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Blessings Journal Tutorial

A lovely reader requested a tutorial for the gratitude journal mentioned in this post…she’s probably already made hers by now, but here is a simple how-to in case anyone might be interested!  
Here are the supplies you’ll need:
  1. A composition notebook (I got these very cheaply during the back-to-school sales).
  2. Cardstock and/or scrapbook paper.
  3. Glue (Tacky glue and/or glue stick).
  4. Rubber stamps and ink pad (optional).
  5. Stickers, buttons, ribbon, lace, or other items to decorate with (optional).
  6. Pencil or pen.
  7. Scissors.
First, I used a piece of cardstock to cover the front of the notebook:
I just align the edge of the paper with the edge of the journal and trace around it with a pencil:
Next, I cut out around the traced line (sharp scissors work better than these child’s scissors I’m using here, but I just grabbed these..):
I use tacky glue on the back side of the cardstock and then apply it to the front of the notebook:
You can repeat the above steps for the back of the journal if you want it covered also.  
I decided I wanted some ribbon on the edge, so I first applied some fray check to keep the ribbon from fraying and then set it aside to dry:
You can decorate the front any way you wish, with whatever looks good to you:
Now the ribbon is applied and the front is decorated:
I also like to cover up the inside of the front cover.  I grabbed a piece of scrapbook paper and got it lined up where I wanted it:
Then I traced around the notebook, cut out around the traced line, and glued it down:
Here is the finished inside:
And here is the front of the journal:
Enjoy!  I also wanted to note that there might be other or even better ways to do this.  This is just something I came up with after seeing similar journals.  I made this for one of my daughters this afternoon, and then she spent a happy time decorating the inside pages with rubber stamps and markers.  She’ll probably also add stickers later.  The possibilities for this idea are limitless (prayer notebook, diary, blessing book, travel diary, etc.).

18 Comments

  1. You have a lovely blog!!! Thank you for linking -up. We have made these handy journals once at a party, and it was a hit, but I need to actually start writing in it and keeping track of God's gracious care 🙂
    It is so nice to get to meet like-minded ladies. I will be back 🙂

  2. You're welcome, Mary! My children made some more this afternoon, and they had such a great time.

    I know what you mean about wishing life would slow down. I have been thinking of hibernating also. Time is just passing too quickly.

  3. Thank you my friend for showing us how you make your gratitude books. I am hoping once my craft fair is done this week end I can spend some lovely time making one for myself…and maybe as gifts for some friends. [o= Can't wait for life to slow down. I am dreaming of hibernating for the winter. [o;

    Thank you once again.

    Blessings in Him<><
    -Mary

  4. Deanna,
    Thanks!

    Beth,
    Your blessings journal during a difficult time in your life sounds like it was such a blessing!

    Alana,
    Thank you so much for visiting! I'll have to check out your post!

    Grace Mae,
    My husband gave me the stamps, and I think he got them from an online auction. Sure, you can borrow them!

    Collette,
    You're so right! My daughter is making some for gifts this afternoon!

    Elisa,
    Thank you so much for visiting, and for your kind words!

  5. Hi! I have had a "Blessings" journal that I used so much when I was a single mommy. Since so many things in our lives were hard, I started writing down little things that happened that were blessings. Lots of BIG things happened that were blessings, also, but sometimes I concentrated on everyday things that God did for us. It was so nice to have my little daughters tell me things to write down and now I can go back and read how God took care of us in those days. Thanks for the tutorial!
    Beth

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