Homegrown Notebooks

As promised in my previous posts, here is a simple tutorial for making lined (or not) notebooks from (mostly) recycled materials. My biggest problem with notebooks has always been that I either run out of space or only use half of the pages, so I end up with notebooks full of notes from 3 different classes, or the notes for one class at the backs of 3 different old notebooks– but these solve the problem. I made a few of these for myself at the beginning of the semester, and I love them because I can take out, add, and rearrange the order of the pages. And when the whole thing is filled up, I can take out all of the paper and put fresh pages in for a whole new notebook.

Here's what you need:

1. USED Standard 8.5 x 11 paper that's blank on one side– about 30 to 60 sheets per notebook (see my last post for info on where to get this paper to reuse)
2. Some USED cardboard or heavy paperboard (use corrugated cardboard from cardboard boxes for a heavier cover, or cereal boxes for a lighter cover.)
3. Duct tape
4. 1-inch metal binder rings– 3 per notebook (these are cheap if you buy them in bulk. I got mine here) If you don't want to buy new materials, you could also use string, zipties, or anything else your heart desires. But the binder rings work best.
5. A single hole punch (triple hole punches won't work well)
6. A ruler and a pencil
7. A computer and a printer (if you want lined pages)
8. Binder/ butterfly clips are helpful, if you have them.

Here's what you do with it:

1. PRINT THE LINES. If you want your notebook to have lined pages, print them onto the blank side of your sheets of paper. I did this by creating a simple Word document in landscape orientation and using _underscores_ to make lines all the way across the page. You can adjust the spacing for a bigger or smaller rule, whatever suits your fancy. For a standard rule, set it to size 12 font with 1.3 line spacing. And the lines can be whatever color(s) you want! I made my pages in 6 different colors. Make sure that (1) the paper is loaded into the printer so that it will print on the blank side and (2) the color of your lines is dark enough to show up on the paper (in other words, yellow is a no-go).

2. PUNCH HOLES IN THE PAGES. Fold the sheets of paper in half the hamburger way (I really don't know how else to describe it) with the blank/ lined side facing out. Align them in a stack with the folds facing in the same direction: vertically and to your right- this will be the orientation of your notebook. It might help to hold the stack together with binder/butterfly clips. Place the ruler along the left side of the pages (the opposite side of the fold) and make a thick mark down the side of the stack (the "spine" of your notebook) at the midpoint, or 4.25 inches. Make two more marks like this 1 inch in from the top and 1 inch in from the bottom of the pages. Working in groups of about 5 pages at a time, punch a hole along the left edge at each of these marks, about 1/3 inch in from the side. You'll end up with all of the pages 3-hole punched, like binder paper.

The duct tape spine

3. MAKE THE COVER. Cut your cardboard or paperboard into two rectangles the same size as or slightly bigger than your pages. Using a hole-punched page as a guide, make 3 marks on the covers and punch 3 holes to line up with the pages. Listen closely, this part can get tricky: Rip 2 strips of duct tape that are the same length as the tall side of the cardboard covers, and 2 more strips that are a few inches longer than the first 2. Lay one of the long strips down sticky-side up, and place a short strip sticky-side down on top it with the centers aligned. This should create one long, non-sticky strip with sticky "tabs" left over on the top AND the bottom. Fold these tabs over to make one non-sticky strip the same length as your covers. Now, take the second long strip and lay it down sticky-side up like the first one. Take the strip you just made (folded-over tabs facing up) and overlap it with the sticky strip ONLY by about 3/4 inch, again with the centers aligned so that the longer strip has excess on the top and the bottom. Lay the last short strip over the middle of the long strip, lining the top and bottom edge up with the other short strip and leaving only two sticky tabs on the top and bottom. Fold these tabs over. You should now have one wide, non-sticky spine for your notebook. Phew.


4. PUT IT ALL TOGETHER. Hold the pages together with a binder/butterfly clip or two so that the holes all line up. Put the front and back cover on the- you guessed it- front and back. Your duct tape strip should have a 3/4 inch wide thicker part in the middle from where all of the pieces overlap– this is the outside of your notebook's spine (what would be visible if it was stacked on a bookshelf). Place the spine against the left side of the notebook, with the side that has the folded-over tabs facing in towards the pages. The spine will bend on either side of the thick middle, with the two other sides resting flat against the front and back covers (make sure the covers are pressed all the way up to the bend). Rip two strips of duct tape about 4 inches longer than the length of the notebook. Holding the spine flat against the front cover, overlap the duct tape with the spine by about 1/2 inch and press it against the cover, folding the excess on the top and the bottom over the cover and sticking it to the inside of the cover. Repeat for the back cover. Now use a pen or other sharp object to poke a hole through the duct tape to re-open the holes punched in the covers. Thread your binder rings (or string, or zip ties) from the outside through the holes in the covers and in the pages, and clip them closed on the inside.


5. Take notes! It also functions as a binder: you can punch holes in any papers (handouts for a class, etc.) and add them to the notebook.

If you make a notebook, please leave a comment letting me know how it worked out!