If you've been hoarding old calendars — or if someone has been handing them off to you because they know you'll find a use — this video is exactly what you've been waiting for. I go through five different project ideas using nothing but calendar pages, and the whole point is to use the calendar: the numbers, the grid, the handwriting, the images. No hiding what it is. That's where the charm lives.
What we cover
Five calendar upcycling projects — individual calendar squares turned into watercolored, stamped ephemera; pocket journaling cards that showcase the calendar grid; folded image pages with built-in tuck spots; calendar-strip bookmarks; and folded calendar image pages that work as journal inserts or covers. Along the way there are a few side ideas too, including a DIY removable calendar concept that kept distracting me throughout.
What you'll learn
How to turn individual calendar squares into mixed-media ephemera, including:
- Mounting squares onto a cereal box panel with double-sided tape so they stay removable — the same system I use for all my die cuts
- Applying watercolor over sleek calendar paper for a uniform, pulling effect
- Painting black or dark brown watercolor around the edges of each square rather than inking them separately
- Stamping over dried watercolor with archival ink — important if you want to add any water-based media afterward without everything smearing
- Working with squares that have handwriting in them (honestly, these often look better than the blank ones)
Why I apply watercolor to cut squares rather than the whole page first — painting individual squares gives you much better edge coverage. If you cut after painting, you'll have white cut edges. It takes longer, but the result is cleaner.
How to make a pocket journaling card from a calendar grid section, including:
- Inking the grid section to knock back the white
- Gluing a book page to the front to create a pocket while keeping the calendar numbers visible
- Applying parchment paper with a heavy hand of glue stick — parchment is a non-stick surface and needs the extra adhesion
- Backing with tea-dyed or coffee-dyed paper scraps and adding torn, inked edges for a vintage finish
- Embellishing the pocket with stitching, small stickers, or ephemera figures
How to make a folded calendar-image page with a built-in pocket and tuck spot, including:
- Folding the image panel in thirds and gluing the outer edges to create a tube with two openings
- Attaching to a journal page with one panel taller than the other, then folding down for a clean finish
- Covering the exposed panel with scrapbook paper offcuts rather than leaving the image bare
- Making quick tags from offcuts, rounding the shoulders, adding a washi tape accent, and threading with bakers twine
How to make calendar-strip bookmarks, including:
- Cutting out a grid section, inking it up, and adding a layer of stenciling
- Covering the whole strip with clear washi tape first to create a smoother surface for stickers
- Using large decorative stickers (dried flowers, butterflies) at an angle for an easy focal point
- Backing with a second strip or scrapbook paper if you want a clean reverse side
How to fold a calendar image into a journal page or cover, including:
- Folding the image in half so the calendar grid becomes the inside
- Covering the spine fold with washi tape before applying scrapbook paper — this is the key step that prevents bunching
- Covering each panel separately with scrapbook paper rather than one large sheet across both panels
- Using the finished piece as a loose journal insert, a card, or an additional page in an existing journal
Why the cereal box and calendar combination works so well — both materials are free, already in the recycling pile, and sturdy enough to hold the structure of pockets and folded pages without needing any additional backing.
Tips & gotchas
Ink the edges of your calendar squares before you cut them out if you can — or paint dark watercolor right to the edges while they're still mounted. Once you cut, you'll have white cut edges that are fiddly to go back and fix.
The sleek, coated surface of most calendar paper is actually a gift for watercolor work. The paint sits on top and pulls rather than soaking in, which gives you a more uniform, controllable result than you'd get on absorbent paper. If your calendar happens to use matte paper, expect the color to soak in faster and spread less — still fine, just different.
Use archival ink for stamping over the watercolored squares. If you use a water-activated dye ink and then go back in with a damp brush or a spritz, everything will smear. Archival ink dries waterproof, which keeps your stamped words and images clean if you want to add anything afterward.
When covering a folded page with scrapbook paper, do the two panels separately and use washi tape at the spine first. If you try to cover both panels with a single piece of paper, the paper bunches and wrinkles right at the fold. The washi tape spine hides the join between the two paper pieces cleanly.
Parchment paper needs more glue than you think. It's a non-stick surface, so a light pass of glue stick won't hold. Apply it generously and press well. A few extra seconds here saves a pocket that falls apart later.
If you want to paint or ink the whole calendar grid section as one piece before cutting it into squares, that works — but be aware you'll get white edges on the cut sides. For ephemera where every edge matters, painting after cutting gives you more control, even if it takes longer.
Closing
You're not fighting the material or trying to disguise it. You're just adding a layer of color and texture on top of something that already has personality. The individual watercolored squares especially — mounted in a little book where you can flip through and pull out what you need, the way I store all my die cuts — those have become one of my favorite things to make in one sitting. You can have fifteen squares painted, dried, and stamped in an afternoon, and then you have a little archive of calendar ephemera ready whenever you need to add something to a page.
