A simple holiday lights theme with splashes of watercolor.
I decorated my journal pages using splashes of watercolor and a few stamps to save some time with the design.
NOTE: While the pages are like those who setup their Bullet Journals (BuJo), I use this journal more as a memory keeper/diary. The BuJo-inspired pages encourage me to make note of the good things in life, even on the worst days.
In case it's helpful, below are the topics covered in this post:
Calendar Overview Pages
The calendar overview is where I note important dates I want to document in my journal.
The larger calendar fills much of both pages. I note events such as birthdays, appointments, and holidays within the appropriate block that represents a day in the month. During the month, I will make a short note of something that happened.
On the right, I will note the best and worst things to happen during the month. While I write a line of text highlighting one good thing about that day on my highlights page, I believed it was important to document the bade things as well. It will allow me to reflect on the past and press on with the future.
I also have a mini calendar for next month and another box where I'll note next month's events coming soon. I like being able to visually see ahead to things I may need to be aware of before those days come.
Productivity-related notes like to-do lists are managed in a separate and more simplistic Bullet Journal.
I had no clue how to decorate my pages in a way that looked presentable. I also did not allot much time to create an elaborate design.
To keep things quick and simple for myself, I did a light watercolor wash over the pages. I limited myself to three colors for simplicity. I also splattered the colors onto the pages because I like a little bit of chaos.
I used letter stamps to add "December" along the top of the left page. Unfortunately, the stamping was not bold enough and I had to go over it with a black marker. This was my first and last time using the letter stamp set.
I used a lightbulb stamp I carved out of a rubber block to add holiday lights to the pages. I could have doodled the lightbulbs myself. It probably would have taken the same amount of time as stamping.
Hobbies and Dogs' Pages
My hobbies & dogs are tracked across a two-page spread. While many journal enthusiasts track their habits, tracking my favorite hobbies reminds me to dedicate time for fun. The hobbies I track are:
arts + crafts,
writing, and
gaming.
For my dogs, I track the following:
when they go for a joy ride,
when they go for a good walk,
when I've cared for their coat with a brush, leave-in shampoo, or bath,
when they received teeth care with brush chews or teeth brushing, and
when they get to relax with a picnic in the park.
I especially wanted to track my new puppy's training progress. We will focus on mastering the following skills:
heel,
come,
under,
carry,
and quiet.
I continued my watercolor and stamped design on these pages. Instead of using the letter stamp set for the page header, I attempted to freehand the brushed lettering style.
Highlights and Mood Pages
Every night, I write a line of text highlighting one good thing about that day on my highlights page (left). I will write about a simple thing that made me happy.
Even on the worst days, I try to think about a highlight of that day to write down. This page is intentionally left blank since I will fill it in throughout the month.
I treat my mood tracker page (right) as a coloring page of sorts. Each night, I will normally color-in a part of an image (or shape) that represents my overall mood for that day: awesome, meh/OK, sick, or bad/sad.
Adding strings of holiday lights to color-in throughout the month was the quickest and easiest mood tracker design I have ever made.
In fact, while the execution of the holiday lights theme is not the best, it was a quick and easy design theme to create!
What's Next?
Do not have time to sketch or draw your own artwork for your journal pages? Consider using stamps to fill-in the blanks spaces! If you are short on cash, check your local dollar store for stamp (or sticker) sets.
Have you set up your journal design? Comment below to share what theme you went with and what materials you used to create it.
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Thanks, and have a great day!
Simply Jelly Jam
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