MAKE IT / 10

I am a notebook addict. With all the technology that is available to me I still prefer to write all my ideas down in one place. I go through them quickly and always need to have a stash of fresh ones on hand. While traditional bookbinding is complicated art form, making this little notebook is nothing but easy. You need little more than a few sheets of paper and a pair of scissors.

– 10 sheets of 8 1/2 x 11 paper– a sheet of decorative paper (12 x 12 or larger)– ruler– exacto knife– pencil– double sided tape

– cut paper in half to make 20 sheets of 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 paper (I have my local copy shop do it so that they are perfect)– fold all of the pieces in half– make a mark on the fold 1 inch from the top and bottom



– on half of the sheets cut in between the marks (these are called slots), on the other half cut from the edge to the mark (these are called tabs)

– take two sheets of tabbed paper and gently roll one side from top to bottom and insert through two sheets of slotted paper. (see our handy gif below for reference)



– continue to make pairs and place in a stack with all of the tabbed sides up (these pairs are referred to as signatures). you should have a stack of 5 when you’re done.

– using the same method now connect each signature to each other by feeding the top 2 tabbed pieces into the bottom 2 slotted pieces of the signature on top of it. So the top tabbed sheets of your second signature will feed into the last slotted sheets of you first signature and so on. When you’re done all of your pages should be connected to each other.



for the cover:

– for the cover, cut 2 pieces of decorative paper that measures 5 1/2 x 12 inches.

– draw a line 3 1/2 from the edge and cut one sheet as a slot and one sheet as a tab.

– attach the covers sheets just as you attached each signature to each other.

– lastly wrap the remaining cover paper around the two pieces of paper on top and bottom and secure with a piece of double sided tape.

– get out your pens and pencils



the great thing about this notebook is that you can easily add more pages if you like. I usually keep mine anywhere from 20-30 pages, but it’s as simple as just adding more signatures to your stack.

(photos & creations by natalie shriver – see more DIY projects here!)