Getting ready to move from one book to another.
In July, I'll use a new journal for my memory keeping efforts. But first, I wanted to decorate the cover and first few pages I'll see and revisit over the next few months.
My Current/Old Journal
My current (and soon to be old) journal holds my memories and thoughts from November 2019 through June 2020.
It's not a Bullet Journal (BuJo) since I don't use it to fully track tasks or plans. However, I've adopted some YouTuber's BuJo elements to teach myself to collect and track positives in my life.
It's been a great way for me to identify why I've had any bad days. There's a connection between my hobby and mood trackers. I've seen that my worst days are the days where I only do one or no hobby. These are usually days when I'm feeling ill, attempted to only be "productive," watched too much news, or argued with my Mom about something late in the day before filling in the pages of my journal.
Journals #1 and #2 are a great mix of positives and negatives. It's so much better than my old journals from my pre-teen through younger adult years where I seemed to only write journal entries when I felt angry, depressed, sick, or some other negative emotion.
I liked the way I initially setup my current journal. I used sheets from the Creative Heart Hot Buy paper pad I bought from my local Michael's store last year. The paper pad included pattern paper, quotes, and small designs.
In this journal, I decorated the cover, endsheet, and flyleaf with sheets from the paper pad. An endsheet is the paper adhered to the inside of the front cover. The flyleaf is the loose part of the endsheet that's not adhered to anything. In many books, these are often plain, but I wanted a design of some sort.
I created several collection-type pages and spreads in my current journal:
Happy Thoughts. In my first BuJo style journal, I used my happy thoughts page to write the people, places, and things that make me feel better. Late last year I got a HP Sprocket 200 portable photo printer. I opted to stick my favorite photos in my journal with a short caption.
Traveled Destinations. I was supposed to visit Walt Disney World in May around my birthday. Since I couldn't go due to current events, I treated it as a second page for my happy thoughts.
Unnecessary Wishlist. I'm usually writing a wishlist or shopping list of things I don't need but want to have. I find writing wishlists fun for some reason, and it's something I've done since I was a child. I never really expect to get any items I list, but it's a nice feeling to cross it off if I do get it.
Brain Dump (not pictured). I devoted a couple pages for personal and professional brain dump of ideas and notes that would help me make choices about different things. I never used these pages. I tend to use separate notebooks for different things unrelated to memory keeping. So, these pages were a waste for me.
The Book and Ink Test Page
I don't shop often, but when I do, I take advantage of sales. Last year, I bought three Camel Bullet Journal books from Hobby Lobby. I'm happy with the total number of 192 pages.
I can't find any information online that confirms its paper thickness. I'd guess it's somewhere between 80gsm to 110gsm, or low to decent quality paper.
Something I learned from BuJo YouTubers and bloggers is how important it is to do an ink test towards the back of the book. An ink test lets you know what types of pencils, pens, markers, paints, etc. may bleed through the page.
I do my ink test on the second to last sheet because I want to see if anything bleeds over onto the very last sheet. That very last sheet is also nice to test out a small design idea before implementing it in a month's themed design.
I won't use the following inks/paints in future monthly themed designs:
Medium nib markers (fine point didn't bleed through)
Watercolor paints
Calligraphy inks or felt pens
The following may show on the backside of the same sheet, but not bleed over onto the next sheet:
Firefly alcohol ink markers (only when layered)
Tombow brush pens (only when layered)
Crayola markers (only when layered)
Stamped Memento Dew Drop dye-based inks
The following presented no issues in my ink test:
Pilot G-2 07 pens
Pen Gear pens
Staedtler markers (even when layered)
Spectrum Noir Metallic Markers
Cricut Metallic Markers
Uni Posca paint markers
Acrylic paints
Signo gel pens
The following is based on experience I didn't test it this time around:
Alcohol ink markers (e.g. Copic, Spectrum Noir Illustrator, Artist's Loft, etc.) bleed through the page
Memento Dew Drop dye-based inks applied with a blending tool doesn't bleed through the page
Water-based stamp inks don't bleed through the page
Decorating the Cover
As I did with my current journal and many greeting card designs, I wanted a quote on the new journal cover with a colored pattern paper under it. Something simple and looked OK.
I chose a quote and blue pattern sheets from the Creative Hearts paper pad. The quote reads "You don't have to be perfect to be amazing." I thought that was a positive note to see every night over the next few months.
I didn't measure the sheets when I cut them. I simply made sure the blue pattern sheet was slightly larger than the quote sheet, but both sheets were cut smaller than the front cover of the journal.
To match the rounded corners of the cover, I used a corner punch to round a couple corners on both sheets.
I used a permanent double-sided tear tape to adhere the sheets to the cover. I've found that using a craft knife makes it easy to peel the backing off the tape. Weeding tools also works well to remove the backing.
