Happy Planner users – rejoice! Long gone are the days of printing your decorative elements onto sticker paper. I have discovered a method that allows you to print directly onto your pages, and today I’m going to show you exactly how to do it with this Happy Planner printing hack!
I love to decorate my Happy Planner. There are so many amazing weekly kits out there but since I do not have a sticker cutting machine (Now I do! Here is my new friend!) but it takes so much time to hand cut each sticker out and place them where I want them.
Then one day, I was scrolling through one of my favorite planning facebook groups and found someone had shared this awesome Happy Planner hack! I was so excited about it that I knew I had to share it with you!
(Thank you so much to Jing Pia Roan for allowing me to share this tutorial here on Planner Squad and for also allowing me to use her happy planner template files as well! You can find Jing online here and here.)
Don’t have a Happy Planner yet? You can get one here through Blitsy!
NEW! Create 365 Happy Planner Planner Box Kit – Best Year
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Happy Planner Printing Hack Tutorial
Step 1: Download Software, Templates, and Design
In order to get started, you will first need to download the FREE Silhouette Studio Basic Edition software. No, you do not have to have a Silhouette to do this tutorial – but you do need the software (or Photoshop).
You will also need to download these free Happy Planner page templates (courtesy of Jing) as well. You can find the free downloads here at our free printables page.
(For this tutorial you can either create your own decorative boxes and elements on your own, or I’ve created some you can use to practice with. These will be included in the download with the templates.)
Step 2: Open Templates into the Silhouette Software
Find where you downloaded your template files and open them in the Silhouette Studio software. To do this click on “File>Open>Select File>OK”. Print this Template from the Silhouette Studio Software prior to decorating on regular computer paper.
(Tip: Make sure your image is not resized to fit the page. It should be printed at its actual, 100% size, which is 8.5×11)
Step 3: Import Decorative Files to Library
Import all of your decorative elements to the Silhouette Studio Library. To do this click on “File>Import>Import to Library>Find File to Import>OK”.
Step 4: Open the “Library” in Silhouette
Click on “File>Library>Library” to open.
Step 5: Insert Decorative Elements to the Template
Find the decorative elements you wish to add to the template and double click on it. It will then be inserted to the file on top of your template. Click and drag to move the element where you would like it to print on the page. Do this for all of the elements until you have placed them all where you want them.
(Tip: Make sure the template is not selected with a border around it while adding your design. It will cause the design to not add correctly. Click somewhere in the grey area to deselect the template.)
Step 6: Add a Page From Your Happy Planner to the Printed Template
Use your printed blank template and add a page from your happy planner so that it fits in the box.
(Tip: To make sure all of the lines add up perfectly, hold the page up to a light so you can see where the lines are. Some printers print differently so doing this will make sure you’ve lined everything up properly. If your printed template is not the right size, you will need to reprint and check your printer settings to make sure it wasn’t resized wrong.)
Once you have lined up the pages correctly, use washi tape to keep the paper in place during the printing process.
(Tip: I tape along the top and bottom instead of the sides like in the photo to keep from ripping the punched side of the paper).
Step 7: Remove the Template
Click on the white page of the template to select only the template. Then press “delete”. Your design elements should be in place still, but the template boxes should disappear.
Step 8. Print!
Put the template with the Happy Planner page taped to it, into your printer. Press File>Print, and print your design. Your design will print directly onto your happy planner page!
Voila!
There you have it! A decorated Happy Planner Weekly Spread and it didn’t use a single sheet of sticker paper! Of course now you can add more fun elements to it to spice it up if you’d like, but this Happy Planner printing hack makes the process much easier and saves so much sticker paper!
Did you try this Happy Planner printing hack out for yourself? I’d love to see how it turned out! Share a photo with us on Instagram and tag @PlannerSquad! I can’t wait to see what you all come up with!
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Sandy says
LOVE THIS. THANK YOU!
