Hometown Cottage Collection Notebooks

I love the vintage charm of Ken Oliver's Hometown Cottage Collection! The pretty papers in the collection are inspired by the sweet little cottages and nostalgic picket fences of Newburgh, IN. This beautiful little town lies just across the river from my own home, and has long been a favorite destination for my family and me. It's so exciting to see this lovely place documented for the world to see.

As much as I love the photorealistic images of cottages and historic sites on the front of the papers, I am equally drawn to the patterns on the other side. The muted colors and classic prints remind me of vintage wallpapers, and I thought they would be perfect for a set of pretty notebooks to help me stay organized.

Only a few simple elements are needed to create these pamphlet stitch booklets. The notebooks I created are 4 x 6, but you can make them in any size you wish. Here are the materials you need to make your own:

Hometown Cottage Collection

• Picket Fence
• Front Porch
• Welcome Home
• Ephemera

Ken Oliver Pegz Upper case Set

Ken Oliver Click It Ink Pad Lamp Black

Paper for the Inside Pages (I used inexpensive copy paper)

Mica (Optional)

Vintage French Flashcard

Cream Waxed Linen Thread

Binding Needle (I used a tapestry needle with a large eye)

Glue Stick

Sharp Scissors

Paper piercer

Paper Clips

Instructions:

• For a 4 x 6 notebook the cover needs to be trimmed to 8" wide and 6 inches high and then folded in half.
• For the inner pages you will need 10 sheets of paper cut to 7 3/4" wide and 6 inches high. Fold the pages in half.

*Note: I like to trim the inner pages slightly smaller than the covers so that they will fit neatly inside. 

• Nest the inner pages into the cover and use paperclips to secure. 
• Use an awl, a pushpin, or a paper piercer to punch 3 holes in the pages and the cover.
• Cut a 12'' length of cream waxed linen thread and stitch the book together.

*Click here for a link to a helpful diagram for the 3-Hole Pamphlet Stitch.

• Embellish the notebooks as you wish. I used a piece cut from the Ephemera sheet, a piece of mica, a vintage french flashcard, and a book band. The band is made by trimming a complementary piece of paper to 1 1/2" high by 8" wide and connecting it around one of the notebooks with a bit of glue stick. The glue stick also works well for the mica and other decorative bits and pieces. 

I hope you enjoyed this fun project for Ken Oliver Crafts. These notebooks are perfect for jotting down random thoughts, sketching on the go, making lists, and more. They also make sweet gifts and can be mass produced very easily. Be sure to stop by Ken Oliver's blog for more inspiring ideas!