Free Junk Journal Supplies You Need To Know!

Where Do I find Free Junk Journal Supplies? – Crafter in the Mitten

Free junk journal supplies

One of the things that piqued my interest in creating junk journals was the fact that many of the materials were either free because they were items I would often throw away or they were inexpensive. Don’t get me wrong, I still adore art journals, but sometimes I simply didn’t have the money for the necessary paint, markers, paper, and other supplies. As it will take you if you are just starting out, it took me time to accumulate my stash.

Junk Mail

Of course we will start out with junk mail – I think this is were the name “Junk Journal” came from but I might be wrong. We all get a lot of junk mail so this is one of the easiest places to start to build up your stash.

Unused return envelopes – There are a lot of really good uses for these i.e. pockets and flip-outs and tip-ins

Over sized envelopes – These can be great for small booklet covers

Images – We can never have too many images to pick from

Stamps – Don’t forget to keep the stamps to use for embellishing

Cardboard boxes – Cheap storage solutions until you afford to get pretty containers

Bubble wrap is a great way to give printed materials and other items some texture.

Packaging

The items you typically throw out without a second thought are the next area you might want to pay greater attention to. for instance, the packing of products you purchase from a store. Look for special packaging and journaling necessities like chipboard.

One of the best options for journal covers are cereal and other food cartons.

Clothing tags are perfect for adding decoration to journaling tags.

Bows and ribbons

paper container for eggs

both tea bags and coffee filters

Some of the packaging from your art equipment might be cute ephemera.

unfilled seed packets

Flyers and brochures

Additionally, there are certain random items that you might pick up while you are out and about or traveling that you would ordinarily overlook or throw away once you get home from a trip.

brochures on attractions that are available at visitor centers or stop sites along the highway

Maps are a pretty wonderful example because you can use them for so many various types of themes.

I’ve collected some really adorable and unusual goods from fairs and festivals using flyers you might collect from the county fair or festivals.

You can pick up flyers and pamphlets at your local chamber of commerce or municipal hall.

Stuff you have lying around the house

Finally, take a look around your home for any items you no longer need or want. What treasures you might already have lying around would surprise you. You might be able to use them as your junk journaling supplies.

many tools and supplies for crafts, including glue (we will go over tools in a future post)

vintage sewing patterns

old knitting and crochet patterns

Check your sewing supplies for needles for stitching in signatures.

There is no better way to make your diary look feminine and vintage than with lace, ribbon, and beads.

Scrapbooking paper leftovers or unfinished sheets of paper

There are countless uses for sheet music, just like there are for photos.

Old books are excellent for creating your own ephemera creations, journaling pages, and book covers.

old holiday cards

Old cookbooks that your grandmother or mother may have handed you. I have some that my mother and grandmother wrote in, which would be wonderful to scan and print out to add memories to your diary.

Magazines and catalogs are excellent sources of text or images.

An old phone book or other soft cover book with a larger size is particularly useful for punching holes for autographs.

Keep an eye out for what you now have on hand, is the lesson to be learned from this. You might also ask your sister or a close friend to look out for and store something specific for you. If you utilize your ideas, I believe junk journaling is one of the most affordable crafts you can make. If you don’t have a lot of additional money, it’s at least an excellent place to start.

Check out these links to my instructions on making a trash journal if you’d want to learn how to do it yourself.

Making the cover for a junk journal: The first step

How to produce signatures for a junk journal in step two

How to prepare the signatures for the journal’s spine in step three.

Step 4: Attaching signatures to the spine of the junk journal

Step 5: Adding the end pages to the cover of the junk journal