Junk Journaling: Creative Ways to Preserve Memories Beyond the Camera Roll

There are probably thousands of photos on a phone that haven't been looked at since the day they were taken. Screenshots of things to buy, pictures from a random café visit, blurry photos with friends, and that one photo of the sky that looked prettier in person. Everything gets saved, but very little gets revisited.

And then there are the things that never make it to the camera roll at all. A movie ticket from a really good date, a tiny note from a friend, the packaging of a gift that meant a lot, or a receipt from a café that became a favourite spot.

These little things often end up in drawers, tucked inside books, or thrown away. But they can make wonderful keepsakes.

Giving Little Things a Place to Belong

Junk journaling is a creative way to collect these bits and pieces and turn them into something worth keeping. It involves using everyday paper items, photographs, stickers, handwritten notes and other scraps to create personalised journal pages.

And no, the pages don't have to look like something straight off Pinterest.

A page can be messy, colourful, slightly crooked, or filled with things that make sense only to the person who made it. That's part of the fun.

What Can Go Into a Junk Journal?

Almost anything that reminds someone of a moment can find a place in one.

• A day out: Movie tickets, café receipts, photographs and little notes about what made the day memorable.
• A friendship: Inside jokes, birthday cards, silly doodles and memories that would make absolutely no sense to anyone else.
• A favourite phase: Printed pictures of a favourite show, song recommendations, magazine cutouts or things that reflect a particular obsession.
• Everyday life: Pretty packaging, shopping tags, handwritten lists and random things collected during an ordinary week.

There doesn't need to be a special occasion behind every page. Sometimes, a collection of ordinary Tuesday moments can be just as lovely to look back on.

Making Memories Beyond a Screen

Junk journaling is also a nice excuse to spend an evening doing something other than scrolling. Put on some music, spread out the paper scraps, add a few stickers and see what comes together. It can be a solo activity or something to do with friends.

Our Core Memories Junk Journaling Kit brings junk journaling and scrapbooking together, making it easier to get started with a creative memory-keeping project.

Years later, a random receipt might bring back the conversation that happened over dinner, or a little note might remind someone of a friendship they haven't thought about in ages.

A phone can store thousands of pictures. A junk journal gives the little stories behind them somewhere to live.