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All About Planners

Printable planners to organize your home, business and life!

April 7, 2017

Custom Erin Condren Planner Cover versus DIY planner cover: which is better?

A while back I did an Erin Condren haul which included a planner with a custom cover.

I designed the cover in Photoshop (similar covers are available in my Etsy shop), uploaded it to their website (I shared a video walk through on how to do that in this post) then had them print and ship it to me.

But when it arrived I was disappointed. The image was blurry (even though I made it at 300DPI which is a high resolution) and the colors didn’t print like they should have on screen – the stripes were more of a mint colour than teal! 🙁

So I decided to make my own.

I shared a tutorial on how to make a DIY planner cover (including some free printable planner covers you can download).

To enlarge the screen of the video, click the square icon in the bottom right hand corner of the video (it will say ‘full screen’ when you hover your mouse over the icon).

Subscribe to my YouTube channel for more planner related videos!

List making insert mentioned in the video

free printable planner cover erin condren plum paper diy cover rainbow limelife planner hack tutorial kikki k filofax

I laminated the cover for extra durability:

diy planner cover tutorial erin condren custom cover personalised eclp how to add pages to notebook free printable monogram

I then decided to make new covers for more of my planners – a tad obsessive? Yes 🙂

diy planner cover erin condren a5 custom cover personalised how to make a planner cover hack tutorial

Related Post: How to Choose a Printer (Including the best printer for printing printables and planner stickers) 

Here’s a side by side comparison:

The cover from Erin Condren is on the left, and the DIY cover I made is on the right, along with the DIY rainbow cover I made (which you can download for free).
DIY planner cover versus professionally printed erin condren custom cover eclp planner hack diy tutorial free printable

I printed the DIY cover smaller than the cover I had made via Erin Condren (A5 versus 8.5 x 11″), I shared a tutorial on how to resize printables.

I used the exact same image file for both covers. The colours printed lighter on the professionally printed Erin Condren cover. The colors printed darker from my home printer than they appeared on screen.

I recommend printing covers onto glossy full sheet label paper or cardstock for a crisp image. Laminating the cover will make it more durable. Only run the cover through your laminating machine once. I thought it would be a good idea to laminate the cover twice to make sure it was secure with no air bubbles, but all it did was jam my laminator (I was freaking out that I’d have to throw the whole thing out!) I was able to coax (i.e. pull with quite a bit of force) the cover out of the laminating machine – lesson learned!

Related Post: 7 Ways to make colors POP when printing using an Inkjet printer 

Would I get a custom cover made via Erin Condren again?

Probably not. The colors and quality of the pre-made cover designs on their website that you can choose and then just add your name or other text to personalise printed out really nicely – I was really happy with them. It was just the custom cover that was a bit disappointing.

If you do get a custom cover printed via Erin Condren, I’d recommend making the colours slightly darker, as they’ll probably print out lighter than they appear on screen. You can get $10 off your first order by using my referral link!

So if you’ve been thinking about ordering a custom planner cover from Erin Condren (or any planner company that allows you to make a personalised cover), keep that in mind, or try making a DIY cover instead!

If you want to add a custom monogram cover to your planner, I shared a free printable in this post:

free printable binder cover notebook monogram editable pdf custom personalised stripe preppy grey blue printable planner cover household binder school college organization

Related posts:

  • Which is Cheaper: DIY Printable Planners or Pre-Printed & Assembled Planners?
  • 7 Ways to make colors POP when printing using an Inkjet printer 
  • How to make a personalised Erin Condren planner cover

Liked this post? Pin It!

Erin condren planner review diy cover versus custom cover printable free planner cover insert planner hack cheap diy personalised custom weekly daily

Disclaimer: I purchased the planner with my own money and all opinions are my own. If you choose to place an order using my referral link, I will receive a small commission (as no extra cost to you) in exchange. 

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  • How to make a DIY Erin Condren Planner Cover for less than $2 (plus free printable cover)How to make a DIY Erin Condren Planner Cover for less than $2 (plus free printable cover)
  • How to make an A5 size, 2 page weekly planner printable in Photoshop (video tutorial)How to make an A5 size, 2 page weekly planner printable in Photoshop (video tutorial)
  • How to Make Printables in Photoshop (step by step video tutorials)How to Make Printables in Photoshop (step by step video tutorials)
  • 50 Category Ideas for Color Coding Your Planner50 Category Ideas for Color Coding Your Planner
  • Minimalistic planning: how to plan your week using a blank notes page and stickers (52 Planners in 52 Weeks – Week 4)Minimalistic planning: how to plan your week using a blank notes page and stickers (52 Planners in 52 Weeks – Week 4)

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Posted In: Planner Comparisons, Planning Tips & Inspiration · Tagged: 2017 planner review, 2018 planner review, best planner for 2017, diy erin condren cover, diy planner, diy planner cover, diy planner cover versus erin condren, erin condren planner review, free erin condren printable, free printable erin condren planner cover, free printable planner cover, how to make a custom planner cover, how to make a diy planner cover, how to make a planner cover, MAMBI planner printable, planner diy, planner hack, planner tutorial, quick planner tutorial

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Welcome to All About Planners! I’m Rachael, a 20-something Aussie addicted to graphic design and all things planning. On the blog you’ll find more than 1,000 posts about all things planning including planner reviews, tips, favorite supplies and some of my past weekly spreads.

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