I have been keeping a scrapbook for a few years now. I have always loved to keep everyday keepsakes, such as programmes, tickets and ephemera and have several boxes of these. In the last few years, I decided to keep them in a scrapbook, although it is harder and harder to collect paper ephemera as so much is digital which is not so easy to collect and keep.

Creative Junk Journalling: How to collect everyday keepsakes and cherish your memories

I recently heard about Creative Junk Journalling: How to collect everyday keepsakes and cherish your memories and I thought this would be a wonderful way to improve my scrapbooking hobby. I love hands-on activities and tend to do much better engaging with something physical than spending time on screens.

What is Junk Journalling?

According to the author, junk journalling is a patient process and perfect if you are looking to unwind and embrace slowness. It is a fantastic way to celebrate the mess and memories with an intentional process of making something from something which usually gets thrown away. It’s a form of art, but one where you can make the rules, or ignore the rules!

I’m the first to admit my scrapbook is a little plain and simple. Primarily it’s a place for me to record a significant event, such as a concert or keeping my daughters’ paper number from her latest athletic competition.

Junk journalling differs from scrapbooking, in that where scrapbooking can focus on s big life event such as your year/holiday/birthday, junk journalling is more creative (and fun!) as well as often focussing on the smaller things. It can also include elements of journalling, so you end up with happy mash up of scrapbooking, journalling, and junk journalling. Any way you look at it, there is a chance to record things which may you happy in a fun, colourful and creative way.

I hope it is clear I’ve learned a lot from the book already. The book is well laid out with sections on what you need to get started, loads of ideas and layouts, as well as some fun craft ideas. The end of the book includes perforated pages with stickers, cut outs and backing papers, which is a terrific way to get started and see what you enjoy. There are even some suggestions for those who want to explore the digital world of junk journalling. Altogether Creative Junk Journalling is a wonderful way to explore the craft of junk journalling and bring more creativity into your life.

I tried the custom mini tin craft. My daughter told me about this a few months ago and I bought a couple of tins for us to experiment with. She made some lovely tins filled with stickers and small items. I failed miserably with mine until I read the book and tried again. I used the backing papers and cut outs to customise my tin until I was much happier with it. If you take a look on Pinterest there are so many fun ideas to explore!

Creative Junk Journalling: How to collect everyday keepsakes and cherish your memories by Natasha Ahmed. Published by Rock Point on 11th June 2026. The book is priced £18.99 and available from all good book shops.