I've been journaling since I was 15 (I'm 70), and I second your advice to choose journals you love! Over the years my journals and writing instruments have changed. 2 years ago I found Princeton Architectural Press "Grids & Guides" (a notebook for visual thinkers). I also rediscovered a love of fountain pens and a rainbow of ink colors. Oh my! The combo is heaven to me. It's not what others recommend and I've had to remind myself that I'm not others! Having a journal that just calls out to be written in, or collaged in, that's the right size is what makes journaling these day a real joy. Even with all my journaling experience I learned new things from this fun video, thanks! ❤ ps my fountain pens comes first, then a journal that works with ink.

Nicely done. The best part was sharing your pages …too many pretty pages is not good for new journalers to see…in my opinion that is where a lot of intimidation is born. I have my journals back to 14 years old and I am 58! I have grown and evolved as a person and a mother….and then as a midwife and now as a retired midwife and grandmother…my books are all different sizes until I was in my 30sand then you can see my style and comfort come out even the changes with my penmanship and drawing skills. My sons and grandchildren talk about seeing me at my desk and about when I am gone who gets the bookcases full of journals. Anyway so good to see you making videos again…you are a special journaler in my world. Thanks for all you share.

One of the reasons I love Moleskine paper, is that sweet, sweet, crinkle sound it creates after painting, or writing with markers and lots of ball point pens ( did I mention how much I love Bic Cristal pens?). I love how my pages FEEL after painting and coloring with markers, sometimes I just turn the pages and it makes me so happy. Another thing I do is after I complete a journal I write a thank you letter to it on the last page, highlighting my feelings and the time we spent working together. I have been doing this for years and I love it. Just a few of the ways I bond with my journal.

Be inspired by the old you....profound words. Sometimes I'll look back at my old posts and think 'I was so clever, what happened to me'? And that will spark something new. So, yes, profound.

Thank you SO much for making me feel ‘normal’!!!! I have wanted to journal for 7 or 8 years now and have bought countless planners etc - Erin Condren, Happy Planner, Simplified (that was a gift), yet they’re all sitting in their original packaging unused and I couldn’t figure out why …. And then I found this video today and you’ve solved it - I don’t like the feel of a hard cover, simple as that - who knew? Not only do you have my heartfelt thanks for solving this expensive mystery, you also have a very excited new subscriber. What a star!! xxx

I definitely choose my notebook first and then the pen, but regardless of the fact that I have a zillion pens. I always use a Bic crystal. I just love it, and it writes on everything. I use a Moleskine hardcover and softcover. and I have to say that I can cram a lot into the hardcover! I just use the regular ones, not the expanded. I typically use a lined one. I really loved this video! ❤

Well said - I'm glad to see another "messy" journaler. Thank you so much for sharing this! I'm the same about using inexpensive materials, I love having that freedom to really get in there and be comfortable and live in your journal. It's just like a house, I could never relax in a place that's too modern and sterile.

I purchased a moleskine expanded because I loved how they expand from watching your videos. I started 27 October and am now 32 pages in and loving it! So thank YOU! :D

I agree with everything... it is a creative outlet for oneself, not a performance for others - THANK YOU

I love your journaling especially how you say “It doesn’t have to be words.”

I love the chunky, messy journal. It is about life. I throw in things and don't worry about if it's pretty or not.

I love your journal thickness, they are exactly my own journal goals. I'm now a big fan of softcover notebooks exactly for the reason that I can stuff it with all my memory souvenirs 🥰 I've learnt now to not put any rules/restrictions on myself, anything goes when it comes to journaling cos it's MY MEMORIES and nobody else's and thats why I love journaling 🥰

Team Softcover!

I never thought about the importance of soft vs hard cover in this way! I thought I liked hard covers because it gives me a sturdy surface to write on, but you’re SO right. I like the expandable advantage that soft covers have!! I always end up accidentally breaking the binding on my hard covers from over-stuffing my journal lol

I loved this video and enjoyed everything you said! You are so right, a well loved notebook with zero expectation or fear of "ruining" pages. I'm a fountain pen person, but it's always notebook first! The notebook is what makes me fall in love with a pen. My street fountain pen is my brass Traveler's Notebook, the fancier ones stay at home so I have no excuse 😊 I always take my standard travelers notebook with me, but I really love my A6 Midori 1D 1P, that is my everything notebook, my ugly planner, my private art, private words everything. Really all of my notebooks are private. Sometimes I don't even know how I have a KZfaq channel with my lack of sharing, as I hardly show my pages, but that Midori is 100% messily for me🥰I know fountain pen people love Tomoe River, but to me midori paper is a perfect all in one for me. Also, soft cover, always, for the pen bookmark 😂

I am considering journaling in 2023. I am looking at Traveler's Notebooks and their inserts as my journal. I love the feel of the notebook and it draws me to it. Right now, my struggle is to decide what size will work best for me.

