New Year Planner

Over the last six-ish years, I’ve moved from a gridded bullet journal to the ready-made Leuchtturm weekly planners. (Of course I still use a paper agenda; you never know when you’re going to need to whip it out and take notes about something.)  Now that I know how to bind books, though, I thought I’d move back to a gridded bullet journal for 2024–one I MADE MYSELF:

 

Yet again we can thank Hollanders for this project: They have unsewn graph paper signatures, which come already folded and grouped. Unlike their ready-made text blocks, though, I did have to sew the signatures together:
(That black linen thread is giving off Frankenstein’s notebook vibes, but it’s what I had on hand.)

 

But the best part about making your own text block? You get to add DECORATIVE ENDPAPERS! Imagine the print mixing possibilities. I added endbands, too, because always add more pattern:

 

I also put in a pen loop, just sewing a loop into foldover elastic and tucking it between the back cover board and the endpaper.

 

I’m in love with the cover paper–mountains and colors, some of my favorite things. It’s katazome paper (bought here) which is stenciled and resist dyed, vs the chiyogami paper I’m more familiar with, which is silkscreened. Either way, it’s great and I wish it were available on fabric, too.