My 16 Used Journals! | Journaling Habits

Hello! In this video, I discuss some of my journaling habits and show off the sixteen journals that I’ve used in the past eleven years.
For some reason, I decided to record this video on my phone, so apologies if the quality is less than desirable for you; however, perhaps it’s better if the contents of my journals are blurred!!
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[@patwagner9308]

I've journaled for decades.....I'm way older than you. 😃 45 yrs. of consistent journaling. I use nothing but good ol', spiral bound, 200 page, divided, notebooks. I like having all of my journals to be the same size & look. I like being able to open it & fold it back on itself so that page I'm writing on is always right there, available. I just write to write. I don't do affirmations, gratitude, bullet. I don't use prompts. I don't journal at any certain time of day. I write when the mood hits me. I don't embellish my journals w/stickers or different colors of ink ,etc. I don't use journaling to sort anything out or for goals. I just write. I write the funny things our dog & cats do. I write my thoughts, feelings. I am very introverted. I think writing a journal by hand is important. Our emotions show thru our handwriting....& our handwriting changes as we age. It's fun to observe the changes. For a very brief time, I typed my journal & printed it....SO regret doing that. There are no Journal Police. 😄 No one is going to stand over us & demand we journal a certain way. You won't be tested, graded, judged. No one will correct your grammar, sentence structure, spelling, or content. Journaling is highly personal & individualized. Do it your way, whatever that way it !

[@SlantedSpines]

Completely agree! Thank you for sharing your insights!

[@patwagner9308]

@@SlantedSpines 🙋‍♀️👋

[@surfkroq1]

This sounds just like the way I journal . Most mundane stuff . Things like I’m sitting here writing with my 45 pound dogs on my lap. Write about the weather , what I ate, what I’m watching on tv or book I’m reading.

[@patwagner9308]

@@surfkroq1 nodding, agreeing. Yes! Journaling is highly personal...we don't need to feel like our way doesn't measure up . There's no right or wrong way. Happy new year! 🎆✨🎉

[@sufigsafho2548]

I journal exactly the same as you do. Plain no-name notebook, a pen - this is all I've ever needed to journal. Anything - thoughts, memories, feelings, moods - I write it there. I don't decorate it. It is a tool to help me remember, put "in the moment" on paper forever. It helps TREMENDOUSLY with my mental health. It is a personal therapist in a way. I never go back and correct my grammar or mistakes, this is ONE rule of mine in journaling - write everything down, don't go back correcting.

[@inthemaking2362]

I've been keeping a journal since 4th grade to now as a junior in high school. My favorite thing about journaling is looking back on all my memories, how my hand writing has changed and how I've matured over the years. I love it so much and I feel like what makes people hate journaling is they make it a chore. Journals have no rules do whatever you want in it. And whenever you want too.

[@SlantedSpines]

Exactly! My handwriting has changed sooo much as well

[@shanshangalan8074]

I been journaling since 1985 but someone stolen them so I only have them from 2004 to now

[@paulwoodford1984]

or how you have become immature over the years 🤪

[@iHanna]

I hope you can keep them, and continue to journal through your life because it's such a great experience. I'm 45 and have been journaling my entire life!

[@SlantedSpines]

That's awesome! Just finished my 18th journal the other day :)

[@loris3559]

I started journaling about 2 years ago and I'm on my 3rd notebook. They all look pretty much the same, except for their covers because I customize them with stickers and drawings and stuff, but seeing all your different journals inspired me to use other types of notebooks for the next ones :) Journaling is also a big part of my language learning process because I mostly journal in my target language (English) and I honestly can't express how much it has helped me to improve.