My go to pen is the Pilot G-2 07 and I am a pen first kind of gal. Right now I'm loving dot grids in my notebooks. I have ADHD and finding a journal cover that had a place for my phone, keys, and debit card was a lightbulb moment in my life! I definitely made it to the end of this video. Thank you for sharing your messy, personal, genuine journal!

Love seeing your journal, real life and so cozy looking. You are the most relatable to me, others just appear too perfect and make me feel like I’m not doing it “right”. Would love to see a video about your rings and how your using those combined with your journals. I also love a soft cover! The squish! 😊 Those leathers are gorgeous!! I’m a notebook first then pen girl. Right now I’m enjoying Nanami’s Seven Seas notebook.

Incredible, you are the first person ever to mention the connection between notebook and person. I am still an a5 person but changed from spiral to soft bound, from dotted to lined ( when I couldn t find). From the same company ( nuuna, legami , miguel riuz) to different company!!! 😂😂 Wow, never heard of 400 pages extended version Moleskine. I started to look for more pages in a journal.🎉

This is the first journaling video I've watched that's actually useful. Been binge-watching journaling videos for weeks now and was feeling disheartened by all these of overly perfect and uber girly journals (which isn't my aesthetic at all). Your journals look cozy and lived-in and like an actual artist used them. You give me hope that I can actually do this in 2023. (Thanks also for the advice on picking a journal I connect with. I was just gonna use what I had on hand, but instead ordered one that I'm truly excited about.)

This is great. When I journal, sometimes I close my eyes and draw/scribble with my non dominant hand and then the inspiration is right in front of me! Trust your sub conscious , it knows!!

You have literally touched on every single reason I have not started journaling. Perfection. Writing. Others seeing it. Not wanting to ruin pages and pens and markers. Thank you for popping up in my feed! I’m going to go into 2023 using your tips and the freedom to create. Thank you!

I started journaling in 2018. My premise changed from just writing down my daily thoughts, to writing down advice and lessons I learn throughout the year that I’d want my kids to hear as adults - in case I’m not around when they’re older. ❤ Interestingly, I filled each book each year except 2020 was only 20 pages. I’d update maybe 2 times a month. Survival mode. But I got back on track 😊 I also left a page blank after each entry so I could go back & read entries and add new notes (dated, so I know it’s future-me jotting it down) because sometimes a situation unfolds and I forget to update it or more information becomes important that I forgot to add.

I have a commonplace book and a bullet journal, but my conection with my commonplace happened so natural and I love this book. The conection to my bullet journal just happened 1 week after it arrive. You can conect with a book with so many ways... its magical.

Thanks for this 🙏. I really enjoyed your video. As a fellow Moleskine Expanded lover, I drew a lot of inspiration from your words, and your journals. There's just something about Moleskines that touches my heart and lights a fire in my journalling brain! Thank you 📖❤️

I had to leave your channel a little love note to thank you for sharing your journaling journey! It's super motivating and really inspiring how you describe your process. I think we all just need that little nudge from another place of love to get going from our rut. Thank you so much for your time and efforts into your videos!

❤ 🙌🏾 🎉so glad you posted ! Connection is key with notebooks and myself. It’s so satisfying filling up a journal

Loved this video! I am a paper person so I definitely choose notebook first. The one I always go for is the Midori MD paper in dot grid. I like that the cream color of the paper is kind to my eyes and became kind of addicted to the faint blue dots. I am not a fan of the A5 size though so I cut it down to Regular size to fit on my travelers notebook. Perfect match. Favorite pen to use with is the good and no frills TRC ballpoint pen in factory green. All wrapped on a Mansorah Atelier Grace Mahogany cover 🥰

Pen first 🖋 . Has to be fountain pen friendly, whether the fountain pen is a $2 pen or a nicer pen, it will be a fountain pen. I an currently using a hardcover dot grid journal I found on Amazon. I initially thought I would use the thin soft cover inserts in a traveler journal. But the jury is still out. Still experimenting for my preferred journal. Like you, I agree that it doesn’t have to be the most expensive because I don’t want to be afraid of messing it up.