Mary Ellen Torres says
thank you will give it a try
julia says
Thank you so much for the tutorial. It’s really helpful and easy to do! I have one question, though. The happy planner has four boxes across, and the template only has three boxes across. I’m confused as to how you’re getting it to print on all the boxes. Could you explain that for me, please?
julia says
I figured it out! You can delete my comment. I was using the wrong template! Whoops.
Jenn Roberts says
I’m glad you figured it out! 🙂
CathyRose says
Thank you, thank you, thank you! Just what I needed. It worked like a charm. I have tons of digital scrapbooking kits that will totally work to pretty up my planner!
Jenn Roberts says
I’m so glad it helped you! Make sure to stop by the facebook group and share your creations with us!!
Brenda says
hi, do you have the template? i was never ever able to locate it. ~thanks
Jenn Roberts says
Yes, email subscribers can access our free printables page using the password given when you confirm your subscription, and the template can be downloaded there 🙂
marisela perez-beltran says
Hi there! I signed up to get the free printable pages for my Happy Planner, I verified my email but need a password to get the free printable pages. Where and when do i get that password (it was not included in the email)?
Jenn Roberts says
The password is in the confirmation email. Tomorrow afternoon the newsletter will go out and the password is in those emails also. Add a filter or check your spam folder to make sure you don’t miss the newsletters!
Catherine says
I was not able to access the printable despite having the password…sad face! What am I doing wrong?
Jenn Roberts says
we have been having issues with the password. Email us at [email protected] and I’ll try to help you! So sorry about that!
Lisa Fetty says
Thank you so much!! Any chance you are looking at doing a print hack for the monthly layouts on the Happy Planner???
Jenn Roberts says
Yes, that is on the agenda for the (hopefully) near future!!
Craftywitchaz says
I have followed the steps in this tutorial to the letter and I cannot get the selected images to drop into the template. It adds the image right over top of the template and there is no way to move it around. Any thoughts what I am doing wrong?
Jenn Roberts says
It’s not supposed to drop into the template. It’s supposed to drop on top of it, and then you move it where you want it to sit, then you delete the template before you print. Not sure why its not letting you move them around though, it should let you!
Jordan says
I had a similar issue. Right click on the image in the library and select merge. Good Luck =)
Tonya Beaty says
I can’t wait to try this out. I really love this blog a lot! It has so much great information! I literally was planning to compile resources like the ones on your free planner list but said to myself… I love how she did it and I will simply show my support by directing people here. 😉 Of course as soon as I figure out how to add links of my favorite finds you will be amongst those on the list. 😉 I just started a Facebook page and wanted you to know you have been one of the first pages for me to spot light. Keep it classy. 😉 Thanks for incorporating my favorite colors so its such a breeze to spend lots of time here. 😉
Jenn Roberts says
AWww, You made my night! Thank you so much for your super sweet comments! I’d love if you stop by the facebook group and share the link to your new group with us!! Have an awesome weekend hun!
Jenn Roberts says
AWww, You made my night! Thank you so much for your super sweet comments! I’d love if you stop by the facebook group and share the link to your new group with us!! Have an awesome weekend hun!
Shanna says
Do you think you’ll make any templates for the new Happy Planner Teacher Edition?
Jenn Roberts says
Are they different sized? I do plan on making for the bigger happy planner, just haven’t gotten to it just yet. If the teacher edition is different, then I’ll add that to my list!
Rebecca says
Yes! A template for the large happy planner would be awesome!
Samantha @ Momma Wants Java says
This is amazing! Now I just need a printer. Right now I just use scrapbook paper and washi tape, but this looks like so much fun! I’m so glad I found this through your linkup! 🙂
Samantha @ Momma Wants Java recently posted…Why Moms Should Never Feel Guilty for Me Time
melissa says
i love this! I was able to do it with the template and mini kit. How am i able to add in my own pictures? Do I just search online and add any jpg that i like?
Jenn Roberts says
Just insert them into the layout in the silhouette software just like you did with the mini kit 🙂 So glad it worked for you!
