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A couple of weeks ago I posted 4×6 monthly & weekly diy planner templates and then the 4×6 Index Card Folder Tutorial. Below is a tutorial to create the little booklet made from 4×6 Index Cards that fits in the little folder!

Supplies

Directions

First, make sure your printer is set-up to print on 4×6 Index Cards – do a test run on a scrap sheet with the first page of the months-booklet.pdf (11234 downloads) . When it’s ready put 7 Index Cards in the printer and open the print dialog box. It might not look like my example but there should be a spot to select Odd Pages Only.

This will print pages 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13. When finished take your stack of cards, flip them over and put them back in the printer – making sure they’re the right direction. Then go into the print dialog and select Even Pages Only and print. This will print pages 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14 on the other side of the Index Cards.

The first time I printed the booklet I used scrap paper and light/grayscale ink to test – especially since every printer is different. Also, if you want to print the calendar out and NOT make a booklet don’t use the above PDF – the left side doesn’t match up with the right side. :)

Once they’re all printed, fold each sheet in half. Use a bone folder, scissors or fat marker to smooth out the crease and get it nice and flat. Stack them all together and double check that they are in the right order. When looking at your opened stack the bottom page should be January then February, March, April, May, June and July. The first decorative page of the PDF will be the outside of the booklet.

When they’re stacked together, a glance from the top down will show you how uneven the edge of the booklet is. This is because of the width of the spine and varies depending on the thickness of your paper. I like to push the pages together and trim the edge of the booklet so it’s even.

I then went through every corner of the booklet and rounded it off, the inside corners too. This is optional!

Now it’s ready to bind together! A quick search on google will show you a million different ways to do this – since I’m lazy and love my sewing machine I just opened the stack up and stitched right down the middle to attach them all together.

I wanted to add some little tabs for fun, they’re mostly decorative and honestly don’t help with much functionally. I made a little mark on each page getting lower with each one. I then cut off a small slice below each mark down to the bottom. Redo the rounded punch on the bottom corner of each page and that’s it!

A simple 4×6 index card folder tutorial to hold your monthly, weekly and meeting diy planner templates!

This folder is very similar to the DIY Cardboard Binder, just a little smaller with binder clips and velcro instead of binder rings and elastic.

Supplies

  • Two sheets of heavy decorative scrapbook paper
  • Sewing machine or glue
  • Two binder clips
  • Small piece of velcro

Plans

4x6 velcro Index Card binder dimensions

Directions

Because the length of the folder needs to be 17 inches, I sewed some cut up 12×12 scrapbook sheets together to get there. If you have a sheet of 17″ paper or cardboard skip the first 4 steps and just cut two pieces of 4×17 rectangles.

  1. Take the 12×12 scrap book paper and cut it into 2 strips of 4 by 12.
  2. Cut two more pieces to 4 x 6.
  3. Take one 4×12 and one 4×6 and lay it out so that it’s 4×17 – giving you an inch overlap for gluing or sewing. This will be the inside of your folder.
  4. Repeat for the outside.
  5. Attach the front and back with glue or by sewing around the edges. Sewing gives the paper a more flexible and sturdy feel, it’s also fun to use the stitches as part of the design.
  6. At this point, you should have a double sided 4×17 rectangle. Mark lightly where the folds will go – see the dimensions diagram above. Finish decorating by drawing, stitching, painting, adding stickers or sprinkling with fairy dust! Keep in mind that we still have to make the folds, so your decoration should hold up to this.
  7. Next, add the three folds – hold a ruler against the fold mark on your desk and push the flap up against it, this will give you a nice straight fold. My paper split on one side during folding so I went over the fold with a wide zig zag stitch to reinforce the edges.
  8. The last step is to add velcro. Stitch one piece onto the inside right flap, then close the folder and line up the other side on the outside flap.

And you’re done! Use the binder clips to hold two stacks of 4×6 index cards (or the booklet pictured, tutorial and download here!) on each side.

Amanda Hawkins

Amanda Hawkins

Take care of little humans,
stare at tiny computer,
scribble on paper,
daydream.
Maker of DIY Planners and 🎨 artist; front-end web developer and designer well-versed in CSS & WordPress. Make music with RBK & as Love Morris. Check out littlebird.ahhh.co if you're interested in hiring me for WordPress dev. Subscribe to a newsletter I never send out. Connect on Instagram & Twitter.

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