So glad I found you this morning. I’ve journaled for many years. I’ve used many different styles over the years. Now I want to get back to my original style, similar to yours, your video was just what I needed to see and hear! I’m energized again. I watched the entire video, and for me the notebook comes first. I’m going to check out your other videos now. Thanks for sharing.📚

Thank you for sharing. And being brave enough for showing us the inside ! As much as I like watching all those ASMR pretty pages and « art journaling » spreads, aesthetic contents and intricate collages, it’s nice to remember younger people and people just starting out that, at its core, « journaling » or at least writing a diary (my understanding of the word might be biased by my mother tongue) isn’t supposed to be shareable or for other people to see. I got my first diary on my 9th birthday. I turned 30 this year, and yes, seeing them filled is pretty satisfying. But honestly when I look back at these 21 years I don’t think of how pretty and clean they might have been, I think of how they were my best friends, that when the writing is ugly, it’s actually my rough feelings on the page. That if I had used my journals with the purpose of sharing them on social media or with anyone, they wouldn’t have been as useful as they have always been.

I love this video! You’re so passionate when talking about your journals- it’s contagious! I do share my journals on KZfaq and Instagram, but only to a certain extent. I could never do complete flip throughs or every single page I make, but I do enjoy sharing some of my more “artsy” pages that don’t have personal writing on them. I do agree that finding journals that you connect to is so important! Sometimes that can be more expensive journals, or it can be a cheap composition notebook from the dollar store- the opportunities are endless! Thank you for the wonderful video ❤

I have loved the idea of journaling but watched so many intimidating vids. however I've really stuck to it now, and what you say about connecting is so true. I started with a small picaso note book I was gifted, and gradual grew to others. You don't have to write in it every day either - no pressure, this fact alone had put me off before, but now its like a catch up if nothing much has happened Monday to Friday, due to eat, sleep,work,repeat. I chuck loads of pretty stickers and tiny envelopes I've made. the best thing is looking back on it and thinking 'I totally forgot I did that' - something which happens often as I get older lol. My husband teases me and calls it my sticker book - but hey - I love it!

I use pocket sized notebooks because those journals are easy to carry and are easy to fill up a page and/or more pages. Small blank journals or sketchbooks are the same scenario you can quickly do your art work on a small sketchbook page. I cut down 8.5 x 11 inch paper and I took a small stack of the paper and stapled one side of the stack to make it into a small sketchbook❤❤❤ I really like coming back to this video so inspiring to me❤❤❤

I will choose 1 notebook that I feel like I want to keep it to myself, a place for me to be myself and I would pick a pen I enjoy writing in with. Sometimes I journal about my mental health condition, sometimes about my day, I put some lists of tasks to be done and then I would add stickers or a small doodle. I think journaling is a good coping mechanism for me.

Just got mine in the mail yesterday. Gonna prepare it for 2023 and try to use is for at least something every day! :)

Thank you for this video!! I agree with EVERYTHING you said! The connection with the notebook is essential for journaling. Sometimes I prioritize the pen, but only if the main purpose of the book is long form journaling. Lots of love 💕 Lily

I have all kinds of notebooks and journals, but always come back to this beautiful Moleskine expanded! Love your videos on it! Thank you!

Michelle you really understand yourself so beautifully. Totally relate to so much here. Love your videos. Thank you for your ever evolving journals. Fantastic! Xxxx

You’ve inspired me to journal in the way that is authentic to me without forcing anything, appreciate the video!

Hi Michelle, I love your videos and have been following you for quite some time! One thing I love about your journaling / planning videos is that you don't care to make everything perfect. Sometimes I'm overwhelmed because I tend to be OCD about decorating and I end up not wanting to be consistent. Seeing how your journals look organic, not perfect, but are full of life, really inspires me to have a flow with my own journaling and be less worried about how "nice" it looks.

This has been so liberating for creativity!!!!!

