Building a Modular Pocketbook Thingy [wb-001]

Here is one of the projects I’ve been working on recently.

It’s a modular pocket-sized folio that fits a notebook, wallet, and e-reader. I made it to condense the contents of my pockets as much as possible. I carry around way too much stuff as is, so anything to drop the number of things I have on me at any given time is a win.

I’ve been using the final result for a while now and am happy with it. I’ve shown it to a few people, and they’ve been interested, so I thought I’d share some resources on how to make something similar at home.

Overview

I’ve been consistently using memo books to take field notes for a couple of months now, and while it feels nice to finish a book and move on to another, they do start to pile up.

A coworker of mine recently introduced me to Traveler’s Notebooks, and I found the concept really intriguing. The ability to carry multiple notebook modules in one consistent leather folio could significantly simplify and reduce the cost of my note-taking, especially as I continue building my first slipbox.

HOWEVER.

Forty dollars for what is effectively a sheet of leather and a couple of rubber bands is a bit much…at least for me. No judgment whatsoever if that’s your jam tho.

At the same time I learned about Traveler’s Notebooks, I was looking to make myself a new wallet, so I decided to just combine the two projects.

The Folio

The modular pocketbook is made up of one folio with several ‘modules’ that can be either slotted in and out using elastic bands, or sewn directly onto the folio’s leather.

In its purest form, the folio is one sheet of leather with thirteen holes placed along the spine. The center-most hole lets one elastic double as a ‘belly band’ that holds the entire pocketbook together when closed. This feature becomes invaluable for stopping overexpansion when increasing the number of modules in the pocketbook.

There are many ways to seal the elastics. The simplest way is to tie them off in a knot, but that adds bulk. I opted for repurposed electrical crimps for my final folio, which worked well for keeping a ‘slim-ish’ profile.

The Notebook

One of the best features of the Traveler’s Notebooks that inspired this project is the ability to use them with standard-sized field notebooks. When you finish the notebook inserts that came with your Traveler’s Notebook, you can buy more from any brand that matches the size of your Traveler’s Notebook.

The Modular Pocketbook was designed to be compatible with 2.5″ x 4″ field notebooks, which are extremely easy to find for cheap. I’ve been making these notebooks from scratch since they’re so simple to make at home. All you need is a few sheets of paper, a sheet of cardstock, a stapler, and a craft knife.

The Ereader

The main gimmick of this thing is that it comfortably fits an ‘XTEINK X3’ e-reader in the back. The X3 is super small but still fun to use. The one tradeoff is that it only accepts EPUBs on stock firmware, but my understanding is that once modded, they’re pretty capable little machines. While I haven’t had time to go down that rabbit hole, I’ve been enjoying using my X3 as an alternative to doomscrolling while commuting, waiting in queues, and whatnot.

I used the default folio that XTEINK sells for the X3, and it works perfectly with the elastic system.

Make Your own

There’s a link below to download a template for the basic folio.

If I were to make another one of these (which I most likely will), I’d probably try to include some more hardware to give the folio structure. Specifically, some eyelets around the holes.

I’d also play with the method I used for sealing the elastic. The middle elastic that also works as the ‘belly band’ is a bit taught, and since it has no stopper on the outside, the center elastic band can be left very loose at times since there’s nothing to tension it.

A simple fix would be to add a small knot on the outside to add some tension to the inside elastic.

Thank you for reading until the end. Or scrolling down here. It means a lot to me. Bye.