Yesterday I told you about using a little notebook and sticky notes to get those To-Dos under control. Today I want to give you a little idea or two about how to make a notebook that's just right for you, since I'm not seeing just what I want out there in the stores.
I do love a little notebook I can slip in my purse or even put in a book to jot down notes that occur to me, and certainly, with my sticky-note system, something custom-made would be really useful.
The key to this craft is having a supply of cards or stiff paper from a calendar, let's say, that you can't really be parted from. This is the sort of thing I tend to stockpile.
I used to get calendars like this one:
The pictures were amazingly appealing and printed on very stiff cardstock paper.
For the To-Do notebook, and this is important, you will want your inside papers also to be very stiff and somewhat glossy. And you won't need many. You can think about how many tabs you will have and make that many pages. (I explain the tabs in yesterday's post.) So maybe 2 “signatures” (pieces of paper that you will cut and fold in half to be bound between the “covers” which are your precious greeting card or calendar page, for instance).
You need thick thread, like upholstery thread.
And a nice heavy needle. An implement for poking a hole helps as well, especially with the thicker paper — a larger pin or a sort of small awl helps.
Measure out where the stitches will go. I don't know why my ruler appears so very… sticky… or something. I promise I wasn't eating anything while doing this! Choose an odd number of stitch points, evenly spaced, and leave enough space on the ends so that you can manipulate the thread at the end.
You want to start your thread in between the cover and the bottom of the pages, so that your loose ends don't show in the end. Here we have a picture of my needle heading in towards the inside center of the notebook at the top, but not through the first hole in the cover. At the end, you will come up through that hole in the cover and tie off in between the sheets.
You are doing a “running stitch,” but because you will come back up, each stitch will end up with thread on either side, inside and outside.
See, this next photo is your needle coming up through the “last” hole which is the “first” that you skipped at the beginning. That way, your knot is hidden.
This is confusing just because the calendar photo is so realistic that it looks like a real spoon there! But it's the picture. See the knot?
You could also fasten your notebook together with these fasteners if you'd rather not sew, in which case you'd also need a small hole punch or certainly the awl:
I love crafts like this. And I love that it's a way to keep a favorite card or page and use it again.
For this one, I made a little pocket on the inside flap. It's super easy — just cut the shape you want and glue the very edges of the straight sides to the edges of the page.
Are notebooks still appealing to you in this digital age? Do you find ink and paper indispensable? Or have you moved on?
Robin says
I love this! No, digital has not won me over. I find that trying to go “paperless” has only hampered my “collective memory” and I either live with a device in my hand or forget most of what needs to be done! Thank you for the tutorial. My daughter and I will enjoy this so much!
Cynthia says
Digital has its uses, but I’ve gone old school with a bullet journal. I maintain a digital family calendar since it is editable by multiple people, but writing things by hand gets it in my brain, which is kind of essential. Having it on the calendar means nothing if I don’t remember it is there!
Jennie Cooper says
I can’t plan digitally. I’m using a bullet journal for the second year now, and I love it. Perfect for chronic list makers!
Tia says
Does the bullet journal require learning essentially a whole new language? I looked at a web page and it seems awfully confusing.
Lisa G. says
No! The only page you need to look at is bulletjournal.com – it’s a very simple method. And you don’t need to buy a special notebook for it – I’m using a cheap, small notebook I had around.
But Leila’s also sounds interesting – Leila, are your lined pages only there for something to stick the sticky notes onto? Am I understanding that correctly? I also think that Leila is trying to get us away from wanting to control our lives too much by so many detailed lists and plans; am I right? At the age of sixty, I’m finally realizing that Plan A is just about never going to happen, and life is all about being gracious when you have to go to Plan B. (Or, Plan C or Plan D as Carmella said in her post the other day on the Assortment blog. ) This is a subject very close to my heart; hence my blog’s name, Searching for a Balance. I’m never done with that searching, it seems.
Leila says
Lisa, the notebook pictured here is not the one I use with my sticky notes — it’s for demonstration purposes if you want to make one yourself, just to show you how.
I made these little notebooks with paper that appealed to me for presents for others and for me. I do like writing notes on graph paper.
The one I use with the sticky notes is in yesterday’s post — the one with Pippo on the cover. It’s got blank pages.
Here’s the thing about making to-do lists. You really can only do a certain number of things a day (other than the bazillion things you do every day just to get through the day!). Basically, yes, you have that long list, but you need to focus on doing the top 3-5 that need to be done TODAY — “need” being defined by a host of criteria that probably need a post of their own.
