Ringed notebook
We had a Secret Santa exchange this year, with the only rule being that you had to make your gift (i.e. knit, write, draw, craft, etc). For my part, I decided on a custom-made notebook.
First step was to select the covers. I used these city walk cards, which are nice and thick on their own, but I decided to stick two cards back-to-back for both covers to make sure they’re extra sturdy.
For page materials, I cut down to size some decorative cardstock I had on hand. Pretty paper isn’t going to make a very useful notebook, however, so I made sure to include some plain white paper that anybody would feel comfortable scribbling on.
Then on to the hole-punching. This can be a very therapeutic process, especially if you’re watching Masterchef: The Professionals at the same time.
Included among the pages is this petite envelope of the same size. Handy for pocketing receipts or other scraps on hand. It too got punched, but I snipped off a wee section of the flap so that it can close easily without the rings getting in the way.
For most notebooks/sketchbooks, one-inch rings will prove more than sufficient. If, however, your book tends to grow in pages over time the way mine usually do, you can easily switch out to a larger ring size to make for easier page-turning.
On hindsight I probably should have included more white paper, just because I’m practical that way. The great thing about this kind of ringed notebook, however, is that one can easily remove, refill, and move around pages to one’s liking. One can add more envelopes, one can stick folded pages onto existing pages, etc. So you can adjust it to your preference all you want and truly make it your own.
The compact finished product:
