This month’s bullet journal feature is @carolines.journal. Caroline's work is absolutely gorgeous and super unique and creative. The bullet journaling community is a great place, and I love being able to share other bullet journalers, their journey, and some tips they have for bullet journal beginners. So, without further ado, here is @carolines.journal!
Meet Caroline of @carolines.journal
Have you ever been part of the bullet journal community? If you are reading this post, you probably are. This community is the best one I have ever experienced. Bullet journalists have inspired and empowered me in so many ways! My name is Caroline, I am 17 years old and I live in the black forest in Germany. After high school, I would like to be a designer. For me, school can get very stressful. The bullet journal helps me to bring more fun and distraction in my, often monotonous school day.
Caroline's Bullet Journal Journey
I came across the concept of bullet journaling through a friend of mine. She showed me her planner and I instantly loved it. I must say the concept just blew my mind. How had a managed to live with the pre-printed planner before? I could just design my personal journal, that was perfectly adjusted to my needs! Within the next month, I had already found a nice notebook (from lemome) and sorted out some pens to start. Like every start, I didn´t look flawless. To be honest I don´t like my first pages at all. But with time and practice, I got better and now, two years later, I even started my new Instagram page, which is very exciting!
On Instagram, I often see a certain structure in the way people design their journals. There is a new theme every month. I personally never applied to such “rules”, because my creative mind gets bored way too quickly with one single theme and color palette. Every page is created by a new idea and totally different. This way I get to experiment a lot with different colors and styles.
Since I have the bullet journal always by my side, I feel like there is more space in my mind. It might sound a little weird, but now that I can note everything that I need to know, I don´t have to remember any due dates and my head can focus on other important things. Moreover, I am more structured and less stressed. Bullet journaling challenges my creativity. It also forces me to overcome my laziness and draw more to improve my art skills.
Caroline’s Tips for Bullet Journal Beginners:
I have started bullet journaling 2 years ago, so I am just at the beginning of my bullet journal journey. Nevertheless, there is some advice that I can give you.
Be proud of your work!
Even if the result might not always look the way you wanted them to be, you probably put lots of effort into your spreads. So, don´t let that tare you down. Mistakes happen and you will get better with every single page. Don´t worry if not every line is straight. Cherish your accomplishments!
Make your own rules.
Just because everyone else uses a certain type of pen doesn´t mean that you should do it too. The best part of bullet journaling is that you can create your own masterpiece. If you don´t like the monthly setup, just leave it! Think as free as you can it will allow you to make your bullet journal special and unique! I, for example, didn´t like the dark dots from the Lemome journal and so I bought one just with blank pages. Crazy right? Don´t follow everyone else’s and make your own.
Have a plan
This is more a practical issue, but I really wish I had thought about it before starting to randomly fill the pages. It is incredibly helpful to roughly know what you want to do. Make a mind map and brainstorm all your ideas, then think of a rough order and structure. I have my grades and my schedules on the first few pages. On the last pages, I decided to put a calendar and this system works perfectly fine for me. To plan even just a little bit beforehand will make your journal more organized.
A Note From Caroline
Thank you so much for reading. I will be very pleased to answer any further questions on my Instagram page (@carolines.journal). Lastly, I would like to thank Elizabeth very much for featuring my account!
Thank you so much for sharing, Caroline! If you like Caroline’s planner or want to check her out, head on over to her Instagram Here! Thanks so much, Caroline for taking part in my bullet journal features and sharing your journey and tips with us!
If you are interested in becoming a featured bullet journaler, check out the details and apply here!