Just finished my first full size journal. Your videos have inspired me. I don't do art but I have added stickers and other doodle. Thanks for the great videos

The moleskine expanded is my favorite too! Great video. I keep mine in a Chic Sparrow No. 8 journal cover, perfect fit. Win, win! Definitely the notebook comes first for me.

I started journaling in 2015 and you were one of the people I followed first for inspiration! Your journals are still so inspiring to this day :) I haven't been journaling much this year because of a sudden loss, so this video will help a lot in rediscovering my love for journaling. Thank you! I choose my notebooks first too!

I have multiple journals for different purposes. I learned how to make my own journals using a coptic stitch method for the binding, which allows for the journal to lay flat when opened. I use sugarcane paper because it works well with fountain pens, even when writing on both sides of the paper. I make the covers out of matboard, covered in fabric or decoupaged. I also have store-bought journals for capturing other things, like a ring-bound notebook with watercolor paper (for art journaling/collaging), and some smaller sized journals that I keep in my purse to jot down notes on the go (my planners and journals usually stay at home unless I am on vacation.) For me, it is important to have a journal for long entries that works with fountain pens because using fountain pens inspires me to write because I love using them! I also pick up blank books at discount stores for keeping inspirational quotes or bible verses or making lists. I keep a separate planner for sewing and crafting projects. I love having a variety of notebooks and paper, so I just come up with different ideas on how to fill them! I have 2 that are private (one of them is a "burn book" for my rants that I don't ever want to re-visit) and the rest I am happy to share with family/friends. I love how you use yours for more than just writing but also for sketching and ideas. Someday maybe I will get there, but for now I have to keep separate journals (I think it's my slightly OCD left brain that has to compartmentalize and "sort" everything!)

Thank you for sharing- your view of 'don't care' is such a key one. You have put the emphasis on not doing it for the web or someone else but really feeding your brain and keeping a healthy sustainable life.... thank you so much for this.

I already love journaling (and am journaling every day) but am intrigued by the title and will watch this video for more ideas 😍 i think I found my favorite notebook to journal in and got a few of the same ones for myself 😉

I am in a Hobonichi again this year and I really do love it. Last year I did something different. This next year I am considering a Moleskin. I love switching it up sometimes but then sometimes I go back to what I loved before! I go with what I want for a notebook first and then I use what I love in that notebook! Loved your video!

I made it until the end! So inspiring I want to try and incorporate journaling more this year

Love this! You confirmed something I learned recently and that is to experiment with journal setups and like what you like. Finding what feels right makes 100x difference. I use an Amazon cheap knock off travelers notebook with calendar inserts for short weekly writings and have another ruled insert for those days I need to write a lot. I paired the notebook with my Lamy 2000. Love the setup too because I can be my messy carefree self and not worry about scratches and tidiness because it was a cheap investment

I am using my first Moleskine, and it is because of you. I am using a classic black soft cover. I love it. I enjoy BiC Cristal's. I tried them from the dollar store, and I will always use them. Thank you for sharing. From Los Angeles

Love what you said about performing for our creative soul ❤️ thanks for the inspiration 😊

Thank you for sharing your normal pages, while I love seeing you retry pages it’s the normal ones that are messy and not deemed good enough that I enjoy the most as these inspire me to just let go and create what I want with out it having to be perfect

This was a terrific video....thank you! In answer to your question, I pick the notebook first then find the pens that work for me. I have a wide range of pens on hand so I can always find something that works.

I am so happy you made this video! I have never been one to journal often. Lately I have found the need to have that "whatever go, flows" notebook. Ideally I need it to be fountain pen friendly and i hope to find it soon. Thanks for all your great tips! xx

I love your approach to journaling and how you select your materials! I started the year off with an A6 Stalogy 365 but it got lost for a month so I transitioned to a Moleskine pocket 18 month weekly planner. It's much smaller but I find that I'm more inclined to use it for a quick daily journal entry. For Bible journaling, I too love the Moleskine Expanded Edition, but I definitely prefer the dot grid. This particular journal, as you know, really inspires me to write. It has a beautiful feel in the hand, and is neither too big nor too small. I used to use the Moleskine extra large, but it was hard to write in if I wasn't sitting at a desk.

