DIY Vintage Brown Paper Bag Junk Journal

For this junk journal setup I was going for a vintage feel so to get that look I also created my first batch of tea-dyed papers and doilies. The process was pretty simple and I even got a little creative using a doily to imprint on some of the paper. It really gave the vintage paper a whole different look and enhanced the vision I had for my junk journal.

The first pocket in my junk journal is a corner pocket inspired by Rita Donnelly (the creator of this corner flip pocket). You take a square of scrapbook paper and fold it diagonally corner-to-corner. That way once you glue down one side of that “triangle” shape you have the exposed flap to flip up for additional journaling space.

I really love the idea of recording some “secret” thoughts or memories under the flap! It’s also perfectly sized to hold some handmade tags or even small photos. Both the tags and the corner pocket were adorned with some decorative buttons.

The page opposite of this corner pocket was a doily imprinted tea dyed paper with some stickers embellishing the page. I planned to put in a little memory note of our girls’ crafting day. The sticker in the bottom right corner reads, “It’s a crafting kind of day”.

Another option for adding pockets to your junk journal is to create a straight edge classic style pocket.

In my opinion you can never have too many pockets in a junk journal! For this page I added a 2.5″ x 4″ straight edge pocket using vintage alphabet scrapbook paper which holds two scrapbook paper journal cards. In this space, I felt that journaling about my pets would be a nice addition. With a corner wood-look button and small cat sticker, this page was complete.

During the assembly of this junk journal I wrapped this page using a 4.25″ diameter tea-dyed doily.

Whether tea or coffee-dyed, adding doilies into your junk journal will give it a feminine, vintage feel. I couldn’t resist tucking in a tea-dyed oval-shaped doily; it is longer than the brown paper bag and peeks out at both the top and bottom (which I love!). Although it’s a sticker, I felt like the dress form sticker had the perfect vintage feel. This sticker reads, “I just want to make pretty things”.

Directly in the center of the junk journal, I couldn’t help but add a heart-shaped tea dyed doily. The left side of the paper has a wood-toned button that reads, “Happy” and the opposite page has some complementary rose washi tape along the edge.

Using scrapbook paper in junk journals is an absolute must. When you add scrapbook paper as tip-ins you create extra space for quotes, journaling, memories and more. I couldn’t tell you what paper packs these came from or even where I got them because they were truly just scraps in my paper stash.

The first piece of scrapbook paper I added was a small piece of paper my friend had on hand (which was a perfect complement to the style of my junk journal). I simply cut it to size (length-wish), added a scalloped sticker border and a center sticker that reads, “Make pretty things every day”. Then I couldn’t help adding a small blue heart to the top corner; as well as, a small butterfly button at the top of the opposite page.

Notice on the left side there are some various black smudge spots. I have no clue how that happened but it was during the tea-dye process and it actually blends perfectly in this setup.

Farther into the junk journal I added another piece of scrapbook paper and all I did was corner-rounded the edges. I loved this paper because it had that had vintage looking florals on top of musical notes in the background. It didn’t hurt that the scrapbook paper also had an overall vintage look to it.

Another thing I wanted to add to my junk journal was a journal flip-up card. This just adds another feature because it provides a different orientation of the paper than just flipping through like book.

Directly preceding this journal flip-up is another doily and I love how the pink roses peek out from behind it! I used some double-sided scrapbook paper cut to size and corner-rounded the edges.

Then to keep in place I used some rose floral washi tape at the top to secure the journal card to the paper bag. The fact that the backside of this scrapbook paper is lined is purely coincidental but I love how it provides some extra journaling space.

Cover Art: I chose to do some hand stamping on the cover and used a vintage style stamp along with a stamp of a vintage bicycle. The vintage stamp with the time-pieces, butterfly and writing is one of my favorite stamps! You can see it in action on the Breathe Memory Journal Spread Using Watercolor Lettering and Vintage Stamp.

Stitching. The best way to finish off your junk journal is using a needle and tatting thread. That way, you can add whatever you’d like and with just a few holes you can keep your journal together. The benefit of finishing off your junk journal using this method is if you ever wanted to add more pages, you simply untie the string; take the journal apart; add in more pages where you’d like; realign the holes and tie it back up again.

Lace Edges. What vintage junk journal is complete without some antique lace?! Again I used what I already had on hand and cut it down to size. To give it a complete look I added a stripe of lace to both the front and back of the junk journal covers.

Closure: At the last minute I decided to add a light-weight closure to the cover (for when the journal gets thicker). First I glued down a vintage wood button to the front cover then wrapped some extra tatting thread around the junk journal to the button.

The back-inside of the paper bag (where it is gusseted) I had glued in two extra pieces of scrapbook paper to give it a little more decoration than just a plain brown bag look. Sadly, I did not get that pictured.