Holiday Memories

As my children grow up I realise more and more how important my memories are to me.  My daughter in particular enjoys talking about things that were said and done. I am so glad that I took so many photos when they were little. However, it is only more recently that I have been keeping written records of holidays.

Initially I tried sticking in bits and pieces that I picked up over the holiday but as I was using bound books they became overloaded and splayed out making them impossible to close properly and difficult to store.

Last year I took a personal sized Filofax to help tackle the ‘overloaded’ issue. In addition to this it meant that I would be able to add and move things as well as use a variety of paper. Unfortunately it just didn’t work for me, I hardly used it and I ended up using another notebook I had instead.  I don’t really know why I thought it would work as I have never been able to settle in a personal Filofax. The rings just make it too difficult to write or draw in it. In spite of this I still liked the idea of having a more flexible journal and decided that this year I would make my own.

Firstly, I cut cardboard to size and covered it in scrapbook paper to make the front and back covers. The hole punch just managed to cope with it. The book is bound with binder rings I got from Amazon. I had previously bought 1” ones for another project which are brilliant. These are 1.5” and I am not impressed. I bought six, one of them broke when I opened it and another wouldn’t stay closed. I am not convinced these will last well but am hoping that if I don’t open them too often they will last the holiday and I will be able to find an alternative later if needed.

Next, I trimmed paper to put inside,  just various pieces I had around the house including some watercolour paper.

I also cut some watercolour paper into small pieces with my silhouette so I could do small sketches and stick them in.

I folded some scrapbook paper in half and sealed the bottom to make a pocket per day to keep some of the paper memorabilia that I collect. 

The book itself is much bigger than I usually take (A5) so I am keeping it in a Belkin tablet case to protect it. This case also has a front pocket, in which I am keeping the rest of my supplies.

I have a travel watercolour kit (and also a travel watercolour brush –not pictured). Any watercolour people out there may well think I have the wrong combination of colours in there. They may well be as I am no artist but they are what I feel like taking this time.

I also have a variety of pens in a variety of thicknesses, some waterproof and others not.

After all this effort here’s hoping it works for me and I come back with a journal packed with family memories.

Anyone have any ideas for keeping a holiday journal if I find this isn't a good method for me? Anyone interested in seeing the results?