24 Jul Journal Roundup: Volume 2

(Long time no update on this series! Agh, @self)

Hello there!

Here’s a quick roundup of my recent discoveries while documenting daily. Last month, I shared some tips on daily journaling (which I hope helped some of you!). I’ve never been consistent with a format on journaling but keeping this diary going on since April seems like a commitment I’ve been keeping, which is…good, I guess. Haha. Today, I’ll be sharing a few pages from my current spreads and some stories in between. 😀

Here’s what my cover looks like. You can obviously tell I like stickers and tapes…a lot. 😛

I recently got this plastic organizer from IKEA in Singapore. It’s now home to my washi tapes, ephemera, and other small paper things that I can’t seem to place elsewhere. Also, I received this Almond Roca tin (thanks, Tippy!) which now stores postcards I’ve received from friends overseas. 🙂 So happy because I’ve been struggling with containers (since my washi collection is growing too, lol) for the looongest time. True fact: I am a sucker for boxes and containers. Daiso is my best friend. Lol. Anyway.

I have one of my Letters from ABC boxes as containers for stickers and post-its. If you’re wondering where I get these, I usually get my stickers abroad and at art fairs / craft stores in Manila. The other day though, I scored the glasses stickers at National Book Store. Har har. My recommended shops in Manila are Papemelroti, Hey Kessy, and Common Room. 🙂

Okay, let’s talk about some of my journal pages!

JUNE 2016, WEEK 2

June was a deadline-heavy month (well, so is this month). I had a hard time adjusting and finding that balance between being sane and doing good work. So I had to realign things and put my energy into my personal growth by being efficient with work.

On a lighter note…am I really that desperate that I actually paste receipts on my journal now? Lol. Yes. Well, Little Bear was pretty good! I also like the logo’s typography. 😛 #biased

We also had the Creative Talks + Art Sale 2.0 at Pi Breakfast and Pies! It was an awesome afternoon. Thanks to everyone who came and listened to our stories, and help de-clutter our workspaces by purchasing our pre-loved materials! Until the next. 🙂

An afterthought: I realized how much people I’ve been meeting / spending time with and I’m pretty happy. I’ve never been the sociable type but I really am grateful to be friends with selected people who matter in my life. (That was a very introvert sentence but it is true. Lol)

JUNE 2016, WEEK 3 & 4

This was a great de-stresser from Manila’s craziness. I got to teach three classes in Singapore (more on that soon!) and went on a mini vacation while I was there. 🙂

Most days, I didn’t bother getting all crafty (tbh when you’re too busy painting and writing 24/7 you kinda lose the energy to actually do personal work) and I just wrote important statements on my daily entries. It was a good break since I really like unloading my inner thoughts every so often.

Note: I actually have a separate “brain dump” notebook for my feelings. It’s not in this Hobonichi because I like writing really long stories and recaps of life in general. (Nope, I don’t like writing. I really don’t. But my brain kinda needs it every once in awhile, lol)

JULY 2016, WEEK 1

Tried watercoloring on my Hobonichi because I was curious how the paper would react. Surprisingly, it cooperated 😀 I had fun working on this spread. Coincidentally, I enjoyed the first weekend of July as it was spent making art (that matters, lol) and spending time with family, despite the heavy workload I had to deal with on those days.

JULY 2016, WEEK 2

This time 2 years ago, my close friend-turned-manager Tricie and I went backpacking across Southeast Asia (after graduating college). You can read more about that here. 🙂 It felt nice to reminisce on those days and how worry-free we were (you can just imagine how much of a different person I was when I was twenty-one; I’m now twenty-three). Anyway, we finally had one of those “no-work meetings” during that weekend, where we usually just talk about life in general (sans work). It was great 🙂 I had the best time.

I’m also looking forward to our next backpacking trip in 2017! *time to save up*

JULY 2016, WEEK 3

This was literally hell week – I had to battle 3 deadlines in a week. A week! Imagine how stressed / tired I was (to the point where I have bad dreams and wake up in the middle of the night, yep). It was nice though because I was able to 1) beat my deadlines and 2) sleep well eventually. *confetti*

Anyway, I was pretty relieved I took a day off and went to Nayong Pilipino (well, that was partly for work but twas okay!) and National Museum. It was fun to actually just worry about the simpler things 🙂 Read more about my Manila mini adventure here.

Well, that’s it so far for my journal roundup this time. You can check out volume 1 here. 🙂 Hope you’re having an awesome weekend so far.

Also, I have a few announcements!

I’ve worked on lots of projects this year that I cannot disclose (YET) but to give you a clue, here’s a photo below of what I’ve been working on this month.

I art directed / wrote / styled / laid out all the pages for a *wait for it* product coming at you in the next months. I also worked on a “thesis” that involved personal things (you could imagine, I spent the first half of the year working on it and now I’m feeling all the separation anxiety in my system sinking in) and I can’t wait to show you guys what it is!

That’s it for now. I’ll keep you guys guessing. Haha.

So, how’s your journaling going so far? I’ll be sharing a few tips on travel journaling (+ tools I use) for my next roundup. Do you have any questions or suggestions? Let me know your thoughts on the comments below!

Abbey 🙂