SPRING Into Creativity
— by Christina Katz
Bins / Storage Boxes: Make sure
bins are large enough to lay magazine
pages flat across the bottom. Consider
where you will keep your bins when
they are not in use. I like storage bins
from IKEA because they pop right into
our IKEA shelving units.
Elmer’s Disappearing Jumbo
Purple Gluesticks: I like purple
gluesticks so I can apply ample glue to
each item I paste and see where I have
placed the glue. I prefer the large size
since they spread glue faster and last
longer.
Strathmore Sketchbook, 100
Sheets: I used to use a drug store
Joy Journaling:
A Heart-centered Way To Stay Connected To Your Kids
J
oy journaling might become
your new favorite thing to do
with your tween or teen. When
I want my fifteen-year-old to hang out
with me, all I have to do is spread my
supplies out on the kitchen table and en-
joy working on my project. Next thing
I know, she has pulled out her supplies
and joined me working on her own.
And joy journaling is not only for
girls. Sometimes my husband will join
us at the table, pulling together a collage
of his own. He is not as committed to the
ongoing process as we are, but it’s nice
to know that collaging can be relaxing
and inspiring for any age or gender. Why
not try visual journaling on an ongoing
basis with your children or with relatives
during an extended family gathering, or
host it as an activity at your next slumber
or birthday party? Unlike scrapbooking,
which can be expensive, imitative, and
intimidating, joy journaling is inexpen-
sive, expressive, and free flowing.
Journaling Supplies
We keep our respective joy journal
supplies in two large blue storage boxes.
If only I had known sooner that sitting
at the kitchen table cutting out images
6 WNY Family March 2019
and words from old magazines and past-
ing them into blank sketchbooks would
provide so many hours of enjoyable con-
nection time, I would have started this
process with her in elementary school.
Here is what you need to get started:
Old Magazines: Stop by your
local library and see if you can purchase
old magazines. Ours has them on a
rack at the Friends of the Library store.
Consider asking your neighbors to
drop off their old magazines on your
porch. Or ask local professionals with
waiting rooms for their dated copies.
You can also inexpensively subscribe
to magazines you enjoy at https://www.
magazines.com/.
Scissors: I have several pairs of
the orange-handled Fiskars scissors.
Since you will be cutting a lot, use
whatever scissors are most efficient and
comfortable.
Exacto Knife & Cutting Pad:
I use the Fiskars Heavy Duty Die Cast
Craft Knife and a large pink, self-healing
cutting pad. I also have a smaller cutting
pad that is easy to place between pages of
a magazine for accurate cutting without
tearing through too many pages at once.
variety sketchbook, but I prefer the
sturdier pages that an art supply journal
provides. Shop around until you find the
sketchbook that makes sense to you.
Washi Tapes: Recently I started
collecting Washi Tapes as I come across
them on sale. I stick to color schemes
that will appeal to me or my daughter.
Adding Washi Tape to almost-completed
journal pages is a fun flourish.
Baggies: I use clear plastic bags to
divide my materials up into categories.
I currently have bags for small images,
words and quotes, and ephemera.
Keeping everything sorted allows me to
work on my journal in phases without
getting overwhelmed by too many
choices at once.
Ephemera: Start collecting scraps
of tissue paper, wrapping paper, ribbon,
doilies, cup cake wrappers or any other
type of flat materials you can use to
embellish your joy journal pages. Keep
these in a separate baggie.
Supply Bowl: I use a large round
display globe to store my joy journal
tools so I can easily see them. When it’s
time to put them away, I just put all my
tools into a large baggie and store them
on top of my collage materials.
A Three-step
Journaling Process
1) Invest a little time into cutting up
old magazines in advance. You will need
cut-out images and words to get started
composing spreads in your joy journal.