Duct Tape Monstar Bookmark

Materials Needed:
• Duct Tape
• craft knife
• self healing cutting board
• paper & pencil


* front & back

This project is similar to the Duct Tape Monstar Coaster project I did earlier, only this time I made a cut out book mark that I so often find myself needing.

Once again I recommend the self healing cutting board this way you can stick the duct tape down and cut the shape you need with your craft knife.

To start I sketched out the design keeping it more vertical than horizontal. Then I used that to make some templates out of paper. Then I grabbed the color of Duct Tape I wanted to be my background and taped down a few strips overlapping about the width and height of how I wanted the book mark to be then I flipped it over and taped the other side so that I was left with the colored Duct Tape showing on both sides. Then I took the colors I wanted the body of my monstar to be and placed it down on the self healing cutting board and placed my template on top and cut out the monstars body. Then I peeled it up and placed it on the background piece. I continued this method until I had the entire front of the monstar done. Then I cut out around the entire monstar.

Once he was cut out I then turned it around and prepared to do the back side of my monstar. I started the same why by putting the Duct Tape down on the self healing cutting board but when I got to the template part I flipped it over to the wrong side facing up. Then I cut out my shapes and placed them on the back side of the background. Now my monstar is ready to snuggle up with a nice good book.

Super Simple Pocket Notebook

Materials Needed:
• thin cardboard
• decorative paper
• hole punch
• paper of your choice for inside
• glue
• ribbon
• sticker or other decorations (optional)


* front


* back

So this little pocket notebook is a really easy one to make. I just grabbed some thin cardboard laying around and cut it to the size I wanted my notebook to be. Then I cut out an exact replica so I have 2 pieces of thin cardboard for front and back of my book. Next I got my decorative paper and glued it onto each piece of cardboard separately. I trimmed around the edges so that I had enough to fold over but not too much so that it would be bulky. Then I folded it over to the other side and glued it down. Then I grabbed a piece of plain colored paper and folded the edges to be just short of my original measurements and then folded it the other way and gently tore where I folded it (giving me a nice deckle edge). Then I glued that onto the inside cover (do this twice so you have a front and back piece). Next I got my hole punch and punched 2 holes in it where I wanted them.

Then I cut out my writing/drawing paper to be the size of my cardboard and punched holes in it using my covers as a template to match the holes. I grabbed some next and threaded it through the holes and tied a few knots. Finally I added a thick glittery heart sticker on top. You can decorate however you want or even leave it plain and draw on it as you go.

Recycled Journal

Materials needed:
• thin cardboard
• thick rubber band
• stick from the yard
• brown paper bag (or whatever paper you want to cover it with)
• news paper (again your choice of paper)
• blank paper for the pages on the inside
• glue (I used glue stick and Mod Podge since that was what I had lying around)
• craft knife
• hole punch

I also added these materials for mine:
• thick cardboard from a box I got in the mail
• some scrap brown paper
• scoring tool
• hot glue and hot glue gun



My mom got this magazine in the mail the other day and it had a cute craft inside that I just had to do. It's a homemade recycled journal for father's day (I think it would even make a cute scrap book or really any sort of book- like one with your recipes in it - yum!). What I love so much about this project is that it cost me nothing- just supplies I had lying around my house and yard!

I took my own liberties with it and made it mine.

To start this journal, I got my thin cardboard out. The board I was using was already cut to size but if you have a big sheet of it cut into the dimensions you want your book to be. Mine is 8.5 x 5.5 inches. Make sure you have 2 pieces the same size for your book. What I did next was punch 2 holes on one side of each of my thin cardboard pieces. I used a grommet punch (I got it from a fabric store a while back). Then after doing that to both pieces I got my craft knife and cut thin strips about an inch from the edge with the holes punched. I did that for both pieces as well.

Next I got a brown paper bag and laid the thin cardboard pieces on it. I lined them up holes in the center with about 1/4 of inch in between hole punched sides and I even left on the thin strips I just cut out for measurement sake. Once both sides were lined up I picked up once piece and started gluing it with my Mod Podge (you can use any type of glue- white craft glue, glue stick, whatever). I didn't glue the little sliver we cut off before it is only there to keep the distance from your hole punched piece and your solid piece. Once all 4 pieces were glued (2 hole punched ones and 2 solid pieces) I turned it over and I should have smoothed it out but I didn't- I recommend that you do smooth out any bumps or bubbles.

Once it is dry I turned it onto the side with the cardboard showing and trimmed off the excess brown paper bag. Then I cut holes out of the bag where the holes from the cardboard were. Then I grabbed some news paper and tore it into strips and glue it to the side with the exposed cardboard (this is optional but I find it reinforces the hinge of the book). While I let that dry I got my plain paper and cut it to size (8.5 x 5.5 inches) and then I measured 1 and 1/8 inch from the side and scored it (this is optional- it just helps the book open easier). In that area (the 1 and 1/8 inch area) is where you will punch your holes. To do this I took my book which was mostly dried now and places the paper flush with 3 sides and hole punched them (you can mark them first and then punch but I found this method more accurate for me). Once I had about 20 sheets I stopped. This will be your book guts.

Now that the book was dried I went on to decorating. For my book I got newspaper and ripped it into thin strips and made a tree branch design gluing it down with a glue stick. Next I took my scrap brown paper and crumbled it up as much as I could and then using my craft knife cut out leaf shapes and placed them where they looked best to me. Then I sketched some bird sillouettes and cut them out with my craft knife then glued them onto thick cardboard I got from the flaps of a box. Cut them out again (this was just to give it some dimension) and hot glued them in place.

Once all the decorating was done I lined up my pages and book cover and got a thick rubber band and worked each end into the holes of all the pages and both covers (to do this I used the end of my small scissors to push it through and then a fabric pin to get it out- you can use whatever is available to you- like chopsticks or pliers). Once it was out I placed my pencil in there to hold it while I got a stick from the yard (which I had cut and sanded- this is optional you can leave it natural if you want but my stick was far too big so I had to cut it down). Then I switched my pencil and stick and voila a beautiful handmade recycled journal.