Journaling is simply the process of jotting down your thoughts and ideas in order to release them from your mind. This practice requires a pen or pencil and some paper in order for it to do it's job. However, if you are similar to me in the sense where you like to add pretty elements to the page to enhance it's visual appeal then you might find this post useful. I will be running you through my favourite supplies that I use to add beautiful touches to my pages and help the book fulfill it's role not only as a memory keeper but as a creative outlet.
I am going to start off by saying that my writing utensil of choice is a pencil. I use the Bic #2 pencil which has a 0.5 mm tip. In addition to this pencil I use pens and markers to write in quotes or titles that I want to stand out. My three favourite for this are the sharpie fine tip marker as well as any black gel pen.
To add decorative elements to my journal entries, I love using stickers and washi tape. Both of theses crafts supplies can be found at Michaels. When using either stickers or washi tape I like to stick to some kind of colour palette so that my journal pages are all cohesive. Of course, you can include any and all of the colours you like but I like to stick to light grey, pastels and gold.
The quote stickers shown in the very first image are one of my favourite journaling supplies. I love using them as titles, captions to pictures or even prompts. I find if I am every stuck and don't know what to write, I stick one of theses on the page and challenge myself to write something about it.
In addition to washi tape and stickers, scrapbook paper is a great way to add colour to your pages. I love writing quotes or poems on the paper then gluing it into my journal to enhance a page. Scrapbook paper is also thick enough to make pockets or envelopes to store important things. The only downside to this however is how thick it makes your notebook. With this being said, once I complete my journal and want to store it someway, I tie an elastic band around it to keep everything together and avoid the book from staying open.
My next essential is die cuts. Die cuts are similar to stickers however they aren't sticky and are printed on thick yardstick. They are perfect accents to a page as they cover larger amounts of empty space. I add them to my entry with a paper clip so that if I ever want to use it for something else it won't be a hassle to take it off.
A more permanent way to decorate your page is by using stamps. My favourite stamps are from Michaels and were just a couple dollars.Stamps have a very vintage look and are perfect if you aren't the best at illustrating or drawing. You can find all sorts of stamps, some pricing higher then others depending on the size of the image. I personally prefer the smaller ones as they take up less space on the page and can be used for different projects. If you are just starting out with stamps I suggest picking out one set of the alphabet and a couple stamps of different shapes such as stars or circles. Theses can be used for various projects within and outside of your journal.
My very last item are the Tombow brush pens. Theses pens have one side that looks like a paintbrush and the other which has the tip of a regular marker. They are perfect for hand lettering titles or even colouring in or highlighting elements on your page. I am still new to using theses markers but so far I love the colourful pop they add to the page.
If you are new to journaling our looking for new supplies to use, I hope theses suggestions gave you some ideas that you can try out in your notebook. Please feel free to let me know of any journaling supplies you love and I have yet to try out.
-- Sarah
Tags: #journaling #supplies #creativity