DIY Monday is back! I am so excited to share with you this simple and super fun idea for covering journals….
step 1: choose some fabric that you love! i buy almost all my fabric from etsy.com (search under ‘supplies’). i love vintage sheets (like these), cute japanese patterns, and random designer patterns.
you’ll also need a couple moleskine journals (or any paper covered journal… and of course, you can always DIY your own from scratch if you like). i like large journals with unlined pages for sketching!
step 2: iron your fabric. you won’t want any wrinkles on your book cover. 🙂
step 3: trim your fabric so that it’s about 1 inch (on all sides) larger than your book. lay it facing down (so that the backside of the fabric is showing). spray your book cover with spray adhesive & wait about 5 seconds for it to dry just a tiny bit (so it’s not too wet) and turn your book over so that the cover adheres to the back side of the patterned fabric. next, immediately, close your journal and make sure there are no ‘bumps on your fabric… smooth the front and back of the cover with your hands.
(lay your journals under something heavy for about 10 minutes while the glue dries)
step 4: trim the fabric right up to the edge of your journals.
(pretty scraps… i thought they needed their own photo.)
step 5: add machine or hand stitching to add extra durability to the edges of your journal. this step is optional!
Yay! your journals are done! I have a few more cute ideas to add a little extra personality to your books….
first, use a disappearing pen to draw a cute mustache on the top of your journal.
next, add an outline with some fabric paint and fill in the inside. then use a paint brush to even out the application.
ta-da! it’s adorable and quirky! another fun idea is to adhere patches to your book cover. 🙂
i want to carry these everywhere! hope you’ve enjoyed DIY monday! XOXO. elsie
63 Comments
cant wait to try this. i have a huge collection of vintage fabric i’ve been dying to use..thanks els!
Oh this is so cute! I’m a sucker for little notebooks.
Hi Elsie,
I really like the mustache one and the badges on is really cute. You are so clever!
From Emily
Great diy post Elsie!!!
These are so pretty! I love the print on the one with the patches 🙂
Oooh, what a great project. If I’m snowed in tomorrow I may just have to make one–or a hundred! Oh, do I have any notebooks?
this is gift perfection!!
xo.
I LOVE it! can’t wait to make these!:)
so cute! my boyfriend is a writer and this may be a belated valentine’s day gift. thanks for the inspiration!
This is probably really weird for me to post this, but here’s a website for vintage engagment rings. They’re all gorgeous! Thought you might find something you like on it.
http://www.antiquejewelrymall.com/womwedandenr.html?page=0&sf=&sd=#sortblock
thanks everyone!!
kira, these are really pretty. i just browsed through them. we *just* finished ring shopping (yay) or else i would consider one of these vintage beauties. XO.
can’t wait to make these!! the moustache is a nice touch!
I LOVE these!!! Can’t wait to makes some of my own!
lovely!
Cute! I have a vintage sheet in the same print. Love!
ohhh these are cute!
These are gorgeous! It so happens that I have a couple of blank moleskines and fabric lying around the house, what a timely DIY post 🙂
Thank you!
these are so cute! i’m going to do this to all my sketchbooks.
super cute elsie, i might have to do this next time i have a blank notebook like those.
oh i do love journals. and flowery ones are even better!
GENIUS!! Can’t wait to give it a go. =)
great idea 🙂
I have a question about the disappearing pen.. what is it exactly? does the ink disappear? and where can I purchase one?
Claudia… the ink disappears (usually in about 24-48 hours!). You can pick these up at any craft store in the sewing section. XOXO.
these are so fun!
SO cute! I don’t use a journal much, but I could always do it to a photo album 🙂
Ouah ! What a sublime idea ! MERCI so much !!!
very very cute
this is lovely, thank you for showing how you dress up the journals.
What a sweet little DIY! Thanks!
great!
xxx Susi
Tim Holtz Challenge at Fun with Atc´s
Love it, great idea!
These are adorable and I just so happen to have a bunch of moleskines lying around that could use this DIY!
i love this idea. i am thinking of making them for my friends as a belated valentines gift.
But where do you get the great blank journal. I’ve been looking and looking and can’t find the completely plain ones anywhere.
That is a cute idea! I was wondering where did you get your bag? It is sooooo adorable, i’ve been looking for cute massenger bags and can’t find one i love.
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, the journal with the merit badges on them! perfect!
How fun, thanks!
thanks everyone. :)))
courtney, this bag is a ‘thrift treasure’. wish i could be more helpful! XO.
Thank you for a great DIY, I just bought a hole bunch of super pretty, but small, pieces of fabric that needed to be put to use 😀 Will definately make a few of these… Take care! Johanna
You should visit this website:
http://fabricworm.com/
It’s were I buy all my fabric, and I though of you 🙂
This is so great!! 🙂 Lovely vintage sheets/fabrics, too!! 🙂
I have been wanting to make fabric journals, so this is perfect. Thanks so much. Love your blog! 🙂
these are adorable…love em’. now if only i had a sewing machine, cause i know my sewing is not all that great. thanks for sharing this DIY.
one can never have too many notebooks! great diy…i like to do this with scrapbooking paper too.
What a great idea! Only problem is I’m hunting around for blank journals and haven’t been successful in finding any, yet. I have some fabric that is dying to be used and when I eventually find a journal, I’m onto it!
I cannot wait to make these for my bride’s maid gifts of L-O-V-E. Also, these are bad, bad, bad for my journal addiction. I come up with a reason to get a new one almost every week. I am addicted to the blank page.
where can i find notebooks like that to cover?
i think what i love most about this post is the vintage fabric. so perdy.
i so totally love the mustache its super cute n i love the whole idea ill try making one for myself… 🙂
cool idea* the mustache gives a special touch
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Love it! I featured it on my blog here: http://punkprojects.blogspot.com/2010/02/make-it-monday_22.html
who would have thought putting a moustache?! Oh So Very Nice!! 🙂
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wow fantastic project. absolutely love! thanks for sharing 🙂
I will use this tutorial for my next sewing class. Thank you
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wow. it is unbelievable. I love it so much . Thanks for your sharing. cool .great. I sure I’ll come back soon.
I love this idea! I am probably using it to cover a commercial organizer I’ve been given.
will cheap cardbord back notebooks work too? Love the project!
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These are brilliant, thank you for sharing them!
WOW! This is like the last year I’ll be able to make these, then I wont be on high school, and stuff. Thanks a lot!!