Exploring the Best Planner Cover Supplies for Creative Crafters

[This blog post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small amount from your purchase, but it does not affect your purchase price]

Are you a creative crafter who has set out to make their own planner? Then you at some point will be looking for the best planner cover supplies. Welcome to the article you need!

Table of Contents

Planner Cover Supplies – Introduction

This is the one place I got stuck in my planner making journey. Don’t let it happen to you!!

You might have the paper inserts set up as you like them, but what about the cover! How do you get the planner cover that you want.

Well, I am going to help you to create it. The first step in this process is, of course, getting the right supplies and equipment to make your planner cover.

Hopefully this blog post, will get the creative juices flowing and you will be one your dream planner journey in no time.

Options of Planner Cover Materials

Buying a pre-made cover

This post is going to be mostly about crafting a custom planner cover, but since we are talking about planner cover supplies, I have to share with you this option.

Many people go for a happy planner cover like this:

HAPPY PLANNER COVER

This is a disc bound planner, which means if you are making your own inserts you will need the correct hole puncher too.

There are also many options for buying ready to go ring bound planner covers in leather and other materials. Try here.

Printable planner cover

Yes you can actually print your own covers.

It is the next experiment I am going to be trying, to print on adhesive a4 labels and then attaching that to some thicker card.

Another option that many people do is print their design on nice paper and then laminate it for that gloss cover feel.

This way you can do your own designs and have a completely custom planner cover.

Other material options

There are some amazing planner cover ideas out there.

One I particularly liked is this:

Picture of a board that uses washable kraft paper. Part of an article: Exploring the best planner cover supplies for creative crafters

It is washable kraft paper. You can get it here. It’s eco-friendly and affordable.

I found it very easy to glue on to card, but I do have to mention that it does add bulk, so if you are going to use hole punching machines for this, it might not fit. [I found this out the hard way]

Leather is another option. Sometimes you can get offcuts from binding companies. Cork is a good non-animal alternative.

Cardstock is a very good option now. There are places doing beautiful speciality card that is a simple and easier choice. Although if you get thicker cardstock, you may not be able to print on it.

Finally, another option is recycling what you have. I made some covers using cut up plastic covers from some file folders I got. They were made with recycled plastic and then I recycled that, so a real win – win.

Must have tools and equipment

Here is a list of things I think it is important to have to make a planner cover:

Eco-friendly adhesive
Your preferred binding choice
Ruler and pens
Cutting tools [scissors or some kind of guillotine]
Cover materials such as card, paper or other decorative elements.

Binding supplies

A big part of getting your planner right is choosing the right binding for you. Here are some options and the supplies you will need:

Ring Bound. You will need the ring binding mechanism, and the cover that it will attach to. Also a matching hole punch for the inserts.
Disc Bound. You will need the discs, some covers – back and front, then you will need a mushroom hole punch.
Notebook Style. I have made my own hardback bound notebook, but I am in no way an expert, so I will refer you to another source for this one. Check here.
Spiral Bound. You will need the correct spiral option with binding machine. You can get coil binders or wire spiral binders.

Maybe you want the right paper for your planner, check out: Choosing the Right Paper for Your Homemade Planner: No More Mistakes.

Custom Planner Cover Ideas

So you have a bit more idea of options.

I wanted to offer some ideas of things you could put onto a planner cover if you were designing it yourself.

Some options for planner cover ideas could be:

Geometric pattern
Favorite quote
An original art piece of your own
Nature inspired doodles
A simple border

WHAT SIZE IS A PLANNER COVER?

A planner cover can have standard sizes such as A5 [14.8x21cm], B5 [17.6x25cm], personal planner [9.5×17.1cm], or personal planner wide [12.1×17.1]. Some common planners like ‘the happy planner’ use 17.78×23.5cm.

It can take a bit of work getting the right size your own planner but there are lots of guides out there.

A border around the edge contains pictures of paints and stationery supplies. In the middle the title says: exploring the best planner cover supplies for creative crafters

Conclusion

Whether you want to make your own happy planner or whether you are a complete creative crafter and doing your planner in your own way and style there are options for you.

Don’t forget to check out your local options. Here in Dublin, I have an array of places that I can get my supplies for making my planner cover.

You can find beautiful planner cover materials, my favorites are ones that are both eco-friendly and not too expensive.

Check out this guide: Sustainable Planning: Create Your Own Eco Friendly Planner [discbound]

I really love to hear from you though, what are your favorite planner cover DIYS, where do you get your supplies and materials, and what mistakes have you made along the way?

I would so much appreciate if you commented below on your answers.

Thanks so much for being here, I hope you have fun checking out other posts and finding more inspiration for your BUILD YOUR PLANNER journey.

Happy planning my friends.