Positively Splendid {Crafts, Sewing, Recipes and Home Decor}

Handcrafted. Splendidly.

Memory Book Desk Calendar (Swell Noel #14)

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I cannot say enough how much I have appreciated knowing my blog has been in such great hands over the course of the last weeks for A Swell Noel. Haven’t the projects and ideas been absolutely fabulous so far??

I am thrilled to be here today to contribute my first project to the lineup!

I love giving and making photo gifts for family during the holidays. Because we live hundreds of miles from nearly all of our relatives, it feels good to give them something that can span that distance and keep them connected with my sweet kiddos. I made these Memory Book Desk Calendars as Christmas gifts to parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles a couple of years back, and they were a huge hit!
For this project, you will need…
Old cereal boxes or chipboard sheets
Word processing software and computer printer
White cardstock
Paper trimmer
Scrapbooking paper
Assorted scrapbooking embellishments: stickers, chipboard, stamps, ribbon, etc.
Scrapbooking adhesives
Book binding tool or metal jump rings

These little guys really are a breeze to put together. To start, create small calendars using the table function in your word processing software. I made my tables 7 columns wide and 4-6 rows high, depending on how the days of each month fell. Each table measured approximately 2×3″. Once they are created and formatted, print each calendar onto your white cardstock, and cut them out using your paper trimmer.

For the book, cut 13 4×4″ pieces from your cereal boxes or chipboard sheets. Cover each piece with a 4″ square piece of patterned paper. Punch holes along the left side of each page, and bind them together using your book binding tool or your jump rings.

Embellish the front cover of your book as desired. Open your book to the first set of facing pages. Starting with January, place your trimmed January calendar piece on one side, and embellish the facing page with photos and various embellishments. Continue in a similar fashion with the remaining pages/months.

That’s all there is to it!

These can be stood up and displayed throughout the year, and once the year has come to a close, they can be tucked away as a memento to enjoy in the future!

By the way…

Have you headed over yet to check out the page I have devoted entirely to A Swell Noel? If not, run – don’t walk! – over to add the page to your favorites. It includes a full pictorial guide of all of the projects shared so far so you can easily earmark your personal favorites to refer to when the creative holiday itch strikes! 

Also, you can keep up with Swell Noel details on Twitter by using the hashtag #ASwellNoel! 

Thanks so much for reading. And happy Friday!

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Linking this to…
Tatertots and Jello
Skip to My Lou
Today’s Creative Blog
Tip Junkie

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Melodiejoy says

    These are precious!! I’ve never attempted anything like this…but I think I will now…it just looks to fun to pass up ~ The question is can I narrow down my 4 kids photo’s to just 12? 🙂

  3. Jenna says

    This would be a great stash busting craft! Also, I have a bunch of greeting cards that I have saved up just because I like the pictures. That would work well for this too!

    Jenna
    callherhappy.com

  6. Amanda @ Serenity Now says

    Amy, that is absolutely adorable!! I think you would be such a fun neighbor to have. We could let our kids play while we did crafty stuff. 😉 I am so honored to be included in your holiday series this year!

  11. Kimmy says

    I just finished getting my actual calendars printed up, and Christmas presents are almost made for the grandparents now. Thank you so much for this idea! It works for any level of income and resources–you can go really elaborate or easily use those “scraps” and other leftovers you have on hand.

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