Make it Monday // DIY Mini Travelers Notebook

A few weeks ago I posted a really affordable planner DIY.  I mean nearly everything was from the Dollar Tree!! Today I'm back again with a little how-to on making a mini traveler's notebook.  If you're not the tiny planner type, this can be easily translated into bigger moleskine style inserts - I just found these little lined notebooks at the Dollar Tree and knew I could do an amazing DIY with them

Supplies : polyfolders, mini notebooks, elastic, paper cutter, ruler, scissors, pencil, craft knife, Crop-a-dile Big Bite (or an awl or something pokey), measuring tape

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First off, nearly all of this can be found at the Dollar Tree - I found the folders & the notebooks in the office section, I found some elastic back in their little craft section, and if you don't have a Crop-a-dile (which you totally need to get if you read this post) you can totally just find something pokey to use to make you're holes.  If you don't have a paper trimmer a ruler and scissors or a craft knife to trim.

Start by cutting the poly folder in half and then carefully slicing away the inside pocket.  I place the knife on the inside of the fold and gently pull up slicing along the fold.  Be careful but ensure that you are slicing as straight as possible.

To measure your width it is easiest to do with a fabric measuring tape.   Wrap the measuring tape around the stack of notebooks you'll be using to measure the width of your cover.  The height of the cover should be just slightly bigger than the measured height.  It is always good to assume you need to go larger so that you can trim excess later.  Mine ended up being about 8.75 inches wide by 6 inches tall

Once the cover is trimmed, gently fold it in half and mark the half way point.  You don't want to create a permanent crease so just gently fold and run the pencil along the valley you've created to mark the middle point.  

Begin to measure out where the holes for the elastic by measuring halfway down the line to mark the mid point (this will be for the strap that holds your notebook together) then make a mark up 1/2 inch and then up one inche from either end.  Once you're done measuring, you should end up with 5 dots.

Using your pointy object or the Crop-a-dile, punch each of the 5 holes.  Create the loop to hold the notebook together by wrapping a piece of the elastic tightly around the stack of books plus the cover.  Trim the elastic, slip it through the middle hole and tie a knot on the inside of the cover. 

To thread the rest of the holes, follow the images below:

starting from the second hole from the right, thread the elastic from the inside of the cover to the outside

Next, thread the end of the elastic that is now on the outside of the cover back through the right most hole.  The end of the elastic should now be on the inside of the cover.

Thread the end of the elastic through the left most hole from the inside of the cover.

Finally thread the end of the elastic back through from the outside of the cover into the inside of the cover through the second hole from the left.

Once the elastic is threaded through the holes. Slip a small notebook (the one that will be the middle of your traveler's notebook) through the longest of the elastic loops on the inside of the cover.  Tie a knot tightly and securely to hold the book in place with tension.  Trim the elastic.

Using the leftover elastic, create a second loop that will hold your other two books.

Slip the elastic around the middle of each book so that the two books are joined like the image below.

Next, slip the set of joined books under the middle book so that there is a book on either side.  You now have your own traveler's notebook style journal or planner!!

the completed journal should hold the three notebooks perfectly!

I decided to show you how to use this little notebook as a planner by dividing the pages with washi tape, using return address labels for the dates, and other assorted stickers to decorate.  I even used some printables from my shop and some other stickers designed to fit the Erin Condren planner.  You don't have to have a name brand planner to have a fun planner!!

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial! Remember, this notebook can be made in any size - so if you've found some other notebooks you're keene on, making a cover for them is super simple!

If you'd like to know how to add charms to your Midori or Fauxdori, watch this video on my channel.  You can also see a Fauxdori set up video here.  Or learn to bind your own notebooks for Fauxdori here.

xoxo, Moe