[@SlantedSpines]

That is an awesome way to use journaling! I'm glad that it has been so helpful to you in practicing English. Thank you for sharing your experience with journaling and I wish you the best with your future journals 😊

[@ritikakhatri3861]

I stopped journaling a year ago and now watching this I'm really motivated to start my journal again.💕

[@SlantedSpines]

quirky reads Yay! I’m glad I could inspire you 😊

[@shanshangalan8074]

I been journaling since 1985

[@Akito-tm7jj]

I starting Journaling from my 7th grade and it's beautiful to sometime read your old memories with your own silly 🤣😅 ways of describing situations and your thought in that moment . But it's beautiful how a thing which looked important in that moment was not so important for which we were stressed .😊

[@glitterary3411]

I love journalling and am CRUSHED I don't have that horse diary with a lock on it. How can I protect my thoughts with just an elastic strap.

[@SlantedSpines]

Glitterary Right, until you accidentally lock yourself out 😂

[@horadeaventuras521]

You can use letters from an alphabet to replace the usual one, or even create your own symbols. That makes me feel very confident because it doesn't matter if someone takes it, no one else understands what's there.

[@jeffthejournaler4894]

@@SlantedSpines I love to journal I'm using a composition notebook as a journal for right now not gonna be able to finish it by the end of October sadly and I feel bad about it! But I still love to journal no matter what even if my journals aren't all the way filled with writing!😍😍love the video!😍

[@benjammin8240]

Also, thank you so much for this affirmation! The only times in my life that I’ve stopped journaling is when I begin to feel so overwhelmed at all the catching up I need to do. I always feel as if I need to chronicle my life from childhood as if it is an autobiography. It’s very hard for my personality type to just relax and let my thoughts flow to paper in an unorganized way, but at the same time it is a very good exercise in letting go for me. I just went and got a few new notebooks today and intend on starting back daily writing tomorrow. Happy writing 🐴😊

[@SlantedSpines]

That’s awesome! I’m happy to inspire; journaling should be a time to meditate and unwind, so only do what works best for you! If it feels like a chore, you’re only going to dread it so I hope you are able to have fun with it :) enjoy!

[@ohmygod_itsgopi]

I started writing poetry and proses. Later i shifted to making everyday entry. It was fun and i loved it absolutely. I started at 16 and now I'm 23. These years with journaling have been bestest of my life.

[@myhandsaslanguage]

I have been journaling since 3rd grade, and now I’m in my 20s, so it was fun to watch someone else’s journaling experience. Thanks for sharing all that! I did what I’d call traditional journaling for years: writing about life, drawing, writing poetry, venting, musing, etc. I went through a phase where I had separate notebooks for each type of journaling and called them “books”, but that didn’t last long. As much as I thought this would make me organized, it meant that I’d have to hold back certain thoughts that didn’t “belong” in one journal and then had to switch to another. In 2016, I found the bullet journal method. At that point, I had a bullet journal and what I called my “personal journal.” This was because I saw people posting pictures of their bujo online, so I thought I’d do that and keep my personal thoughts in the other journal. Stuff I didn’t want seen online. Then I eventually realized that I didn’t want to keep posting things from my bujo online, so I moved everything to my bullet journal, which made it easier. I carried one notebook instead of two. My journaling became more loose and whatever I wanted it to be, since the bujo method simply set up the organizing system and let the writer do what they wanted with it. Some years I had tons of drawings and collages, others I did minimal writing, and currently I use my bujo/journal as half-scrapbook/life-recording and half-brainstorming for projects. It’s freeing to put whatever I need onto the page, and have it organized so that if I wanted to reference anything, all I have to do is look at my table of contents. So yeah, that’s my experience. Hope your journaling is still going well. :)

[@SlantedSpines]

How interesting that you had different journals for your different facets! I can certainly see how being that highly organized would not be as freeing though in the actual journalling process. Myself, I have a few different hobby journals now, such as a crochet journal and a reading journal, where I document my activities with those pastimes. It can sometimes be a lot to keep up with, but when I do catch up I feel so proud of myself--for the hobby, and for the journal recording it! Thanks for the well wishes and for sharing your journalling story! 😊

[@EricfromBloatGames]

I keep a journal, too. My family has started buying me journals for Christmas so I have now amassed a decent collection for future use. :)

[@SlantedSpines]

that’s awesome!

