The Forager’s Junk Journal

Hey, everyone! Sharon Coughlin of Mad Paper Crush, one of our amazing new Junk Journal Design Team Members, created a fabulous Forager’s 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 Sharon tell you all about her incredible project…

Hello, hello again – it’s me, Sharon from Mad Paper Crush! I can’t believe it, but I’m here to bring you my 6th and final journal for my design team term for the Graphics Fairy. It’s been such a fun ride and I’m so, so glad I was chosen for the team. The journal I’m going to shar with you today is called The Forager’s Journal, and it’s inspired by my love of hiking in the woods and wild edibles. Let’s take a look!
My journal began as a well loved Girl Scout Handbook. It’s about 5×7” with a 1½“ fabric spine. The closure is also fabric, and I put eyelets on each side so I could thread them with black leather so the whole book can be cinched together. I added an ATC (Artist’s Trade Card) with strawberries to the front because who doesn’t love wild strawberries? I also broke a piece of an antique folding ruler and secured it to the front to finish off the cover. The whole thing can be untied and slipped off to access the inside. You can also see a little box tied with a bow in the picture – you’ll have to keep reading to find out what’s inside!

The book I started with already had a beautiful aged linen envelope glued in, and there was a badge test card as well as a sweet little handwritten note with the words to the Star-Spangled Banner on it. I decided these authentic pieces should stay with the journal since they were just beautiful! My opening signature page has a pocket made with some old gauzy fabric and I added a collaged tag that I made to the inside using a fussy cut from the Pressed Wild Fern kit and a title page from the Naturalist’s Library kit.

In the middle of a few of the signatures, I created a pocket around my stitching using the printable journal pages from the Herbal Apothecary Shoppe kit. I shrunk them down even more to create a little field notes journal card that fits inside. When you are out on a hike, it’s good to take notes on where you’ve found some wonderful plants!

This spread shows the back side of the pocket as well as a label I created digitally using pieces from the Black and White Apothecary Label kit and the Owls and Mushrooms kit. I had so much fun with them, you’ll see lots of these labels scattered throughout the journal. Some of them even have some blank space to write on them.

This spread highlights another of the printable journal pages – this one came from the Bittersweet hues kit. I love the contrast colors on this page. The right side of the page includes some of the washi-tape from the Tattered Paper Treasures 2 kit, which I printed on a clear full sheet label and then cut apart. I love adding washi tape like this throughout a journal and even on the ephemera to really pull everything together.

I found this amazing page of mushrooms in the Woodland Wonders kit, and I just knew it had to be included for any serious forager. I decided to print it on manilla drawing paper and it came out instantly antiqued! I added some folder and grunged up the edges a bit and it’s now looking well used.

I used papers from the Tattered Paper Treasures 2 kit to make some tuck spots throughout the journal, and this one holds a little collaged tag I made using some of the original papers from the book, as well as more paper bits and a compass, because every hiker should have a compass!

This spread shows the back side of another signature pocket I made using the Herbal Apothecary Shoppe kit, as well as a collaged pocket with part of an old crocheted doily and another label I made from the Black and White Apothecary Label kit. The tag tucked in the pocket has some fussy cuts and more collage, all tied up with some sari ribbon as a topper.

These adorable mushroom cards are from the Bittersweet Hues kit, and they are a perfect reference for a forager hiking in the fall. The right side page is another graphic from the Tattered Paper Treasures 2 kit printed on more manilla drawing paper. It has a “well-used” feel to it, I love adding some pretty designs to it.

This has got to be my favorite part of the journal (if I could actually pick something!). I made a little foldable magnifying glass with papers from the Tattered Paper Treasures 2 as well as the Bittersweet Hues kit. The magnifier is on a brad which allows it to swivel down into the pocket for safe keeping. Then the whole thing can be tucked in the pocket on this page, which has a fussy cut image of some wild raspberries.

The Tattered Paper Treasures 2 kit had a printable envelope on it – and since envelopes are such fun additions to a journal, I added this one in! I put a pocket on the outside of the envelope and added another ATC card from the Berries and Cherries kit. There’s another collaged note card on the inside – a perfect place to keep foraging notes.

Here you can see another one of the labels I created using the Black and White Apothecary Labels kit, and this time I added a graphic of dill from the Herbal Apothecary Shoppe kit. This entire tag was made on a piece of a glassine bag and I just love the way it crinkles when you handle it.

More mushrooms and labels on this spread – I’m definitely a mushroom junkie! I created the pocket on the right hand side using another digital label I made, as well as a fussy cut mushroom from the Owls and Mushrooms kit. The card on the right was made on an old Rolodex card and I used some fabric to give it some texture.

The last page of the journal has another label – this time fixed to the page to make it a tuck spot, and I made another journal card with some trim. I wanted to keep the back cover plain to match the original front cover of the book.

And now that you’ve made it to the end, I’ll show you the little surprise addition! I made these fun little “forager reference cards” from the book plate images in the Herbal Apothecary Shoppe. I printed them down very small and backed them with cardstock. Then I created a box that fits them just perfectly, with one more fussy cut mushroom from the Owls and Mushrooms kit. I remember as a kid I used to have subscription cards for animals, and this made me think of that. I know any forager would love to have some reference cards out in the
woods!

Thank you so much for taking a walk through my Forager’s Journal!

THE FORAGER’S JUNK JOURNAL SHOW  & TELL VIDEO TOUR

Premium Membership Bundles used in this project:

Black and White Apothecary Labels
Berries and Cherries
Bittersweet Hues
Pressed Wild Ferns
Herbal Apothecary Shoppe
Naturalist’s Library
Owls and Mushrooms
Tattered Paper Treasures 2

Sharon’s YouTube
Sharon’s Etsy shop
Sharon’s Instagram

Thanks so much!

Sharon

Check out the Graphics Fairy Premium Membership Site HERE!