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diy journal cover

By Brooke Riley 8 Comments

28 Apr
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I’m not sure about you, but I’m ALWAYS on the hunt for cute, colorful notebooks. They’re one of those things that I have an obsession with… and when I see a new one, I get it. If we’re being honest, can you REALLY have too many notebooks?!

This “tutorial” is more for inspiration- so you can see just how easy it is to turn something that was once plain into something more your style… so, let’s get INSPIRED!

What you’ll need:

  • Any plain notebook
  • watercolor paint
  • paint brushes
  • lettering stencil
  • one sheet of watercolor paper
  • washi tape
  • mod podge
  • mod podging the watercolor paper onto the notebook
  • placing the watercolor paper onto the notebook

The very first thing to do is to rip a piece of watercolor paper to fit the cover of your journal! Ripping it gives it the jagged edges- which is the look I was going for!

Once you have it the right size, you can use a foam brush (or any brush) to mod podge it on!

The next step involves these stencils! You can find lots of different stencils at any craft store- but this specific one came from Michaels!

  • stenciling the paint onto the watercolor paper
  • stenciling the paint onto the watercolor paper

All I did was cut out the letters I wanted to use- in this case, I was spelling out “you are enough”.

I decided to use watercolor paints, but feel free to use acrylic paint, markers… anything!

how to make a journal cover

After you stencil out your letters, it’s time for you to get creative!!! I wanted to add a few little embellishments here and there… what you see here is a strip of fabric I ripped to size, and just mod podged on!

Up in the corner, I just added a few little strips of washi tape! You can also see where I just splattered some paint around the paper, and outlined my letters with my posca paint pens.

  • how to make a journal cover
  • how to make a journal cover

Here’s what I came up with!!! It was fun to just get creative with it- so I hope this has inspired you to GET CREATIVE!

Shop the items used!

click the image to shop! *affiliate links are used

  • Foam Brushes
  • Mod Podge
  • Watercolor Paint
  • Journal
  • Stencils
  • Washi Tape

MAKE SURE TO PIN!

Last Updated on April 28, 2021

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Comments

  1. Leslie Watkins says

    April 28, 2021 at 6:10 pm

    Love this journal!!

    Reply
  2. Brenda Smith says

    April 15, 2023 at 5:31 pm

    Great idea!❤️

    Reply
  3. Sarah Carter says

    April 15, 2024 at 3:36 pm

    So cute. My Granddaughters would love this!

    Reply
  4. Bev Nelson says

    February 1, 2025 at 9:23 am

    Great idea, I love it!

    Reply
    • Brooke Riley says

      February 4, 2025 at 11:20 am

      Thank you ????

      Reply
  5. Mandy Williams says

    April 14, 2025 at 8:30 pm

    I have a thing about notebooks. I use technology but I love pen & paper. Your journal is super cute and I can’t wait to try one!

    Reply
  6. Amy Humphries says

    June 9, 2025 at 10:00 am

    I also love a good notebook! This makeover was perfect and the message is something a lot of us, myself included need to hear. Thank you for the idea!

    Reply
    • Brooke Riley says

      June 17, 2025 at 3:24 pm

      It’s one of my favorite things! Thank you!

      Reply

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Brooke Riley

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Hey y'all! I am Brooke, and I am SO glad you have dropped by my blog! Re-fabbed is a site designed to bring you everything from decorating on a budget to fun and easy DIY projects, with a few deep thoughts in between. I LOVE to share my journey through this crazy life!

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