June Stamp Club

Altered Composition Notebooks

It has become an almost yearly tradition at Stamp Club for the Rubber Duckies to make covered notebooks.  Mostly because I have been stocking up on (a.k.a. hoarding) DSP all  year, and SU! is getting ready to retire all of it!  So, it's time to get out the fancy papers and ribbons you've been hoarding and create something beautifully useful.  I really do use the notebooks I create.  They make great gifts that can be personalized with the recipent's name hand-stamped on the cover. 

Start with a blank composition book.  For the covers, you will need 2 sheets of 9" x 12" DSP.  Since your DSP is already 12 x 12, just slice one side at 9".

Use a generous amount of adhesive--doesn't matter what kind--snail, tombow, sticky strip--just use a lot!!!  This is one project you do not want to be cheapo with the adhesive especially if you or your recipent are going to be carrying it around.  I start with putting my adhesive on my notebook cover, and then placing my DSP on top of my tape.  Line up the edge of the DSP with the edge of the black seam of the notebook. 

This is how I finish the corners...

Open the notebook.  Turn up the corners and tape in place--again, don't be cheap with your adhesive!  Use your bone folder to smooth down your edges.  I also like to run the pointy part of the bone folder on the DSP along the edge of the notebook so it will fold over toward the inside easier--just don't press down too hard because you don't want to poke through your DSP.

Fold up the flaps and tape or glue down.  Your corners will have a nice smooth covered edge.  Move over Martha Stewart and Anna Griffin--no mitering the corners for me--this is papercrafting not carpentry!!!!

Add a 9" x 7" piece of DSP to finish off the inside cover. 

Repeat with back cover.  Tie ribbon around front cover wrapping ribbon on the inside front cover.

Embellish as desired.  I added chipboard and some letters from Play Date Quick Accents. 

Even though summer is just starting, be sure to keep an eye out for composition notebooks to be on sale--sometimes 4/$1--before school starts again in September.  Here are a few more examples from stamp club...

Here are a few of this month's swaps...

If you need to order retiring stamps and acessories from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalog, hop on over to my SU! website no later than June 30th.   Happy Stamping! Happy Notebook and Journal Creating!!

Bye for now, Maria