HOW TO COME UP WITH BULLET JOURNAL THEMES 💜 Finding and choosing theme ideas for your bullet journal

[@clubemerald]

I pick out all my month themes the year before. I wouldn't want to be on the spot trying to decide.

[@JashiiCorrin]

Cool idea! Certainly allows you to plan ahead 😄💜

[@o_p0tterhead]

I tried doing that for 2022 but so far I have done only three of the ones I had planned whoops

[@prettypeach13]

I have such a hard time choosing themes, this is gonna help a LOT!!!

[@JashiiCorrin]

Glad it will be a helpful resource for you! 😄💜

[@prettypeach13]

@@JashiiCorrin hehe it was!!

[@draigwen88]

My favourite theme would have to be last March where I did a Pride & Prejudice theme. My drawing skills are basic at best, so I resorted to printing colour pictures from the BBC 1995 production and typing out my favourite quotes/sayings from the novel and '95 production. I also used vintage and flowers paper/craft paper. Definitely my favourite theme to date

[@alisoni4992]

One of my favourite themes was recreating a bunch of illustrations from the book "The boy, the mole, the fox, and the horse" by Charlie mackesy. I imitated his illustration style as well as his handwriting and while it was SUPER artistically involved, it was super fun and the results made it super rewarding

[@JashiiCorrin]

It's always a good feeling when something that takes a lot of time and effort actually turns out awesome 😄💜 certainly sounds like it would be involved!

[@realisticequestrian8229]

I copied the drawing style to draw my horses for a weekly. It was really fun.

[@alisoni4992]

Amy Macdonald omg that sounds so fun, I love that idea!

[@ngoodlive]

Good tips and ideas!! I've only done 2 months & 3 themes, and so far my favorite is the ever-popular cherry blossom theme I did for April. To quote every, single BuJo vlogger, "I'm really happy with how it turned out." 🙂

[@JashiiCorrin]

Haha, we do all say that, don't we? 😂💜

[@stylesssssss]

My favourites theme I've done were a mountain one inspired by yours and a "van gogh" one inspired by a washi tape set. I really like taking inspiration from things like a specific pen or washi tape or sticker set

[@JashiiCorrin]

I like doing that too; helps to already have an idea of what materials you’re using to execute the theme 😄💜

[@debra9916]

A couple of my favorite themes came from a year that I did my favorite children’s books, recreating the original book covers for each month: faves were The Little Prince, the Graveyard Book and Matilda.

[@WithoutAnAnchor]

One of my best tips in terms of being realistic about your artistic ability (coming from someone who can't draw hands or facial features AT ALL): For February this year I wanted to do a Disney theme but I obviously can't draw people so I thought, "hey, I was thinking of doing a nostalgic 90s Disney theme anyway so I can just stylise my doodles of different characters using neon-light-style outlines in bright colours" and it worked out really well! Basically, I find it useful to find aspects of the theme that I KNOW I can draw and make look really good, so you can still find ways to use your favourite ideas but without ending up with spreads that you feel like you've really screwed up with lack of artistic ability!

[@JashiiCorrin]

What a cool idea! I always appreciate the creativity that comes from trying to find ways around a "missing" skills. That one sounds particularly awesome 😄💜

[@happyplace9372]

Wind spinners and paper origami r my favourite. Im fairly new to bullet journalin so i like to keep it simple ❤️

[@JashiiCorrin]

Aww what a cute theme idea! 😄💜

[@sydneesheriff212]

Omg thank you your a life saver

[@JashiiCorrin]

Most welcome! 💜😄

[@isabelmiller8400]

This is my first year bullet journaling so I haven’t done many themes. January was minimal snowflakes, February was a rainbow drip, March was Disney, and this month is rain! My favorite theme is either the rainbow drip one cause it wasn’t super challenging and turned out so pretty or my Disney them because the cover page was one of the best things I’ve drawn. (It was an outline of the castle) and it had the most variation because each spread was a different Disney related thing. Plus it definitely challenged my drawing skills.

[@JashiiCorrin]

Always good to take on challenges! Both of those sound like awesome themes 😄💜

[@isabelmiller8400]

@@JashiiCorrin Thanks!!! Your videos are awesome!

[@wa11ie]

My favorite theme was fern in a mason jar which I did last month. I tried a lot of new things that month such as cutting my pages to the extreme, using craft paper and I also realized that earthy greens are my favorite color. It was also just fun to draw the fern, it's just different variations of squiggles on a line.

[@JashiiCorrin]

Sounds like such a pretty theme 😄💜And trying new things is great; cool that you found your love of earthy greens!

[@StephJournals]

I feel like I always say "the most recent one is my new favorite" in my bujo, but thinking back my favorites have been January 2021 winter birch forest theme (even though it took forever), and this most recent clouds and red umbrellas theme. Also my November 2019 coffee/books theme. I try to plan ahead a little, but so far all i've planned for the rest of this year is a watercolor beach theme for May, a camping theme for August, and a mushrooms/fall forest theme for September.