Later, I opted for my tape runner because it's quicker to roll the tape on the back of the paper opposed to having the extra step of peeling the tape backing.
Decorating the Endsheet and Flyleaf
I chose a different quote and blue pattern sheets from the same paper pad. The quote reads "Follow your passion." I chose this quote to make the dreamer in me feel a little better about my choices in life.
Again, I didn't measure the sheets. For the blue pattern sheet, I laid it over the endsheet and flyleaf to determine where to mark cut lines. I used my corner punch on the corners of the sheet to match the rounded corners of the pages.
Instead of simply scoring the center of the sheets before adhering it into the journal, I cut the sheets in half before adhering them. If I didn't do so, the journal wouldn't completely close shut. Cutting the sheets ensure the journal closes flat.
"Happy Thoughts" Spread
This time around I wanted two pages for my happy thoughts. I figured I'll print and stick some of my favorite photos that represent happiness in my life over the next several months. In other words, most of the photos would be of my dogs Shadow and Rascal.
I blended ink along the top of the page where I wrote my page header. I specifically selected colors that matched the color scheme of the paper pad: pink, yellow, blue, and orange.
I thought using the faux calligraphy technique would work well. With faux calligraphy, I wrote my text normally without thought about what strokes needed to be thick or thin. I then thickened the downward strokes, creating the faux calligraphy look.
Unfortunately, the faux calligraphy technique had me to layer ink to thicken the downward strokes. The ink bled through to the other side of the page. At least I'm not using the side the ink bled through to.
I cut a few small designs from the paper pad and adhered them to a couple corners of the pages.
"Traveled Places" Spread
I almost didn't include this spread considering current events. However, instead of cancelling our May trip to Walt Disney World, Dad rescheduled it to September. I made our park reservations using the new Disney Park Pass Reservation System on June 22nd.
Unless something happens, or current events worsen over the next few months, we're slated to visit Walt Disney World in the fall. I'm hopeful we'll be able to go, so I went ahead and created this spread.
Even if we don't go, I'll probably do as the quote I wrote that reads "Create your own happiness!" At the least, I'll document local park trips and visits to my Mom's house on these two pages.
For this and the next spread, I attempted brush lettering instead of faux calligraphy. Unfortunately, the ink bled through the page even after using a light, single stroke.
"Wishlist" Spread
As I mentioned earlier, I like making lists. As a child, I made Christmas, birthday, and random wishlists for fun. I never expected to get anything on my list because I was raised to believe we were borderline poor.
I learned at a very young age to appreciate anything and everything I received. I especially appreciated receiving non-essential items like a new toy because I didn't think we could ever afford it.
Even after I landed a job that paid me well enough to save money and splurge, I wouldn't do it with the fear of emergency situations such as hospitalization or car repair costs. While I've been fortunate not to experience costly emergency situations, the money I saved from my last job allowed me to take my current hiatus from the workforce for a couple years to focus on my physical and mental health.
Of course, being told by my Mom that we were poor when I was young never stopped me from dreaming. In fact, I enjoyed dreaming and wondering 'what if?' Crossing an item off my list because I unexpectedly acquired it is a fascinating feeling.
I replicated my unnecessary wishlist spread from my current journal which has space for the following wishlist categories:
Arts and crafts (supplies)
Tech (gadgets I wouldn't mind having)
Toys (mostly RC vehicles and a Sony Aibo)
Games (PC video games)
Misc. (whatever else that comes to mind that doesn't fit one of the other categories)
One Last Touch
One regret I have about my past journals from my pre-teen through younger adult years is not labeling my journal covers. If I wanted to reminisce or reflect on something I wrote about in my past, I must open physical journals to see when I wrote in it last.
For this new journal, I simply wrote "BUJO #3" on the spine of the cover, even though I don't consider it a BuJo for planning and scheduling purposes. Next week I'll add "Nov 2019-Jun 2020" on the spine of my current journal.
I used a gold gel pen to write on the spine and protected the text with Mod Podge. I don't want the ink to rub off with constant daily handling of the journal before I'm ready to move on to another journal.
My Thoughts
I liked how my initial journal design turned out. I especially liked the Creative Hearts Hot Buy paper pad. Many of the quotes and designs are relatable to my creative hobbies and aspirations. The designs are pretty, too.
What's Next?
I'm sketching ideas for my July spread which I'll post about on Tuesday. July is a month of many celebrations, and I'm deciding between a picnic or ice cream themed design.
Do you include other spreads in your journal such as a year at a glance, birth dates, or goals? Login and Sign up to share what spreads you create in your journal that's not part of a monthly setup.
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Thanks, and have a great day!
Simply Jelly Jam
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