I have taken a slight detour from my
fabric memory books . I was introduced to "junk journals" and like the fabric books...got hooked! What a great way to preserve memories! Quick and easy!
The book is shown below, I have started writing memories in this "junk journal" of things my children/grand children did or said, and since I dont' get to see them on their birthdays etc, I write what I would have said to them had I been able to..... things like that. Kind of like bringing my past memories to the present. It's fun and knowing my memories will never fade if I write them down...gives me comfort anyway. Its like a walk through time. It worked out great as some of the memories are very short...so the smaller pages work great for that!
If you want to read where/how it started...read my blog post
HERE. I am working on filling it with past memories I have of my grand children
I learned there was more to "junk journals" than this one I had. I
watched some videos on Youtube and joined some "junk journal" groups and
got hooked! I stopped SB'ing 10 years ago, but kept most of my supplies
and when I realized the same supplies were used, I drug my leftovers
out of the closet and the journey began!
But...here is my first "junk" journal book! I think I like it! It turned out to be more of a scrapbook journal book
Now "junk journals' are made of just that..junk papers, flyers, envelopes, stubs, bags..basically if it is paper and can be written on or glued on or just looks pretty/cute...it is deemed a supply for a junk journal. I love the vintage ones...all those old form papers, the date paper from library books from back in the day, time sheets...just all kinds of old themed papers (many from my own childhood/past) ...blended with current stuff and you have a wonderful journal to write..whatever you want to write in it! "Junk journals" are often made with a vintage look..old fashioned...retro...shabby chic and those are my favorite style. Some day I will have one!
Well, I decided to make one. However... I have two "craft issues". I am a very organized, structured, tailored kind of person...everything has to match, be even, equal and organized. So...me and "junk" aren't friends much. So my first book is structured, tailored, neat, clean and organized! It is more of a scrapbook for journaling instead of for pictures. My other issue is... I can't just make something cause I like to make it. I have to have a reason, a theme, a purpose. I have no use for a junk journal as I don't have anything to write about or "say". I am not busy enough to use it as a planner. So...since my grand daughter's 15th birthday was on my mind, I decided to "use her" as my theme and reason for making it. Her fav colors, memories from her past, where she is now etc.
I used cardstock and scrapbook paper and cut the pages 8x8. I used the accordian style binding and here's the style of page I used. Then each of the middle pages was cut at the fold or left open at the top to form a pocket page.
This is the cover. I used cereal box for the covers and spine then covered them with pattern scrapbook paper from my stash. The words are "happiness, smiles, Good Times" Thought that'd be good for her high school years. I just used a thick fabric ribbon and wound it around with a tie so it was easy to open and nothing to pull or hook to keep the book closed. The playing cards... no point, just looked nice. It was a piece of 12x12 paper and I cut out a "straight" (or is that a flush?) and used all hearts as she is in my heart and I want her to always know that! A piece of lace, a length of gold glitter ribbon and 3 little rose motifs.
There are 11 pages total (fronts and backs) plus pocket pages in the middle, but I didn't include pics of some of them...it will be long enough with just these! Every page has pockets, tuck spots, open up things, pull down tabs...lot of places to put/tuck/write things...but on 8x8 area! She likes "secret" things like that so I hope that will be a major appeal to her to like the book!
This is the second and third pages...the light paper on the left side opens downward with lined paper to write something and a bobby pin decorated to use as a paper clip to hold something there. The right side... a doily folded over the side of the page making a tuck spot. I stuck a piece of pink paper and a few sheets of a little story she wrote several years ago when she was into writing stories. She can put whatever she wants there.
Flip the page and you get the doily on this page too and more sticker words and some decorated papers to write on..front and back - tucked under the doily. Right side is a picture from a magazine of her dog.. at least nearly her dog. Looks alot like him, but not exactly..she'll get the point! I was trying for the "junk" feature. Behind it is a pocket with some tags to pull out to write on or glue a picture!
Next 2 pages...left side is just a strip of the black paper..she likes halloween so it it black with yellow, orange and white dots and tags with gold glitter ribbon on the bottoms and tags with candy corn (her favorite candy) print ribbon at the top. Other side is an envelope..open it and there is a paper in there to write. She was just her mothers maid of honor and the colors were this teal and black so that is why I chose this paper..thought she could write about her feelings of the wedding etc. And I garnished it with same colored rhinestones.
Next is a page on the left, is made with a pattern paper looking at tad vintage. I printed out, on beige cardstock, some post cards "dated" and designed from back in the 30's-ish. She can pull them out and write on the backs. Right side is...2 years ago this christmas she went to Paris so I pull a page from a magazine with the Eiffel Tower on it, glued it to cardstock and made a pocket out of it with 2 tags..again with the gold glitter ribbon at the tops this time.
These next ones were the first pages I made. It ended up looking more like a scrapbook journal instead of a junk journal, but as the pages went by, I did figure to add some of the "junk" parts...like the magazine pages. This one... it was scrapbook paper too, says "it isn't about waiting for the storm to stop....(and the next page says "its about learning to dance in the rain") These were on paper too, so I cut them out and mounted them to make a banner. Left side is pockets with decorated cards for writing...right side is little "file folders" and if you open the folder, there is a long attached paper for writing..then you just fold it up and close the folder! The whole right page is made into a pocket with a yellow cardstock card to pull out for journaling or pictures. She can have her friends write on some of these tags too!
