Do you love the look of all the transparent planner dividers & dashboards?! Did you know you most likely have the supplies needed to make them yourself at home?! Whether you use ringbound, discbound or strings, you can easily make these durable yet thin dividers in a few steps! I am going to go through today how you can DIY your own transparent planner dividers, dashboards & top loading pockets. All supplies you would need & products mentioned are linked at the bottom of this post for you!
So first, lets start by listing out all the supplies you will need to make these. You will need: a laminator, laminating pouches, loose vellum sheets (optional), a paper trimmer & scissor, a hole punch (or whatever your planning system requires).
Let’s get started! (Note: If you are not using the vellum and you opt for just straight laminate, you will be skipping this first step!) You are first going to cut your vellum to fit your planner. However, depending on if you are doing top tabs or side tabs, YOU MUST LEAVE EXTRA for a tab. So if your inserts size is 3×5 and you want a side tab, you will cut your vellum to be 3.25 x 5 (or whatever measurement you prefer). Then with some measuring you will cut all your vellum to have tabs by cutting the excess off but leaving a tab. You can also round the corners at this point if you prefer that look. I realize this step might be confusing to read so you can watch my video below for a visual of step by step instructions on how to make these.
Next, after you have all the vellum cut to the correct size with their tabs, you will need to decide if you want labels on your tabs before laminating or after. I personally like to put my sticky label tabs on AFTER laminating because life is always changing and things that are in my planner right now may not be relevant in a few months and there will be things in the future that I will need to add in. So I enjoy having the flexibility to change my labels when I need to. Once you decide your labels, you can get your laminate pouch ready. You will want to lay your vellum (& you can even do these with scrapbook paper, cardstock, anything you want!) in the laminate pouch. I find the easiest way to do this is to make sure they are all lined up pretty evenly but with enough space in between for the laminate to seal itself. This makes the cutting process much easier. Now, with the folded side first, run your laminate pouch through your laminator.
Once finished laminating, you will need to trim them. Be sure when trimming you leave a very slight edge of laminate so it does not unseal itself. I personally like rounded corners but if you went with another style, be sure to follow the same lines when trimming. If you did not use vellum or any other material and decide to do straight laminate, at this point you will do the earlier step of how we cut the vellum.
Taadaa! You now have transparent dividers! You will just need to punch them to fit your planner mechanism or if you are using strings, you will want to cut them so that two dividers are attached to each other with a little/laminate in between so you can wrap around your TN inserts. Easy Peasy! I love making these because they are thin and do not bulk up your planner but very durable and hold up great. I also love how customizable they can be made. You can always print a design or photo onto your vellum or use scrapbook paper or photographs or anything you want to make your planner unique! That’s the best part about planners other than their functionality!
You can also use these same supplies (minus the vellum) to make a top loading interchangeable dashboard or pouch. The steps to make this are also in the YouTube video linked above, towards the end of the video. These are great for holding receipts, photos, stickers, money, paper, anything! Use as a little folder system or money system in your planner or as an interchangeable dashboard that you can print your favorite images and stick in so they stay protected & look finished. You can even make these with side or top tabs so they are dividers and a pocket in one! If you are interested in how to make these just click the video above 🙂
Hope you all enjoyed this post & video if you had a chance to watch it. If you make them please tag me on instagram @_planwithbee_ so I can check them out! I’d love to see all your creative ideas & how you utilize these items.
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