Going through my Mom's stuff, I noticed that there was an abundance of tiny, purse-sized, notebooks. The notebooks usually contained one or two phone numbers or maybe the measurements of someone she was sewing a dress for but the rest of the notebook would be empty. I gave most of the notebooks to the kids who quickly drew, wrote and coloured every page. Happily, the books did not go to waste.
One of my favorite YouTube subscriptions is "SeaLemonDIY"; the videos feature simple bookbinding techniques and one video, in particular, caught my interest by "repurposing" cereal boxes. The graphics on cereal boxes are bright and intended to attract the attention of kids, who then pester you to buy the unwholesome stuff; you have to admit that it is hard to look away from some of those boxes. The contents are soon eaten and the boxes trashed. Look at "SeaLemon"
http://youtu.be/_W99DY-iHcc to see how she uses the boxes to make spiral bound notebooks.
Instead of using her binding technique, I used the Japanese sewn binding technique that is easy and inexpensive, and kid friendly. The covers and pages measure 4 1/2" x 6"; I used leftover sketchbook pages for filler but computer paper or lined paper would be suitable. It is so easy to do that you can have your kids make them during the summer to use during the school year. You can also make them for quick gifts!
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| Cut and save the box fronts for the top covers; use the box backs for the bottom covers. |
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| Cut the graphics out to fit the size you want; these are 4 1/2" x 6". |
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| Make a template and punch out the holes in the paper and covers to be sewn together. |
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| We used a tapestry needle with size 5 pearl cotton to sew these together. |
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| The books are small but good for drawing, lists, writing summer poems, etc. |
Check out SeaLemonDIY on YouTube (
http://youtu.be/_W99DY-iHcc) or the SeaLemon page on Facebook - tons of fun ideas.
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