Happy Planner DIY Notebook

If you've followed my blog for a bit, you know that I love everything Happy Planner related! 

I think it's the thoughtfully designed, vibrant choices that HP offers and the myriad of ways you can construct planners and notebooks to suit your individual needs.

Today, I'm sharing a notebook hack, using the HP discs, some Martha Stewart products, AND, and 50% off placemat from Hobby Lobby.

Let's get started.

Currently, I have several "lists" muddying up my desk area.  There's the list of current things to do.  The list of home and blog projects I want to tackle. The list of activities I need to get done for some community projects.  Lists, lists, lists...  It's hard to know what to tackle when, especially when they all seem a jumble to me.

I realized I needed to corral them all in one place AND have them organized by importance and task.

I needed to make a disc bound notebook.

I started off with these materials.  Martha Stewart disc bound lined paper packets.  Martha Stewart dividers (both previously purchased through Staples using a deep discount coupon I had), a dashboard of mini sticky notes (gifted from another disc bound aficionado), and a plastic placemat from Hobby Lobby.

Up close view of the notebook paper

Up close view of the dividers

The placemat was in the current Spring section of Hobby Lobby and was marked at 50% off.  This brought to total to $.99 at checkout.

I picked this placemat because it was so colorful and happy looking.  With the thickness of the plastic, I knew that it would also be durable as well.

Here's a great view of the florals and birdies!

I used another notebook (my journal) to measure the length and width.  This gave me the size I wanted for the front and back cover of the new notebook.

6.5 inches across by 9 inches down.

I created this cover with designer paper and a lamination machine

I used a quilting ruler to draw a line down the length of the placemat.  

This allowed me to remove the curved edge.  I did this on both of the long sides.

Next, I used a T-Square to make my front and back panels according to the measurements.

I cut along those lines using a sharp pair of scissors.

I now had my front and back sections.

Looking at the two pieces, I had to decide which would be the front and which would be the back.  I found that I liked the bird here, BUT realized that it would be covered up with a label if I used it as the front panel.

Now came the critical part of the whole project.

FLIPPING THE BACK PANEL CORRECTLY SO THAT YOUR PATTERN IS NOT UPSIDE DOWN!

Because the flowers and birds obviously have to remain facing up, when I made the back panel, I needed to make sure that I flipped it OVER from the right to the left.

This allowed my birds and flowers to be "up" which puts my punched holes now on the LEFT side of this white side.

If you just put both pieces of the placemat together with the right sides facing up, you will have an upside down back.  I suggest that you place your front and backs together to make sure that you have them correct prior to punching the holes.

Next, I took one sheet of the notebook paper and using a pencil marked where the holes would be after they were punched.

The punch does not have a set mark on it for smaller notebooks.  When making one, you need to look into it from the side to make sure that you are not making extra punches on the ends or you will ruin your notebook.  You may even have to curl up the ends between the metal punches.

TAKE YOUR TIME here.

Once I was satisfied with the placement I punched out the holes.  It took some effort, but by getting over the punch and using my full force I was able to punch through the placemat cleanly.

Here it is.  The front punched and ready for assembly.

I was excited to find these Happy Planner pink metal discs at Hobby Lobby.  I love pink, and these are so shiny and pretty.  They really look great with the pink tones in the placemat.

I placed all the rings (8) in the front cover first, then added the notebook paper and dividers.  Finally, I added the dashboard of sticky notes in the very front.

Here's the cover on the assembled notebook.

The dashboard just inside

I added a Dollar Tree clear removable label to the front and it was done.

I loved how the birds on this part of the placemat are around the label.  It really was a great placement.

I will use the dividers to separate the different task lists, adding and crossing through them as I finish.

As always, I love the versitility of the Happy Planner and disc products on the market today.

Break some rules and make your own!

It's A Wrap!

Today, I am attending the wedding shower of a former student I taught in fifth grade.  I am so excited for her and her fiance and had a ball shopping for her shower.

I thought I would share how I wrapped her gifts on a budget, with style.

It's true when they say you never have a second chance to make a good first impression.  I feel that beautifully wrapped gifts fall into that line of thinking as well.

The gift wrapping should be exciting - this way the receiver is excited about what's inside.

Wrapping a gift can be super easy and super affordable.

Let's get started...

Of course, the first thing I did was gather the supplies that I was THINKING about using.

Let's talk about tulle...

Tulle is one of the cheapest materials to buy on a large spool, but it can give you loads of visual impact. You can bunch it to create large fluffy bows, or use it like wide ribbon.  You can also combine different colors.  

The large hot pink pompons were a part of the Easter decor that was 50% off  Wal*Mart right now.  I knew I could use them on packages, and at $2.98 for two I couldn't purchase the yarn and make them myself any cheaper.

Of course, the silver and white striped gift wrap and duo white Curl Swirls were found at the Dollar Tree.  The gift wrap is tagged as "wedding," however, I am going to use it for a few graduation gifts topped with a bow in school colors.  It can also double as birthday wrap for guys or gals and even anniversary wrap.

TIP:  When shopping for gift wrap from any retailer, try to purchase wrap that's NOT specific so that you can use it for different things.  Make your bow or topper that part that's relative to the context of the gift.

I had my long-bladed scissors (IKEA), transparent tape, and Stampin'UP Snail tape already.

You don't need to have a double sided tape if you prefer to use just regular tape instead.  It's a personal preference.

I had used her gift registry at Bed, Bath, & Beyond, to shop for her gift.  I purchased the toaster and the silicone oven mitt from there.  At Tuesday Morning I purchased the kitchen towels (you can never have enough), the paper guest towels for a guest bathroom, and a box of Thank You cards.  I grabbed the Thank You cards on the way to the register because they were in her theme colors and you can NEVER have enough Thank You cards on hand.

