I searched high and low for a Thanksgiving theme for my November bullet journal layout, but I couldn't find any that clicked with me. So I hit up all the craft stores and dollar stores in search of fall-looking embellishments that I could use. This is what I ended up with - $4 worth of new supplies from JoAnn Fabrics & Crafts. (Also pictured: markers, a pen and a washi tape roll that I already had on hand.)
I laughed out loud when I saw several YouTubers choosing a woodland theme the week after I had designed this. (I designed it early, since I knew this week would be busy.) It would have saved me a lot of time if they had released their videos sooner - or I had simply waited a few more days. Oh well, this is now my original design, which is just fine since a bullet journal is a design-your-own planner anyway.
I used the (6x6") woodland animals paper for my cover page and then simply lettered the month into the middle. It's tricky to get just the right size of letters for me and my Tombows. This was a bit large for me, probably because I have child-sized hands. I'll file that away in my memory bank for the future.
I changed up my monthly layout because I'm working on getting back in shape starting this month, and I have more that I need to track as a result. It was just a little too much for my previous monthly design. I really like the fact that the calendar doesn't split over the two pages, since that makes it hard to write neatly.
As you can see, I already started filling in a few trackers. I didn't get a chance to take pictures before I needed to start using it. As a side note for those of you who know me and are concerned that I'm tracking my weight, let me assure you that I'm not anorexic and will not be starving myself. I'm just curious how getting back in shape will affect my weight. I'm only recording the results once a week, so I listed the dates to help me remember.
The top header is paper from the fox and mushroom paper. (I used the foxes elsewhere.) The bottom washi tape is one that I already had on hand from a washi tape color-themed tube.
This is my first weekly spread. I love Dutch doors, although I accidentally cut them a bit narrow this month. I should have paid more attention. I just cut them at the half-page mark, completely forgetting that I didn't need that much space for my to-do list and menu.
I added brown gingham washi (from JoAnn Fabrics & Crafts) to the cut edge of the Dutch doors. This helps me to see it better when I need to flip it over. Otherwise, it blends in so well that I'm constantly fiddling with it to get it to turn.
The leaf washi tape was also from JoAnn Fabrics & Crafts. It came in a pack with the brown gingham and coordinated with the paper pad I bought. The sticker was a freebie I found online (from Victoria Thatcher) and printed as an experiment to see how my printer works with printable stickers. Notice that I ended up buying a paper pad and washi tape instead. My printer doesn't produce stickers with the vibrancy that I want.
I'm staggering the Dutch doors again this month, in the hopes that this will reduce the "valley" effect created by cutting Dutch doors in the same place every week.
The fox border is cut from the paper pad. The mushrooms from my monthly spread came from the same paper.
This is very similar to the last, just with the Dutch door at the top instead of the bottom.
Lastly, this is very similar to the previous side-Dutch-door layout, with the exception of a different free printable sticker (also from Victoria Thatcher).
So, what are my thoughts about using decorative paper and stickers in my bullet journal? At first, I was conflicted. I doodled last month because of the bulk that washi tape tends to create. However, I like my planner to be pretty, and I really like how this turned out. After seeing several YouTubers' bullet journals that are nearly bursting their bindings, mine seems downright thin. So I decided I'm not going to obsess about it. I'll just do what I feel like doing from month to month and enjoy the process.
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