By Cathy Diaz in Creative — Mar 21, 2024

Eleven Ways to Pre-decorate Your Journal

Jealous of instaworthy journals? I have some ideas to pre-game your journaling. You're writing may not be prettier, but you might be more organized, colorful, and dare I say artsy🎨?

Photo by Brett Jordan / Unsplash

Hello Fellow Journalers!🖊️📖

Jealous of instaworthy journals? I have some ideas to pre-game your journaling. You're writing may not be prettier, but you might be more organized, colorful, and dare I say artsy🎨?

Ideas for pre-decorating your journal

1️⃣Lay out a calendar month

Break out the ruler and make some boxed lines while planning your next month's schedule. You could also go for simplicity with using only numbers or make an offbeat choice like a vertical month layout.

two yellow pillar candles — Photo by Estée Janssens / Unsplash

white planner with pen on top — Photo by Estée Janssens / Unsplash

2️⃣Lay out your week

Do you register seeing your week ahead better? Focus on creating a spread that you can see easily on one or across two pages when laid flat. Customize to your needs. Are Mondays task heavier than Fridays? Craft the space accordingly.

white printing paper and blue pen — Photo by Estée Janssens / Unsplash

3️⃣Lay out your day

This season of your life is so busy, it doesn't matter what day, there's always a task to be done. Dedicate an entire page (ore even two!) to each day, and divide by task, priority, and perhaps make yourself a happy reminder. After all, we only live once.

black pen on white notebook — Photo by goxy bgd / Unsplash

4️⃣Use eye-catching memorabilia

I have a blue and yellow flower patterned box that one day (haha) I will cut up and pre-decorate one of my journals with. I also have cards given to me from friends and family members with love notes and funny bits that I can't give up. Are you a sucker for pretty and sentimental things? Let's be friends.

an open book sitting on top of a bed next to a leaf — Photo by melanfolia меланфолія / Unsplash

5️⃣Use stickers to level up your journal game

Right now I am making my way through a giant sticker book of Lisa Frank with my toddler. There is no mercy in our household, even the trash can is stickered with hippo ballerinas. Adopt this mentality with your journals. Have no sticker mercy and make your pages irresistible to write in. Right next to those stickers.

white printer paper with blue flower print — Photo by pure julia / Unsplash

6️⃣Focus on borders and corners

Maybe just a splash of color is all you need, or even have time to do before getting into your writing. Overthinking is the sibling of writer's block. Focusing on borders and corners takes away the anxiety-inducing question of "where do I start?"

white ruled paper on white and gray table — Photo by Georgiana Voiculescu / Unsplash

7️⃣Make a centerpiece for a page

Do you have a hand that leans towards majestic works of creativity? Or maybe wannabe hands that are learning like the rest of us peasants? Master artist or student eternal, create visual breaks amongst the writing of your journal with full-page drawings that can be used at random or as intentional dividers.

white printed book page — Photo by Noémi Macavei-Katócz / Unsplash

8️⃣Make a tracker

Are there personal goals you're itching to crush? Maybe you wish to be more aware of your physical and mental health, or wish to visualize certain habits. Make a tracker that reflects the likely frequency, such as monthly, weekly, daily, or hourly, and use a system easily remembered. Coloring is popular, and brings visual interest to your journal.

bread on top of plate beside gray laptop — Photo by Estée Janssens / Unsplash

9️⃣Use stamps

Ink stamps are a wonderful way to bring imagery and a pop of creativity to a page of your memoir. You can play with different colors and layer the stamps over each other bringing complexity from simplicity.

black and white playing cards — Photo by Mika Baumeister / Unsplash

🔟Use photos

I love using photos. Personal photos can be a shout-out to a certain time of your life that you always wish to remember. Memorializing loved ones, favorite places, and beloved memories adds a layer of love. Lay out the photos and write or add further memorabilia around them. Use the photos as a guide, and allow yourself a moment of nostalgia when looking at them.

a bunch of papers and scissors — Photo by Elena Mozhvilo / Unsplash

💡

Want to learn how to use visual prompts for your journaling? Head over here.

1️⃣1️⃣Make a list

Remember 'bucket lists'? Similar concept. Make a list of your favorite movies, or the books you read last year. List your favorite vacations or the places you still want to visit. Bucket list types can also have the dates completed, and for past experiences, if able to remember a timeframe such as the year, is also an excellent way to add depth to the page.