Gardening Life File Folder Journal

On Tuesday, I spent a glorious October afternoon filming a few of my latest projects. I can't believe October is almost gone. It is by far my favorite time of the year to photograph. Everything is bathed in a rich, golden light.

Inspired by the golden colors of those fading October afternoons, I created a handmade journal from an old green hanging file folder. 

Gardening File Folder Journal

I cut the metal bars from the top and set them aside. With a couple folds, I created a flap for my journal and a tuck spot. I lay the metal bar against the flap and tore the edge to give it a distressed look. I don't have any distress inks right now, but I plan to ink it up in the future.

To decorate, I turned to the huge collection of images I cut out the night before. As part of fall cleaning in my garage studio, I went through years of collected information on flowers, garden plans, and outdoor decorating. Since most of this information can be found on the Internet, I only kept articles that were memorable, or vintage garden plans that I would be hard pressed to find on the Web. The rest I cut up to use for art. Out of these scraps and clippings from seed catalogs, this little file folder journal was born. 

On the front cover, I decoupaged magazine clippings and a crackle paint chip. I found a cute phrase from an article that said "Come see the garden!" I glued a pretty yellow butterfly above it. The flap holds a set of keys which lay over this peek-a-boo message. 

Peek-a-boo!

I wanted the file folder journal to serve several purposes. It had to be a place to journal about gardening, whether planning a dream garden in the winter or remembering past gardening experiences. I also wanted some graph paper where I could draw garden plans or add photos. I also added a signature of mixed media paper so I could do some sketching or maybe watercolors.

So for the second signature, I cut to size some graph paper and ledger paper. Since these were single sheets stacked rather than folded sheets, I had to figure out how to hold them together. I didn't want to use the gluing method to bind them, so instead I simply used a scrap of the mixed media paper and folded it in half to create a spine. This was sewn along with the papers right into the folder. 

I hot glued a kraft envelope to the back and added a small handmade notebook. I sewed it straight down the middle. It is also decorated with gardening images from magazines and seed catalogs. The cover was a beautiful calendar page that originally came from Lowe's when I was part of their gardening club a few years back. 

I am very pleased with how it turned out. I am also happy to share the video with you, in case you missed it. 

If you have any questions, let me know. 

Enjoy these golden afternoons while they last. :)

Junk Journal #1 ~ Common Threads

I'm pretty excited about my new junk journal. I've been carrying it around for days showing anyone who I think might be remotely interested...OK, well, everyone!

Will you look at my Junk Journal? ;) 

And of course, I made a video to share on my YouTube channel, which was a little more intimidating. Not to mention frustrating. I ran into technical problems with the audio and then a fire truck and ambulance in the background. So I added some music and sped up the video. Besides a few captions, I just let the journal speak for itself as I did with my face-to-face shares. Problem solved. Here's the video in case you missed it:




I wanted to share a few more details on how the junk journal was put together. I mentioned already in the video that I used Easy Twine Binding and reinforced the spine with gold duct tape. I used a combination of machine sewing and hot glue to create tuck spots, pockets, and just add a little visual interest. The sewing element is a big part of the inspiration behind title of my junk journal, "Common Threads."

One of my favorite things about this junk journal was finally finding a home for some vintage photos I had tucked away in a drawer. As a collage artist, I collect ephemera and have also started a collection of "found relatives." The photos in this junk journal range from the 40's through the 60's. When I created the layouts, I began to do a bit of storytelling in my mind. Isn't that what journaling and scrapbooking is all about?

Time Flies JJ layout with "Found Relatives" 

The spread above is one of my favorites in the book. There are a couple of faded photos of families and couples, but I really like the soldier and baby picture. Part of my story for those two is Daddy is off to war, but he always keeps his precious little baby girl close to his heart. She looks like she's gazing up at him in this layout.

The idea of "found relatives" also ties into the "Common Threads" theme in my junk journal. While I've never met any of these people personally, I am honoring their lives and existence in a creative way. We all share so many things in common: birth, marriage, family, war and peace. This journal, which eventually will contain some of my thoughts, stories and photos, is part of that common thread we share. Though I don't have children, hopefully someone will find this journal long after I'm gone and connect to the stories and photos within. At least that's my hope.

Here are a few more pictures from the junk journal. If you have any questions about techniques or materials used, please leave them in the comments section.

Another favorite page with Happy Mail treats. Thanks Kym Murphy for the purple butterfly tag. 

Plain yellow envelope decorated with cover of paper pack. The roses are very glittery. 

Victorian ladies and trim from Lynn L.

Thanks for looking!!!