorgeous seaside town off of eastern Canada.
I hope you have a great week ahead full of uplifting thoughts, inspirational conversations and maybe one or two quiet moments to yourself (to jot down your thoughts). :)
I used to keep a journal but haven’t kept up with it… In fact just recently I was looking over an old journal i kept in high school and felt like I was reading someone else’s thoughts… It’s interesting how we progress and evolve. I’ve wanted to start keeping a dream journal but find I only am remembering my dreams maybe 2-3 times a month so the journal would be pretty bare.