Day 10 - Mini Storybooks

Welcome back, friends! This month we're working on 31 handmade gifts for everyone on your list. You can find links to the full series here.

Yesterday's project was travel coloring kit for kids. Today we're making something that would make a great addition to that set, but is also a fun gift on it's own.

These guys are super easy and incredibly cheap to make. They're just small books of blank pages begging to be filled with drawings and stories. They encourage kids to get creative!

You can make up a whole set in no time! We'll make two different sizes today to give you more options. These make great stocking stuffers, or can be paired with colored pencils or markers for a fun gift set.

Seriously, you hardly need anything to make these. Here's your shopping list:

• 8.5 x 11 white card stock (or whatever color you want the pages to be)
• colored card stock for the binding
• mod podge
• stapler

For the smaller size, start by cutting your cardstock in half width-wise. I used four sheets for each book, but you can use more or less.

Stack the four sheets and fold them in half like this:

Now open it up and put a couple staples along the crease to hold it together.

If you don't have a long enough stapler, just open the stapler up and staple straight down into a large eraser.

Flip it over, pull the eraser off, and fold the ends of the staple down. I did three staples per book.

Now cut out your bindings. I made mine 5.5" tall and 2" wide.

Fold them in half lengthwise.

Coat the wrong side with mod podge.

And wrap it around the the folded edge of your book to give it a binding look.

Cover the story book with plastic (in case any modpodge squeeze out... you don't want it to stick to anything!) and put something heavy on it while it dries over night.

To make a larger book, just stack four full sheets of paper and fold them in half without cutting them. Staple along the crease just like you did with the mini books.

Cut out a binding. This time I did 8.5" tall by 2" wide.

Fold the binding in half, mod podge it on, wrap it in plastic, and put something heavy on it while it dries.

And you're done! For an even bigger book you could use 12 x 12 cardstock folded in half and make the binding 12" tall by 3 or 4" wide. And if you want you can use a ruler to add some lines on each page for story writing (try more lines for older kids).

Seriously, guys, this might be the easiest thing you make this year.

So go whip up a bunch of them for every kid you know. You never know who will be the next great author! :)