on journaling // molly.

// nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it. //

lucy maud montgomery

little miss molly hooper - petite, charming, adorable, british, and a dear - just like the darling character she's named after. molly is a bit different from her antecedents in that she is thinner and composed of mainly art and other bits n' pieces of summertime life, but already her pages are becoming bulky with envelopes being stuffed with paint chips, poetry, and other notes. if I were forced to choose between this pretty and a notebook, molly would win without question.

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obviously, I am not a professional at journaling {I mean, who is really?}, and am still trying to find my own unique style in this art, but I thought I would compose a list with a few things that have helped me in my journaling journey in hopes that they will help you spice up a normally dull book that eventually ends up blank collecting dust up on the shelf.

+ naming the journal.
for some unexplainable reason, naming my journals have helped immensely. my first completed journal was named livvy, and since she was a decent success, the two following notebooks have been named as well. perhaps, I view notebooks more like writing a letter to an inanimate friend - the best friend for not judging silly thoughts or critically pointing out all my mistakes. ;) 

+ you are an artist. 
SMASH journaling has really helped inspire me to think unconventionally in adding anything and everything that will fit into a book. I type lists, quotes, and poems on paper bags, envelopes, and paint chips while feathers always add a touch of adventure to any page. quotes are an incredible inspiration, and thanks to good reads and pinterest - these are sources that will never run out.

+ typography practice.
this woman is my top inspiration on journaling. her work is absolutely superb, combining anything and everything into a journal - and her style of art is definitely distinct, her own trademark. in all my researching, I have not stumbled upon anything that looks like her projects. she occasionally gives tips on her site. one of her tips that she suggested was to create a separate book to practice different handwriting every day. well, unlike most people {apparently}, I have little time to sit down and write in my journal let alone time to practice my handwriting! so whenever I'm not in a hurry with my entry, I try to combine different styles of writing. elongated printing, tall cursive, swirls, arrows, dots, lines, curls, - for the most part my handwriting stays the same, but adding those small details to the heading or a quote really makes a difference [another style I'm loving, right now, is faux calligraphy in the middle of the page and writing around it].  

+ copy and pinterest. 
part of being an adventurer/documenter is observing patterns, gathering inspiration, and adapting other people's works into your own. if there is an artist I specifically love, I try to copy their techniques and style. now, before you label me as a, "copycat," let me just say that try is the key word. usually when I try it turns out to be something so completely different that I end up going with my own ideas. pinterest is an incredible source of inspiration in general, but I know I would not be journaling like I am now without inspiration from this board.  

+ having the peace of mind...
that this journal is yours and yours alone. as a perfectionist, it is difficult to say, "who cares?" when I make a mistake as a lot of effort is put into each page. but truly, it's one of the things that you learn with journaling: you are going to make mistakes. I personally don't mind if somebody would look at my journal, but I do take comfort in the fact that nobody probably will ever be interested in viewing my silly thoughts. most of the entries comprise silly notions, trailing thoughts, and every day happenstances; but somehow I just know that it will be worth all the pains of taking careful note of present things in the future. 

+ writer's block. 
don't worry. I'm there at the moment, and in all honesty, sometimes I'm not at all enthusiastic at the idea of journaling. I suppose, it's just like any other art form - sometimes you're incredibly inspired, while other times, you're at a standstill. lists are great "filler entries," if I'm absolutely determined to scribble in my journal that day.

+ being comfortable...
finding a place where you are comfortable with journaling is key. forced entries, when read over again, can be determined just that: forced. if journaling is not your thing, don't stress. there are plenty of other creative writing outlets {like blogging for one} out there in the great wide somewhere. but to those who are interested yet don't think they can keep it up, I highly encourage them to give it a try. because eventually memories fade as swiftly as they came, and sometimes your stories are just too good to loose. 
  

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other than blogging, what's your daily creative outlet? 
xx