My Midori Travelers Notebook Set Up

The best thing for me about buying our home last October is having space and time of my own. I love, love, love the feeling of freedom and getting to settle in with long neglected things I enjoy!

One of my favorite things has always been stationary. I have dozens of blank journals, lots of kawaii stickers from Japan, tons of cute pens, etc. But I never really let myself use them (and I think this is a super common problem) because I didn't know where to "start" and I didn't want to "waste" or "ruin" things.

I only recently learned about the Midori Travelers Notebook (this link will take you to a cute shop with lots of great blog posts about them if you aren't familiar!) after Amanda commented on one of my instagram photos asking if I was using one. I promptly got sucked down the rabbit hole and spent many, many, many days researching them and the Hobonichi. After discovering Hobonichi and learning they'll start in the fall with 2016 journals, I decided to try Midori in the meantime.

I debated between getting an actual "real" Midori or a Fauxdori which is a cover that other peeps make. I ended up going with a "Foxydori" because: she had a bunch of good reviews, her shop is professional, she has strong instagram presence in the sense that if people had questions, she always answered them and I loved the thick look of the leather in this particular cover. She answered all my questions super fast and it arrived exactly as described. The leather is thick and squishy and it's aging really nicely.

The notebooks and inserts are held in place with elastics. I have two elastics in mine. One holds a small Field Notes that I use for bird watching and keeping track of birds at our feeder. The other holds an insert that I made. Ashleigh designed the graph paper and I love it. It has space for my weather stamps, moon phase, the date, etc. I ordered some really cute 12x12 sheets of paper from Blue Moon Scrapbooking- I was pretty excited, I ordered on a Monday and they arrived on Wednesday- I'm using them for covers. I just print the graph paper template on 24 lb paper, then grab a piece of scrapbook paper, cut it to size, staple it and I'm good to go. JetPens + Baum-kuchen also sell offical Midori refills. I've filled up a Grid #002 and a Lightweight Paper #013. I realized buying inserts was going to get expensive fast and I wanted something more unique which is why Smash designed graph paper for me. Also: she loves graphic design challenges, lol. Oh! And I'm debating getting the binder to hold finished notebooks!

I love decorating the covers so much. The sun is a project life card from a Studio Calico Project Life kit that I just adore. I just taped it to the front with cute washi from my pen pal, Laura. I love washi tape because I can stick this card to every cover and remove it once I finish the notebook, lol. I know I constantly say this but I *love* the project life boxes. I like that I can use the contents to do Project Life, journal, make Pocket Letters, etc. The inside is a letterpress calendar also from Studio Calico!

My journal pages are pretty low key: washi, kawaii stickers and cute paperclips. I made one clip from a kawaii cinnamon bun sticker, one from washi tape and then I bought a toast from Pigtails and Pockets, I have a few of her clips and love them! I don't write in my journal every day, more like every other day. I journal a lot about books I'm reading, dealing with grief, work, food I eat, adventures with Chop, projects I want to create, etc. I've been thinking about making an insert just for book quotes, I love Gert's Hobonichi, her hand lettering is so, so, so pretty. Right now I just add quotes in as I'm reading but it would be nice to have a dedicated insert just for that! Or even a dedicated journal just for book quotes...!

This is kind of a strange photo so I hope it makes sense! This is the inside of the front cover of my journal. I have a big gold binder clip that holds shaker cards (basically clear plastic over laid onto paper with sequins inside- Pinterest has a ton of ideas), bookmarks and other cute stuff. Attached to the binder clip is a book ring. I've taken my most favorite stickers, hole punched one corner and attached them to the book ring. So all my favorite stickers that I use in my journal are in my journal for easy access. I LOVE this because some of these sticker packets are 12-13 years old! And now I get to use them, once I started sticking them in my journal, it broke the ice and now I'm using them up. I actually bought two sheets of that top sticker set from Studio Calico because I liked it so much! I did recently buy #008 Clear Pocket from Amazon with a gift card so I can make washi samples and tuck them in there! My pen pal recently sent me a bunch of cute washi samples & Ashleigh & I split some washi rolls so it will be nice to have a ton of options but without carrying 50 rolls with me. ;)

These are my very favorite and most used journal items!

Animal clips from Target's $1 bin a few years ago- they hold the journal flat when I write. This is the one thing I don't love about Midori- the size is kind of awkward for me. Sometimes I find it easier to take the journal out to write in it. I wish the pages were wider because it turns out that I have a lot to say! ;)
Kawaii magnet clips from everywhere! I've gotten them at Amazon, Target, B&N, my local indie bookshop, etc. The brand is called Re-Marks and they are pretty adorable! I've also bought some magnetic book marks from CraftedVan on etsy but sadly I keep leaving them in library books!
Clear stamps- these are from Studio Calico kit a while ago but I love them! They have a book and the word "reading" so I'll stamp those and write about what I'm reading or book quotes. I would love more bookish stamps and I really LOVE this set and it's on my wishlist!
Gray ink pad- admittedly the coverage on this isn't perfect but it's gray which is my favorite color and it's subtle on the pages so I really love it.
Weather Stamps- By far one of my most favorite purchases. It cracks me up! I got to use the rain stamp during a random thunderstorm and it made my day! I like that these come in a little case!

Pens! PENS!!! PENNNNSSSS! I have two requirements in a pen: vivid colors and fine lines. So far my favorites have been:

Pilot High-Tec-C Coleto. This is affectionately known as "egg pen". I ordered my body and refills from a shop in Japan that is now sold out but you can get cute bodies and refills from Jet Pens.
Pilot Juice. I ordered this set on a whim from Amazon with a gift certificate and I'm SO glad I did! I've been slowly adding more colors to my collection from Jet Pens- they have a gray pen!!!! And it is PERFECT! The only down side is the pale green in my set doesn't write well.
Pilot Frixion Ball Slim. I adore this one because it feels similar in ink to the Juice but it's erasable!

I keep all my stationary supplies in a wicker basket that I roam around the house with! Sometimes I journal in bed, sometimes in the front yard, sometimes in the living room. I love having everything all in one basket but sadly it has seen better days and it might fall apart soon, lol. I got the Notions Case pattern from Chickenboots and made myself a pen case, then upsized the pattern and made a case for stickers/glue/etc. She has the notions case that is perfect for pens here and then a limited edition taller case here! I have all my stamps in a wax paper bag which isn't ideal, I'm hoping to find a better solution for that.

I've also started a happiness journal, a new project life album andddd of course Through The Loops Mystery Shawl. It wouldn't be summer without at least casting on and trying it! Last summer I couldn't do it so this summer I'm trying really hard to work on it. I've been listening to Books on the Nightstand while knitting in the mornings, it has been brutally hot here so I've been doing a fair amount of reading and knitting indoors. I'm doing BOTNS Summer Reading Bingo and it's SO fun! I decided to finish up the Sookie Stackhouse series. Right after the last two books came out I read some scathing reviews so I was hesitant to finish but I got the paperback and hardcover used for $5 so I was motivated to finish! I've read Deadlocked- the second to last and I really enjoyed it! I forgot how much I like Sookie as a character and how different this series is than Midnight, Texas is! That series reminds me a lot of Lily Bard. She's definitely one of my favorite writers, her blog has good book suggestions too. I selfishly wish she'd update more. :):)

I hope your summer is off to a nice start!

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