[@jennajohnson8541]

I have been journaling since I was 6 years old. Unfortunately, the oldest journals I still have with me go back to when i was 14. I am currently almost done my 33rd journal

[@itsabelletime]

i really liked this video :) i also used spiral notebooks as my first journal. I always liked the idea of journaling/keeping a diary but never really started to do so until my later years in high school. even then it was pretty on and off until I started college and realized the best place to out my vulnerable thoughts and feelings were in a journal where i wrote about my problems to the persons who cared most about them: me and God. So I've been journaling pretty regularly now for getting close to 2 years and I've really been loving it. thanks for sharing your journals with us! ❤️

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you! And thank you for sharing a little bit about your journaling journey! I'm glad that you have also found it to be a meaningful activity 🧡

[@Andidejager.]

I tried to keep a journal as a kid (2005 maybe?) and even though it had a lock on it, my sister got into it and found out who I had a crush on and told him💀 So I vowed never to do that again. But then I grew up and so did my sister. So I decided to try again at the beginning of 2021 and it’s been really great! I took a long break from the end of 2022 till the beginning of 2024 because I had an invasive surgery, moved houses for the first time in my life and then my dog died all in the space of 4 months and I just couldn’t face writing about it all! Just started again a few weeks ago and I love it so much❤️ I’m an artist so I really like to decorate and draw in my journal as well as write about my life and my pets. I also prefer blank notebooks to lined ones. It’s just better for drawing and such and the paper in mine is so thin, I can put guide lines behind the paper to write straight 😊

[@tunnelofbooks]

I'm going to journal from now on AGAIN and if I stop, I'll again watch this video ✨

[@stitchingandstuff3930]

I'm 37 and have got back into journaling again. My first one was a green spiral notebook which I remember covering in stickers. My second one was a black book I found in a pound shop (uk version of a dollar store) and it had a character called purple ronnie on it. I remember this journal because i documented leaving school, finding a summer job, starting college, first time getting drunk, smoking and first boyfriend not to mention mad times at college. But all I can do is remember them because i threw them out when I left home! Why? I don't know but i wish I had have kept them, would be fun to read about my life aged 15 to 17. I have got back into journaling within the last 18 months, mainly for mental health and it really helps just to brain dump everything on to paper. Pages of ramblings for my eyes only. I recently read my last two journals before starting a fresh new notebook and cannot believe how bad my mental health was this time last year. Im doing much better now and this is proven through my writing. For me i have to have the right pen, a Parker Vector which I have had for many years and it must be blue ink, I can't write in black. And the books, I prefer the A5 size and not the spiral kind. May sound fussy but its what I like. I think art journaling may be my next venture xxxx

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you for sharing your experience with journaling, it is really interesting to learn about how others approach the practice. I also find it insightful to look back and see how much I was struggling with my mental health in the past; it was pretty bad in 2020. There will always be ups and downs though, and journaling can help capture that and give us better perspective about ourselves. I'm sorry you do not have your journals from your younger days but glad to hear that you have sort of "started fresh." Thanks again for opening up about your experience :)

[@Michelle-ew5fq]

honestly thank you!! everytime I search journal flip throughs, those artsy flip through journals come up and Im like no one does that haha, so thank you!! I enjoyed watching you go through all your journals and I agree I do really love the blank journals the best!!

[@nas10iris]

I had the horse!!! First diary ever. Bought it at a book fair and I loved it when I was little, but so much that I almost didnt use it for fear of messing it up!

[@SlantedSpines]

Yesss, the school book fairs! I'm pretty sure that's where I got mine as well. A blank notebook can be intimidating!

[@laurenlovesliterature]

(yes im watching older videos, sue me!!) I’m a huge fan of journaling as well, it is therapeutic. I always tell people what doesn’t make sense in my head makes sense on paper. Thank you for sharing these little time capsules with us

[@SlantedSpines]

Right! If I’m ever feeling too complicated to write a tweet about it, I know I should go to my journal instead haha. Thanks for watching!!

