TL;DR version: While you’ll hear plenty about stickers and deco and washi tape and all kinds of other shiny pretties, the essential list of junk journal supplies for absolute beginners is actually super short (and inexpensive). All you really need is paper (or a notebook), glue, some scissors, and some “junk” to start sticking with!
Junk journaling is a great way to combine the art of scrapbooking with the urge to collect pretty things while also preserving memories, getting your emotions down, and just plain making something if you struggle with other forms of arty-type expression (like I do). Even better, it doesn’t take a ton of money to get started so as a hobby has a super low cost entry point. Let’s talk junk journal supplies for absolute beginners: the absolute and bar bones must-haves to get you going from a standing (or sitting) start.
The absolute basics of junk journal supplies
I was a bit lost when I first decided to try junk journaling. Do I need a woosit or a whatsit or a thingamibob? What type of glue should I use? Do I need a fancy leather notebook like those Youtube people I follow? Is that funny roller glue sticky stuff a must? Where do I get the pretty paper? But fear not, you can actually get started with basic junk journal supplies very simply.
Paper or a notebook
You won’t get far without this. Purists will insist on stapling or fastening paper sheets yourself to get the 100% verified “junky feel” but it absolutely isn’t necessary to become a book binder overnight if you don’t want to. Regular printer-type office paper is fine. Bonus green creds if you use the recycled stuff. If you want to go slightly fancier then it isn’t hard to get some more unusual “base paper” without spending a lot more, for example parchment effect paper or some colourful craft paper. Personally I’m a sucker for the handmade stuff with deckle edges but this is understandably a bit pricier!
Glue some odds and ends from old newspapers or magazines to your paper, fasten the paper together somehow (staples, string, just folding) and in theory boom, you’re off. Easy peasey! Alternatively, you might prefer to have something a bit more resilient than just sheets of paper to start with, in which case you can opt to use a notebook. Literally any old notebook will do – it doesn’t have to be fancy or leather bound or have some posh embroidered cover or whatever. It can be lined or unlined or gridded or kraft brown paper, or whatever else you like. Of course the classic junk journal YouTube look tends to involve a Traveller’s Journal, which is a leather sleeve with cords and refillable inserts, but a good one of those (plus refills, cos those inserts don’t have a ton of pages) can set you back quite a bit more!
More “scrapbook” type binds can be great too – spiral bounds can be more forgiving for newbies although some people don’t like them as much because of the “break” they put into spreads. Again you could go totally bananas here if you want to with an all-singing, all-dancing album with a fancy cover and pockets and ties, but a basic scrapbook-type malarkey will do you fine. In either case, try to avoid the really super-cheap stuff as mega thin paper/pages won’t hold up too well once you get the glue out!
Glue
Sticking things in is a pretty fundamental part of junk journals, so… yeah. I guess you could use tape if you wanted to, but glue is generally preferable for preserving the facing texture of your various bits. I honestly just use good ol’ Pritt Stick or whatever non-brand equivalent I can find. There are various applicators and rollers and all kinds of fancy-bum type things you can get which a lot of the Youtubers use, but I get on fine with just a glue stick.
For heavier items like cardstock or fabric you might want to use PVA or a similar equivalent but I’d honestly use the glue stick for most thin/papery stuff so you don’t end up with wrinkly pages. Well, unless that’s the aesthetic you’re going for, of course!
Scissors
You definitely won’t get far in terms of junk journal supplies unless you have some scissors. Any pair of basic cutting implements will do, and if you want to splurge you can get some nice craft scissors for under a tenner. Don’t mix your paper and fabric cutting on the same pair of scissors though as you’ll dull the blades quickly; proper fabric shears exist for a reason, folks. Of course if you’re like me you might want to get some properly aesthetic and/or pretty snippers like the Youtubers use so you can admire your handles while you cut. If that’s the case you want embroidery scissors, those tend to be the ones that come with the ornate and attractive handles rather than the usual functional sorts.
Just be aware that the blades on these tend to be on the small side, so if you’re chopping up bigger junk pieces for your journal you might want to have something chunkier on hand too. On the other hand, embroidery scissors – sometimes also called precise or detail scissors – are great for cutting out fussy little detail bits for your journal.
Junk! (And other stuff to stick)
This is the fun bit! I started off literally with cuttings from magazines, newspapers, old brochures and pretty much anything else I could find lying around (my husband decided to throw out his historic collection of White Dwarf magazines which I thoroughly plundered before they went to recycling, got me some amazing fantasy and sci-fi/horror bits to use). That’s undeniably the cheapest way to do it. I even found a bunch of old photography magazines going cheap over on eBay – some back issues of things like Practical Photography can go for as little as 99p and give many hours of happy cutting and sticking as scavenged junk journal supplies. I particularly recommend photography magazines like this as you tend to get a good variety of image subjects and styles, but of course if you have a specific aesthetic in mind for your journal you might want to try something else.
Alternatively, if you want to go for the more quintessential “vintage” junk journal supplies that are popular with a lot of Youtubers, you might want to look for packs of stickers and paper to form the basis of your “junk” inventory. This type of ephemera, as the “stickable bits” are sometimes called, is more expensive than some cheap (or free) old magazines of course, but it does let you better govern the overall theme and look of your journal so might be preferable for some.
Otherwise, ephemera “stickables” can be pretty much anything you like! Odds and ends of paper, stickers, photographs, postcards, feathers, glitter, beads, buttons, fabric scraps.. it’s endless, really, depending on how you want your journal to come out. Mix and match different textures, get a nice ink pen or something if you want to write in there too (and if that old biro you found in the couch cushion just doesn’t cut it any more), and you’re off.
(At least for the basics)!
