Blackwood Manor: A Victorian Gothic Halloween Junk Journal Collection

This was such a fun collection to make! Blackwood Manor started with the idea of creating something a little different from my usual autumn and Halloween junk journals. I wanted something darker and more mysterious, but I didn’t want it to become a traditional scary Halloween collection.

Instead, I kept imagining an old Victorian manor house, somewhere in the middle of autumn, with beautiful wallpaper, grand rooms, ornate portraits and a rather unusual family living inside.

And, of course, the Blackwoods happen to be skeletons.

But they’re very well dressed skeletons. And I think that’s the part that makes me love this collection so much!

Welcome to Blackwood Manor

The whole collection is built around the fictional Blackwood family and their manor estate.

There are family members, household residents, curious visitors and a handful of much-loved manor companions.

So you have characters such as the Apothecary, Botanist, Astronomer, Butterfly Collector, Fortune Teller, Librarian, Mushroom Collector, Raven Keeper, Seamstress and Tea Duchess, along with the Blackwood family themselves.

And then there are the companions – Sir Bartholomew the faithful hound, the Black Cat, White Owl, Raven and Haunted Pumpkin.

I wanted each character to feel as though they had their own little story.

The Blackwood Manor Portraits

One of the main pieces in the collection is the set of 27 Victorian Gothic Portraits.

These are designed to be printed, cut out and used throughout a junk journal rather than simply looked at as a collection of portraits.

Each character has their own name and title, and I’ve included a coordinating name label beneath each portrait that can also be cut out separately and used as a little piece of ephemera.

I really like the idea of scattering the characters throughout a journal.

You could have the Librarian tucked into a pocket, the Raven Keeper on a journal page, the Tea Duchess beside a little tea-themed cluster, or Sir Bartholomew sitting proudly on the front of a folio.

Victorian Gothic junk journal pages

Then there are the Blackwood Manor junk journal pages, which are quite different from the character portraits.

These are inspired by the wallpaper and interiors of the manor – rich damasks, Victorian patterns, deep emeralds, burgundy, teal, antique cream and other jewel-toned colours.

I’ve kept the pages quite open so that you can use them in different ways. You can write on them, layer photographs and ephemera over them, or simply use them as beautiful backgrounds. A few of the pages also include Blackwood characters, which adds a little surprise when you turn the page!

The Blackwood Manor Folio

And then there is the Blackwood Manor Folio Kit, which is probably the easiest way to make something using the collection if you don’t want to build a whole junk journal.

It’s a pocket-style folio with coordinating pieces that can be folded, assembled and layered to create pockets, tuck spots, tags and hidden places for journaling.

Turn the folio into a mini journal

One of my favorite ways to use a folio is to turn it into a little journal of its own. I love to print the coordinating pages at around 70% size, fold them in half, and then stitch or staple the folded pages into the inside of the folio to create a tiny mini journal.

You can use a few of the patterned pages as the base and then add some of the Blackwood Manor portraits, name labels, ephemera, journaling cards and your own little scraps and treasures throughout. Because the pages are smaller, it makes a really sweet little space for journaling, lists, memories or even a fictional story about the residents of the manor.

And I love that you don’t have to make a separate journal structure for it. The folio becomes the cover and outer pockets, while the smaller folded pages tucked inside become your little journal. It’s such a simple way to get more from the same printable pieces, and it would be particularly lovely as a small Victorian Gothic Halloween keepsake.

I really like using a folio for this kind of collection because it feels a little bit like you’re making a miniature collection of things from the manor.

You can tuck portraits into pockets, add little labels, hide journaling cards behind flaps and use the patterned papers as backgrounds.

Add your own little treasures

And this is where I think Blackwood Manor becomes especially fun.

You don’t have to use only the printable pieces.

Add your own:

• old book pages
• vintage photographs
• handwritten notes
• pressed leaves
• ribbon
• lace
• scraps of fabric
• old envelopes
• postage stamps
• tickets
• little pieces of ephemera you’ve collected

The rich Victorian papers make a lovely background for all sorts of things.

You could even add a little handwritten note supposedly written by one of the Blackwood family members.

Or perhaps a secret letter found in the library.

Or a pressed leaf from the manor garden.

This is the sort of thing that makes a junk journal feel like a little story rather than simply a decorated book.

A few Blackwood Manor journal ideas

A Blackwood Family Album
Use the portraits to create a fictional family album, with little notes about each character.

The Manor Guest Book
Record imaginary visitors to Blackwood Manor, or use it as a real guest book for your own home.

The Blackwood Library
Make a reading journal using the darker papers, book-themed ephemera and the Librarian portrait.

A Victorian Halloween Journal
Combine the portraits with pumpkins, ravens, autumn leaves and your own Halloween memories.

The Secret Garden
Use the botanical papers, Botanist, Greenhouse Keeper and Mushroom Collector to create a garden-themed section.

A Book of Curiosities
This would be particularly fun – a place to record strange things you’ve found, interesting facts, dreams, ideas, little collections and things that simply catch your attention.

And it doesn’t have to be Halloween

This is probably one of the things I like most about Blackwood Manor.

Yes, it’s a Victorian Gothic Halloween collection, but I didn’t want it to be so specifically Halloween that you could only use it for one month of the year.

The skeleton portraits and pumpkins give it that Halloween character, but the Victorian wallpaper, botanical details, ravens, ornate frames and jewel-toned colours also work beautifully for gothic junk journals, dark academia journals, Victorian-themed journals, autumn journals and vintage collage projects.

So if you love this style but aren’t actually making a Halloween journal, I think there are still lots of ways to use it.

A little world of its own

Blackwood Manor started as an idea for some Victorian Halloween portraits, and then suddenly there was a family, a manor, a greenhouse, a library, a raven, a very dignified Irish Wolfhound and a rather extravagant Tea Duchess!

And now I feel as though I’ve actually visited the place.

That’s probably my favorite thing about making junk journal collections – starting with a few pretty images and seeing where they take you.

So whether you use the whole Blackwood Manor Victorian Gothic Halloween collection to make a complete journal, or simply tuck one of the portraits into a pocket alongside your own bits and pieces, I hope you have fun exploring the manor and making the story your own.

Happy journaling x