How to Add a Pen Holder to Your Journal
Adding a pen holder to your journal helps you spend time keeping track of your thoughts and experiences, rather than searching for a pen. If your journal has high quality binding, go for an attractive, discreet holder for your pen.
A loop of elastic along the spine will allow you to store nearly any style pen without making your journal awkward on the bookshelf. Choose an elastic color that coordinates best with your journal cover. To secure the pen holder, choose embroidery floss that complements the journal cover or a color that blends to keep the holder low profile.
Things You’ll Need
- One 3-inch-long, 1-inch-wide elastic strip
- 2 sewing pins
- Measuring tape
- Chalk
- 1/8 inch drill bit
- Drill
- Wood block
- Masking tape
- Crewel needle
- Embroidery floss
- Thick paper
- Scissors
- White glue
12 Steps to Add a Pen Holder to Your Journal
1. Fold 1/2 inch of each end of your elastic piece over along the elastic strip’s length and pin it in place.
This will leave you with a nice rounded edge rather than a fraying cut edge on your journal.
2. Measure down 2 inches from the top of your journal and mark the spine with chalk.
Wrap the elastic strip around the edges of your journal’s spine with the pinned ends facing the journal cover and top edge at your 2-inch mark.
3. Adjust the elastic until the edges are even in front and in back of your journal.
Stretch the elastic slightly, but don’t pull it to its maximum stretch. Mark all the way around the elastic with chalk, and then set the elastic aside.
4. Open your journal cover and set it on a wood block so the block supports the part of your journal beneath the chalk mark.
5. Drill four holes inside the chalk line, forming the corners of a square that is approximately 3/4 inches square and 1/8 an inch from the top, bottom and end of your chalk marks.
6. Remove any debris from the drilling and switch to the back cover.
Drill four holes with the same measurements inside the back cover’s portion of the chalk line.
7. Replace the elastic inside the chalk line.
Tape it in place with masking tape, if necessary, to keep it steady.
8. Thread a crewel (embroidery) needle with a 1-foot strand of embroidery floss (use the full floss thickness rather than separating the fibers).
Size 4 or 5 needles work best. Beginning from the inside of the front cover, sew the elastic to the cover through your holes, forming an “X” pattern on the journal cover.
9. Sew through each hole twice to reinforce your “X,” and then tie the threads tightly inside the journal cover.
10. Repeat the sewing process for the back cover and the other end of your elastic.
11. Cut two 1 1/2-inch squares of thick paper in a color that coordinates with the inside cover of your journal.
Spread white glue along one side of the paper’s surface and press a square onto the inside cover to completely hide the spot where the threads come through. Use the second square on the back cover.
12. Slide a pen into the elastic loop along your journal’s spine.
The elastic will help hold it in place even if your pen has no clip to grip the loop.
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