Bombshell Tutorial - Scrappy Journal

Happy Friday Bombshells!!  I'm here today to show you a super fast and easy way to make a fun journal.  I've seen these recently in my LSS and decided that I could SO easily make one on my own.  All you need is scrap paper - which we ALL have - and a sturdy manila folder, thin cardboard, or really heavy cardstock for your cover.  My cover is an old manila style folder trimmed down to 12" x 9.75" when fully open. 

I didn't do much thinking for my interior papers - I quite literally grabbed what has been left out during my creative processes all week long.  

I then trimmed all of my papers to be the same width - 11"-  so that none of them hung outside of my cover.  The papers, however, do not all have to be the same height, that's actually part of the charm when you see the interior. 

Now to start the binding process.  I scored each of my papers directly at 5.5" so that they would all line up perfectly together.  I then used my tape runner to lightly adhere each layer before sewing.  

I then made sure all of my papers were where I liked them before hitting the sewing machine.

I then folded them and holding them tightly, moved them all back and forth to make the paper a bit more malleable.  But I also wanted to make sure that everything was held tight before stitching it.  I didn't want anything shifting during the sewing process.  

I opened the pages of my Scrappy Journal, laid them inside of the manila cover and faced them inside up on my sewing machine.  I ran a standard straight stitch right down the middle twice to create the binding.

And it comes out looking like this!  So fun!!  It's fabulous to put memorabilia in, doodles, photos, ticket stubs, etc. 

I strongly recommend using solid cardstock and double sided designer paper.  That way there is something fabulous to look at, doodle on or stick to no matter what side you are working on.

I finished it off VERY simply with some purple baker's twine and my "Homeward Bound" sentiment stamp from the Homeward Bound stamp set. 

Have a great and crafty weekend all!!

Big Crafty Hugs!
Meredith