The Backstory

Being a starving artist, I tend to shop at thrift stores pretty regularly looking for parts for art projects and other random stuff. Every now and then, I'll dredge through the piles of old vinyl records on hand hoping to find an overlooked Blue Note jazz album, blues album, early rock n’ roll album, or some other obscure vinyl that can’t be found cheap anywhere else. Most of the time, I come away empty handed and smelling a bit like someone’s basement, but occasionally I’ll find a gem. About a month ago, while digging through a giant stack of the same Christmas albums, classical music albums, and horrible easy listening albums from the 70s and 80s that I had looked through the last time I was at the junk shop, I had an idea.

What if there was something that could be done with all this abandoned vinyl that no one cares about? Could there be a use for it? I know there are a number of people that repurpose old vinyl to make record bowls and other assorted stuff, but they are generally using unplayable albums by musicians that still have a fan base of some sort. There isn’t really much of a demand for stuff made from elevator music or Christmas albums. The problem is the label. But what else could you use these albums for?

Let’s fast forward to a few weeks ago. While sorting through my latest pile of computer paper covered in doodles and sketches for art projects and flipping through yet another sketchbook with half the pages covered in outdated “To Do Lists” and half-finished sketches I have no intention of completing, I realized the problem with my current method of taking notes and making sketches. What I really need is a refillable notebook/sketchbook to carry around instead of the book-style sketchbooks, spiral bound notebooks, and loose computer paper I usually have lying around in case I get an idea. That way, once I fill up all the pages, I can take them out, sort through to find the pertinent stuff, archive it with a set of ring clips, put the rest in the recycling bin, and refill the sketchbook with more blank pages. That’s when it hit me. What if I made a refillable sketchbook/notebook out of recycled vinyl no one cares about?

So I went to the store and got some supplies and flipped through the stack of vinyl I had bought in the past that was either scratched beyond listening or nowhere near as good as I thought it might be when I bought it, and set about making a prototype. A couple of hours later, I was finished with the first Music Notes sketchbook.

The Project

No rare or highly sought after vinyl will be harmed in the making of Music Notes sketchbooks. Each 3” x 5” sketchbook is filled with 50 pages of paper made from sustainable forestry. Each product tag is printed on recycled grocery bags. The sketchbook can be used just as easily in either a portrait or landscape position and is stable enough to use handheld as well as laying on a table or other flat surface. An elastic cord has been added to keep the sketchbook closed when it’s not in use. The small size is big enough to be usable, but small enough to fit in a shirt or pants pocket, purse, or a pocket in your messenger bag.

Why I Need Funding

So you might be asking yourself, why does he need funding to create Music Notes sketchbooks when he was able to make a prototype in such a short period of time? The answer is that I need better tooling than I currently have at my disposal to make the fabrication process more efficient and the whole process more cost effective. Plus, I don’t really have the funds on hand to stock up on all the materials and supplies needed to manufacture the sketchbooks.

My budget of $150 will allow me to purchase better drill bits, sandpaper for smoothing the cut edges, a few other odds and ends tools, a stack of Christmas albums to cut up, paper from a company that utilizes sustainable forestry, ring clips, elastic cord, and packaging materials. Any extra funding will be put towards purchasing a desktop laser cutting machine to allow me to make the Music Notes sketchbooks quicker and allow me to cut and engrave custom patterns and designs into the front and back covers.