How to Create Planner Pocket Folders

These easy, homemade pocket folders fit nicely in your six ring planners. The folders can hold your to do lists, important receipts, or stickers to decorate your planner.

You will need scissors, glue stick, or tape, hole punch and your paper trimmer.

First, select your 12x12 double sided scrapbook paper. When I stopped by my local Joann's Fabric store, I searched through the shelves for double sided scrapbook paper. I had my heart set on any paper with a floral design. However, the only double sided paper they had to choose from was plain solid, one color paper. This was not what I wanted, so I decided to glue the back of two 12x12 scrapbook pieces together. Hopefully, this idea would work.

I glued together, just the outer sides, of this polka dot scrapbook paper.

Using your paper trimmer, cut your 12x12 paper to 7 1/2 inches wide. (I cut the paper at 71/2. Here, I was showing how I lined up the paper on the guide.)

Once your paper is cut to 71/2 inches, score two lines. 

Score the wide or horizontal side at 3.75 inches. 

Then, score the long or vertical side of the paper at 6.75 inches. 

Your finished scored paper should look like this.

Now, fold on the score and use the back of the score tool to make a crease. Actually the back of a butter knife, or similar object, would work just as well.

Your creased folder should look like this.

You should have two longer rectangles and two squares.

Cut off one of the long rectangles. It does not matter which side you cut off.

Now how you fold your paper depends on what coordinating colors you want to show. I wanted the large polka dots showing on the outside of the folder.

To cut the diagonal in the folder, mark where you want the diagonal cut to run on your folder. There is no right or wrong way for this. If you want a wider diagonal cut, then cut closer to the top corner of the folder.

Now, refold your planner folder and tape around the bottom and the back side of the folder. Use clear tape or coordinating Washi tape. I used a glue stick and glued the sides together. 

The last step is to punch holes in the folder. Use a sheet of six ring paper as a guide or use a presized paper punch to punch the holes in your folder.

Because I glued the two sides together, not all of the paper lined up perfectly. I had to cut off some of the edges. When I smoothed the folder together, a crease formed on the top of the folder that I did not want to show. So, I covered the crease with a decorative sticker. 

Even though I had struggles with getting the folder to lay flat, I do like the final look of the folder. I will keep searching for double sided paper, but now I know that gluing two single sided scrapbook paper together will give you a nice planner folder.

For a You Tube video on how to make these folders with double sided scrapbook paper, please click paper.

Now to you-

Have you created pocket folders for your planner?