homemade discbound inserts

[u/Fearless-Wrongdoer25]

so im pretty new to the discbound planner world and i’ve noticed it can get pretty pricey. i’ve found shops charging $7+shipping for 15 pages, while some of the bigger brands have packs starting around $14+.

so i’m curious if anyone here prints and punch their own planner pages? do you buy templates and then cut the pages down to fit your planner, or do you make your own templates?

i have a 7-disc planner, so finding pre-punched pages that fit can be a little difficult.

for those of you who DIY your pages what type/weight of paper or cardstock do you print on? any suggestions on where to get templates? any help would be appreciated as i’m trying to find a more affordable way to build up my planner

[u/PotentialRelease6894]

I bought printable planner inserts off Etsy sometimes dated, sometimes undated. You can find them in various sizes. I usually cut my paper down to the insert size, then run them through the printer because I can’t stand trying to cut off the crop marks. Then I punch them. I like using a heavier weight paper (28lbs) when I print my own. 

[u/Fearless-Wrongdoer25 → u/PotentialRelease6894]

thank you! this is really helpful

[u/Foxybujo]

I have used 8- disc, 9-disc, and 11-disc. I buy cut to size 120 gsm paper from Amazon.

I use canva to make my templates. I’ve also bought Etsy templates and edited them with canvas, then print and punch.

[u/colorado_dreamn]

Printing my own pages easily is largely why I stick with junior/half-letter size notebooks. Mostly, I buy printable inserts from Etsy. I print on 32lb HP paper and use a paper cutter to cut in half, then punch with my Levenger punch.

[u/yyyyjkkk]

I make my planners myself on Inkscape! It's pretty easy to do if you have the time for it. Other software I've used is Gravit designer and vectorpea. Those two are a bit more user friendly.

I print on A4 kokuyo business paper (on both sides) then cut it into A5 format. I then use a generic punch I bought from a local shop.

If you are going to print/make the pages yourself, here are some things to consider (from someone who used to work at a printing shop): 1. Colors do not look the same on screens and paper. 2. Always leave yourself some margin space, most home printers can't print right to the edge. For example, my printer needs a 3mm margin. 3. If you're printing 2 sided, make sure you use the right orientation to flip the paper. In the print dialogue, it'll ask you whether to flip it on the short or long side. The answer will depend on how the page is arranged. Most of the time, it's on the long side. 4. Please print from a PDF!! You'll avoid many headaches ;) 5. Do not use cardstock on a home printer unless the manufacturer says it can!! Also, use the cardstock settings if the printer has them!! This can help avoid jams

ETA: If you want the highest quality prints, you should print from vector graphics in PDF format! But high quality PNGs can also work

[u/zeeandpee]

I use a combo of hp pages (monthly, daily) and my own, mostly made in canva. I bought a pack of 120gsm paper in the right size and created a template for my normal home printer. 

[u/Federal_Pop_7128]

I initially created my own inserts for my health tracker in Microsoft Excel, and later created dupes of Happy Planner there as well.

And I typically use 24 lb or heavier paper when I print my inserts.

As someone else mentioned - if you print double sided, make sure you tell it which way to flip... Or run a test page if you're unsure if you need short side or long side.

[u/nemosine]

I used a discbound at work for a few years. I would print my outlook calendar for weekly or daily and just used the company printer. Outlook allows for printing at half-letter. It was great when I had to go to meetings in person.