I ended up having a lot of extra time on my hands this past summer. I found myself scrolling through Pinterest in the afternoons, hoping I’d be able to find something to do. I always saw cute notebook spreads online, but I thought they were only done by professional artists. Little did I know that anyone can do bullet journaling (or “BuJo” for short).
My friend Hannah came to visit from North Dakota State for the week, and we ended up making a bullet journaling Pinterest board to share between the two of us. I’m so used to writing on lined notebooks that the dot pattern kind of freaked me out at first. I’m not going to lie—it does help to bring a ruler if you want your drawings to be perfect.
Starting Out Tips
- Start easy with a pencil
When Hannah and I got our two-dollar journals from Walmart (always buy on budget!), we were thinking too much ahead and trying to figure out things like what highlighter colors and pen brands to purchase.
Believe it or not, trying out your designs with pencil first is much easier and a huge stress-reliever: you can take your time and if you make a doodle mistake, just go back and erase it. When it’s all done, you can trace it with pen and remove any leftover pencil marks. Starting with pen is not only permanent but stressful.
- Use stencils as style guides
I haven’t personally tried this out yet, but people love stencils, especially if you’re not the best at drawing (like me).
Besides stencils, you can even add stickers and Post-It notes to it. Don’t be scared to even put a little Washi tape if you want to stick something in there or add extra color. I’m a huge picture person, and I think bullet journaling could be a fun way to scrapbook.
Ideas
I’m still starting out, so my designs are not perfect. I can’t draw if my life depended on it, but there’s still a lot of things you can do to fill a bullet journal. Here are a few of ideas I had in mind.
- Custom trackers
This is something I want to do with my bullet journal eventually. People can easily keep track of their study habits, finances and even periods. This fall, I personally have a bunch of photoshoots coming up along with doctor appointments. I wanted to keep track of it all and make my own calendar.
Now I can color-code my events however I want!
I’m a big organizer when it comes to my notebooks. I have one journal with chapter stories, another journal of poems I write when I’m sad, and a third journal for my daily thoughts. The one thing I include in every single one of them is an index or table-of-contents page. This would also be something that I want to incorporate into my bullet journal
- Planner
Why buy a planner that’s $16 when you can make your own in your bullet journal? The dots are perfect for guiding you if you’re trying to draw a straight line. I personally wrote my class schedule as my first page, and it was hard because I still ran out of room. I also made a schedule for my ultimate morning and night routine. It’s been a bit harder to follow as of recently because I just got a new job this fall on campus. However, it’s incredibly nice to have because it’s all together instead of scattered around my brain.
DIY bullet journaling is such a fun task. It’s something I like to do now if I don’t want to just write something serious, but also draw or add more creativity on a page.
Follow my Pinterest board if you’re ready for this challenge!