[@tunnelofbooks]

I love perks of being a wallflower so I started keeping journal as well. 😍

[@SlantedSpines]

Vaibhavi Das It’s amazing how iconic that book was for so many people!

[@alkaloitongbam6684]

I started keeping a diary at the age of 12 and continued on and off till I was 15 but after I developed severe depression, I stopped documenting. Later, around the age of 19 I try to return back to keeping a diary but it seemed too labourous so instead I opted to keep a journal and use it as a place for spilling out my random stream of thoughts, at first I tried to force myself into loving it but afterwards I started to fall back in love with writing - now, I am still maintaining a journal and in there I do whatever I want without limiting myself. Journalling is such a beautiful practice and it helped me in my healing journey.Btw dear sis, thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, showering you with lots and lots of love.❤

[@michaela_corinne]

I really love that you used spiral/composition notebooks because those are my favorite notebooks to journal in! I just love the layout and size :)

[@brenda-fo7yq]

You seem like the kind of person that I would love to hang out with 💕 journaling is amazing for me, and I think it can be really therapeutic, especially when you're having a rough time

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you!! 😊 I agree, it’s such a great way to spend time with yourself!

[@ThatsSoGiorgio]

I started a journal in middle school, I believe 6-7th grade at most and then I threw it away maybe? It was dumb middle schooler thoughts like how I hugged a really pretty girl or something 😂 I did journal for a portion of my life when I did psychedelics. I wrote a lot of buzzard entries while under the influence. It’s actually really cool to read what you wrote after the fact. I wrote an entry once about reality but for some reason I forgot the “i” in reality so it was just “real ty.” And I spent a solid amount of time trying to figure out “what was missing from ‘reality’.” And then I had an epiphany as I said out loud “I.” “I am missing from reality” and then I had a crazy ass trip. Lmao. Anyways. That journal is the older journal I have. I had friends also write entries and we doodled a lot. Nowadays, I keep a commonplace book, a soliloquy and a field guide (or whatever) I try to write any drafts in my field guide/rough draft commonplace book and then move those thoughts into my actual journals where everything in there is a final draft. I have an index for my commonplace book so it’s important for everything in there to be a finished entry so I can index it in the back for reference. If I can keep up with my index then I’ll have a very useful commonplace and my soliloquy is where I can keep my personal thoughts.

[@juliacorrea9187]

This is so fun, remembering how we used to express ourselves is the most beautiful thing everrrrrr

[@NerdyNatReads]

Oh, cool video! I recently got really into journaling. I used to bujo a lot in college when I really needed a planner and calendar constantly, but now I just use one journal as a mix of a planner, task list, and writing space.

[@SlantedSpines]

NerdyNatReads That’s really neat!! I’m definitely a planner girl too, I still use one even though I’m not a student anymore haha. I imagine it’d be really handy to have the two in one place :)

[@maulichopra2470]

Hi! This is going to sound very weird but I've practically watched every journaling video ever posted on the internet when I came across your channel just now. I feel as if I can relate to you as you share certain aspects of your personality and life and etc. You seem way older than me (I'm 15, started journaling in 2015) but I feel as if writing helps me mature more and process my life. Thank you for this new perspective!

[@SlantedSpines]

Hi there! Thank you so much for this comment! I totally agree, I think that journaling has helped me immensely throughout adolescence and early adulthood! I’m so glad to hear that you’ve found this to be the case for your experience as well. I think journaling is maybe even more important now because so much of our life is public on the internet, it’s important to have somewhere private where you don’t have to “be” anything and can just explore yourself without judgment :)

[@trisjafaye653]

thank you for this video! i feel like you're the type of person i'd love to be friends with 🤣 anyway, i've been feeling so off with the way i journal lately and this motivated me not to pressure myself too much with journaling! glad i came across your video!

