I can’t believe it has been a year since I uploaded my first monthly set up to YouTube! In this year I have learned more about the style of journaling that I am comfortable with. And I think I can call it “Minimalist with Intricate details“, which to me, means leaving lots of free space and adding elaborate drawings.
As for the theme, back in October I won an Instagram challenge named “Jupitober” where I painted a little illustration based off some space prompts and... here‘s my winning watercolor!
The astronaut in that picture became my inspiration! And then to complete the idea, I bought a little astronaut book stopper:
My followers on Instagram voted for her name, and so January will hold the story of Moonie, a brave astronaut that goes out into outer space to try new things and make others happy! I decided to add a story line because right now I need cute humor in my life. And the story of embarking on a new journey is fitting for the coming year which we all hope to be better, but it might bring even more challenges so we must be ready, accept change and care for others!
”Set sail for the stars”, a quote from Carl Sagan was perfect for my cover:
My first spread is an “illog” (illustration + log), where I will be journaling everyday through little drawings. I’ve been trying it this December and I‘m in love with it. Look up Mimi Chao on Skillshare if you are interested!
Then comes a “Mood Board“ which I also learned on Skillshare from Amanda Rachlee, this is a spread for self discovery and to find out where I have been the past month, where I am and where I want to be, internally speaking. It definitely helps with understanding my own progress and setting priorities straight, which makes up for a better planning of tasks and goals. I think this is a good exercise to start each month!
Then comes a spread where I will have my ”Mental Inventory”, an “Expense Tracker” and the “Monthly Log”. The first two will be hidden from social media with the help of a Dutch door. The expense tracker I used last year was yearly and didn’t work, I just kept on forgetting about it so maybe this time, a monthly tracker on my face will work better!
A new spread I want to try is a “Time Tracker”, where I color coded the regular activities I engage in on a daily basis to log them according to the time I spend on each. This will take some discipline to fill, but I really want to make the most of daylight hours so I am hoping this tracker will help. On the bottom of the page I added my habit tracker.
And to finish it off, I added space for my “Doodle Challenge” and the first three days of January. Doodle Challenges have become a part of my daily routine, there’s something really nice about starting my day drawing, and I am loving to do so with water soluble inks. This month of course, the theme will be “Space Doodles”.
I had so much fun putting this theme together, and the little story line brings life and personality to it all. I am looking forward to finish the story on the rest of the weeks over on my Instagram (I post the making of my weekly spreads on IGTV every week @nala.mid).
If you enjoyed this theme, I have a freebie for you: the digital version of my January cover for you to download and print (make sure the page is set to landscape for an A5 fit) and paste it on your journal. Click below to download it ☺️
Thanks for stopping by, I hope my spreads gave you some ideas for your own journal and if you want to read the story captions of my astronaut’s adventure, watch my set up video on YouTube embedded below!
Happy New Journaling!
Nala 👩🏼🎨