Pictures and Videos to come :)
I used an Artist’s Loft (Micheal’s craft store purchase) journal for my Bullet Journal this year.
I transferred many of the trackers from my 2019 journal and implemented some new spreads as well.
I started with my unwritten rules. These are things that would be apparent if you lived with me (pet peeves*) and should be known about me or my expectations within a space.
Next was a year overview with mini monthly calendars as well as birthdays for each month.
I have a car maintenance log.
There’s a page that’s labeled “Key Key”. I use nail polish to paint the heads of keys to color-code them. This spread/tracker is where I keep a key of what those colors go to.
I have an animal tracker for our dog, Charlie, and our cat, Morgan. I’d collect images and place on the pages throughout the year.
As a crafter, spending money can happen very easily when chasing trends or trying new techniques. After 2019, I realized I needed to reign in my spending and started tracking my purchases. This was really telling when I found over $150 went out by the end of January.
Another spread I keep (but maybe in 2021 will only designate half a page to) is a log of how often I clean my make up brushes or purchase new make-up (specifically from Mary Kay since I’ll usually make a bulk purchase once a year). Yes, you should clean your makeup brushes..frequently.
A TV tracker and movie tracker took one page each.
I had two pages to track my reading. I had a goal to read 30 books in the year of 2020. I realized, however, that I listen to audio books, read WebToons (graphic novels? anime… depending who you ask) as well as use the collection from Mentor Box to preview books. So rather than a single list, I tried to classify or record the different types of ‘books’ that I was reading.
Each year I include a page of “why I love my husband” where I’ll collect little notes of affirmation, record stories, or save pictures and quotes.
I took an extra step in 2020 to make a swatch page/tracker for all of the nail polishes I have. Surprisingly, I referred to this page multiple times throughout the year. Sometimes you look for that specific shade of red or purple. When I collected the Holo Toco collection from simplynailogical, I wanted to keep track of the different top coats. I’m not sure if this tracker will make it’s way into my 2021 BuJo. I may just refer to this notebook spread when I question my collection.
I did have a fitness and step tracker again. I found that I didn’t track my weight frequently. My step tracker showed more activity than 2019, which is good, but I did change my step goal. In 2019 I had the goal of 10,000 steps/day. I was NOT meeting that goal. For 2020, the goal dropped to 5,000 steps/day. There were still days that I didn’t meet that goal, though. This tracker will definitely show in my 2021 BuJo.
My collection of Tombow Dual Brush Tip markers grew exponentially. My husband supported purchasing the markers for use in my BuJo, with stamping, and coloring in general. I do use washi tape to designate collections or single purchases.
I had a grid guide for the BuJo marking out the dotted grid sections. I didn’t refer to this very much, as I found I usually sectioned pages into halves or thirds — which doesn’t need to be precise.
I’m a fan of Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide inks. I use them for stamping as well as for coloring. This swatch page was really useful for selecting inks that would match my monthly spreads.
Making a Home is another spread that migrates from year to year. Whether it’s notes about projects to complete around the house, or a list of things to be included in our future dream home, having this quick access reference is nice. I’m able to collect notes from my husband and what he claims he wants in our future home as well as my own discoveries. For example, I want a kitchen sink that has a drain on the side (not in the center).
I recommend having a page for pen testing to verify if the ink will bleed through notebook pages. That’s how this page started out. In 2020 I finally caved and fell into the world of alcohol markers (comic, spectrum noir). I started slowly and only had markers that were included in Jazza’s art box. The collection built out from there. I also swatched the Distress Inks (not oxides) as well as Distress Crayons I have. [Side note, Iced Spruce distress crayon matches the new Speckled Egg distress oxide ink color very well]
I had a 12x12 piece of scrapbook paper that I would collect compliments and quotes from coworkers. I found, however, that I wouldn’t write them down as frequently and that the ink I used initially was starting to fade in the sunlight. So I cut out the quotes and saved them in my BuJo.
I left a blank set of pages between the front trackers and my first month’s spread. By mid-year, I started to fill out possible bullet journal themes for next year (2021) on the blank page before January.
For January, my theme wasn’t a subject, but was based about the Love from Lizi card kit of January 2020. I found that the Tombow markers 026 (yellow gold), 249 (hunter green), and 910 were great compliments to the patterned papers of that kit.
February was more of a task list. I was in school and really didn’t have anything else to track. I did have a memory page (think scrapbook) to document our trip to Medieval Times, the flowers Matthew got me for Valentine’s day (enough to fill two vases), and a Purse Bingo that I went to with my friend. And then things got crazy…I didn’t use my BuJo so much for a schedule or planner as just a place to collect thought and journal throughout the month. This was the beginning of 2020 and COVID19.
March I used a donut’ sweets theme from LFL patterned papers and washi tape. Again the monthly cover was present with the task list, but there was only one other spread that was 2 pages of journalling for the month.
April was sparse as well. - between school and the pandemic, May and June also contained the cover page, and not much else.
July I purchased a past LFL kit that was very tropical and I was excited to do a bit more decorating of the BuJo. But again, I had a cover page and two pages of journaling.
One of my favorite jokes of 2020 was something along the lines of, “Know what’s completely useless in 2020? A planner!” Which makes me love my BuJo so much more, because there really is no waste when you create your own planner.
For August I wanted to make esthetically pleasing spreads. I pulled out some stickers, stamps, and inks and just went to town. I did create three weeks of spreads and tried to fill them out. I was in the midst of becoming a full time student with the fall semester so my task lists revolved more around homework and assignments due.
September is my birthday month and I wanted to make a point to keep the pretty spreads. I pulled out patterned paper, coordinating washi tape, and found markers to match and made the three spreads. I remember my intention was to have a spread for each week, but I only made three because the last few months had shown that the BuJo wasn’t being used. I though I could easily add another week if it was needed.
October I pulled out more patterned paper and stamps because I was in a card making kick. I kept the spreads mostly blank and filled them in with notes as I went. At this point in the year I truly gave up on any sort of weekly planner. The blank pages with decor were more relevant and easier to convert into whatever format I needed (weather tracking, calendar, or journaling).
November followed same format — patterned paper on edges of page, but no really format.
December’s cover page had a completely different theme than the rest of the month. I started the Dec pages but then got the Amazon toy/ad catalog in the mail. I took that catalog and trimmed out some of the interactive pages with puzzles or coloring, used the stickers, and finished out the year.
Misc pages at the back of my BuJo collected notes and theme ideas for next year.