[@ildikomelindacsabina3291]

I made a "Panda" theme but it was basically just black and white :D I think I liked the simplicity of it. I also love my current theme, which is a fox/forest-leaves theme :) (red, orange, brown and green coloures)

[@JashiiCorrin]

Aww both of those sound awesome 😄 both of those are themes I want to do!

[@ildikomelindacsabina3291]

@@JashiiCorrin I'm not so good with drawing so it's mostly washi's, stickers and stamps. :) but I'm looking forward to see when you make them :)

[@ainenicklin7181]

My favourite theme was definitely the How I Met Your Mother theme I did in April this year. I drew lots of purple and yellow umbrellas and the colours worked really well together!

[@joannedj1]

I get inspiration from various sources. Oops a Daisy, Under the Rowan Trees, ideas on FB, Instagram, etc, but I also have my own ideas. My January theme for my book journal was “Now is the Winter of our Discount Tents” and I’ve recently set up an October theme called “A Tomb With a View”! I love a good pun!

[@JashiiCorrin]

Haha "A tomb with a view" is the best 😂 love it! 💜

[@CreatingWonderland]

Love this and thank you for sharing. I am starting to plan themes for 2023 and needed some inspo!!! 🥰

[@JashiiCorrin]

Oh awesome! Hope it was helpful 💜😄

[@KendraReadsTomes]

Awesome video :) my favourite theme so far has been my gothic Christmas/winter solstice theme xx

[@saralouise9341]

My favorite theme was actually one I did in my mom’s bullet journal. It was a book and tea theme which I know has been done before and I even did that theme before in my bullet journal but I did hers differently with a more vintage and scrapbook look plus my favorite part was probably the color scheme I chose of pinks and browns.

[@MissAnimegrl]

I knew I wanted to celebrate a year of fandom, and did my best to work them into the appropriate months (appropriate for me anyway). My favorite month so far has been My Little Pony, but I'm also looking forward to my Month of Marvel (July) and my Gothic Horror Month (October)

[@4c_aperture]

Im absolutely in love with my Star Trek theme that I did for my first time at a Con (Star Trek focused, of course :D)

[@ambrosialbujo2383]

Amazing video 😍 how helpful it is!

[@littlebelowski]

Ahh thank you!! Such an awesome video!Themes are always challenging for me, but the way you broke it down was so helpful! You’re the BEST! Cheers~

[@JashiiCorrin]

Glad you found it helpful! 😄💜

[@scarlettevans9243]

One of my favourite themes I probably ever done was a Alice in wonderland theme. It was really artistically involved but it was really fun to do.

[@JashiiCorrin]

There's so much that can be done with a theme like that too! 😄💜

[@xeniahaberditz5472]

My favorite theme is usualy my jan or feb chinese New Year theme. I always include the element as well eg next year is the water rabbit so the colors will be gold and dark blue.

[@tempest510]

Last month (March) I did the spring Equinox. It might be my favorite that I've ever done (since 2016). I used old astronomy maps, or drew freehand what I thought could pass as those maps ;) It was so much fun!

[@JashiiCorrin]

Oh cool! I don't think I've seen an Equinox theme done before 🤔💜

[@tristins9644]

I recently finished setting up my very first yearly spread! 🥰 [for 2022] What I decided to do was a hedgehog theme, with black and white botanical line drawing elements and accents of light blue and light orange 🦔 Not sure what to do for my first January setup yet but I am excited!

[@JashiiCorrin]

Aww what a cute sounding theme! 😄💜

[@tristins9644]

@@JashiiCorrin Thank you 😃☺️💜

[@huinismith]

My favourite theme was last December. Since Christmas was basically everywhere, and I'm from the southern hemisphere, I went for a more summer-related theme: Lighthouse at the beach. It was the first time I incorporated the elements in the rest of my setups instead of limiting them to the cover page: for example, my trackers, once completed, gave the idea of a beach with a rock jetty. I'm so proud of it.

[@JashiiCorrin]

Sounds awesome! As a southern hemisphere buddy, it always feels funny to see people doing wintery Christmas themes and the like during December 😅 haha 💜

[@krishnakantkesari3822]

Hello! This was really helpful! Thank you so much ❤️💕 For the question of the say, since i have been journalling for only 4 months so far, my fav will have to be March, when I did a spring theme, more specifically, a 'leaves' theme. BTW, I have a request, can you please do a video on non-cursive sub header fonts/style ideas? I find that the hardest when I am picking a theme and also it ends up looking like my regular hand writing... And also I wanted to ask what font you used in your April 2021 setup?

[@bonnief1025]

god, I have so many themes that I really like... I recently did a cotton flower theme in my black-out bujo, turned out gorgeous! totally recommend.

