Katrina of Rhapsody Letterpress here with a little paper tutorial this morning! Looking for a fun, inexpensive and personal teacher appreciation gift? These homemade monogram notepads are an easy and pretty project you can make with relatively basic supplies you probably already have at home. Pair it with some cute pencils and a nice thank you note, and you will have a personal and practical gift that your kid's teacher would actually use. Check it out!
First, set up your monogram layout on your computer using Word or a design program and print 50 sheets. Remember to print on paper the size you want to make notepads, or cut it down after printing. 4x6 or 5x7 are good standards sizes that most printers can print. I have a guillotine cutter, so I printed on letter paper and cut it down to 4x9 after binding.
Gather the remainder of your supplies. You will need binder or bulldog clips, cardstock that is cut to the same size as your paper, and rubber cement.
Collate your paper, sandwiching the card stock on the top, the printed paper in the middle, and two pieces of card stock on the bottom. Tap the end of the stack on the table to create a flat edge, then use the binder clips on both sides to secure a tight binding.
Brush on a liberal layer of rubber cement, and place more binder clips over the area you just glued to keep the edge tightly bound. Allow the rubber cement to dry, and do another layer, placing the binder clips on again to let it dry once more.
Repeat on each notepad. Allow the cement to dry until it is no longer tacky to the touch, about two hours.
Once the rubber cement has dried completely and set (overnight or twenty-four hours), carefully peel off the top and bottom layer of card stock, and there you have it! (I used my guillotine to cut mine down in this step.)
Pat yourself on the back for being so thoughtful and crafty! Your teachers are going to love it!
