Over the Christmas break, I wanted to take some time for creative play. It’s a meandering that doesn’t have a real purpose but almost always ends up being productive. I was eyeing my sketchbooks in a pile by my desk and decided it was time to do something with those black, faux leather covers. I know, for some people, the exterior of a sketchbook or notebook isn’t a big deal, but I have found that aesthetics are important to me when it comes to creative work. If a sketchbook feels in tune with my style, it’s more enjoyable to work in. The other end of that spectrum is if a sketchbook is too expensive and feels too precious, then I am not as free in it. I put way too much pressure on myself to do “good work” that the purpose of the sketchbook, which is practice, play, and experiment, is mostly lost. So, a good solution is to buy a cheap sketchbook I can work in with abandon, customizing it to make it irresistible to use.
I pulled out pretty papers, fabrics, ribbons, scissors, and glue and started to play. It was mostly experimental but the result was successful. I loved how it turned out and felt inspired to start working in a sketchbook that had been neglected for a few months. I always reached for the sketchbook with the navy cover and customized ribbon marker.
Now these sketchbooks, which cost under $4.00/each on sale, are absolutely perfect. They are now the right combination of being pretty but not overly precious. I’ve since been sketching in them daily – master studies, life sketches, “homework” for art classes, and 1-2 minute gesture studies, which can fill pages pretty quickly.
I customized a few sketchbooks, making each one unique, using a mix of heavy paper and fabric scraps.
I covered a few different kinds of sketchbooks, but the one I used for the video tutorial is from Hobby Lobby. I bought it in a pack of two that are normally priced at $14.99 but were on sale for 50% off. That made the cost of one sketchbook under $4.00 and I used fabrics, papers, and ribbons I already had on hand.
It’s quite a transformation…
customizing a sketchbook | project materials
- Sketchbook or notebook (I purchased THIS pair of sketchbooks on sale for just under $4/each)
- Yes! Paste
- Matte Medium
- LineCo Neutral Ph Glue
- Scissors (THESE are my favorite)
- A flat synthetic brush (3/4″ – 1″)
- Rigid putty knife for applying paste
- Papers (these should be on the thicker side.) I am using Wanderlust Paper Co papers for this project, but thick wrapping paper, wallpaper sample, or scrapbooking paper will work.
- Fabric (for the spine) – I used scraps I had from larger sewing projects
- Ribbons – I like woven jacquard ribbons. I’ve bought most of mine from Rosemille, but THIS Etsy shop carries some of the same ribbons.
customizing a sketchbook | video tutorial
This is one of those tutorials that is just easier to show how to make it in a video rather than explain it. There are some fiddly bits, like gluing in a new ribbon bookmark and affixing the fabric over the spine, but customizing a sketchbook is a very easy project…
customizing a sketchbook | additional tips
This is the kind of project that doesn’t have a right or wrong way. You can make adjustments, substitutions, and experiments. This is simply how I did it. But, here are a few tips I learned along the way that might be helpful as you play…
- You can substitute Matte Medium with a decoupage glue like Mod Podge.
- If you don’t have Yes! Paste, you can use Matte Medium or Mod Podge to glue down the paper and fabric. For me, it made the paper wrinkle, so I switched to the Yes! Paste.
- Yes! Paste is thick, so it’s best used under fabrics and paper that are thicker. If you’re using lightweight cotton or thin paper, just use the Matte Medium as the glue. I covered one notebook is cotton quilting fabric and that’s what I used.
- Make sure you like the paper in the sketchbook and it will work for the mediums you use. One sketchbook I have is terrible for ink and watercolors, which I like using, so I’m going to finish it and then not get another one. The $4.00 sketchbooks I feature in the video have pretty good paper for ink, graphite, and light washes, and do a good job for how I want to use them.
- While a book with a rigid cover and bound spine is the easiest to cover, I did cover a spiral notebook and I show how I did it in the video.
Aside from that, I would encourage you to have fun with it and gather papers, fabrics, and ribbons that make you smile. My gathering of goods made me smile and the sketchbooks I worked on make me smile as well. I covered two I’m currently using, but, while I had all of the materials out, I covered a few other sketchbooks to keep in reserve.
