Looking for a cute way to reuse some of those printer paper scraps this summer? This handmade notepad, created with elements from the May 2017 My Monthly Hero Kit and gorgeous cardstock from CutCardStock, is a great way to recycle partially-printed pages and makes a nice little gift to tell someone you’re thinking of them too.
Start by trimming two pieces of Spearmint Pop-Tone Cardstock, two pieces of Sno Cone Pop-Tone Cardstock, a piece of Kraft Chipboard, and several sheets of partially-printed printer paper to 5″ x 7″. If you don’t have a collection of partially-printed pages to use like I do, Classic Crest Text Weight Paper would work great as well.
Die-cut the coral reef frame into one of the Spearmint panels, and the slightly larger oval included with the frame into a Spearmint and Sno Cone panel. (Leave the second Sno Cone panel intact.)
Ink the edges of the coral reef panel with green and aqua inks (I added a gradient of deepening colors from top to bottom – Cracked Pistachio, Lucky Clover, and Peacock Feathers) and add random spots of color to the intact Sno Cone panel with Peacock Feathers, Mermaid Lagoon, and Seedless Preserves Distress inks.
Stamp the mermaid, fish, and oyster images from the kit with Memento Tuxedo Black ink onto Neenah Classic Crest Solar White Cardstock and color them in with alcohol-based markers. Die-cut the images out with the included dies (the thin white border around the edges really makes them pop in the scene).
Lightly stamp the bottom corner of each sheet of printer paper with the other two mermaid images from the kit. I chose light green and blue inks from Stampin’ Up to match my cover and stamped the images off once onto scrap paper before stamping the page. This adds a cute touch to the inside of the notebook, but allows the recipient to still use most of the page.
Assemble the cover by sandwiching the two oval cut-out panels between the inked blue panel and mint coral reef frame as shown and adhere with tape runner. The extra panels add stability and a little bit of dimension that allows you to tuck your die-cut colored images into the scene better. Adhere the images with liquid glue.
Add a sentiment to the cover if desired (here I’ve stamped one from the kit in Versamark ink and added white embossing powder). Punch two holes in the top corners of the cover, the kraft chipboard base, and all of the pages of printer paper.
To ensure all of the holes line up perfectly, punch the kraft chipboard base first and use it as a template for punching all of the other pages.
Place the printer paper pages between the cover and the kraft chipboard base and feed a piece of natural twine through each hole from the back of the notepad. Tie a simple bow to hold the book together.
I hope you enjoyed this easy handmade notebook and thanks so much for stopping by today! What summer crafts have you been working on?