With What You Have | 65
When you find a stack of small blank notebooks that may be a bit plain, and you remember a certain scrap of navy calico that's been waiting for some use, you might turn to:
Cloth Book Binding 101
Cut fabric pieces with a 1/2" margin on all sides, then, using the same type of glue stick used in kindergarten, apply glue to the entire back side of your fabric. Carefully position fabric glue-side down over book cover. Smooth flat from center toward edges. Lay the book open and bring the 1/2" fabric margin around to the inside of the book cover, and smooth down to secure. Close the newly-covered book and stack heavy books on top of it so the new cover dries smooth.
A little bit of pretty goes a long way.
Do what you can with what you have.
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Now, let's tag a bit onto this post and dive into how those little cloth-covered notebooks tie in with my planner. Yesterday, I mentioned that I loved how this minimalist planner basically has three main sections: Blank monthly grids, blank weekly grids, and a section that's completely blank, save for a horizontal line separating each page in two. This simplicity helped me incorporate the parts of the bullet journal system that I liked, without having to do the parts of it that I didn't. The photo above shows a monthly two-page layout.
These above photos show the weekly layout, simple and spare, with just enough space for me to write the day's tasks and accomplishments. I use small round circles as bullet points, and check them off when each item is complete.
On the first page of the blank section, I have an index set up. Following that begin the pages of collections that are helpful to me. I so appreciate how I can make this section of the planner be whatever I need.
Side note: You may have noticed the book darts - those little bronze arrows on the edges of the pages. LOVE the book darts! While I admire other people's journals that are filled with washi tape, colored ink, fancy lettering, and doodles, I just don't have the time or the desire to incorporate this into mine. I do, however, find it helpful to slide a book dart onto pages that I reference often.
While I loved my planner, and how my own edits and tweaks of the bullet journal system helped tailor it to fit me, I realized, for whatever reason, I was hesitant to turn to a blank page and just write whatever needed to come out of my head: ideas, the beginnings of plans, creative thought processes. This sort of brain purge can be a bit messy and I was, I found, resistant to adding messy to my orderly planner.
Enter the mini notebook. It's approximately 5 1/2" by 4", with blank pages on which I can scribble to my heart's content without feeling limited to keeping it orderly and pretty. From these scribblings, which are really a way of mental processing, I can then take common themes and make a collection of them in my planner if I want. I numbered the pages in the mini notebook just in case I wanted to index the pages, but I've allowed myself to let even that fall where it may.
The mini journal, tucked into the elastic of the planner, with my pencil clipped on the side, makes for a tidy bundle that's easily slid into my purse, toted in my bag, set on my nightstand, or laid beside me when I work.
How about you? Have you found a favorite planner or calendar that works for you?
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