Monday, September 12, 2011

Journal attachment

It's strange how attached you can get to an inanimate object like a journal. My previous journal, the first ROD journal , seemed to me to be one that I would really miss using once it was full. And I did, except...I fell in love all over again with my current journal, the altered atlas.


It doesn't really seem to matter what book I use, I usually come to regard them as steady companions through a few months of my life. All my journals are like strangers to me when I meet them and are my best friends by the time I have to say goodbye.


And every time I think I will never get used to the new format and I always do. And every time I think I will never like the new one better than the former and I always do. Journals are not people, but when you journal on a daily basis like me, you get used to each and every one and can get just a bit sentimental about them too.


The cool part is of course you can keep them and visit your old friends every now and then just to keep in touch. The atlas is by no means full yet, but I am about two thirds through, so slowly but steadily I'm thinking about the time when I have to close this book literally and move on to another journal. And boy, will I miss this one!


I already know about 90% certain that my next journal will be ROD2 and I already love that journal, 'cause I had such a good time making it. But I'm also on the lookout for other books to alter, especially because the prep work is quite time consuming and my last ROD journal was filled within 6 weeks.


I have come to love making and preparing books for journaling more and more and I keep thinking of other formats to try. I wish I could journal even faster and more often than I do so I would fill tons of books in a year. In any case my journals and I have a special relationship that may be one sided but still very important to me.


I wonder if any of you have this affliction too. Do you become specifically attached to a journal and find it hard to let it go? Do you consider your journals as seperate entities or as a long line of the same work? Do you have a preference for certain books that you filled up? Is there one you hate or that just didn't feel like you?


Have you tried different formats of journaling over the years, or do you stay loyal to one type of book, or one type of journaling? Let me know and maybe you could leave a link in the comments section, so others can visit your favorite journals too!


Hope you liked these spreads from the atlas as much as I liked making them and wishing you all a very happy and artsy week!