Hello and welcome back! This is the first post of 2022, and I'm excited to be posting more often (hopefully). I decided to start off the year with a bullet journal flip-through. If you don't know, I've been bullet journaling since 2019, back when I was in elementary school, so I have some experience. This week we'll be looking through my first two journals, in my first year. In the next couple of weeks I'll be getting around to the second part, 2020 up to present day. So, let's get started!
We start off with the opening of 2019. I used AmandaRachLee's videos on Youtube for most of these, and they're linked in the titles. If you are just starting out bullet journaling, I would highly recommend her videos. I remember back in ye old days, I would take forever to finish because the process was basically this:
Go on Youtube
Watch Amanda's latest video
Get distracted
Choose a theme
Go to Pinterest
Make a board for the month
Create the cover page (1 hour)
Make the rest of the month
And then never use the journal
I like the "hello 2019" part, but let me tell you, that future log was the biggest waste of time I have ever experienced. It was painstakingly long and tedious, but required too much thinking for my liking. For the goals, no, I have not collected all the Lego Friends characters yet. The "places I went" spread is cute, but unused, a common theme in the earlier journals. Same with the Things to Check Out. And then we are into February!
february - cherry blossoms
I think this theme is really pretty, and would totally do it again in the future. Execution could've been better, but I'm not going to get too hung up over that. We have a nice and spacious calendar, something I miss now. I forgot I did favorites spreads and I'm considering adding them back.
march - forest
I'm pretty sure I did this theme one or two more times, so it's definitely a favorite of mine. I love the color palette; the yellow-green adds some excitement to the sea of green. It's mainly unused, but all-in-all, not too bad!
april - hot air balloons
This month is the worst out of them all. I only made one other spread, it was unfinished and not worth uploading onto the computer. The sharpie bled right through (as you can see on the last page of March) and the illustrations were not the best either. But fear not, because we have hit the lowest point!
new bullet journal setup!
I found this smaller notebook lying around the house and decided to use it as my bullet journal. This time, the brain dump came into good use, but I still spent too much time with the future log. However, I appreciate the simplicity of the black and white, and I will probably do it again next time. So, we're getting better!
may - dandelions
This was one of the first months that I did by myself. And you know what, I'm actually pretty proud of it. The dandelions would of come off better if I chose a fluffier shape and a softer green, but I actually really like it. I think I'll do it again in the spring.
june - lemonade
This was inspired by Amanda's boba tea theme. At that point in my life, I had never even tasted boba and didn't even try to pretend (I have now, and it doesn't live up to the hype). However I loved lemonade so I made this! I love this theme, especially the individual boxes for the calendar. I would totally do this again with a different color palette!
july - fishes + the ocean
If you didn't know, July is my birth-month! My birthday plus the freedom of summer makes it extra special for me. If you're still here, comment down below your favorite month. Evidently, I don't know how to spell "swimming", but besides that, the color and theme is on point. However, you may notice that it is mainly unused. That's because I spent several hours making it, only to lose the journal soon after. I found it midway through August, in a really stupid spot. I feel a desire to avenge poor July's death by redoing the theme in her honor.
september - stationary
I made this and lost it (AGAIN!!!) shortly after. However I do love the theme. I'm not sure if I redid this one, but I'll have to check. I really do love this theme for the new school year, and I don't think my shaky lines did it justice. Which reminds me, I'm planning on doing a post to help people starting out their first bullet journal. So comment down below if you would like to see that!
october - harry potter
Since I lost my other bullet journal, for October I reverted back to the old one. I loved Harry Potter (and I still do, but the love I have for it does not compare to the love I have for others) and I thought I must pay tribute to it. What better way then the bullet journal? I was more responsible and actually filled it out, and I loved this super fun mood tracker. I redid the theme but with jewel tones, and both versions are amazing. I have no desire to redo it a third time, because I nailed it the first two. So you know it's good.
november - fall
You cannot imagine how long this took. Actually insane. I couldn't look at orange the same way again. Nevertheless, I LOVE this month. I was really going for it, and it worked out. The cozy vibes this radiates is surreal. The connected trackers, doodles, and calendar are the highlights.
december - northern lights
Like the last two months, this one does not disappoint! I finally decided to experiment with different mediums, choosing watercolor for the northern lights. Making this was so serene and calming, unlike the vibrancy of November. My bullet journal was definitely put to good use, since I was stuck in a car to Florida with three younger kids, two teens, and six parents. I also used Dutch doors for the weekly spread, which is good if you are combing spreads.
The December spread itself wasn't festive enough for me, a Christmas enthusiast. So, a few pages with the essence of the holidays in them was enough. A Christmas countdown kept me excited, and the doodle-a-day was honestly fun. I filled out the holiday gratitude page, but it just kept me sane through the drive. I felt kind of weird showing it, so use your imagination. But it's not a bad idea, and I think I'll be tad more grateful after 2020.
Anyways, that's it for this week! I had a fun trip down memory lane making this, and a part two is coming soon. Hopefully there will be another post coming soon, maybe a fashion post. It would mean a lot to me if you would leave a like, comment, subscribe, and tell your friends. So I hope you have a great day and see you next week!
contact me
Pinterest: @theextravagantfae
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email: theextravagant33@gmail.com
This is so cool! Also, I think it would be a great idea to write a post about starting a bullet journal 😀
I love this! Great work