Junk Journaling

I fell in love with Junk Journaling during COVID.  I love creating with paper, any size, any kind and have scrapbooked, made cards, etc., and then i found JUNK JOURNALING.  I can use all my creative and use junk, too!

I started out looking through magazines, junk mail, stuff laying around the house, and old books to find "ephemera" to use and have gravitated to printables.  I am even learning how to create my own printables and hope to have a few designs available soon.

I watched video after video on YouTube teaching different ways to create ephemera, how to put a journal together and SO MUCH MORE.  Talk about a rabbit hole, lol. I turn on YouTube and I might as well forget about doing the dishes or laundry -- I'm hooked and I will not surface for quite a while.  To me, it is addicting, in a fun way!

Let's get started with some terminology:

Junk Journal -- a journal you can create using an old book cover and adding signatures (groups of pages), creating your own cover and adding signatures, creating a one-signature journal.  Once you have decided on the journal cover and how many signatures you want in it, you can start designing the journal.

Signatures -- a signature can be as large or as small as you want it.  Whatever fits the journal you are creating.  A normal signature is 6 to 10 sheets of paper --8-1/2"x11" folded in half.  One sheet of paper creates four pages, so a signature with 6 sheets of paper is really 24 pages. The more pages in your signatures the fuller the journal becomes. Remember, you are going to be adding pockets, tucks, belly bands, etc. to the pages and your journal will expand exponentially.

Pockets -- a feature you can use to store a tag, a small booklet, a journaling card -- the list can go on and on, lol. 

Tuck -- similar to a pocket, but it is open on two sides so you can slide in a journal card, a tag, a piece of paper to write on.

Belly Band -- a thin piece of paper/card stock that attaches at the top and bottom of a journal page (or side to side).  It is used to slide ephemera under to hold in place.

Tags -- tags can be used to journal on, giving the journal maker (or receiver) more area to write down their thoughts and ideas and come in various sizes and forms.

Collages -- a collage can be any size and can be anything your creativity designs.  I normally use a thin piece of cardboard (like a flyer that came in the mail) and start gluing bits and pieces of paper I have laying around and adding images randomly.  Collages are fun -- google to see what everyone is doing out there.  You may become hooked on collaging, but be sure to come back to us -- we'll miss you if you don't! And, if you do become hooked on collaging be sure to come back in January 2026 for our weekly Scraps to Art Challenges.

Masterboard -- a masterboard is very similar to collages.  Again, I normally use a thin piece of cardboard (usually the one included in a package of Stampin'Up!'s Designer Series Paper) and glue down bit and pieces of paper, ribbon, etc., along with whatever images I have near me.  A Masterboard can be cut down into pockets, tags, journal cards, etc. and used in your journals.

That is it for now with the new terminology.  I DO NOT want to overwhelm you.  Again, google the above items, get a feel for them and come back and we will start creating ephemera for your journal!

Watch out for that rabbit hole!

JUNK JOURNALING -- WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT?

Junk Journaling -- immediately I think of journaling with junk. How do you do that?  My old can opener will not fit into a journal or my broken down pair of tennis shoes. What in the world is everyone going on about?

Junk Journaling began as a way to use up "junk" from around the house; i.e., old envelopes received in the mail, junk mail itself, old letters or cards laying around, old receipts or bills, your children's artwork to be saved and savored, school reports, pictures from a magazine, recipes from a magazine, odd bits and pieces of scrapbook paper -- the ideas are endless.

Today's junk journaling has evolved a bit -- not only do you create with the junk laying around your home or office, but you can purchase "printables" you can use in your journals.  

What is a "printable"?  Printables are digital files, like documents or images, that are designed to be printed on paper using a printer. They can be downloaded and printed by users for a variety of purposes, including creating art, educational materials, or organizing or events. 

Printables can be purchased from "Etsy" shops or anywhere online; or, you can google free printables and find many, many free ones you can download.

What do you do with the printables?  Many printables are the whole journal; i.e., journal pages and ephemera.

Ephemera can be found or created.  What is ephemera? 

EPHEMERA is:  e·phem·er·a

/əˈfem(ə)rə/

noun

1. things that exist or are used or enjoyed for only a short time.

   "there were papers, letters, old boxes—all sorts of ephemera"

   • items of collectible memorabilia, typically written or printed ones, that were originally expected to have only short-term usefulness or popularity.

     "Mickey Mouse ephemera"

   
   

What can ephemera be used for?  Making pockets, tuck spots, envelopes, belly bands, etc. in your journals.

Intriqued?  Follow along with us during our own junk journaling travels.  We'll learn and create with you as we go along this journey together.

Let's jump into the world of junk journaling by googling junk journals. Be careful, you can easily fall into a rabbit hole and not surface for minutes, hours, days, maybe even weeks.  Come back after your search and see what we are up to next!  Look for our next post -- maybe tomorrow? or I might even fall down that rabbit hole and not surface until the next day.  See you soon!

Scraps to Art Challenge Coming January 2026

Scraps to Art Challenge is a fun way of using those bits and pieces of scrap paper you have laying around to create works of art.

Master Board -- Use a scrap piece of thin cardboard, card stock, a cereal box (just about anything that is thin and stiff) and start gluing those bits and pieces of paper down you have laying around your art studio. Viola' you have a one-of-a-kind piece of art you can use to make tags, pockets, tucks, bookmarks, belly bands, etc. 

Collage -- Basically the same thing as a Master Board.  Think of Master Boards with a twist -- you need to use five out of six (or all six) prompts provided to create the collage. 

Each week, on Saturday, Pelican Crafts of Long Beach will post a new set of prompts for you to use to create a collage. Collages can be any size you want -- use your creativity to come up with a first-of-a-kind piece of art.  Collages can be left as is or used to create tags, pockets, bookmarks, etc. to use in your scrapbook or junk journal.  

Start saving your paper scraps and start collecting images of "things" you think might be given as prompts!