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you!! Glad to hear that this has inspired you! I plan to post an "overcoming your journaling rut" video soon as well!

[@busywith804]

I love this video! You really inspired me to finally start journaling Now I'm thinking that if I start now, in 11 years from now I could have so many notebooks filled with memories and my feelings just like you. Thank you!

[@SlantedSpines]

That’s awesome! I think any journal entries we make during COVID-19 will be especially interesting to look back on to see how much the pandemic has affected our lives in both subtle and large ways! So happy I could inspire you, I hope you enjoy!!

[@didideity3100]

I love journaling! It’s amazing that you have so many, I only have 2 fully done and I’m working on one right now

[@SlantedSpines]

DidiDeity Thank you, and that’s awesome!! I love how unique it is for each person

[@tunnelofbooks]

Just a thing- YOUR VIDEOS ARE SOOTHING 😍!! I love Journaling but I'm really REALLY inconsistent 😅

[@SlantedSpines]

Vaibhavi Das 🥰🥰 Thank you!! Just do your best and know your journal is always there for you when you’re feeling down

[@shanshangalan8074]

I have a journal app on my iPhone and iPad too

[@TracySmith-xy9tq]

I've been keeping a journal since 1975, when it was an assignment in a high school English class. I decided to keep going after the assignment was done

[@SlantedSpines]

That’s amazing!

[@litnana8916]

So cool that you journaled! I've never been consistent, but I'm also introverted so maybe i should try it 🤔

[@SlantedSpines]

lit_nana Yeah, I’d say give it a try! You could even just designate one day a week to write, to start off :)

[@faridashebl610]

Wow that motivated me to start a journal !

[@SlantedSpines]

That’s awesome! I hope you enjoy it!!

[@55rodeo]

I would love to journal on a regular basis. I’ll find a journal/notebook do good for a couple of months then it just no longer works for me. I just can’t find the drive. Thank You for your video I loved seeing your different journals. 💚

[@melissacole2534]

Wonderful! I love the idea of a journal, but have never stuck with it. But, I guess my scrapbooks are sort of a journal.

[@SlantedSpines]

Melissa Cole That counts!

[@cora_wldflwr]

I have been consistently journaling for nearly 6 years now. I used to journal on and off as a kid but didn’t take it seriously until sophomore year of high school.

[@SlantedSpines]

Congratulations on 6 years of journalling!

[@samidelcueva]

Sounds interesting to do journaling putting your emotions. It's something I would definitively try. Thanks for sharing.

[@purposebehindthepen]

I am a Christian Romance Author, and seeing this video made me think of my early writing days. Before I got all of the journals I have, I use to write all of my plays in college ruled notebooks. Now, I just wriye my novels in journals. Journals especially A5 remind me of the actual size of a book.

[@SlantedSpines]

It can be a real delight to reminisce on how we started out. Thank you for sharing this :)

[@ABhattacharya]

You are a beautiful person inside out. No artificial garish make-up, no painted false nails, no non-sense. LOVED the video. Stay well.

[@benjammin8240]

😍😫 I think I’m in love with you... haha. Love your vids!

[@SunshineLeclair]

Hi Brittany, I'm new to your channel and have just subscribed ... I'm a huge journal lover! I'm just writing this little comment before I continue watching your video - you had me at; 'journal of self love and accepting who I am' ;) Thanks for sharing, hugs Sunshine

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you so much! I hope you enjoyed! 💛☀️

[@ornelais5219]

Loved the video, i found your journals interesting. I've been also journaling for 3-4 years, it's become a part of me. Also great chanel, new subscriber. 🤗

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you so much! That’s awesome; it will be interesting for you to reflect on your initial entries!

