Simple Back to School Notebook and Planner Project

Back to school shopping was one of my favorite activities when I was growing up. I loved looking at all the different options and getting fresh new pencils and notebooks. Of course, I always wanted the fancy, expensive folders and notebooks. How could I take good notes in Biology without that amazing Lisa Frank unicorn notebook, MOM!?! My sweet mom would let us indulge in a few of those pricey things so we could express ourselves through our supplies. I’d always take them home, rip open all of the packaging and get down to business organizing them by subject and making them mine. I guess that makes me a little bit of a nerd, but I’m totally ok with that! 😊

Now that I’m a mom – and I’m the one paying for all the items - I’m not so excited about those expensive ones. Those $0.30 composition notebooks look a lot sweeter to me. Fortunately for my kiddo, I’ve also figured out a way to make those inexpensive items personal and awesome with just a few crafty tricks! It’s a great project to get us back in the swing of school and allows personal expression without breaking the bank. Win-Win!

Below is a simple tutorial for snazzing up your notebooks and planners for just pennies! But before we get to that, just look at them! Aren’t they darling?!? I’m in love.

First, Let's take a look at what you'll need to make the notebook - you might just have it all in your craft stash!

Items Needed:

Notebook - I used a $0.30 composition notebook from Walmart, but any notebook that has a paper or cardboard cover would work just fine

• Mod Podge or another thin adhesive - I like using Mod Podge because it spreads thinly, dries quickly, and doesn't make a mess. You can use whatever adhesive you have in hand, though. I think this jar of Mod Podge is over 5 years old. I'm pretty sure I bought it before I had my son...and it still works! You don't need very much for this project, so just a bit will do

• Pattern paper - Here's the fun part! You'll need enough pattern paper to cover both sides of the notebook. I used two 12 x 12 sheets, but you can probably get away with two 8 x 11 sheets for most notebooks. You can choose whatever design makes this unique to you! I chose two black and white patterns because I'm someone who listens better if I can doodle, so it's built in doodle space!

Optional items:

• Mod Podge Spray Sealer - I didn't use this item, because I wanted to be able to doodle on my notebook, but if you want to seal in your creation, Mod Podge Sealant is a good option.

• Die Cuts - I had some left over die cuts from our 5th Grade scrapbook page kit and our Ready for Middle School scrapbook page kit, so I used them to create an additional decorative piece on the front!

• Adhesive for embellishments - If you plan on doing additional decorating, you'll need adhesive to add die cuts, buttons, gems, or other items.

Alright! We've got our stuff. It's SO simple to make it your own!

1. Take your notebook and starting in the top corner closest to the spine, spread a thin layer of adhesive over the front cover. Be careful not to make it too thick, or the paper may get bubbles or get too wet to stick nicely. The photo above is about how thin of a layer I placed over the whole cover.

2.   Line your desired paper up against the spine of the notebook and flatten and press the paper with the palm of your hand - pressing firmly and rubbing away from the spine toward the outer edges. Press until paper holds firmly. Depending on your adhesive, this should only take a few seconds.

3. Flip the notebook over and, using a scissors, trim the excess paper off the notebook, carefully rounding the curves.

4. Repeat these three steps with the back side of the notebook if desired.

Once you have your basic paper down, it's time to decorate! Here's how I personalized mine:

First, I decided to have a little extra fun with the pattern paper. On the back side of the black and white arches paper were these fantastic lines! I cut a few different sized rectangles and placed them on the front for a little added dimension.

Finally, I assembled my die cuts and arranged them on top. When I found the arrangement I liked, I adhered them down. Don't you just love those little paper clips? I need more of those in my life. :) If you wanted to seal the notebook, you would do that now. I did not seal mine, since it would be easier to doodle on without sealant.

And here's the final product! A cute, personalized notebook for less than $1 using items from my stash! And it only took about 20 minutes to complete! This is a major Back to School WIN!

Now, for the Student Planner:

You can use the same items you used for the notebook above! Only cardstock, adhesive, and a scissors needed! Here's how I made mine.

First, I found a very inexpensive student planner at the dollar store. This one came with a plastic overlay, which actually made the project even easier!

I removed the plastic overlay and saw that the cover was thin cardboard. Perfect! Set aside the inside of the planner for a few moments.

I have this great paper pad that has outdoor scenes as patterns. It's so cute, but I constantly struggle with how to use the scenes. Of course, it was an impulse buy - it was SO PRETTY! I had to have it! And now I'm thrilled to have found a perfect project to use it! I chose this darling park scene as my paper.

Once I had chosen my pattern, I took the plastic overlay and lined it up over the paper to find the area I wanted to show on my planner. I knew I wanted the bench on the front cover, so I moved it around to find the best centering for that item while keeping the back interesting, too.

Once I was happy with the placement, I loosely traced the overlay. I didn't want any pen or pencil marks to show on the planner, so I traced widely, since I would be trimming any extra paper with my scissors. I then cut following the lines.

Taking the inside of the planner, I placed a thin layer of adhesive across the front cover of the planner and lined my page up to my liking. Once the front was adhered, I repeated this step with the spine and back cover of the planner and smoothed out the paper.

I then trimmed any extra paper hanging off the edges. Isn't it just darling? I'm SO happy with how it turned out! AND I got to use some paper I'd been drooling over, but unable to use for so long! Double WIN!

Here's the whole scene. 

I adore projects that are inexpensive, tackle some of my stash, are simple, AND make me feel like a creative genius. :) These projects hit all of those and I'm so thrilled with the result! What do you think? Do you plan on trying them? Sprucing up your kid's school books or even just turning your family planner into something a little more fun? Let us know what you think in the comments! We LOVE to hear from you!