Daily Grind Designs: Craft Warehouse - Pink Paislee, Daily Junque Gratitude Journal

GRINDER5.40, a photo by craftwarehouse on Flickr.

This mini book would be perfect for a gift or to use for yourself as a great way to store up your thoughts of thanksgiving. I removed the pages from the spiral binding and cut some pages short and printed a top ten list for each month as well as a gratitude quote. Each 2 page spread has been dedicated to a month (April-Dec 2011). This way, each week I can note a few things to be thankful for, include pictures, etc. There are hidden pockets throughout the book to tuck in special notes, journal entries, ticket stubs, lists, etc. One of my favorite techniques is to hide my journaling in pockets. I use a circle punch and punch out a half circle to reveal the hidden pocket. Half circles along the edge of a page works perfectly for holding twine in place too! I used clothespins on some of my hidden notes so they are easy to pull out. I also used parchment paper throughout the book. I used Microsoft Word and set the page/paper size the same as the pages I cut down (I think the pages are 4.5 x 6). I was sure to set the margins to .3" and the left margin to .5" on the pages with the month/list so the numbers weren’t' t too close/hidden by the spiral.

Front page

April

I used some Smartphone pictures, edited them in Photoshop and had them printed as mini wallets at Costco.

These little pictures are fun to work with in a mini album!

A hidden pocket on April's page.

What happened to Jan-Mar? I wanted my design team project to give people an idea for a great gift - a journal like this can be made anytime of the year! Let the first page be the current month and either make the journal go through to the end of the year or maybe your book can go for 12 months. Options are endless!