You may want to think twice before tossing your trash. Savvy crafters and scrapbookers have been using everyday items that would typically end up in the garbage — such as receipts, fabric scraps, packaging and more — as materials in their “junk journals.”
The practice can be a way to destress, document trips, experiences and anything else that someone hopes to remember using discarded and found materials.
Read on for a full breakdown of the trend and how you can start a junk journal yourself — and hopefully give new life to some of the things that you consider “junk.”
What Is Junk Journaling?
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Junk journaling is almost exactly what it sounds like. People collect “junk” like wrappers for food, receipts, train and movie tickets, maps, stickers, and other small items they have encountered and collected during the day.
Journalers can create specific themed pages based on the junk they’ve collected, or use it as a diary of their day. It is often seen as a blend of journaling and scrapbooking, as it encourages people to use everyday items to document their lived experiences.
Junk journaling, however, like all art, is up for interpretation and varies from person to person. With no rules set in stone, the format and process can change and adapt.
How Did Junk Journaling Start?
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Although there is no exact time frame for when junk journaling began, the JunkJournals Reddit community was created in 2018. The community boasts 12,000 members, with people sharing pictures of their respective journals and different tips and tricks.
However, in 2024, junk journaling went viral on TikTok, as users encouraged others to “junk journal with me.” The #junkjournal on TikTok now has over 804,000 posts, and #junkjournaling has nearly 220,00 posts.
One TikTok user, livebrave2, frequently shares her spreads on TikTok, sharing in a recent video that “this type of journaling is a beautiful combination of scrapbooking, memory collecting, and repurposing junk like business cards, wrappers to give it new life.”
“I know a lot of us are perfectionists, but this hobby of junk journaling strips that all away and allows you to enjoy the process of creating rather than the finished end product,” the user shared.
“It is a life-changing hobby and I really hope that you start one.”
How Can You Start Junk Journaling?
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As the trend implies, all you need to start is some “junk” and a journal.
Other helpful supplies include glue or glue tape, scissors, magazines, washi tape, stickers and colorful pens to write or draw.
Once you start, it’s important to be mindful of all the often-overlooked items from your day-to-day, looking out for paper-based items such as ticket stubs, menus, brochures, posters, newspapers, invitations, receipts, greeting cards and more.
There are several helpful Pinterest guides and TikTok videos offering ideas for different pages, such as monthly layouts, goals, trackers for books and movies, roundups for trips, or even a page to collect all of your stickers. The possibilities are endless, and once you start, you’ll want to keep adding things to your journal.
For many users on TikTok, the most exciting part is watching their journals expand and grow from all of the things they’ve filled them with.
Who Is Participating In The Junk Journaling Trend?
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Many creators on TikTok have dedicated accounts for junk journaling, sharing their tips and inspirations for layouts. TikTok user junky j documents how they junk journal everything from their Erewhon haul to their Taco Bell order.
TikToker bella.grace016 also uses her junk journal to document her trips, using gift shop bags, postcards and even hotel key cards.
More and more creators have been sharing their junk journals, inspiring others to get into the creative hobby that can add an element of excitement to mundane parts of life, as journalers are always on the lookout for their next piece of “junk.”
