The holiday season is here and the time for gift giving has arrived. Why not spend a little time creating items that are made especially for the recipient? Custom-made journals are the perfect gift for most anybody on your list.I used floral wallpaper to cover my journals, and then embellished them with ribbon, costume jewelry and glitter. Adding tags, photos and a personal message makes each one unique and customized for each recipient. Crafting these journals is great fun for the whole family. Children can use their decorated journal as a school notebook, sketchbook or diary.Gather:Inexpensive hard-cover notebooksHeavy paper (wallpaper, heavy scrapbook paper or fabric work well)RulerPencilScissorsSpray adhesiveGlitterRibbonCostume jewelryPersonal embellishmentsFabri-tac or other strong adhesiveCreate:1. Open your book and place it face up on the piece of paper or fabric you will be covering it with. Using the ruler, draw a line around it approximately 1 inch larger than the book itself.2. Cut the paper or fabric along that line.3. Cut each corner on the diagonal about a 1/4 inch away from the notebook.4. Coat the back of the paper or fabric with spray adhesive.5. To fold the paper or fabric all around the book, you will have to cut a straight line above and below the spine. Starting with the front cover, fold and glue the top and bottom 1 inch to the inside of the cover. Then fold in and glue the paper along the height of the book. Repeat for the back cover.To personalize your newly covered journal, you can add additional decorative papers or fabrics with glue. I used bookbinding tape and fabric along the outer spine of my journal for extra reinforcement. You can also cut out heavy paper to be a little smaller than the cover of your notebook and glue it into the inside of the front cover. Doing this hides the raw edges of the folded outer cover and creates another surface to embellish.Receiving a beautiful journal will make your friends and family feel special any time of the year.(Dena Fishbein hosts the television show "Embellish This!" aired on the DIY Network. To ask her how to embellish anything, e-mail her at dena(at)denadesigns.com or visit www.diynetwork.com.)
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