If you’ve been around here for a while, you already know my ADHD has a habit of introducing me to new hobbies with the enthusiasm of a golden retriever that just discovered tennis balls. Some hyper-fixations stick around. Others quietly fade away. This one isn’t exactly new—it’s more like reconnecting with an old friend.
I’ve fallen back into art journaling.
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Not the kind where every page is a masterpiece destined for Pinterest. Mine is messy. There are crooked pieces of washi tape, ticket stubs glued in at odd angles, dried flowers that probably won’t survive forever, receipts from tiny local shops, maps, business cards, brochures, and whatever little treasures happen to fit between the pages. It’s less of an art project and more of a memory project.
Lately, whenever Willow and I go somewhere new, I’ve started collecting little bits and bobs along the way. Maybe it’s a park brochure, a pressed leaf from a hike, the wrapper from a local candy shop, a postcard, or even a handwritten note about how that day felt.
When I get home, I spread everything out on my table and build a page in my travelers notebook around those memories. Each spread becomes a tiny memorial to a place I’ve been.
I use water color, acrylic paint and anything I have found that helps to spread these like sponges or just found objects – both empty toilet paper rolls and the caps from spray bottles make lovely circles. Gift cards help smooth paint like a brayer would without me having to purchase and store that.
I spend so much time trying to photograph and film my adventures that I realized I wasn’t always giving myself a way to simply remember them. Social media is wonderful, but it’s also fleeting. Algorithms change. Platforms disappear. A journal sitting on my shelf doesn’t.
There’s something comforting about flipping through pages and physically touching pieces of places I’ve visited. It’s a reminder that I was there, that I experienced that moment, and that even ordinary days can become meaningful memories. Oddly enough, art journaling also slows my brain down.
Instead of rushing on to the next destination or the next project, I’m forced to sit with an experience for a while. I think about what stood out, what made me smile, what surprised me, and what I want my future self to remember. It’s become one of my favorite parts of traveling.
If you’re curious about starting your own travel journal, you don’t need expensive supplies. A simple journal, a glue stick or double-sided tape, scissors, a pen you enjoy writing with, and maybe a roll of washi tape are honestly enough to get started. The rest comes from the places you visit.
I store almost all of my supplies in a single tote, but if you have pouches – those can absolutely help keep you organize and we all know that keeping organized is crucial in a small space.
If you want more products that I would recommend, perhaps checking out my Amazon Storefront for supplies is a good idea. If you purchase anything, it’ll help support Willow and I on the road and I will be most appreciative!
Now I’m curious…Is this something you’d like to see more of? I know a lot of people stop by, read a post, and quietly head on their way—and that’s perfectly okay. But I’d genuinely love to know if you’d enjoy seeing my journal spreads as I fill them up.
Would you like walkthroughs of each page? Videos of me putting them together? Maybe even prompts you could use to create your own travel journal?
Leave me a comment and let me know.
And if you’ve ever collected little souvenirs that don’t really belong anywhere—a pressed flower, a ticket stub, a receipt from a memorable meal—maybe it’s time to give them a home between the pages of a journal instead of a forgotten drawer. I have a feeling this hyper-fixation is going to stick around for a while, and honestly… I hope it does.