keeping creative diary pages

As you probably know, I like to keep my diary colourful but functional and I have noticed that quite a few others seem to share this mindset. I know that others prefer to keep their diary simple without all the frills others would add, but I guess that's down to personal taste and preference. For me, however, I would like to look back at a certain year's worth of diary inserts and leaf through it as if it were a mini-journal too. 

Anyway, I thought I would do a post on how I decorate my diary sheets and also the inspiration behind some of the ways I use colour and stickers to maintain a functional planner, but also keep my inserts as a sort-of 'mini-journal'. 

Firstly, sticky notes. I find these very useful for when a large chunk of information has to be highlighted. Often, I use them for lists (such as a shopping list) or for other bits of important information (such as train times).

I find that using a sticky note enables this chunk of text to jump out easily but it also ensures that there is a way to 'separate' that information from other bits of my daily planning. Also, sticky notes can look pretty too!

Next, colour! Colour is fantastic to ensure the continual use of my planner. This might not be the case for everyone, but it definitely is for me. I've always enjoyed being creative (I first used Photoshop when I was fourteen!) and I guess that never went away. 

There are various ways to use colour - by using different colours to write different things, highlighting, underlining, drawing shapes, etc.

Now, onto stickers. I use a variety - from plain to animal faces to Rilakkuma ones. I use them to highlight something important, or just to decorate the pages - there are many reasons as to why I use them. They also add colour which is a big thing for me. In school, I was a very visual learner and colour helped, and I guess that transferred over to my day-to-day planning too.

I like to try and use stickers in a creative way too - as you can see below.

I used Martha Stewart x Avery teardrop stickers and cut each in half and made a pattern with them. I loved how the green and the blue complemented each other and I used this as a way to keep track of TV shows I was watching instead of the usual just-write-it-on-plainly method!

Another thing I use is washi tape to highlight things. Although I mentioned the use of highlighters earlier, I personally prefer to use washi tape as I didn't like how highlighters bled on the Filofax paper. However, now that I am in Smythson inserts, this is less of an issue but I've always found highlighters to be quite messy and I can't say I am a big fan of them in my planner.

I highlight various things - if a day is boring, I might highlight a TV show to watch, or if an important event was to occur, that might be highlighted too. I like using washi tape on washi tape too:

Finally, I like to mix up the 'font' I use for things. This adds to the journalling aspect and I like using 'bubble' writing, or very thin writing to add that extra bit of 'art' to my pages.

One last thing (I promise this is the last one!) is that sometimes, I add in some illustration of some kind to denote an event. An example of this is on a day when it snowed!

I rarely illustrate properly though, and prefer to use my Rilakkuma stamp set instead (not only are they cuter, they are also a quick and easy way to decorate my pages). Alternatively, if I find something cute in a magazine, in a department store (such as a perfume card), I would stick that on to decorate a boring day. Sometimes, I even stick train tickets on a day that I travelled somewhere interesting too.

I hope you've enjoyed a brief glimpse into how and why I decorate my diary pages. If you still hadn't figured it out, it's because:

- colour and creativity helps me remember things and also keeps me committed to my daily planning

and because:

- I like to look back on my diary pages as if I am reading an old journal I have kept.

How do you like to keep your planner?