Written for Ninegram, SEPTEMBER 27, 2022
Journaling has really caught people’s imagination in the last few years and we’ve seen some astounding creativity. From calligraphy and doodles to mixed media and embroidery, folks have truly elevated the humble journal to an art form. If you’d like to get into the world of journaling, here are four ways to have fun with it.
But one of the most common blocks, people run into when they begin a new journal is ‘Where to start?’ Ideas come easily once you get into the flow of things but creativity sometimes needs a little prompts before those juices can get flowing!
So, for all types of ways you would want to use your journal, we’re sharing some ideas to get you started. Use them as boards to jump off of and dive into joyful journaling.
Travel Journal
Slow down on your vacations and take it all in by journaling about it. Travel journals are a superb way to preserve memories in a way that’s not only photographic - you can write about your experiences, attach ticket stubs and basically anything else to remember your vacation by.
- Plan your vacation / Look back at your vacation
Flip open your journal and begin even before you step out of your door. Use the journal in the planning stage of your vacation to pen down all the excitement or during this time, to look back and record those precious travel time before the pandemic. Make lists of things to pack, of places to visit, things to do - basically all of your travel needs in one place or all the places you'd go back and revisit! The idea is to journal about what makes you feel good!
P.S.: Many journals even come with a handy plastic pouch for your important papers.
- Doodle the sights
You can of course use photographs to remind you of places you visit, but sketching all the sights you see in your journal is a reminder of what all caught your eye. You don’t need to be great at sketching; a journal is meant to be your playground so don’t worry about it being beautiful. Instead focus on capturing all the ways you are enjoying your vacation.
Art Journal
It’s hard to describe what an art journal is because it can quite literally be anything you want it to be. Everyone uses an art journal differently, sometimes writing down thoughts along with mixed media creations, collages, painting and everything in between.
- Doodle
Draw on all the doodling skills you honed in your college classes at the back of your notebooks and put them in your journal. Doodling requires very little in terms of art supplies - a simple pen will suffice. Draw your day, your favorite song, or simply doodle a repeat pattern for a relaxing art session.
- Make collages
If you’re not comfortable with drawing, collage-making is a great way to unleash your creativity and also put all those glossy magazines to use. The collage can be about your day, what your feeling, an inspiring phrase you read recently or simply, make a collage for the aesthetic appeal of it.
Bullet Journal
Bullet journaling or BuJo as it is known in the Instaverse has been trending for a couple of years now. There’s a lot of freedom in what you choose to put in your journal but basically it is an analog way to plan and organize your days. Sounds tedious? Doesn’t have to be - add scribbles, stickers, doodles, small illustrations to make it more fun!
- Habit tracker
We all have trouble sticking to habits we don’t particularly enjoy - for us that’s exercising! Setting up a habit tracker is a good way to keep yourself accountable. You can set up a tracker for each month and it can be for anything - your moods, your food intake and even your period!
Source and Credits: Bujowithnato
- To-Do lists
Plan your day and complete your chores with To-Do lists in your bullet journal. You can make the lists for each month and then further divide them for the four weeks. A fun way of organizing these lists is to use color codes or symbols to prioritize your tasks and mark them done.
Daily Journal
The classic journal we’ve all heard/read about - think ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ or ‘Diary of Wimpy Kid’. Although it doesn’t have to begin with a “Dear Diary”, the idea definitely is to put down daily thoughts, feelings etc. It’s a great way to unburden yourself of things that might be worrying you, to find joy in the small things of life and to keep a record of your days.
- Gratitude lists
Sometimes we all take our blessings for granted and it’s always nice to remind ourselves of them. When you are feeling down, take out your journal and write down the five things in your life you are grateful for. It’ll bring you joy and peace like little else.
- Memory recording
Some incidents of our lives and our feelings about them are so worth recording in your journal! It’s always fun to flip back a few years and remember how excited your first art sale made you, how happy you were to get into your dream college or how a sweet summer’s day filled you with joy!
During this Pandemic time, use the journal to capture moments and travel scenes from your past travels! What better way to jot down all that you did and the special memories! ✨
Sketchbooks make great journals, no matter what you plan on putting in it! There's no rules to journaling, that's the best way to have fun! Show us what you create! ✨🖌️🌈