My Journaling Supplies Recommendations

Journaling
Written By Jordan Kiefer

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Journaling is a fantastic way to express yourself creatively while preserving your thoughts and memories. Its benefits are numerous - it reduces stress, improves your mood, enhances creativity, manages anxiety, and helps improve prioritizing tasks and tracking progress toward your goals. If you’re wanting to start journaling, here are my recommendations for the best tools and supplies.

 
 

Archer & Olive Journals

Without a doubt, my favorite journals are the ones from Archer and Oliver. Archer and Oliver is a small US business that creates high-quality, eco-friendly, and ethically-made products. Their mission is to help improve mental health through art and creativity. Each notebook has a gorgeous cover, special gilded pages, spine detailing, and an inside cover design. Depending on your preference, they offer several sizes and dot grid, lined, and unlined paper types.

Click HERE to get 10% off your first order!

Canon IVY 2 Mini Photo Printer

This portable printer is the perfect way to transfer images from your phone to your journal. Using Bluetooth technology, you can easily connect your smartphone to the Canon Mini Print app, choose the photo you want, and print 2” x 3” photos with a peel-and-stick back. It’s a great way to preserve your favorite memories! Available at Best Buy, Amazon, & Walmart.

Scrapbook Paper

Scrapbook paper is a great way to add colorful or themed backgrounds to any journal page. I use it to cover a page or tear/cut shapes for accents.

  • Hobby Lobby - this is my go-to place when I need a single sheet or a cute paper pad in a hurry.

  • Scrapbook.com - with over 10,000 options from the top brands in the world, your choices are endless.

  • American Crafts - they offer various patterns and colors in three paper sizes: 6x6, 6x8, and 12x12.

Stamps

Stamps are a great way to draw the eye in a journal. With a multitude of pictures, words, and patterns, they can be used to help with the layout, add decorative elements, and personalize the page.

  • The Quirky Cup Collective - I primarily use their stamps for my reading journal. The sets I use are Book Genre, Fantasy & Fiction, and Reading Journal.

  • Hobby Lobby - when I first started journaling, all my stamps were from Hobby Lobby and I love them. In addition to rubber and acrylic stamps, they also offer mounting blocks and storage binders.

  • American Crafts - their acrylic stamps include creative images, phrases, holidays, and more.

  • Scrapbook.com - with thousands of rubber and photopolymer stamps, you can find almost anything here.

  • Michael’s - just like Hobby Lobby they offer a wide array of acrylic and rubber stamps, often in sets.

Ink Pads

Both Hobby Lobby and Michael’s offer Ranger’s Archival Ink and Distress Ink, which are my go-to ink pads. These ink pads are made to last and have vibrant colors. If you’re on a budget, each store offers their own brand that works pretty well.

  • Hobby Lobby - their brand is Stampabilities and they come in single ink pads and a mini pack.

  • Michael’s - their brand is Recollections and they come in color-themed packs and single ink pads.

Sticker Books

If there’s a sticker theme that you use repeatedly, a great way to save money is to buy a sticker book. Not only are they affordable, they contain hundreds of stickers – enough for many pages! I love the ones from Peter Pauper Press – the stickers are gorgeous and vibrant with a high-quality finish to ensure durability.

  • Celestial Wonders - featuring suns, moons, planets, comets, zodiac signs, nocturnal creatures, crystals, celestial beings, globes, moon phases, and so much more.

  • Bunches of Botanicals - featuring beautiful and vibrant flora from all over the world.

  • Cottagecore - featuring country cottages, gardening tools, picnic baskets, pies, flowers, fruit, mushrooms, woodland creatures, autumnal accents, fairy-tale delights, cuddly cats, delightful dogs, tea things, birds, bees, botanicals, and so much more.

  • Poseidon’s Kingdom - featuring seashells, mermaids, pirates, oceanic creatures of all types, fishing gear, an alphabet and number set, sailing ships, seabirds, nostalgic graphics, images of waves, Poseidon himself, and so much more.

  • Boho Dreams - featuring subjects with a bohemian flourish, from feathers and flowers to crystals and creatures of the air, earth, and sea.

  • Mystical Ephemera - featuring fairies, astrological images, moon phases, serpents, skulls, masks, mushrooms, owls, ravens, black cats, bats, and so much more.

  • Faerie Kingdom - featuring fairies, elves, and gnomes, to birds, butterflies, flowers, and mushrooms; from mermaids, unicorns, dragons, and castles, to phrases such as ''Believe in Magic'' and ''Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust.''

  • Zoological Ephemera - featuring a diverse range of creatures: forest dwellers, oceanic life, scaly reptiles, charming animals dressed in traditional costumes from around the world, sets of animal alphabets and numbers, seashells, insects, avian species, exotic wildlife, and so much more.

Washi Tape

Washi tape is the perfect way to add borders, trim, and extra flair to any journal page. Just like stickers, they come in a variety of themes, colors, and patterns.

  • Washi Tape Shop - offers a creative collection of Washi tape. The designs are always stunning and high-quality.

  • American Crafts - super cute designs made by American brands. Comes in single rolls or packs.

  • Scrapbook.com - they offer over 100 different themes to choose from and each one is pretty and vibrant.

  • Hobby Lobby - they offer a multitude of colors and patterns. I love the Watercolor Collection - you get 30 rolls for a $1 each. (Even cheaper when it’s on sale!)

  • Michael’s - with hundreds of options to choose from, you won’t be disappointed shopping here. Michael’s is also great at offering customer coupons often to help you save money!

Pens

Whether it’s writing out my thoughts or drawing & doodling on the pages of my journal, I always have my pens nearby. After testing several types of pens, I found a couple options that show up clearly on the page without bleeding through.

  • Cricut Fine Point Pen Set - these fine point pens were made for the Cricut Machine but I love using them to hand draw and write as well. With 30 colors to choose from, I can use any color I want!

  • Tombow Dual Brush Pens - these water-based dual brush pens are perfect for hand-lettering and drawing. The brush tip can create bold, medium, or fine strokes (depending on the pressure you apply) while the fine tip gives you thinner lines.

Miscellaneous Tools

Aside from the supplies listed above, I use several tools that help make journaling easier. Some of these tools I use all the time and others only when I need to - all, however, are essential.

Happy journaling!!

Jordan Kiefer
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