But once you make that long, long list of things to do, you will feel liberated when you realize that you need only do the top few items (not the first few, necessarily, but the ones that, basically, you *can* do).
So in a way, you are letting go of the others and letting go of the sense that you are in control of ALL THE THINGS, because obviously no one can get through a to-do list of 25 things every day. You’d go insane!
But somehow most systems have us listing those things… and then we give up (which is preferable to going insane, I think!).
Try this way. It doesn’t replace planners and calendars and journals and shopping lists — it’s just the To-Do list. Simple.
Betsy M says
Thank you for these posts Leila. I am a chronic note taker but find that my notes get taken by my littlest children who want to be like Mom and make a list (this happens even when their own paper is within reach). I am definitely going to try out your system. I find I do not do well with traditional planners and hate the idea of having to look on my phone or computer constantly to see my “to do”. I am determined to catch up this year as there is no nursing baby nor pregnancy to contend with at the moment.
Emily D. says
It’s SO funny you ask this, because where I’m sitting, I am surrounded by paper products: pens, thank you notes on beautiful paper that are going to go out today, my paper planner, paper address book, sketchbooks, and my May Designs notebooks, which I LOVE. I am an unabashed paper person. I just can’t plan digitally. I forget to do it and I don’t like it as much as the paper. Beautiful pens and paper are so fun!
Rachel says
New bullet journal convert here, too. I LOVE it. But it would be much prettier if I would have made it your way…next time, I will!
Elizabeth says
Paper!! I have a serious weakness for office supplies and paper products of all kinds. I tried putting up post-it notes on the refrigerator for my to-do list, but not being able to cross things off serious hampered my feeling of actually getting anything accomplished. I am going to try your idea of a Master List and stickies for the day’s “assignments”. I just love this idea of the little notebook to contain it all! Thank you!
Sue says
Bullet journal and sticky notes!! Need the paper and pen in hand.
Donna L. says
I love pencils, pens, markers and paper! I also have several little blank books in which to write, but they do not *work* as you have mentioned here…so they sit on the shelf and gather time…when I have started using them, I find that I want to rip out the used pages–and that pains me!
I have used with great success a large wall calendar to organize our family each year–the bonus thing: there is room to write down funny things that family members have said…
I do not do digital schedules because I love being able to say, “I don’t have my calendar here, it’s at home, so may I call later after I check that date?” and then I can avoid making instant decisions that may not work out well…
Thank you for sharing a do-able craft that is genius in the simplicity! Love!
Becky says
I use a digital calendar but I MUST have a written grocery list. I tried digital for a while but consistently lost my mind halfway through the store. My phone would lose it’s signal. I would have to keep re-entering my password and letting it re-load. My list would fail to synch and I would be completely adrift with a precious 45 minutes left before preschool pickup. And, worst, I could not properly organize by aisle which (you are so right!) is essential!
I also find it really handy to have my weekly meal plan (dinners only) on the same page as my grocery list. That makes it really handy if you need to adapt your list upon finding some good markdowns or such. The flipping between the list and calendar apps was just too much.
Tia says
I’m 34, so probably right on the cusp of Millennials who grew up using computers and think paper-and-pen is outdated. I find I retain information better when I’m writing it down, (due to all that note-taking in school), but I also can never keep track of papers or notebooks or pens or pencils and never have them handy when I need them. And my husband and I need to coordinate our to-do lists, for instance, with groceries. So I use an online to-do list, but find it’s just somehow subpar — the visuals, the organization, the sense of immediacy — all are lacking. But paper planners never worked for me, even in grade school. Your notebooks look lovely though.
Susan says
I LOVE PAPER! Notebooks, journals, cards, sticky notes, notepads, bookmarks, scrap papers ~ {sigh} they bring me such pleasure!
Susan says
And, I forgot calendars. I make cards and spiral bound books. I write stuff down every single day. I have multiple journals going on. I have a favorite type of pen, and NOBODY may use it without permission, even my husband (who doesn’t care about it anyway). Pretty papers just make me so happy!
Jennifer says
Paper and pen (in some cases, strictly pencil!) for me. Pretty paper is always a plus. I enjoy using those long narrow list pads in various designs that you can get for $1. Repositionable glue or washi tape sounds like a great idea to keep the list inside my planner.
A post-it notebook is a very cute idea! Thanks for sharing!
Sara says
I immediately became a slave to my iphone because of everything it can do for me, but I do prefer paper for planning my day and my grocery shopping. The ridiculous part about using a phone for a grocery list is constantly having to turn it on again or pick it up! I can leave my list on the cart and still read it. Lately I’ve been using little books for a to-do journal of sorts. I’m thrilled with this idea of using cards! Thanks for the tutorial.
