It seems to be the case that whenever I get asked ‘what have you been up to?’ a moment of panic goes through my head and 90% of the time I will answer with ‘Oh…uhm…not much. Just working, really.’ This is absolutely a lie (eh, not the working part) because I have been doing things. My mind just goes blank when asked.

With this in mind, I have half jumped on the bullet journal craze. The essence of a bullet journal is that you write down your tasks/activities for each day, and you can also have a monthly overview. There’s a never ending list of things that you can track – films, books, weight loss, birthdays, travel, budget……. Some people turn their journals into works of art, with stunning drawings and calligraphy. Each page is numbered, so when you write something you record it in the contents page so it can easily be found again.

When I say ‘half jumped’ I mean that I enthusiastically bought a notebook and some nice new pens, then took a step back realising there was no way I would keep it up to date on a daily or even weekly basis. I have decided just to do things by month, and in here I will write simply what I did or plan to do. Then, if I want to look back on what I’ve done that month, or upcoming plans, I can just flick to that page. I plan to record projects that I’ve completed or started, as well as social events and any other notable occasions.

I am very easily distracted and keep seeing crafts I want to try, so the first thing I did was set up a couple of pages where I could track these. Then, when I get round to doing them I’ll write down the date and a note of what it was that I made. I’ve started with a two page spread, but that’s rapidly filling up! Looks like I might have to start another table.

I’ve also added a quotes page – who doesn’t love a quote? This page also gave me the opportunity to test the colours in new pens! I’m also going to try to write down things I google on a regular basis – such as the dimensions for blankets and yarn types.

In an era where everything is digital, I like the idea of tracking things offline. It’s quite relaxing to spend some time filling out the pages, and the only things going into the book are those which I choose and will find useful. I think it will be interesting to write down and then look back on what I have done over the course of a month, and see everything in one place. There’s nothing worse than getting to the end of a month and wondering what you’ve been doing over the past few weeks!

I just have to hope that I keep going with this and it doesn’t fall to the wayside!

Materials

• Leuchtturm1917 A5 hardcover notebook in Berry
• Staedtler 334 Triplus Fineliners
• More about Bullet Journals on Bulletjournal.com