A guide for people interested in junk journaling
Like most people, I spent a lot of time scrolling on TikTok before its hilariously short ban, which is when I came across junk journaling. I love reliving and looking back at good memories by keeping my friends updated on my life through my Instagram spam account. So, junk journaling quickly caught my eye, and it’s taken control of my life.
As someone who loves to keep cute tags, photography, stickers, and collectibles, I’ve found a comfortable space in junk journaling. It’s a way to excuse my seemingly unnecessary hoarding habits.
To introduce junk journaling to those who are new, the junk part is literal. Order receipts, packaging, ripped-up bags, and supermarket catalogs often make an appearance in people’s spreads. Essentially, things that most people throw away without a second thought are beautified by creating spreads that fit together like puzzle pieces to summarize a day, trip, or outing.
Here are some essentials to get started:
- Journal
- Tape
- Pens/Markers
- Stickers
For some added fun, you can use any picture printer. I personally love Polaroids, and I own a Fujifilm Instax Mini Link, a Fujifilm Instax Mini 11 Instant Camera, and a Polaroid Now Generation 2 i-Type Instant Camera. In the future, I hope to get a printer that allows me to use photos as stickers!
There are various journals, but I started with a LEUCHTTURM1917 hardcover—which was a big mistake! The various things I’ve been collecting inside have gotten chunky and might eventually break at the spine. To prevent this, I suggest using a softcover notebook to avoid making the same mistake.
Any tape can be used, but I prefer using double-sided tape rollers, which is an easy way to secure things to the pages. Washi tape is another great option for decorating and use as a border.
Any pens and markers you choose will do, but my favorites are SAKURA Gelly Roll Gel Pens, Tombow Dual Brush Pens, and Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pens for calligraphy.
On to my favorite part: stickers! I absolutely love stickers because they add character to boring old laptops and water bottles. I like to use a combination of vinyl stickers and washi stickers. I mostly use vinyl stickers when decorating the cover of my journal and washi stickers on the inside spreads.
I’m a huge Sanrio fan, so I just get the huge sticker packs from Amazon, and I’m set. I find it a little harder to find more specific washi stickers on Amazon, but I’ll share some of my favorites.
- Pre-Cut Vintage Washi Sticker Book for Scrapbooking
- Vintage Stickers
- Vinyl Black and White Stickers
- Retro Vintage Stickers
- Maxleaf Vintage Washi Sticker Set
- Vintage Scrapbook Stickers with 300 Butterfly Stickers Pre-Cut
Etsy is another great place to find more niche stickers and support small businesses.
To get started, I would recommend an introduction page. When I do mine, I include my starting date, name, a picture of my current self, current favorites, goals, and a letter to my future self. Before taping anything down, I like to play around with my layout and take a picture, and once I’ve moved things around a bit a few times, I look at the pictures I’ve taken and choose my favorite one. I highly recommend taping two pages together in between spreads to create a stronger page to hold any heavy-duty spreads. As long as you’re having fun, anything goes!