Karen says
My method of writing out a daily list has not been working for me lately, mostly because I’m tired of rewriting all of the items that didn’t get done the previous day. I love the ideas in the past two posts about using sticky notes and a small notebook. I ran right out and got some sticky notes (I had no clue that they cost so much), but I was stumped on what to use for the notebook. I decided to try a small artist’s sketchpad with medium-weight paper. It was a little pricey at $10, but it’s solidly constructed and the paper is high-quality, so hopefully it will last for a while. I can’t wait to give this a try!
Heather says
As I was thinking about notebooks vs digital, I realized that a lot of the difficulty for me with a physical notebook is the question of where it lives. Does it have a spot on my desk? In my bag? Does it go back and forth?
And, a spin-off question: Do you have suggestions for a perfect magic homeschooling mama bag? The one that can go from playground to gatherings while looking respectable at the latter yet not get grubby at the former? (This is in addition to the flute bag, piano book bag, library return bag(s), snack bag, sewing project bag, homework for the kids bag, materials for the class I am teaching bag–this is *the* bag, the one with my book and wallet and lipstick and various unmentionables.) Can I still keep using a diaper bag although I don’t have any children still in diapers? Messenger bag?
(Please file these questions in the “surely, most people do not need these extremely basic things spelled out” category.)
Leila says
Heather, I agree — long ago I had a nice leather planner with a zipper — the kind you can customize and spend a lot on various inserts. But it’s heavy, and my bag was already too heavy! That’s one thing I love about the sticky-note system. My notebook is the size of half a sheet of paper. The sticky notes are light. I carry it from room to room. I stick it in my purse.
The ones I show in this post are the size of a greeting card. Yet, they’d work really well. When it gets too full of sticky notes, you migrate your notes to a more permanent journal, an index card file, or a digital notebook like Evernote.
As to the bag, yes, you need a good bag! It should look like a nice purse but be about 50% larger. It should have pockets — and most importantly, a pocket for your phone. It should have a zippered pocket for the unmentionables. I bought a nice leather bag at Marshalls — so, pricey but not department-store pricey — and told my husband that it was a gift for HIM — in that now I wouldn’t be grubbing around for my ringing phone! Which was driving him crazy.
It should open wide, not narrow towards the opening, as so many ladies’ purses do (ugh). And the handles should not be narrow and thin, because that cuts into your shoulder. And they need to be long enough to go over a jacketed shoulder, but not so long that it hits your thigh.
So, think diaper bag size (or a bit smaller) but pocketbook looks. Like a tote but with compartments. Go to Marshalls or TJMaxx or whatever you have and spend some time visualizing all the offerings. Eventually, you’ll find one — and get leather because it will last for 5 years, which is better than buying a nonleather one every 6 months, even if cheaper.
I’m linking to this one for a visual: http://amzn.to/1MX5LmF
It looks really great to meedited to say that the reviews say it’s not really leather, so no, do not buy, even though it looks JUST RIGHT, but I bet you could find something similar for less at my favorite stores, you-know-which.Get tan or brown if you have warm coloring. Get black or taupe if you have cool coloring. That way it will go with everything!
Heather says
Beautiful. Thank you so much. That is exactly the level of detail I was hoping for!!
Chiara says
Currently using an unsatisfactory digital conglomeration of iPhone Notes, Reminders, and Google calendar.
Went back to paper for grocery lists a couple of months ago, when I also finally put the (not even so much) time into typing out a reference list of aisle categories. Soooo much better — Leila, you are so right — organizing a grocery list any other way but by aisle is frustrating, doubling-back madness.
Hmm. If I used this and Google Calendar . . . think I’ll try this!
Ona says
Oh this is brilliant! I do use Post-Its but stick them on my lap top, kitchen counter,front door,dashboard. But I never thought of putting them in a little notebook….brilliant! I love being able to toss the finished Post-It when the task is done. So satisfying, right? Many thanks Leila!
Teri Pittman says
I like Moleskine reporters, but I have made little notebooks like this. It’s fun!
And I would encourage everyone to have a list of important phone numbers on paper, at minimum. Back in 2008, I had everything on a Palm Pilot. My husband wound upin the ICU and my charger stuff was at the office. I could not access those numbers and did not have them on my prepaid phone. Since then, I always have a paper backup, although I like digital for alarms.
Leila says
Good point, Teri!
Suzette says
I absolutely fall to pieces when I use digital. I need to be able to tangibly manipulate my goals, to-dos etc.