This is the back side of the above...left side is two card tags in a slide slot and the right is 3 journaling cards with words at the top in a pocket.
I ended up using things from her past. My theory is...have some of her past for memories...some for the present to make memories and some for the future for her hopes and dreams of making memories! Her favorite thing for many years when she was little was animal prints...leopard and zebra specifically so of course, I had to make pages of that. Fortunately I had some in my stash! Left side is 3 tags I covered with the leopard print in a pocket made from a small brown paper bag that has a tag in it. Closed, it is fastened with a decorated paper clip. The middle page there is zebra print and a large pocket with a tea dyed paper "book" and......
turn the pocket page and you pull the book out and can write in it. Page on the right has a pocket of the zebra print and a leopard print writing card to pull out. The part on the pocket is a "secret" thing (she enjoyed playing secret detective) ...pull the brown tab up and it says "Treasure Map" and it is a piece of typing paper, tea dyed, that can be opened to full size and she can write on it, the fold it back up and hide it under the clasp! I don't know if she will "like" that idea now, but when she was around 7-9 years old...she'd a loved, loved, loved it!
Trying to bring "junk" into the journal, her favorite "food" is mac and cheese so I took a page from a magazine and folded it and inserted it into the binding and also one of her favorite candy, conversation hearts...these here are cookies, but I think she'll get the point! Same thing..magazine page and slipped into the binding.
Turn the page and there is cute scrapbook paper print of chocolate chips...a pocket and 2 journaling cards. To the right is a pocket with a journaling card in the top. She loved choco chips when she was little and to my knowledge...still loves a handfull every now and then!
For current memories, the next pages are school theme...the lockers there are a printed paper of all lockers so I cut two out, cut some lined paper and stapled to make a book. The papers behind it are just plain and I accented them with grades etc for the school theme and in a denim pocket with a little vintage grade card embellishment. To the right is a tag pocket with lined paper on the front and a lined tag in it..with a pop top glued for the tag pull! Turn the tag pocket and it is the same on the other side and the right page is paper that looks like a chalk board, and a small stack of the Post It notes and some index cards with a paper clip for journaling. That page also is a pocket.
She loves the beach, so this page I used beach theme print paper.. the shells are a realistic print, the pocket is a paper that looks like sand and I used vellum for the note paper. To the right is water looking paper I made a large pocket opening at top with a flap closure and 2 pages inside for journaling. She loved Orca whales so I had to include a sticker of that!
Turn the page and on the back of the water pocket is another "sand" paper pocket and shell cards. The duck is a punch art embellishment I made 10 years ago and still had from my scrapbook days. The other side there is slide pocket and more journaling cards.
I made the pages and assembled the book kind of like from when she was little (first page) to things she liked in the past, to the present of school and ending with "what the future holds" so I thought I hope she gets to travel to see places...so I used a map of New York. I chose New York as there is alot of history there and I believe in kids knowing the history of this country etc...and New York would be her style anyway so I just stopped at AAA and got a map of New York. I used little Post It arrows to show places I am sure she has heard of, to the right is the front of the map with the Statue of Liberty on it, and...
flip that up and there is the part of NY she probably knows most about..with an arrow pointing to the Twin Towers as 9/11 happened in her life time, Madison Square Gardens, Staten Island and museums and other things, can't remember right now. I wanted something to resemble a pass port to go along with the travel theme for journaling so I made one as you see there with blank paper inside and the map there is a pocket page where the pass port slides into!
Last page is a die cut of the skyline...somewhere. It is left over from my scrapbook days and I glued it to make a pocket with some tags and the back cover is more of the map of New York.
There are two more facing page sets, but I think this post is "picture heavy" enough, so I'll stop there. I think it turned out okay for my first time. The binding is the accordian style and I goofed in that I creased the pages with a 1/2 inch section which would go into the accordian folds, but made the accordian folds only 1/4 inch so a bit bulky in the middle, but with use, I think that will settle down.
I am not sure if she will like it...she is a city girl and a cheerleader in 9th grade and totally with the "e-everything gadget" and not at all crafty inclined so I am not to sure she will understand the point of the journal as it relates to memories but if she doesn't want it, I will just keep it and maybe she will want it later! I will stress to her that she can put anything she wants in the pockets and tuck spots. Notes from her friends, dreams she has for her future she writes to herself, thoughts, pictures, ticket stubs, programs..fill the pockets with anything...write about anything....anything she wants! And it doesn't have to "match" the theme of the page either.
The next book I made is called a "paper bag" journal...but I forgot the paper bag...but it still turned out good... I just have no use for it! I'll have a post about that next week so keep an eye out for the post! I am hoping to make them good enough to be able to sell them at a craft fair come November. It would sure be nice to at least recoop my expenses because as you well know....crafting is not exactly cheap! Plus.. if I make them...I need something to do with them! Wish me luck!
P.S. On the fabric books, the reason I got distracted enough to find something else is, I ran out of lace and it is pretty expensive to buy, but I went to a swap meet last week and there was one booth with nothing but lace and ribbons. I bought 2 yards each of 2 different wide, flat lace which is what I was needing, so I plan to go back in a few weekends and get some more, so once I get the initial hoopla out of my system of junk journals.. I can do them at the same time as my sewing room is set up to be able to just sit and do either I want without having to pull things in and out of storage/closet. I got it pretty organized in there! So ....don't leave me now! More to come!
Thanks for stopping by and...keep on sewing those memories!
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