14 Creative Bullet Journal Ideas for Non-Artists
You don’t need to be an artist to have a beautiful and creative bullet journal. If you’ve ever felt discouraged by elaborate journal spreads on social media, this post is for you.
In this guide, I’ll share easy and creative bullet journal ideas that don’t require any artistic skills, perfect for anyone who wants to enjoy bullet journaling without drawing. Whether you use stickers, color palettes, collages, or just clever layout ideas, you’ll find something here to spark your creativity and help you fall back in love with your journal.
Creative Bullet Journal Ideas
If you’re anything like me, it can be discouraging to see beautiful spreads that took a lot of time and effort on social media. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t also have a beautiful journal, and you don’t even have to be an artist to make that happen.
Creativity comes in all shapes and sizes, which means that even if you can’t draw, it doesn’t mean you’re not artistic or creative. Creativity doesn’t require artistic skill! It just requires you and your brain to produce something.
The ideas that are presented in this blog post are meant to be simple and practical ideas to help you get your creative juices flowing. Some are no-draw bullet journal ideas, others are easy journal ideas, and others I’ll leave as a surprise.
I used to think that having a beautiful or creative journal meant that I had to spend a lot of time making elaborate journal spreads. As I made more and more journal spreads, I realized that elaborate journal spreads are a specific style, and that style doesn’t work for everyone. It certainly didn’t work for me.
I’ll share some ways to be creative in your journal (with little or no drawing). Some of these ways use my favorite journaling tools, and some don’t need any tools. I’ve tried all of them at some point!
How to Be Creative in Your Journal
Let’s spark our creativity and make some creative spreads in our bullet journals!
Create a Whole Page Collage
Go through your stash of scrap papers, washi tape, and stickers and create a collage out of them. Base it off a theme, color, or something else!
Try a Junk Journal Spread
Look through your recycle pile, junk mail, newspapers, and any other paper you might have thrown away without a second thought. Collect junk with pretty patterns and glue them down into your journal.
I find regular glue warps pages too much since it’s wet. Glue sticks and double-sided tape help keep your page intact.
Include Photos
Have a mini printer? Regular printer? Access to a photo printer at a store? Print off some photos and glue them in, scrapbook style. If you’re printing on a 4x6, you can create a collage of 4 pictures to fit even more photos on a journal page!
Use Stamps or Stencils
With stamps and stencils, you can create borders around the edges of a page or between sections of a spread. Many stencils also have drawing-like designs, which give your spreads a fun, customized look.
Create a Layered Corner
If filling a whole page seems like too much, create a small corner of layered paper, washi tape, and stickers. Decorating two opposite corners with layers creates an aesthetically balanced look.
Use a Color Palette
Pick a set of colors and commit to using only those colors for a week or month. By using the same colors, you can create a cohesive look in one spread or across multiple spreads. Need some color palette inspiration? I’ve got you covered here.
Create An About Me Page
Introduce yourself to your journal and make a time capsule of yourself at the same time. Make a page that’s all about you! If making a page all about you doesn’t sound too appealing, check out this free downloadable list of 125 journal spread ideas!
Use Colorable Stickers
Make stickers feel more like you by coloring them yourself! Using color pencils, crayons, markers, or highlighters, you can pick your own color palette to match these stickers to your spreads and themes.
Add Nature Finds
Take a walk and find some leaves or flower petals you can press, dry, and add to your journal spreads. Bring a touch of nature to your journal!
Change Your Lettering
When creating your monthly or weekly spreads, use different lettering styles to change up the look and feel between spreads. Not a fan of lettering? Try using these weekday lettering stickers to add a touch of handwritten flair without worrying about making your lettering look consistent across pages.
Make Zentangles
Zentangles are relaxing patterns you can doodle. They can be curves, lines, dots, or another shape. You can draw these zentangles in the white spaces of your spreads or let them take up a whole page.
Draw Simple Doodles
Ready to take it up a notch from zentangles? Try making some simple doodles. You can use them as a page border or as decoration on a themed spread. I have a series where I break down how to draw 5 simple doodles in 6 easy steps for different themes like koi pond, plants, flowers, shells, and cacti.
Create a Gratitude List
Take a moment every day to reflect on something you’re grateful for that day. By looking for the positive in our day, our creativity has room to grow. You can even use vertical number stickers to make it even easier for you to set up.
Write One Line A Day
Want to write about something other than gratitude? Write one line a day using vertical number strips to summarize your day, write down a highlight, write down something notable, or anything else.
Some common questions (FAQs)
How can I make my bullet journal look creative without drawing?
Use stickers, stamps, washi tape, scraps of paper, or collages. You can also focus on layouts, lettering styles, or color palettes to bring creativity without drawing.
What supplies do I need to make creative bullet journal spreads?
You don’t need a lot! Washi tape, stickers, markers, highlighters, and a glue stick can go a long way.
Do I have to use a bullet journal to use these ideas?
Not at all! These creative journaling ideas work in any planner, notebook, or journal.
Creativity is Personal
You don’t have to use all of these ideas all at once, but if any of these sound intriguing, give them a try in your journal. Remember that creativity is a deeply personal thing, and creativity is supposed to feel good. It’s possible to be creative in your bullet journal without drawing. And sticker sheets, die-cut stickers, and colorable sticker sheets can help.
Getting inspiration from others on social media is good to a point, but it’s important to remember not to compare yourself to them or their journal spreads. You and your spreads are completely your own, and no one else could have made them but you.
If you want to apply these ideas to spreads, but are unsure of what spreads you can include in your bullet journal, you can download a free PDF with 125 spread ideas!
If you do decide to try any of these out, I would love to see what you come up with! You can leave a comment below or find me as TabletAndQuill on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.
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