A junk journal is kind of like a chaotic scrapbook. Instead of perfectly edited photos and expensive stickers, it creates memories out of anything.
Suddenly, those ticket stubs and printed cocktail napkins aren’t junk. They are artifacts of a life worth remembering. After all, isn’t one person’s trash another one’s treasure? Maybe the pieces would be “meh” on their own, but in a single journal, the collection can spark a lot of joy.
If you are looking for your next journaling experiment, then you should really give junk journaling a try. In fact, why not make it your next weekend side quest?
Why “Junk” is Worth Keeping
For many journalers, writing about your real life is a very private thing. Many even go out of their way to destroy their old journals. If that’s what you need to feel safe enough to write –go for it. Still, you have to admit it is a bit of a sacrifice. Privacy might mean you’ll have to forget the little precious memories of day-to-day life.
Or do you? Junk journaling is nostalgic by nature. Flipping each page, you’ll see real pieces of your past adventures. It allows you to be honest, but not too emotionally revealing. It might even be more honest than written entries because there is no space for denial.
All of this makes junk journaling the perfect “2nd journal”. You can pair a junk journal with almost any other kind of wellness or personal organization journal. It makes a lovely partner to both.
How to Start a Junk Journal
To start a junk journal, you only need 3 things: a journal, some scissors, and archival-quality tape (more on that last bit later). Everything else is a fun extra. This is a “junk” journal after all. It’d be silly to spend a ton of money on it up front.
Don’t underestimate your own creativity. With the right scraps and some careful arranging, your spread will come to life in no time.
Choosing Your Scraps
After you have the basics, all you need is bits and bobs from your life. Nothing is too weird to stash away for your junk journal. Actually, the off-beat, strange trinkets often make the most interesting pages.
The one rule is that it needs to lay relatively flat. Your journal is going to triple in size before you know it. Glue, photos, ribbon, wrinkled receipts, etc. –they all add a little bit of thickness. Adding bigger bits like plastic bottle caps could eventually make the journal impossible to close.
But if it’s relatively 2D, it is fair game! A fun part about junk journaling is that it keeps you on the lookout for things worth saving. Finding hidden art becomes second nature after a while.
An example scrap from game night!Arranging Junk Journal Pages
First things first, you can design your junk journal pages however you want. There is no “right way” to organize it. That said, many people have found it helpful to start with one idea and run with it.
Chronologically
The most common way to set things up is by date. If your regular journal is chronological, why wouldn’t all the others be too? Not so fast! You still have to consider a few things.
Do you want each page to stand for a set period of time (as in 1 page = 1 month)? If you are a homebody (which many, many journalers are), you might not collect enough treasures every single month. That’s why some people just wait until they feel they have a good handful. It’s still chronological, just a little bit more loosey goosey with the dates.
Vibes
Vibes could mean a lot of things here: emotions, activity types, etc. You know it when you see it. This type of junk journaling is great when you want to remember that you are made of many things.
For example, it’s hard to remember that you’ve ever been happy when you’re really going through it. A “joyful” themed junk journal page could be a great reminder! Similarly, a “social butterfly” page could stand as proof that you do have friends. Use it as a tool to keep in touch with all of your parts.
Color
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to give your journal pages any grand significance. Sometimes it’s nice to let your journal be a place to just create. No need to do anything else but make the pages look pretty.
Monochrome junk journal pages are cool. Wildly colorful collages with all sorts of intriguing scraps are cool. There really, really is no wrong way to journal. Let yourself have fun!
Preserving Your Journal
Luckily, we’ve already discussed how to make sure your journals last (almost) forever. The tips in that article apply to all journals, junk included. You need to know how to take good care of your notebooks if you really want them to last a lifetime. That said, junk journals require a little extra love.
Have you ever found an old movie theater ticket in a drawer somewhere and noticed that the ink has almost worn off? That’s because ticket don’t usually need to last longer than a few hours. The ink isn’t designed to last.
Pen ink on notebook paper is predictable. Every other scrap of paper you find “in the wild” is not. This is why you should really look into archival tapes and, eventually, page protectors. Don’t worry, it isn’t that fancy. Just look for scrapbook tape at your local craft store. Everything else can wear down different kinds of paper.
With that in mind, you are finally ready to begin your side quest. Happy journaling!
