Mod Podge Covered Composition Notebook

I attended so many great workshops and heard so many awesome speakers at SNAP last week.  I knew I would be taking a lot of notes so I made a pretty notepad with our logo.  I remember last year at Creative Estates wondering who people were.  I wanted to make sure if you happened to bump into me or were sitting across from me at a table during a session, our logo would be one of the first things people noticed.

Supplies:
-composition notebook
-Mod Podge and brush
-scrapbook paper
-washi tape (not pictured)

Start by coating the cover of your notebook in Mod Podge.  Do your best to get a nice even layer so you don't have bubbles when you add the paper.  

Trim your paper to roughly the same dimensions of your notebook.  I say roughly because getting it perfect really isn't worth the stress.  Trimming the paper later is easy.  You can see in my picture I have a little gap between the edge of my paper and the black tape down the middle of the notebook.  Not to worry, the washi tape will cover any mistakes.

Apply a smooth layer of Mod Podge over your paper. 

If you want to add an image to the book, do this next step.  It would be fun to add a picture to make a great gift.  This project might show back up for teacher appreciation week or Grandparent's Day!  Use Mod Podge to completely cover your image on the notebook.  Most of the air bubbles will go away when the Mod Podge dries but try to avoid too many bumps.

I used washi tape to cover the little slice of notebook peeking out from under the paper.  If you trimmed your paper perfectly, you can probably skip this step.  I think the tape made the notebook prettier.  I love the contrast of the two patterns together.

For the matching portfolio, I simply printed our logo onto a full shipping label sheet and then trimmed it to fit.  Super easy!

I made a notebook and portfolio set for myself and my SNAP roommate, Rebecca from Freckles Crafts.

My notebook had an extra conference tool hiding inside; I used Mod Podge to have the conference schedule on the inside cover.  This was incredibly helpful and a great tool for everyone sitting around me wondering where we were supposed to be going next.  I will definitely do this for any conference I attend in the future!

 

Backpack and Supplies Makeover

This post was originally shared at Freckles Crafts Back to School series.  With school already starting I thought I should share the entire post here too.

When I completed the back pack set for the Back to School series, my daughter wasn't yet enrolled for preschool.  Some changes have happened since then...today was her first day!  I'm pretty much a nervous wreck today but am really excited about our new adventure.  With that in mind, I was very happy I had this new backpack set ready for her first day!

I had so much fun transforming these boring supplies into a fun school set!

I started with some basic school supplies purchased from the drug store - $5 backpack, mechanical pencils, 3 ring binder, composition notebook, and pencil carrying case.

I prepped the backpack by using a seam ripper to carefully remove the brand tag.  Then I cut off all the zipper pulls.  I initially planned on using my Cricut to make a fabric initial applique.  Instead I found a font online and simply traced my daughter's initial onto Heat n' Bond.  You don't need a cutting machine to applique! 

I simply ironed the Heat n' Bond initial to patterned fabric, cut it out, and then ironed the applique to the backpack.  Be careful when ironing on the backpack (a low heat setting is suggested). 

I used my sewing machine to stitch around the initial.  This step is not necessary but I didn't really like how the black in the fabric blended with the backpack.  Purple thread helped make the initial stand out against the black.  To finish the backpack I tied coordinating fabric to the zippers.

The mechanical pencils were fun to embellish!  I removed the top of the pencil and then applied a thin layer of Mod Podge to the entire pencil.  I wrapped a strip of fabric around the pencil and then sealed the fabric with another layer of Mod Podge.  I only made two pencils but I'm sure older kids could use an entire pack for the school year!

The composition notebook received a makeover too.  I used Mod Podge and fabric to make the cover pretty!

I used the same technique for the pencil carrying case.  Mod Podge is awesome!

I didn't worry about cutting the fabric to fit over the snap until I had already fitted the fabric on the case.  It was much easier than I anticipated.  Once the initial layer of Mod Podge had been applied, I used an exacto knife to carefully cut the fabric away from the snap. 

Hopefully the new backpack set will keep my daughter excited for her first week of school!

I'm linking this post here.

 



Embellished Backpack and Supply Set

Today I'm participating in a fun back to school series at Freckles Crafts.  I'm showing you how to transform a plain backpack and supplies into a cute matching set.

This would be just as cute with different fabric for boys!

You can see my entire post at Freckles Crafts here.

Rebecca has the funnest crafting ideas and crafts for children.  I met her at Creative Estates earlier this year and think she is wonderful!  Go spend some time at her site and be inspired to get creative with your little ones!