Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Colorful book covers for the little yellow pads make suitable presents for just about anyone.
By KATHY ANTIONIOTTI
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Where would we be without life's simple little luxuries? I'm not talking about the latest in cell-phone technology geared to luring teen-agers with instant messaging and Web cams. Nor am I referring to the hippest new trends in must-have video games for teens.
I'm talking about the little things that make life easier, not more complicated.
Without a palm pilot, iPod, day planner or computer notepad, how do you remind yourself of an important appointment or even a great, but fleeting idea? What did we do before technology made things so complicated we must read a 50-page instruction manual to operate them?
I'd be surprised if kids today get the joke when they see old movies that feature gags where forgetful folks have strings tied around their fingers. Used to be, that's how some people made mental notes to themselves; the strings were supposed to help them remember something important. Trouble is, they couldn't remember why they tied the string around their finger in the first place.
Low-tech luxury
Today, strings have been replaced with the invention of a simple little low-tech luxury called the sticky note. Why, even my computer has gotten into the act; it allows me to place virtual sticky notes anywhere on my screen, which is helpful until I turn the thing off.
Still, a look around the newsroom convinces me that a tiny paper reminder is the preferred method we use to nag our memories. Sticky notes are haphazardly stuck to almost every computer I see. So much for advances in technology.
But it occurred to me that sticky notes have become so important we should really consider them necessities during a recent segment of the "Carol Duvall Show" on HGTV. It featured creative developer Karen Thomas of Yasutomo and Company of San Francisco, makers of origami and decorative craft paper. Thomas, realizing that the little yellow pads have attained a permanent place in society, cleverly dressed them up with colorful book covers to make suitable presents for just about anyone with or without a day planner governing their lives.
How-to
You can find Thomas' instructions at www.hgtv.com/hgtv on the Web and do a search for the Mini Pad Holder from episode 1028 of the "Carol Duvall Show." I modified her instructions for kids to make this project.
Supplies you will need:
U1 (3-inch) sticky notepad.
UCardboard.
UColorful wrapping paper.
UThin ribbon.
UPencil.
URuler.
UWhite glue.
Cut a 3-inch by 5-inch strip of paper and place it face down on your work surface. Draw a line down the center of the strip, 1 and one-half inches from both edges. Divide the line in half and mark. In the center of the strip, measure two times the width of the sticky notepad spine. Draw two vertical lines that width apart. This will be the spine of the notepad cover.
Put a thin layer of glue on the back side of the paper. Cut two pieces of cardboard slightly larger than the size of the pad. Glue them to each side of the outside vertical lines. Fold the edges of the paper over the cardboard and cover the blank area of the spine with additional paper.
Turn the cover over and apply glue to the front and back covers and a small amount on the edge of the paper. Cut two 3 and one-half inch squares and glue over the front and back covers, leaving a portion of the spine showing. Clip the corners (called mitering) and neatly fold the edges to the inside of the cardboard.
Center two pieces of thin ribbon on the inside covers and glue.
Cut two pieces of paper to cover the inside of the front and back covers and glue in place.
Glue the back page of the sticky notes to the back side of your noteholder and tie the ribbon into a bow.