Creating a Journal

I've always been interested in books, book making, altered books. So when I read an article on how to make my own journal, I was intrigued. I started folding and tearing watercolour paper for the pages. I found some leftover cardboard to use for making the covers which I covered with material. My theme for my journal is going to be "Nederland: My visits with my dad". My dad has Alzheimer's Disease and each year I go to Holland to visit him. Each year I notice changes in him and so I thought it would be nice to document my visits, what we did, things we said to each other, places we visited. So my journal is Red, White, and Blue on the outside. I attached a button to the front cover and the back cover and strung an elastic around them to keep the book shut. When the cover was complete, I bound the pages to the inside.

Gluing leftover fabric scaps to the inside
covers of the journal

After the pages were bound into the cover.



The outside of the cover

I will add the title to the cover and perhaps some other items. You can see a string of red, white and blue beads hanging from the spine. I will start collecting photos and items that have to do with the theme and before I go on my trip, I will prepare the pages by painting them and doodling and adding some pictures, leaving spaces for notes, ideas, comments and perhaps something my dad might write in it for me. If I have the pages 75 % done, I won't have to take along my paint, brushes and such. I just have to take my markers or pencil crayons and maybe a glue stick. It will be a nice reminder for my kids about who Opa is since they will most likely not ever see him again and a little something special for me to remember him by as the Alzheimer's slowly takes him away from us.