As I said at the beginning of this post, that’s how creative play works for me. Covering one sketchbook turns into a season of daily sketching, a YouTube video, a blog post, and covering more sketchbooks. I hope customizing your own sketchbook will have a similar effect on you and your creative work and play…
Thanks Marian. Love the video. Definitely will try this on some of my sketch and journal books.
Only thing I would add is to glue ribbon strips or another piece of paper to finish the inside covers.
I actually did that on one and had filmed it, but I deleted it. Yes, you can cover the inside of the cover, too, if you want. I like to leave it uncovered so I can write my name and the dates of the sketchbook.
Can you share where you purchased your scissors bag? ?
Thank you for the video and instructions. They all turned out so sweet and very non-boring!
These would also make great gifts! ?
Yes! I meant to say that! This would be a very thoughtful gift.
I am going to do this, thank you. How do you make those kinds of sketchbooks lay flat? I have issues with having to hold them open.
Thank you so much for bringing us along in your journeys.
I find these lay pretty flat, but when they are brand new and if I have that problem, I’ll use bull clips to hold the pages open. Once I work through the book a bit, though, it stays open well on its own.
I will use a large bulldog ( binder) clip
I like to use a popsicle stick or tongue depressor to apply glue as my palette knives are a bit too flexible. The popsicle stick is good for the crevice and won’t rip the fabric/paper like the knife might. If you put a piece of wax paper or parchment between covers the glue won’t stick to things. These are as charming as can be especially with your beautiful selection of papers and fabric.
The sketch books went from bland to positively lovely!! I’m sure it makes you want to.pull them out and admire them (and work in them!). Thanks for sharing!
Love these, Marian! These notebooks are so beautiful all stacked together too, with all of the different patterns. Thank you SO much for sharing this process! I was so excited this morning when I opened my e-mail to find you had posted a tutorial! ❤️? How do you think they would hold up if I wanted to get REALLLLY fancy and stitch the ends and edges with my sewing machine? Do you think that would make them too bulky?
Oh, I would definitely try it on at least one! If it doesn’t work well, nothing much was lost. Go for it!
So charming! You explained everything so well and made the project look very do-able.
Fun, attractive but not so precious you don’t want to use them.
Thank you! Life is more fun when we personalize what we do. The sketch books are just lovely. Can’t wait too get started!
This was great! Reminded me of covering our textbooks years ago. I use Yes past a lot. It works so wonderful when you use old credit cards. The more you work the paste on the surface, the more soft and smooth the paste gets.
You made a lovely project and explained it very clearly. Kathy R mentioned using wax paper. I thought of that too. But I am so frugal, that I even save the wax liners from cereal boxes and no longer buy waxed paper! I can even imagine using various kinds of heavy gift wrap, etc. I did note that you had a furry supervisor assisting you with the project. Too cute. Thanks for a delightful and well paced tutorial.
Thank you so much for the tutorial! Yours came out so lovely! I am with you that I am more inspired to create when the aesthetics are more like me:-) I am a beginner watercolor “artist” and this is a perfect way to be inspired. Thank you again for your lovely and creative ideas.
The kitty was too cute. And, another beautiful inspiring project. I am a fairly beginner watercolor “artist” and with this motivating blog I covered a new spiral watercolor/sketch pad with beautiful craft paper. Even just adding that, I can hardly wait to get started drawing and painting. Thank you so much.
Just Lovely!! I covered some journals when was younger – using some wallpaper scraps that my mom had at the time ?- I loved how they turned out! And LOVE your results with these! I will be trying this with some of my sketchbook fur sure! Thank you for sharing all the lovely things you do Marian ?
*When I was younger, …*sketchbookS …*for sure …?.
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Hi Marian! Thank you for your excellent instructions and extra advice and for taking the time to share this fun project! I really appreciate it. We are on our way in the Spring to Nantucket for the Daffodil Festival and I am making notebooks for all of the travelers to sketch, write memories and add photos later after the trip. You are so generous and helpful and I thank you in advance. And, to my delight, the notebooks are on sale at Hobby Lobby this week. God’s blessings, Jane