I don't know about you but I always enjoy decorating my notebook. I usually buy a plain spiral bound notebook and decorate it myself to give it a unique look.
Method #1: Cut out photos and words from magazines or newspapers and create a collage on the front cover.
Here is one that is handmade, eco-friendly, made out of candy wrappers, and sold online:
You could easily make this yourself with some candy wrappers and a bit of glue [or some tape].
Method #2: Wrapping paper.
You could cover the front of your notebook with wrapping paper and maybe add some ribbon. You could also cut the wrapping paper into a shape and stick it on your notebook or make a collage of wrapping paper shapes. Be creative. You could also use
scrap booking paper which is probably not as tacky as wrapping paper. However, it definitely depends on the paper you have chosen. I googled spiral bound notebook covered with wrapping paper and this is what came up:
Method #3: Stickers! Buy a whole bunch of stickers and cover your notebook with them. Bumper stickers are also acceptable. This is one I thought was cool, found via google images:
Method #4: Sharpie. This is what I usually do to my notebooks. Sometimes I just doodle on them during class when I'm bored. This year I decided to look up tattoo designs and draw something similar on my notebook. One is a phoenix and the other is a koi. You will have to go back over the sharpie at random intervals because it does scratch off if you have a plastic cover [like the Mead 5 star notebooks]. Also if you mess up it is quite easy to fix. Just put some rubbing alcohol on a q-tip or a cotton ball and rub it over the area you want to change. Right now I have one more notebook to draw something on. Any suggestions?
Here are
my notebooks:[Sorry about the glare. We have really bad lighting in the house so I had to use the flash]
Just have fun and enjoy the creative freedom.
What about you? Do you decorate your notebooks or book covers?
[Sorry about the glare. We have really bad lighting in the house so I had to use the flash]
Comments (42)
Cool, errrr you could buy a really cool looking notebook for dirt cheap. Ha ha. I love it when people decorate theirs with mnagainze clippings or photos. Its cute.
those are really cool.
wow, your tattoo design notebooks are hot. I think I'm gonna try and do something like that this year. thanks for the inspiration!
Those are by far the coolest note books ever.
Those are cool.
I always suck at decorating everything, so I usually just let my friends draw on them for me and put things in them, but this year I put feathers in my binder and wrote a poem to fill the empty space. It looks pretty good, kind of, haha.
I do the same too, with magazine cut outs mostly! But to my agendas, I was just about to post pictures of my agendas :) I love your designs though, awesome job.
I used to collage things all the time. Maybe I should start doing that again. XD
i love to decorate my notebooks! make it look cute hehe
I already do this all the time. I'm glad it's considered a fashion 'do' though. Perhaps more girls will get creative (:
I like to decorate mine with the weirdest drawings of aliens and stuff like that
Your drawings look great! I wish I could draw like that!
I used to put pictures of my friends all over the covers, or just write a lot of lyrics and quotes in tiny handwriting haha. but I love the phoenix drawing! so cool! :)
Yours look really creative!
I like the idea of using wrapping and scrapbooking paper but it probably wouldn't look so neat if I tried to do it myself. :P
wow, they look good
I will be making a collage out of my planner later because I don't like the cover. That's what I get for waiting too long to buy one. Thanks for the ideas! Your notebooks look awesome!
I love writing on notebooks and binders (or anything) with Sharpies. :)
Those are pretty darn awesome! I've always wanted to do that to my notebook, but never end up doing it. I want the outsides to be perfect, so I plan and plan...and never follow through LOL. One year, for one of my binders, I wrote my favourite bands or song names/lyrics on the front and back. That was pretty sweet. This year, I think i'll take the time out and definately jazz up a notebook of mine :) I like the candy wrapper idea haha.
Your notebooks are awesome. I'd do the same, but I can't draw very well. I'd definitely pay you for decorating mine for a reasonable price, though :)Â
The collage looks awesome
I remember in Spanish class, I was bored a lot so I just started doodling on my notebook cover and over the year, it actually was a pretty cute notebook. :]
Awesome notebooks I really like those.
i love the first one and the last two.
use mod podge and old magazines
if you have a cardboard cover with color, you can use an eraser to make really faded letters/ designs, but it takes a long time going over with the eraser before the color starts wearing away
I actually have a friend who does notebook covers, mainly of like band logos. I gave her a list of a few of my favorite bands and she's supposed to be making me some.
i;m gonna try all these with my notebooks this year :}
i like to stick with plain black
Oh my god you did those. O____O I am severely impressed. Thanks for the tip about removing Sharpie, too! I used to just work around it and incorporate mistakes into my design.
You've got air and sea covered, so why not go for land? Mice are terribly significant in Asian cultures. :)