Messy Monday: How to Make a Notepad

Here's a fun notepad tutorial for you - super easy and you probably have all the supplies in your house.  I'm going to show you how to make your own notepads.  Why would you want to make a notepad?  You can recycle your computer paper - keep a stack of paper that you would normally recycle or toss - when you have a stack of about 10-20 sheets, you can make a notepad using the clean side of the paper to use by the phone or for your kids to doodle on.   You can print out lists multiple times and turn that stack of lists into a notepad.  Print multiple shopping lists, make them into a notepad, glue a magnet strip on the back and you have a refrigerator shopping list.  Make mini-notepads as birthday gifts for your child's friends or as party favors.  How about  mommy notepads for your friends as gifts?  Really, the ideas are endless, but I'm sure you'd rather just get to the tutorial.

Here are the supplies that you'll need:

• sheets of paper that you want to turn into a notepad 
• paper cutter (or your local print shop - have the copies printed and cut there)
• Elmer's Glue-All, rubber cement, or padding compound (what the pro's use, but really Elmer's works great)
• a piece of cardboard or cardstock for the back
• I like to use a drop of food coloring to dye the binding and make it a bit more funky, but not necessary
• paintbrush
• clips to hold the paper together while you are adding the glue
• something heavy to weigh it all down

Ready?  I'm going to demonstrate making a notepad with a chart that I made for my daughter (they are in the CleanMamaPrintables Shop if you are interested and want to make your own Chore Chart Notepad). 

I printed out 10 charts which will make a 40 sheet notepad.

Cut all of these sheets of paper in half (my chore charts have a line on them so they are easy to cut in half).

Then cut these sheets in half again  - if you are starting with an 8.5 x 11 inch  sheet of paper this notepad will be  4.25 x 5.5 inches.

Cut a piece of cardstock of cardboard to fit the back of the pad of paper - 4.25 x 5.5 inches in this case.

Use some type of clip (like a bulldog clip) to hold both sides of the paper in place while you are applying the glue.  I used these clips that I had (my bulldog clips were too small).

Pour a little bit of glue into a disposable or washable cup.  I added a drop of food coloring to mine so, a.) you can see it in the pictures and, b.) it looks a bit funkier.  Wet a paintbrush a bit and mix the glue up with the food coloring.  

Carefully paint the binding on the top of your notepad(s).  Paint a couple coats until it looks a notepad.  Don't worry if you get the glue on the top sheet because you can take that off when it's dry.

Carefully take off the clips and put a sheet of paper or waxed paper over the top and place something heavy on the top to weigh it down for an hour or two.

My daughter and I got a little carried away with clips and embellishments and decided to cover some clothespins and dress up the metal clip.  A little glue gun and some craft supplies and we lose track of the objective of the project.  Here's the same notepad with a metal clip (magnet attached to the back so it'll hang on the 'fridge) and some clothespins with ribbon, fabric and paper ribbon.  Fun things to add if you are giving these notepads as a gift.  You could also decoupage a clipboard and  make a notepad for it - fun for you, fun for a gift!  Maybe a little clipboard for the smaller lists and chore charts and a larger one for weekly stuff. 

I'm linking this post up to my favorite linky parties this week.  Stop by and check them out!