Botanist’s Journey Junk Journal

Hey, everyone! Abby Monroe, one of our amazing  Junk Journal Design Team Members, created a fabulous Botanist’s Journey Junk Journal for us this week. As you know, we feature one new Junk Journal project each week created by one of our creative team of artists. Our Design Team Members select from the 100’s of Vintage Image Bundles on our Premium Membership Site, for their creations, in order to show you beautiful ways to use those images. We hope you will be totally inspired by this series!

Therefore, please make sure you check out the video tour at the bottom of the page…please scroll all the way down to see it. Are you ready to be inspired? I will step out of the way and let Abby tell you all about her incredible project…

A nature-inspired junk journal using The Botanist’s Field Guide Bundle from The Graphics Fairy premium site. This stunning collection was inspired by an old book, filled with pressed leaves that had been resting between its pages for nearly a century. When I worked with the bundle, I found myself  imagining a Victorian female botanist out in the field, meticulously collecting
wildflowers, sketching botanical diagrams, and recording her findings. This vision helped guide the creation of my journal, which is equal parts a reflection of my own artistic style and a homage to historical women in science and art.

The imagery in The Botanist’s Field Guide includes a treasure trove of antique field notebook illustrations, diagrams of leaves, petals, roots, and seedlings, and beautiful botanical sketches. There are also pressed flower specimens, blank pages ready for field notes, capturing the spirit of a bygone era. I used these elements to create a journal that shares my love for nature and art—two
forces that have always been deeply intertwined in my creative practice.

This journal is small, 7.5” x 4.5” reminiscent of a pocket notebook that a botanist might carry with her while wandering through the countryside. I chose the cover from the bundle because it was the perfect size and immediately transported me into the world of the Victorian botanist I had envisioned.

I’ve used a combination of papers, including vintage lined paper, cotton rag, sugar (construction) paper, card-stock, and old book pages to give the journal a textured, organic feel. There’s space for journaling, envelope pockets, as well as room to insert further specimen cards and herbarium sheets, inspired by the historical practice of preserving pressed flowers alongside botanical notes.

In creating this journal, I was drew inspiration from the life and work of Mary Delany, a British artist who, at the age of 72, began creating extraordinarily detailed floral collages. Her journey into the world of botanical art began in an unexpected way—she noticed the resemblance between a piece of red paper and a geranium on her bedside table. From that simple observation, Delany
went on to create 985 intricate paper flower mosaics.

Her story reminds me of the magic that happens when we allow ourselves to see beauty in the small details. I have spent years pressing flowers and incorporating them into my work. The process is one of quiet patience, of letting nature and time do their work before the flowers can be used in my mixed media creations.

This journal reminds me of the power of observation, both in art and in life. The antique field notebook illustrations and scientific diagrams in the bundle are not just aesthetically beautiful—they’re a testament to a time when naturalists and botanists relied on their senses, their notebooks, and their curiosity to understand the world around them.

Whether I’m pressing flowers, sketching leaves, or working with mixed media, this process always feels like an intimate conversation with nature. There’s something special about holding a pressed flower in your hand—a quiet reminder that beauty can be found even in the most delicate and transient things. The Botanist’s Field Guide bundle gave me the perfect tools to showcase this connection, and I hope this journal inspires others to observe, create, and document the natural beauty that surrounds us.

I’d love to hear your thoughts! Have you ever worked with pressed flowers in your art or journals? Let me know in the comments!

BOTANIST’S JOURNEY JUNK JOURNAL SHOW  & TELL VIDEO TOUR

Premium Membership Bundles used in this project:

Botanist’s Field Guide Bundle & Printables
Cafe Au Lait Hues:
Tan Star Endpaper
Bird Brown Endpaper
Other Botanical Images found from site search

I have loved making this journal and am currently working on a few more editions with the same theme. These will be available on my website in October. If you’d like to be the first to know when they’re available, then you can join my mailing list at the link below.

I hope you will visit me here:

Abby’s Instagram

Abby’s Website

Abby’s Etsy

Abby

Check out the Graphics Fairy Premium Membership Site HERE!