Choosing a journal
I’ve used every single page in my Archer & Olive journal (yay – I love not wasting pages!) and so it’s time to set up my next journal. First decision is which journal to use?? Because I’ve been reviewing journals I’ve got several to choose from. My first objective was to fit the rest of 2021 in the new journal. This means it needed to last for eight months, and that means that my 160-page journals won’t be long enough. I only just managed to fit seven months in my Archer & Olive and that was with a severely condensed April that I was willing to accept because I was on holidays for most of the month.
With my miracle mornings I want to have enough room for my daily journaling. My main bullet journal had to be 160gsm, because I like the ability to use whatever medium I feel like each month. That left me a choice of the Vivid Scribbles or the Pink Mackerel journals. I really like the look of both, with the only immediate negatives being the cover of the Pink Mackerel (I don’t like the appearance) and the large dots in the Vivid Scribbles. I was excited to do the pen test to see which I’d prefer, and the clear winner was the Vivid Scribbles. I have my 2021 journal!
Getting started
I wanted my title page to be something that inspired me. Personal development is a key focus at the moment, so I decided to make it signify that I was seeking growth by having a girl on a hill reaching for the sky.
For some reason, the idea of doing the title page on the first dotted pages didn’t appeal to me because I only wanted a single page and I didn’t want another dotted page next to it, so I used the blank liner page. It didn’t really cope well with the heavy watercolour, which really warped the paper, but there’s no ghosting or bleeding so it’s okay! It bothers you while the journal is new but once you have a month or two in there a few crinkled pages don’t bother you!
Future log
The future log is an essential part of my bullet journal and in the early days, it was the only bit of my journal I continued to use throughout the year even when I had stopped all other aspects of using my bullet journal. I find my future log a great way to use a sticker set, which also makes it simple to prepare. On this one, I used a Tombow marker to create the background ‘blob’, then splashed some watercolour paint over it before placing the stickers.
I’ve tried a horizontal layout, but find I prefer the portrait layout as I can fit more in. To make it work, all I do is write the date (or a range of dates) in the column below and what I’m doing on that day. They don’t need to be in order. I only use it for stuff that I’m planning ahead for, like weekends away, appointments or deadlines, because if I’ve already got a monthly or weekly setup for the relevant week I just put the event straight in there. I’m not a big fan of duplicating effort!
I’ve discovered through my work bullet journal (which is digital) that I like having a future log for ideas as well, so this is something I’m adding to this new bullet journal. This is simply a journaling or ‘brain dump’ type page that provides a space to record things like ideas for my journal, my website, things I’d like to do – anything really. My work journal has three different future logs for journaling: one for strategic planning, one for work processes I’d like to improve, and one general page.
The remaining pages I’m setting up for my new journal are my ‘Level 10 Life’ goal setting spread and my weight loss goals, which I’ll cover in separate blog posts.
Goals
I think one of the most important spreads you can prepare in your bullet journal is your goals page, because this sets your intention for your journaling and what you’re trying to achieve. My goals are pretty detailed because I’ve spent so much time thinking about them and I’m on a big personal development kick lately in an effort to improve my mental health. Your goals can be as simple as you like – you may just be trying to get through the day without falling apart or getting lost, so make sure you do what is right for you.
The goal pages I’ve set up for my new journal are my routines for my Miracle Morning and my Enhanced Evening, my Level 10 Life spread and my weight loss goals.
Grid spacing
Journals do vary a lot in the number of dots across and down the page, so in every journal I do a grid spacing page close to the back cover (near my pen test).
My grid pages are very ‘organic’ in that I don’t really start with a plan. Maybe I should to make it more organised! But hey, it works for me 🙂 I just draw the grids I use most often so I can quickly see the measurements for the layout I’m preparing. There’s lots of more organised grid pages out there if you prefer. Maybe next journal I’ll make more effort with mine!
There’s so many more pages you can add at the start of your journal, but I’m usually a bit short for time, so these are my essentials, and anything else that comes up, I’ll add as I go along and use my index to find them. Some things I might be adding include spreads for ‘When did I last?’, an Instagram tracker for the time of my post and the engagement achieved, and a website planner. Most other things I track or plan, I do on a monthly basis, such as my dream log.
I hope this post has helped you plan your new journal setup.
