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Decorate Your Planner – Introduction
This article is going to be me sharing my tips and tricks that I have learned along the way so that you can decorate your planner with ease.
Maybe you have made your own planner, or maybe you have bought one that is just a little dull for you. And now you find yourself asking – How do I spruce up my planner?
These 10 ways to creatively make your planner dreamy will be just what you need. Let me know if you find them helpful.
1. Start with the cover
How do you decorate a planner cover?
If you are brave you can go right in with a marker and decorate it but I think there are easier options.
For example, if you have an A5 planner and you find the cover a bit boring – you can design your own planner cover on Canva or another program.
Once you have your design you can buy A4 – full page – sticker paper, print your design and add it over an existing cover. Bear in mind you might have to leave a small margin uncovered at the spine depending on the binding type.
You could also cut out or buy individual stickers or use the other tips in this article, but add them to the cover.
If you are making your planner cover from scratch you might want to read:
Sustainable Planning: Create Your Own Eco Friendly Planner [Discbound]
2. Planner stickers
How to use planner stickers?
Honestly, I don’t have a whole lot of experience with stickers as they are personally not my favorite way to decorate a planner. But having said that they are hugely popular with others in the planning community so they absolutely need to be talked about.
I thing a great way to use them is along with pens and markers to give them a truly unique look.
You can also create your own – check out this fun guide from love from mim.
3. Washi Tapes
Oh I do love a good washi tape.
I am still building my collection, so I only have a few plain color tapes, but they are so easy to use and give a great straight line to your page.
I have some that are really thin, it’s basically like having a thick line, but they are metallic – gold, silver and a few more. They just add so much to a page, even as a border on the outside of the page. It’s a great result.
4. Stencils
There are some who feel they cannot do art – that is quite ok.
There are people whose business it is to make stencils that we can use and create art without needing to produce it from our own skills.
I love stencils, I love using them and then coloring in the work after.
One type of stencil I especially find useful are alphabet stencils. I am not great with calligraphy and fonts so I find these quite helpful.
5. Fonts
Ok, let’s go straight to that topic of fonts. You can really decorate and stylize a planner by using creative fonts.
I have seen many people make digital versions of a quote or the month or week name, then print it out and add it into their planner as a sticker.
So even if, like me, you don’t feel like you do a great job of making elaborate titles with cool fonts, there are ways of doing it.
A great point about this one is that even if you have a dated planner, you can print out a different title and add it as a sticker over your existing title. Win – win, it is now your style and more functional for you.
6. Markers
People ask ‘How do I make my planner look pretty?’
Use MARKERS!
They need to be water based so they don’t bleed through your page. But you can use your specific dream colors and make your planner extremely unique for you.
You can use them to border boxes, underline, or add to existing decoration.
You can use one color per month for a nice simple and classic look, or you can go crazy with decorating every page differently – it’s your dream planner remember.
Also some people wonder – should I write in pencil in my planner?
The answer is that you can write in marker if you want! You can choose what medium you write in that works for you. It’s your planner and you choose the mediums.
7. Stamps
Stamps are a fantastic way to add a little decoration to your planner – it’s so quick and easy.
I love an Instagrammer called ‘My Daily Bullet’ who uses stamps and then colors in the stamps. It creates such a fun effect.
Especially if you want to know how to decorate a weekly planner – stamps are just such a quick and easy option.
I highly recommend stamps for those who are short on time but are wanting a specific planner look.
Also a tip with stamps – instead of using an ink pad – you can use a brush tip maker to add the ink to the stamp. How cool is that?
8. Patterns
Do you want to customize a planner but not have to draw or add things – then use patterns. I am a pattern girl – I love a geometric pattern.
I sometimes just add some vertical and horizontal lines in different thicknesses that creates a check pattern behind my work. It really works to make my planner look pretty.
You can decorate your planner with circles, swirly lines or any kind of pattern which will add a little something to your planner.
9. Doodles
You don’t have to be an amazing artist to decorate your planner with doodles. There are plenty of ‘how to’ guides on creating simple drawings that you can easily recreate.
My personal fave when it comes to doodles is to use nature as inspiration. I actually also find it easier to draw from a real picture rather than from another doodle sometimes, but that could be just me.
10. Cut-outs
Finally, my last suggestion to decorate your planner is to use your scissors – it’s not expensive.
Many create beautiful Dutch-door cut outs in their planner.
It’s a great addition to adding a personal touch.
You can also use a small blade and cut out designs or windows into your planner pages and create some super cute customization for your planner.
Conclusion
So which do you use to decorate your planner?
Will you try using some more ideas from this article?
I absolutely love getting your feedback – so don’t hesitate to let me know what you think is the best way to decorate your planner.
Thanks so much for reading, I appreciate you and your time,
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