Team pen bookmark too, in my stalogy! I love the paint “rings” you have on the cover 🖤

Loved this video! Personally, I choose journals that I connect with but do not worry to mess around with. I don't think my journals have to be perfect so I rarely worry about messing up a nice journal, because to me a journal should be "messed with" for it to be personal! Right now I keep 3 types of journals: one little A6 journal I have with me everywhere for my poetry/writing/philosophical thoughts, one daily journal for freestyle writing/braindumps, and one illustrated journal for just daily or weekly sketches and doodles. I really had no problem falling in love with journaling, but I watched your video anyway because it was so cozy

Thank you so much. I really appreciate your vids. This was very helpful especially that you said it doesn't have to be just writing all the time. 😁

I love your videos because it's everything so real, so tangible. I really can see you in what you share. I feel inspired. I want to share my love for papers and writing but I feel so much inhibited with these perfect and flawless journals and notebooks on YT

Yep, made it to the end. Loved it!

My mom tried for years to get me to journal but it never "clicked." When I was 20 I finally ended up starting one in a hard-back composition style and a Pilot G2, but even so it was not a regular thing. It was when I discovered fountain pens that I started wanting a reason to just write and I began to journal more regularly. I'm on my third journal (and starting a 5yr at the beginning of the year) so I am still playing with different notebooks, but for me that is part of the fun of using fountain pens too.

This is an amazing video! I can also apply this to choosing a planner. I have never heard someone say it but yes connection to the book is everything at least for me it is. The feel in the hand, does it bring joy to flip the pages? Thankyou for doing this video it will definitely help me in my decision process for choosing my planner in 2023.

Favorite video I’ve seen all year. Thank you for sharing!!!

I agree . Picking a notebook that you like . Feel of in in particular. I used to carry moleskine pocketbook while working and write everything down . For any book that I probably got as a gift from someone I just couldn't get past a few pages . Maybe the thought of destroying it irks me

Great points! I agree with you about writing whatever you want to in your journal, or adding whatever you want to it(i.e. ephemera or drawings). I currently share my planner on social media, daily, but I rarely share my journal entries now because I felt that it did inhibit what I wanted to truly write in it. I also agree with you about choosing a journal (notebook) that fits you personally. 😊

love those chunky notebooks and thank you for being authentic and awesome 🤩

Your videos are always inspirational. I always choose the notebook first, then the pen. I also use specific pens for the many different notebooks I carry. TFS! ❤️🤗

Thank you so much i did go allnthe way to the end of this video will organizing my home. I love bulky.

Thank you so much for this great video. You find it long, I find it well explained and full of inspiring tips. You say you're weird, I say you're an artist ! Yes Moleskine is expensive, yes Moleskine paper quality sucks, but can't help it : I'm the most creative when I'm journaling in a Moleskine. Does the perfect notebook exist? Not sure. Your scribble scrabbles and other not so fancy pages, I enjoy them a lot because I can relate, they're authentic ! Social media are fake. Thanks again and waiting patiently for your next video.🙏🥰

Enjoyed your stream of consciousness. I love moleskins but also love a binder with individual pages. Thinking about starting discbound for that reason. For me it’s journal first.

I love your passion for journaling!! I journal every day, it is one of the best times of the day. My favorite notebook is Midori MD, I just love that paper!!

I love your "imperfect" journal.

I couldn’t agree more on the super expensive notebooks. I understand that the stalogy for $20 is not cheap, but for the page count and the silky pages I think it’s 100 percent worth it. I also really like Walmarts notebooks usually run 8 to 12 dollars. No way I’m spending 50 plus on a fancy notebook for journaling.

I love a soft cover because I stick everything in there

Hi there!! I've been journalling for many many years now, and my style is forever changing which is good. I have used a lot of notebooks in the past, and now I'm using Hobonichi Weeks Mega, and recently purchased a Moleskine Pocket and I'm in love with it. After watching this video and seeing your beautiful artwork etc, I've just purchased the Moleskine Expanded Soft Cover 🙂Thanks for the inspiration, and I look forward to watching more of your videos 🙂Hugs from Australia x

Just bought a fountain pen today!! Best pen I’ve ever used!! So easy to write with no hand cramp!!! Since I write pages and pages

I’m a pen/ medium determines my paper kind of gal. I have to switch it up in that capacity throughout my time in said notebook. I have been known to cut down composition books to a variety of sizes depending on the cover i want to use to house it. I must agree that a huge part of my love and devotion to my notebook is my ability to customize it and make it my own. Each one tells a different story about me and I enjoy our time together.

