Hi everyone! Welcome to my new series where we are going to learn to make a junk journal from start to finish. If you have have never made a junk journal before this series is going to walk you through step-by-step. I will over lots of examples for different materials you can use as well so you don’t need to run out and buy a lot of materials. I want this to be a fun, easy and expressive way for you to make your own journal without having to break the bank-after all we are just using junk right?
So let’s get started!
Today we are going to begin work on our cover and here are the supplies you will need:
Cereal box or other chipboard packaging. Think the back of a notepad, brownie and cake mix boxes (they are actually my favorite boxes because they are the perfect size! Whatever you have to hand will work.
Brown paper bag, kraft paper or wrapping paper
Glue/Double Sided Tape: PVA glue will work but my favorite is double sided tape but you can also use a permanent glue stick.
Scissors
Paint if you want to paint your cover. Regular old craft paint is perfectly fine but you can decorate your cover is so many ways. Stickers, markers, stamps-use what you have to hand!
That’s it!
Let’s get started:
Step 1.
Cut your cereal box/chipboard.
I cut my to 9″x6″ I like this size because I really like using regular letter size paper and this size cover allows me to use a full sheet of letter paper folded in half. You can cut yours to whatever size you like-the process is the same.
You can also double up your chipboard to make a really sturdy cover if you want.
You also need to cut chipboard for the spine. It will be the same height as your cover and whatever width you want. I cut mine to 2″. I also glued 2 pieces together for the spine.
Next you want to attach the covers to your spine. In the video I am using book binding tape but you can use regular masking tape. I only used this because I have it and I never use it-because I generally use masking tape! It’s much cheaper and works just as well. You may have to use a few more layers of it to get the sturdiness you want for your cover but it’s a great option that’s readily available in most stores.
I lay a piece of the tape down, sticky side up and then place the spine in the middle of the tape and the covers on either side leaving a small space so the covers can open and close. If you want to measure you can leave a space the thickness of your chipboard between the spine and the cover.
Step 2.
Next you will ned your paper shopping bag, kraft paper or wrapping paper. If you are using double sided tape I like to add it to the 3 edges of the cover. Then you want to lay your book cover on top of your paper. If you are using wrapping paper make sure that the pretty side is facing your work surface. Then you want to fold over the sides of your paper and “wrap” the cover. You can cut the corner (see below) so you can a nice corner. Just don’t cut too closely.
If you are using a liquid glue the paper may warp and bubble a little just keep that in mind. I would then put glue on the full cover and spine and glue it down to my paper folding and wrapping the edges adhering them down with more glue.
Step 3.
This step is optional but I like my journals to feel like a book and to not have any “wobble” with the cover and spine. To help with this, I take masking tape or in my case book binding tape and I place some on the inside of my cover (the part without paper) and overlap the cover and the spine. I put down a few pieces until I am happy with the sturdiness.
Step 4.
If you are using wrapping paper or want to keep your cover brown like you kraft paper you can skip this step but I love to make colorful journals so I take my favorite color and paint the entire cover including the inside flaps. You can let this dry and then apply additional coats as needed. This is where you can really be creative. You can add fabric, stickers, magazine images-you name it! Have fun!
Once your cover is completely dry you are done!
I hope you found this helpful. If you are more of a visual learner I have a video below where you can watch me follow these steps and make your cover along with me, pausing as you need to.
In next week’s post I am going to share how to make your signatures and decorate them several different ways.
Until next time!
-Michele, aka The Dreaming Dilettante
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