[@user-nx7op6bw4t]

I have a question for everybody who all goes to thrift stores like St Vincent de Paul or Goodwill? Did you know that people give away writing stuff like cool writing paper to write on or journals that are partially used or sometimes even journals that are really not used with all blank pages and people also donate pens and other writing paper and notebooks and journals? So what do you guys think about using journals and notebooks and other line paper and other writing material from a thrift store? It's not that expensive so that's one way to save money and save the writing stuff from going to the dump because I know that dumpst are starting to run out of room so I guess it's a way of like recycling if you think about it that way. The thing is if you get journals and notebooks from thrift stores you should at least take out the pages that are used and recycle those so that way you could fill it up with all your own things. It is fine going to thrift stores and hunting for writing things and sometimes you may find some other cool things to that you want to buy and thrift stores also have other things that you might like to add to a journal too. I love going to thrift stores and hunting for journaling things are things that are just writing related also if you check out the book section you may find some different books on different types of journals that you can use and these ones are like guided journals in a way so they give you ideas on what to do in those books and it's fun. So I would like to know how many people would use writing material from a thrift store? I don't see nothing wrong with using things that you find in a thrift store have fun craft things to do. Have fun searching for your writing things at thrift stores because when I go I have fun finding different items for writing and I see nothing wrong with it. What do you guys all think about getting writing materials and any kind of crafts items at a thrift store? Going to thrift stores what's saving money and you'll have fun hunting for those things. I really recommend that a lot of people do this to save the planet and so we don't have so much waste in the landfills. Also I think it's a good way of recycling if more people could look at it like that it's perfect for everyone. I suggest that people do a lot more shopping at thrift stores to find things to use for crafts are no books and journals. The Hunt is fun in a thrift store for all these different things.

[@luxeriousnsociable]

I can write whatever I want in my own journal. I write in code instead of in English

[@SlantedSpines]

Clever!!

[@luxeriousnsociable]

@@SlantedSpines so I write in English on my online blogs and publish it as private and I have my blogs in Private too

[@user-gp3mg3ig3w]

what a beautiful eyes! i love them!

[@werbette]

I didn't have that journal/diary in the third grade but I do have my journal from the first grade.

[@SlantedSpines]

That's awesome!

[@ughmady]

love this!

[@barbaralyn7019]

Where do you keep all your finished journals? I have a few that I keep in a special place to keep anyone else from reading them…. I do have happy posts, but the majority are from times I was really struggling with trying situations. 😳🤔😆

[@SlantedSpines]

I keep my finished journals in an end table that has a discreet compartment--though it is starting to get rather full now. Fortunately I don't have to worry about hiding them from prying eyes; it's just a neat place to keep them. I used to think one day I'd like to publish my journals... Now that sounds like a horrible idea to me 😂

[@SkylerReads]

omg 16! that's awesome haha

[@SlantedSpines]

Skyler Reads thank you!!

[@talkinnmedia4535]

Great video

[@jessicafleming8421]

omg you started in 2009. i was born in 2009 !!!!!!!!!!

[@SlantedSpines]

LOL just make me feel old like that 😭💛😂

[@mspooner]

I have to have lines because I can write just stupid small....

[@SlantedSpines]

Lately most of my journals have all had lines too!

[@Neil-writer-author]

I do journal though not all the time.

[@user-th9ig4hk7c]

Where do you store all your journals?

[@SlantedSpines]

I keep them all in a wooden end table!

[@user-th9ig4hk7c]

@@SlantedSpines thank you. I have no space for all mine !!

[@vintageworks2805]

💜❤️💛💙😎 new

[@paperwormscat9760]

It was nice seeing all your journals. The one with the Cat Gentleman is so cute. 🥰 I do journal a lot. Come over to my channel if you want to to take a look. 🖤

[@SlantedSpines]

Thank you! I just subscribed to your channel; you’re so crafty!

[@adriannefluet2896]

Can you help me start my journal in 2021?do you got a po box ?

[@SlantedSpines]

I’m working on a journaling tips video so stay tuned for that! :) But sadly no I don’t have a PO Box

[@alohaarianna]

I wonder how many journals I have 😂

[@durgasaishree1382]

you are fangirl

[@LordLobov]

wh