Theresa says
I was able to d/l the template and open it easy enough, but I need a tutorial on how to make images that will fit in the boxes on the template. I don’t know the size they need to be and I’ve never used the silhouette program, so I’m not sure how to use it to make pictures the right size. Please help. Thank you,
Jenn Roberts says
The happy planner size boxes are I believe 1.5×2.5″? You can grab a ruler to measure the boxes to confirm though 😉 I use photoshop and clip art to make my stickers. You can also use free programs such as gimp, canva, or pic monkey. Make it a bigger size than what you need. When you’re done, save and then open the image you want to place in silhouette. You can resize the image you created within the silhouette program. The directions in this post tell you step by step how to do that. If you need further assistance with silhouette software I highly recommend doing a youtube search. I plan on doing more tutorials in the future as time allows 😀 Hope that helps some!
Theresa says
Thank you.
Jasmine says
This blog post is a blessing in disguise! Thank you for this tutorial 🙂 I was looking for a post tutorial that demonstrates how to print directly onto The Happy Planner’s Notepaper. Maybe you can think about making a blog post on that soon if time allows?
Cara Brandon says
Do you know if there is a cricut explore template ?
Jenn Roberts says
Not that I am aware of. I’m only familiar with silhouette but I’m sure the same would apply there. Just open and drag/drop the elements using your explore software instead of silhouette.
Calli says
Ok you’re brilliant. Thanks for doing this. I stumbled on your page and just joined your mailing list. 🙂
Ruchell Smith says
I am trying to get the link to the printable template and it says the link no longer is available.
I have been trying to do this on my Chromebook but the measurements seems to be off…and I can not download silhouette is there anyone who has another way to approach this problem. I have a visual impairment and printing directly to my Happy planner sheet would be of great help and a money saver.
Jenn Roberts says
I will check the link to see why it isn’t working. Sorry about that! When you print the image, make sure you are not resizing it to fit to page. Make sure it is printing at full size. Hopefully that helps!
Malia says
This is brilliant! I would love to see a template for the Big Happy Planner! Thank you for sharing!
Stephanie says
Don’t know if its a new version of the Silhouette program that I just downloaded or what but this hack doesn’t work. When I followed the directions of this tutorial it closed the happy planner template and opened the pictures in a different file.
Michele says
I’ve done everything to the letter and still can’t get it to work.
Jenn Roberts says
If you’d like to message me on facebook (add me as a friend first) I’d be more than happy to try to help you!
Stephanie says
Question: How can I do this with the BIG Happy Planner?
Jenn Roberts says
I’ll be working on templates for the big HP as soon as I get a chance
Gretchen says
Hi! No matter what I do I can’t get the elements to be like individual boxes, the entire document just goes on top of the template. Like, I have the decorative elements, but how do you move them around? Is there another step that I just can’t figure out?
Deborah Middleton says
Oooh! I bought the 6 month extension….now I can print dates and such so it will look pretty and neat!!
Vickie says
Not sure if this has been asked or not, How do you make the elements? I had no issues getting the template to work! I am just stumped on how to customize my own elements any help would be appreciated!
Jenn Roberts says
We used to have the elements with this as a free download, but after a while I realized we may not have had the legal right to distribute the elements individually so I had to take them down. I haven’t had a chance to update the post to reflect that yet. You can purchase any kind of clip art online or digital scrapbook kits and then use those here, resizing and cropping as needed. Then rearrange them on your template 🙂 I’ll try to get the post updated asap!
Vickie says
Awesome! Thanks I’ll see if I can find my scrapbook images to use 🙂
Marvette Norris says
Can you use the same technique if you have the new 2017 large happy planner in the vertical version or the big happy planner in the horizontal version? Do you have a template for that?
Jenn Roberts says
yes, you can! I have not created the template for either of those yet, but I hope to in the near future. Stay tuned 🙂
Vickie says
Is there any reason why when I use my commercial printer at work the images are not lining up with the planner page? I had one of my co-workers check the alignment on the template to be sure it wasn’t off and it printed about 2mm lower and to the right… what am I doing wrong lol
Tanisha says
This was a great tutorial. Thank you so much. My question is how to make a template? I would like to know how to do this for my HP Recipe book. Any suggestions? Thanks 🙂
Barbie D Moore says
Where do we get the pretty things to add to the library. Does anyone do just those images that can be downloaded?