[@JashiiCorrin]

Oh that’s be awesome! 😄💜 sounds gorgeous!

[@stephaniecarter973]

Great ideas! My two favorite of my themes: Paris where I drew the Eiffel Tower. I was so proud. And last year I did a Black Is King theme from the Beyoncé visual album.

[@ButterFlYnez]

I just pick a picture and a few colours and boom I call it a theme 😂

[@JashiiCorrin]

Perfect way to go about it 💪💜

[@marmoniel5016]

My fav theme I've done, speaking of unconventional colour choices, was a blue and gold koi fish theme!!

[@JashiiCorrin]

Awww that sounds so cool! Koi fish is a theme that's very high up on my priority list! 😄💜

[@debhanorwright6212]

I loved my mushroom theme last year.

[@JashiiCorrin]

So want to do one of those 😄💜

[@joannedj1]

I write my ideas down in my journal in a Laterbase - an Oops a Daisy idea. It’s like a database where you write down ideas when they cross your mind. You might already have set your journal up for a month, so that theme may need to wait a while, but at least you’ve written the idea down so you can consult the laterbase regularly. I’ve got some ideas down that I can use in 2024.

[@JashiiCorrin]

Sounds like a good system! 😄

[@CoffeeAndCatvrix]

So one of my most favorite themes I did, looking back on last year, was the "Ides of March" theme. It's extra funny because of my last name translating to Caesar, and I go by Julius. There were a lot of daggers for sure! Otherwise, I loved doing my Critical Role themed month, based around Campaign Two's characters!

[@brittb1139]

I was born March 15!

[@amhud1456]

My favourite theme I've done was the ladybird theme I did in February

[@JashiiCorrin]

Aww that would be such a cool theme! 😄💜 I should do one of those...

[@ambrosialbujo2383]

I did an Indian classical dance theme as I'm a dancer. It has been my favourite. 🤗

[@emiliatinglof4885]

I have a million ideas for august, and I have no idea what to choose😂 You helped a lot though😊 But I still have like 20 ideas and can’t choose😄

[@jennifergentry144]

Great video, Jess! This is always the roadblock I run into each month. What theme and will I get sick of it by the end of the month! My default is always floral stockers or abstract shapes. Boring!🙄🥱 😴

[@JashiiCorrin]

Haha it's good to have our fall-back options 😋 mine are typically an "interesting" colour palette and some other kind of "stand out" element 💜

[@realisticequestrian8229]

I did a Supernatural theme for December last year. The show ended and so did my teaching career. It turned out amazing. I also loved what I did in August. I coloured in every page. It was full even if it wasn't filled. 🤤

[@JashiiCorrin]

I do love full pages 😄 I really need to finish watching Supernatural... 🤔

[@realisticequestrian8229]

@@JashiiCorrin just don't watch "Carry On". The episode before the final episode is where it should have ended. We were robbed of a good finale because of COVID restrictions

[@rabarella]

Looking back, my favourite theme would be my 80s theme I did in my very first bujo. It was very aesthetically pleasing but wasn't very functional though hahaha

[@JashiiCorrin]

I do like the 80s themes I've seen done before 😄 Shame it wasn't as functional as it could have been, but at least you liked the way it turned out! 💜

[@katerettman2815]

I always get huge inspiration and aspirations and then fail properly. I tell myself to just keep it simple and not super challenging... but then I can't stick to it. I'm my own worst enemy 😥

[@JashiiCorrin]

I feel you. Mine's either telling myself I'm going to keep it really simple and then over complicating things, OR getting really excited about being more "arty" and then my motivation to do so doesn't match 😅💜

[@katerettman2815]

@@JashiiCorrin your stuff is so magical though !!

[@TessaOswin]

I will say what color of equipment you have can influence what theme you can easily do. I’m not saying most themes can be done in other combos but it can be really annoying to have a wonderful theme and then color don’t support it.

[@jevylein]

I loved my sushi theme in January 2018

[@JashiiCorrin]

Really want to do a sushi theme! 😄💜

[@lesliedalton5558]

I did tut tut it looks like rain with Pooh bear

[@JashiiCorrin]

I don’t think I’ve heard of tut tut before 🤔 outside of those little car things they drive in Thailand

[@Blackoreanfemale]

Covid (aka 2020 )theme

[@TheIlwin]

I see "dragons" and "Sailor Moon" in your list of themes you want to do, I hope you'll make these soon!! :)) As for your question, I normally don't do themes, mostly just try to keep some sort of a colour scheme (though usually end up writing in it during month with what I just have at my hand which is usually dark grey fineliner :) ), but I've done Doctor Who theme in November and it turned out so good that I had to answer your question to show it off lol. You can look at it here: ilwinsgarden.tumblr.com/post/635598512677158912/what-better-day-than-today-to-share-my-doctor-who (sorry if I already mentioned it and posted a link in some other comment :) )