Zutter Bind-It-All Tutorial

Using The Zutter Bind-It-All
by Sue Bleiweiss

I love creating notebooks with my Zutter Bind-it-All but I’ll admit when I first started using it I found it a little confusing trying to figure out where to punch the holes so that everything lined up nice and even. This tutorial will make it easy for you to create a beautiful 5”x7” notebook on your first try.

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 pieces of cardboard 5”x7” (front and back cover)
2 pieces of decorative paper for the outside front and outside back - 7”x9”
2 pieces of decorative paper for the inside front and inside back lining - 4 ½”x6 ½”

Pages for the inside measuring 4 ½” x 6 ½”: these can be any type of paper you like. Copy paper, handmade, sketch or drawing paper all work just great.

Zutter bind it all ring coil (more on how to determine what sized coil to use later in the tutorial)

Zutter Bind-it-All

Begin with making the front and back covers of your notebook. Apply glue to the front cover cardboard piece and then center it glue side down on a piece of the 7”x9” decorative paper. Allow it to dry for a few minutes and then clip the corners.

Fold the excess flaps along each edge and glue them down. I like to do the corners first.

And then the sides:

Glue the 4 1/2”x6 1/2"” piece of paper to the cardboard. This covers the exposed inside cardboard and makes a nice neat finish for the inside.

Now repeat the steps to create the back cover. Once the glue has dried on your cover pieces you can assemble your notebook.

Cut a piece of scrap paper 5”x7” and mark the center along the 7” edge. This is going to be our hole punch guide for the outside covers.

Pull the extension stabilizer bar out on the Bind-It-All. Place the hole punch guide on one of the cover pieces and slide the guide piece and the cover into the Bind-it-All lining up the centerline mark with the arrow mark on the Bind-it-All.

Pull down the handle to punch the holes in the cover. Remove it from the machine and repeat this for the other cover.

Now cut a piece of paper measuring 4 ½” x 6 ½”. This is going to be the hole punch guide for the inside pages. Grab a stack of inside pages and place the hole punch guide on top. Slide the pages into the Bind-it-All lining up the centerline with the line on the Bind-it-All just like you did for the covers. Pull down the handle to punch the holes. Repeat this until you have punched all the inside pages.

Now it’s time to assemble the notebook. To determine which size ring you need to use stack your notebook pieces together and measure how thick it is.

You want to choose a ring that’s at least ¼” larger than the stack. My stack measures ½” so I’m going to use a size ¾” ring. My notebook has 6 holes so I’m going to cut the ring so that there are 6 loops.

Okay now this next step is very important because if you do it wrong then you end up with the covers not facing the right way when you close your journal.

Place your stack of pages on the table right side up with the holes on the left.

Place your front cover on top of the stack of pages right side UP and the holes on the left.

Place the back cover on top with the right side DOWN and the holes on the left.

Now slip the ring in inserting it from the top of the stack through the covers and all the pages.

Now set up the Bind-It-All for the ring size you’re using. Slip the plastic guide into the machine and turn the screw until it the spacer bar touches the plastic guide.

Now all that’s left to do is to place your notebook into the Bind-It-All with the opening of the rings down against the base of the machine.

Pull the handle down on the Bind-it-all in one quick sweeping motion. Trust me on this, you’ll get a much better result if you pull the handle quickly than if you do it slowly!

That’s it, your notebook is finished!

Some things to keep in mind when you make your notebooks:

If you make your pages 1/4” to a ½” smaller than your covers your notebook will close easier and will look more professionally made.

Consider using envelopes, tabbed index cards or decorative commercial papers throughout your pages.

There is no rule that says you have to only use one set of rings on your notebooks. Experiment with using more than one and altering the placement like I did with these:

I hope that you have found this tutorial helpful. Have fun creating unique and original notebooks with your new Bind-it-all!

Want your own Bind-it-all? Have one but need covers or inner pages? Need O-Wires or other accessories? Click here to see the machine and all of the supplies you'll need to make your own books, journals, and more!

Visit Sue's website at www.suebleiweiss.com