Jenn Roberts says
Unfortunately I had to take some of the printables down to make sure I wasn’t accidentally breaking any kind of copyright laws. You can use this tutorial with any kind of digital scrapbooking kit, clip art, etc. Just use those elements instead of the one’s I originally shared. Hopefully, that helps!
Amanda says
I was so excited about this…and then I realized its classic sized….any tips on how to do something similar for the full sized happy planners? I feel like there is very little on Pintrest for us, but there is no way I can go to a smaller planner…
Jenn Roberts says
I’ve had intentions of making the template for the large HP forever. Time just hasn’t been on my side lately 🙁 I’ll try to get to it as soon as possible!
Toni says
This has saved me so much time! Thank you so much!!
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Jenn Roberts says
We have a twitter and we share all of our posts and IG photo’s there, however we’re not super active over there to be honest. We’re mostly active on FB and Instagram. But yes please feel free to follow us on Twitter too! @plannersquad 😉
clair says
Hello! When I printed the blank template I noticed the boxes are a tad smaller than my HP boxes. I have the Hooray for Today classic HP. I noticed some of the HP sticker book rectangles are smaller than others. Did they change sizes with these new planners? How do I resize to match mine?
Jenn Roberts says
When you printed, did you turn off print borders? Or select fit to page? If so that could be the problem. You’ll want to make sure you’re printing at actual size. Hope this helps!
Ashlea says
Thank you! I used the tutorial to sketch onto my planner page with my silhouette. It works amazingly! Now I can use it to write things I want more fancy looking! 🙂
Crystal Heidenreich says
This is an amazing tutorial! Were you able to complete the template for the Big planner? I just bought one and I’m excited to try and print on the pages! Thank you! ?
Jenn Roberts says
I would love to make other templates but right now time has been an issue. Hopefully someday I can add more.
Brittani says
Hi there. Thank you for the tutorial! Do you happen to have a template for the horizontal classic happy planner?
Jenn Roberts says
I would love to make other templates but right now time has been an issue. Hopefully someday I can add more.
Marina says
Thank you. This is so cool. I was wondering if you all have the same thing for the mini planner? Or could I just do the same concept?
Jenn Roberts says
I would love to make other templates but right now time has been an issue. Hopefully someday I can add more.
Philisha Cofield says
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I have been looking for something like this for months!! You have a follower for life. Thank you for clear directions. Your designs are wonderful.
Sarah says
So lovely post. I like it. Thanks so much for the good post.
Alyssa Dortch says
Does this allow you to create the me and my big idea template also?
Jenn Roberts says
I’m sorry, I’m not quite sure what you mean by this? This is for the Classic Happy Planner, which is a MAMBI planner 🙂
renee says
HELP. I got to step 8 but when I clicked print it did not print on page?
Diane taber says
Hi I’ve just started started journaling and planning and want to get going and learning what to do with my journaling planner and journaling book .now need some printables.for this and washi tape. And some kind of flowers.
Linda says
Can you use the cricut instead?
Jenn Roberts says
I would love a cricut version, but unfortunately I do not own or know how to use one so I’m not sure how to do it with cricut. If anyone figures it out and wants to share their knowledge with me I’d be happy to put a post together for it!
Marcy says
I have just run across this post from 4 years ago, yes I am severely behind the times. Do you have updated instructions for the new versions of the Silhouette program? I wold like to try this but I get the error message that the file type is unsupported. Could I be doing something incorrectly? I have tried to open and just change the file type but the program would not open. Thanks for all/any help you can give.
Marcy says
I figured it out. Thank you for these templates.
Jenn Roberts says
We will have to try to update this post. I’m slowly working through cleaning up the website. I’d say check back often, but please be patient bc I’ve got a lot of cleaning up to do so I’m not sure how soon I will be able to get to it lol