I wrapped the loose items in a saved large shirt box.

TIP:  NEVER use old tissue paper from the previous gift when wrapping a new gift.

Tissue paper is super cheap (Dollar Tree) and opening a gift, only to find it wrapped in wrinkled, USED tissue is just one of my pet peeves.  It's a quick fix, so take the time to do it.

I tucked the gift receipt in the bottom of the box in the event she receives another toaster, she can return it for something else.

Now comes the fun part!

There is an ART to wrapping a gift...

Lay out your gift box, upside down on the paper.

Make sure the wrapping paper will cross over when you bring the long sides together.  

Give yourself enough paper on the ends to make neat and even folds as well.

One of the great things about the Dollar Tree gift wrap is that it has a faint grid pattern on the back, making cutting it into straight lines super easy and simple.

Fold your wrap over on the box and tape.  I use the Snail tape runner so that it doesn's show.

At this point, I create crisp creases on the folded corners of the gift.

These creases will greatly improve the look of your gift wrapping!

On the ends, fold in from the sides, again creating super crisp creases.  Fold down the top which is really the bottom of your gift.

I use the regular tape to hold it down.  If you tuck in under the flaps, it will not show.

Finally, pull up the bottom flap and tape it over the edge.

Go over all the edges on the package to make sure the creases are looking great.

One of the things you need to remember when using a wrapping paper that has a stripe or a repeated pattern is that it lines up evenly with the box edge.

In the photo above, you can see that there is an even amount of silver stripe below the crease as well as above the crease.  If you don't consider that when wrapping, the package will not look as great.

I decided to go with the lace tulle and simply wrapped it around the two gifts. (I had used the Snail to attach the large gift on top of the flat gift to keep them together.)

I used all for of the Curl Swirls around the knot of the lace tulle and topped it with the pink pompon.

I wanted to be intentional about the gift topper because typically at wedding showers a hat or bouquet is made from the shower toppers which the bride will use at her rehearsal event.  My bride's colors are black, gray and pink so this will go right along with the theme.

I crafted this card just for her shower and will place it in an envelope before I leave.

Here are the gift and card all ready for giving.

I'm so excited to be sharing this special time with my lovely former student.  I'm touched that she wanted me to be a part of it.

Wrapping this gift for her was just a personal way for me to tell her how special she is.

Scrap Tassel Project

While perusing Pinterest, I came across several ideas for DIY tassels.

See, I like a great tassel.

They are perfect for adding a bit of decor to a furniture knob, as a key chain, on a handbag, on a beaded necklace...the ideas are endless.

I knew I had several cotton fabric scraps, I just needed to add some additional materials from Hobby Lobby.

Here's what I got.

24 gauge wire in brass and copper tones, wooden beads, and colorful marbled beads.

Here's what I already had.

A tub full of fabric scraps, all less than a yard each.  Of course, you can purchase your own fabric,  I would recommend 1/4 - 1/2 yard of any cotton based fabric you like.

I chose this pretty yellow print cotton.  I made a few snips with my scissors on one long end of the fabric.  This is where I started my pulls.

Just grab one of the snipped pieces and quickly pull it from the fabric.  This will result is a straight tear all the way to the bottom.

I pulled 8 pieces in total for this tassel.

You will notice A LOT of fibers.  This is okay.  

I simply pulled them all away from the strips and threw them away.  (If you want, you can also put them on a bush outside because birdies LOVE to use them for their nests.)

Here's all my strips, minus those pesky stringy fibers.

I then took each strip and folded it in half.  

This will give me a point to guide around my wooden bead.

Starting with the first folded strip, I placed the wooden bead inside, WITH THE BEAD HOLE UP UNDER THE FOLD. 

This is important...

I took another folded strip and placed it perpendicular to the first strip.

Another strip went diagonal to the first two strips.

I continued to fold the strips over the wooden bead, alternating their placement.

This allowed me to evenly distribute the strips around the bead, creating fullness for the tassely part.

I also kept a VERY FIRM grip on the strips around the bottom of the wooden bead.

The bead hole remained at the top.

Next, I used a piercing tool (you can use an awl as well) to poke and wiggle a hole in the top of the fabric strips, into the hole in the bead.

The hole now allowed me to guide the brass wire, straight from the spool, into the bead and out through the bottom.

I slightly separated the strips to find the threaded wire and pulled it through.

I didn't pull a specific amount, but if I had to guess it was about 14 inches.

Now came the fun part.  I began wrapping the brass wire around the fabric strips at the base of the wooden bead.

Once I had the wire wrapped about 3 times, I snipped the wire from the spool at the top.  I left about 5 inches here.

I then finished wrapping the lower wire around and around, lining it up as I descended.

I got a nice wrap, fully securing the fabric around the base of the wooden bead.

I use my wire tool to shove the snipped end up into the wrapped part.

I laid my tassel down and cut across to make the ends even.  

At the top, I chose a gray marbled bead and threaded it on the brass wire.  

I then wrapped the wire over and through the hole again, securing it to the top of the tassel.

This wire is easily pliable so it was easy to do.

I then looped the rest of the wire twice around the handle of my piercer tool, creating this loop.  I twisted the rest of the wire around these two loops to finish it off.

I cut about 8 inches of gray ribbon, folded, and looped it through the wire topper.

I knotted the top and trimmed the ribbon to finish it off.

And...

I was done.

I'm giving this one as a gift, but I will be making a few more to decorate some gifts that I am giving in the near future.

I'm also looking to make a colorful tassel using a variety of fabrics together.  

I think I'm going to decorate a straw bag to use for the summer.

I love it when Pinterest inspires me...