Hi Michelle. I pick my notebook 1st and then choose my writing tool based on my mood. I mostly use a Miquelrius 6x8 soft bound, 200 sheet, 400 page grid journal. It's not bleed thru proof so I try to use very fine nib fountain pens or sharpie fine liners that don't bleed thru. I write, sketch, tape in things I find that I like. Before the pandemic I loved to go to Starbucks and journal or Barmes & Noble Cafe. Starbucks was very spiritual for me. I also like Moleskin soft cover notebooks. I too love the feel and color of the paper. A paper company in Japan did a study of paper colors in notebooks and they found that certain soft pastel shades help people focus better. I like what you said about choosing a journal that you feel comfortable with. Mine look well used. I will put a pen in mine sometimes and close it. If I get coffee stains on a page I turn it into art. I could go on and on. Sorry. Great video Michelle. It takes a lot of courage to open yourself up and share like you do. I applaud you 👏

I have cut stalogy to tn size and it is put in tn standard size and I love it!

전 몰스킨 노트로 독서노트 로만 활용하고 있는데 대단하고 부러워요! 특히 소프트 커버의 빈티지스러움이 아주 맘에 듭니다😊

You convinced me... I need a Moleskine now.

At the moment, my favorite notebooks are Stalogy A6 and Archer&Olive Spiral Pleather B6. And my favorite pen at the moment is the 4 section Hi-Tec Coletto with colors brown, orange, red, and indigo

this video is so inspiring

Thank you...very nice video. Those Moleskine are very expensive here in Canada. I get a lot of very nice journals at discount stores. They do the trick very well. Sometimes I collage on the covers to make it more personal.

The notebook I like is a simple lined, 190 pages, and in bright colors, for $8. Paperage brand. It is hardcover, but I prefer that. I add a pen loop, taking one from an old journal and attaching to the new one with E6000 glue.

I made it to the end! Loved this video!!

I use at least two A5 Leuchtturm journals a year (250 pages) and they are my life. Everything from art, lists and rants reside inside. I don't show mine but for a few art sketches. It is very freeing. I am a very simple journaler, pens, markers, stickers, colored pencil etc. My biggest need is it must lay flat, period. If I have to fight a page it is gone. The journals are hardcover and I have them in a leather cover I revamped so the Leuchtturm elastic can still close it and hold my pen on the top. I love Japanese pens in .03 and .04. Currently using a Sakura Ballsigno ID 04. They are waterproof so I can use marker or watercolor over the top.

For me it's also notebook first, I did not care about the pen at first. But since I use my notebook just to write, I did decide to get a fountain pen at some point because my hand pain just kept getting worse. The fountain pen helps me because I don't have to put pressure on it and it writes so dang smooth that it helps me write for longer without my hand hurting.

I honestly do not understand why people are always speaking about how expensive Moleskine is. Where I live (EU) I can get them for about 13-15 Euro. Even if they were to cost 25-30 that would not be a problem. If I use it a whole year 30 / 12 that would be 2.5 dollars each month. That is basically comparable to a pack of candy or something.

Hi, new subbie. Glad to have found your channel. I LOVE the Moleskin soft/hard cover dot grid notebooks. I like the feel they have in my hand and well as the feel of the pages. I put everything in them...notes, quotes, verses, ephemera, photos...everything. I have used watercolor paint (keeping the water to a minimum), Gelatos, Tombow markers and the Moleskin handles them all well. Just a good quality notebook.

Made it to the end!!❤

Loved this!!!!

i'm in awe of u!

paper comes first for me, doesnt matter if its soft or hard cover, the paper has to feel nice...i recently got a rollban notebook and im in love with that paper.

I choose the notebook and I change up my leather covers I love what you said about keeping it private because I have found I will edit myself if I think someone may see it and that’s not good it shuts you down great video 💕

Ahh, loved watching this

Your right about the fear of using something you paid so much for and screwing it up and then it ruins the whole thing. Or at least frustrates that becomes the book.

Im starting to journal again. I pick the notebook 1st... my pens varies depending on what I'm writing or marking. I even use markers so the paper has to be thicker than notebook paper. Love your video! There should be no pressure on what's in your journal..it's yours not the world's ❤️🌺