How to Make a Calendar

Wondering how to make a calendar all by yourself? Here are some simple step-by-step instructions for making a calendar in Microsoft Excel with pictures.

As the new year has begun, it is time to get a new calendar. But, why not try something new this year? Instead of buying a new calendar, let us try making one on our own. I know you must be thinking that making a calendar at home would be very time-consuming and difficult, but actually it is not so. In fact, if made following the correct instructions and under proper guidance, it can be a real fun thing to do.

Calendar in Excel

Following are the instructions to create a calendar in a Microsoft Excel sheet. The calendar will get updated automatically to the correct month, so all you have to do is print and fill in the days.

1. Go to the excel sheet and type in the weekdays in a row along the top, by leaving one row blank for your title. Mark the text bold.
2. Add the current month at the top of the sheet, but instead of typing manually which would be very inconvenient, create an Excel calendar template that knows what month it is and changes the month title automatically. To do this, select any cell above your weekdays and type in the formula, “=TODAY()”, which tells Excel that you want today’s date in that field. Go to Format -> Cells -> Number tab, and choose the date and format that you want for the month title.
3. To center align your title, select all the cells above the weekday header and click on Merge and Center button. Now, you have in front of you a nicely formatted automated calendar header.
4. To create the calendar days, again we will use the Merge and Center button. In this step, select 5 to 6 cells and click the button to create one large cell that represents a single day. Now highlight this cell and copy and paste it into the other days cells, either by dragging the lower right corner of the box over to the right or by Ctrl+c or Edit->Copy. Repeat the step for the next five rows.
5. Highlight the entire calendar, click on the Borders tool and choose Grid, every grid line shows -> essentially drawing out your calendar for you. Now, either you can leave your template as it is and move ahead, or you can add in the days. Instead of doing manually, you can use Excel’s auto-fill feature to save time and effort.
6. In this technique, you need to enter in a formula for the first Monday and the second Sunday of the month. For instance, if the 1st of the month is on Sunday, you will have to enter “1″ into the first Sunday box and for Monday you will have to type “=” and then click on the day before it (A1) and type “+1″.
7. Highlight the box where you have entered this formula, and drag it across the entire week as this will correctly fill in all days of the week. Repeat the step for the following Sunday, but click on Saturday and add 1. Now drag this box down each week so that every Sunday has the same formula. Likewise, drag the formula from the previous Monday down through the month and finally drag from Monday across each week. Though it may sound a bit confusing, it would only take a few clicks and less than 5 minutes.
8. Finally, set the format for landscape and fit the entire calendar to 1×1 width and height. Click OK, and have a print preview where you see your calendar template is formatted on one sheet and is ready to print. For the next month, just open the same excel file, re-number the days, and click print.

Calendar with Pictures

Following are simple instructions to make a calendar using photos. Here, you will need Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 and your favorite personalized digital photos.

1. In Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006 Editor, go to the File menu and click Create a Project. Click Calendars and select Twelve Month to create an entire year’s calendar.
2. In the Themes box, click General, select a design in the right pane, and then click Open in the task pane on the left. Here, change the start date of your calendar by entering the start date, the first day of the week, and then click Next. Now, click Open a Picture in the task pane.
3. In the File Browser dialog box, select the digital photo that you would like to have on the first page of the calendar, either by clicking All File tabs or selecting a photo in the Digital Image Library by clicking the Digital Image Library tab, and click OK and then Next.
4. To change another image for a different month, click the month palette that comes next to the current calendar page, choose the month, and then select the current photo for that month.
5. In the format menu, click Replace Picture and in the task pane, click Open a picture and choose a new picture, and then click OK. This will enable you to have the picture you have selected for a particular month. Finally, click done.
6. In the month palette, click a different month and repeat the procedure for each month. Save the changes by going to File menu and then clicking Save. To customize your calendar, i.e., to change the font or grid-line, click Calendar menu. Finally, go to File menu, and click Print after selecting the portrait or landscape that you want for your calendar.

I hope the aforementioned instructions prove to be helpful to all those who are planning to create their own unique calendar. Follow these instructions carefully and surprise your family and friends this year by gifting them your personalized photo calendar.