Creating Your Ideal Journaling Setup: Blending Organization and Creativity

If you’ve ever felt like you need to stick to just one planner, journal, or system, let me assure you—you don’t have to! Over the years, I’ve found that blending different systems, planners, and notebooks allows me to stay organized, embrace creativity, and take care of my mental health and wellbeing. Journaling helps me with all of these things, and today, I’m sharing my journaling setup to inspire you to create a system that works for you. Take what resonates, mix and match, and don’t be afraid to experiment with different ideas!

My Planner: Classic Mambi Happy Planner (Dashboard Layout)

This is my go-to for daily planning, covering both work and personal life. The pre-dated format makes it easy to plan my year, month, week, and day all in one place. Here’s how I use it:

1. Yearly Overview: I begin by mapping out major work projects, events, and appointments.
2. Monthly Calendars: These are filled with important deadlines, to-dos, and reminders. I review and update these regularly.
3. Weekly Spreads: Each Sunday, I plan the week in detail—creating to-do lists, adding new events, and even planning a rough menu for dinners.

prioritising productivity & habit tracking

To keep myself motivated, I add a couple of stickers to the weekly spreads—usually an inspiring quote or some cute florals—but I don’t spend time heavily decorating them. For me, productivity is the priority, not worrying about making it pretty. That said, I’ve created a mini habit tracker sticker that fits neatly into one of the boxes. Checking off my tracker at the end of each day feels so satisfying and helps keep me accountable. I use it as much to remind myself of the habits I want to maintain as to track them. Some of the things I track include a daily workout, meditation, stretching, taking vitamins, and alcohol-free days. If you’re interested, you can find similar mini habit trackers available for download in my Etsy shop.

My planner stays open to the current weekly spread throughout the day, helping me stay on top of tasks and plans. I store it in a Mambi Classic Planner Zipper Folio, which keeps everything—a notepad, stickers, pens, and notes—organized and portable.

My Daily Journal: Medium Lined Notebook

At the end of each day, I reflect and jot down the events of my day in a simple lined notebook. This journal serves a purpose similar to daily logging in the bullet journal method, but instead of planning ahead, it focuses on capturing a record of events after they have occurred. Each day I briefly record:

• The main events of the day (for myself and my family).
• Small wellbeing notes, like if I’m feeling tired or had a headache.

I’ve used a simple soft-covered notebook and covered it in beautiful scrapbook paper to make it personalized and pretty. I’ve added a few stickers inside however I keep the decoration minimal, the focus is on consistent daily writing—not perfection. The notebook is approximately 6 inch x 8 inch in size, and fits inside the zipper folio along with my Happy Planner.

My Collections Notebook: A5 Lined Notebook

This notebook is similar to keeping ‘collections’ in the bullet journal method. It’s a simple lined hardcover notebook that I use for:

• Exploring topics of interest.
• Writing down goals.
• Creating lists of favorite foods, books, and more.
• Journaling prompts for reflection and intention-setting.

This year’s collections notebook includes my initial on the front and was a gift from my son, making it extra special! Sometimes, I’ll add art, collages, or inspiring quotes. This notebook allows for both structure and creativity, making it a space I return to often.

My Creative Junk Journal

Inspired by the Christmas journal I made last year, I’m starting a new junk journaling project. Using a small blank notebook, I’ll:

• Decorate pages with scrap paper, journaling cards, and ephemera.
• Add personal notes, reflections, and small bits of art.

This journal will evolve as inspiration strikes, giving me the freedom to express myself creatively without any pressure.

adapting and evolving my journaling setup

One of the things I love most about my journaling setup is how adaptable it is. As the year progresses, I allow myself the flexibility to adjust my system to suit my needs. Whether it’s adding a new notebook, refining how I use my planner, or experimenting with creative journaling techniques, I see this as an ongoing journey rather than a rigid framework. For me, this adaptability keeps the process exciting and prevents me from feeling stuck in a system that no longer works as well as it once did.

This system has been working beautifully for me so far, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it evolves throughout the year. If you’re anything like me, having a mix of functional and creative outlets keeps things both organized and inspiring!

What about you? How are you setting up your journals and planners this year? I’d love to hear about your system in the comments below!