Illustrated journaling has always been a fun, practical, and meaningful practice for me. While my journals themselves have evolved a lot over the years, the purpose has not. Here, I'll share a few ways I've approached them over the years, and how you might create your own.
An example from 2014
What is Illustrated Journaling?
Illustrated journaling is what it sounds like—a visual journal that combines drawing with writing. You can make “Illogs” (illustrated logs”) to chronicle events, reflect on experiences, and keep memories. I also love using them to practice new styles and creative skills.
A digital example from 2018
Create Your Illustrated Journal Entry
- Pick a time period to cover in your entry. A day, a weekend, or a week is a good place to start.
- Choose 1-5 subjects to draw or write about. One lends itself to a more minimal approach with lots of negative space, which I like these days. More lends itself to a fuller sketchbook look, which can be more interesting for some people. You can get ideas from your camera roll, snippets from everyday life, or events from the news.
- Plan a layout to arrange your drawings and writing on the page. You can take inspiration from a magazine layout, a single page, a double-page spread, etc. There are no rules. If you’re using digital tools like Procreate, you can easily experiment with moving things around. I also provide some templates you can use in my Illustrated Journaling class.
- Fill in your writing + illustrations! If you’re a beginner at drawing, consider the following tips:
- Try simple interpretive representations rather than trying to draw realistically. Even stick figures can be some of the most expressive and charming drawings!
- If you can draw basic shapes, you can draw almost anything. A tree is triangles + line, a house is square + triangle, etc! You can do so much with very simple symbols.
Optional final touches: Depending on how much time you have, there are a few ways to polish your entry! You can add a pop of color, go over your sketches in pen and erase the pencil (or make a new layer if you are working digitally), etc.
Learn More in Mimochai Studio
If you'd like to learn more about illustrated journaling, our full Illustrated Journaling class is available individually or as part of the Complete Class Set. I hope you'll give this practice a try!
Take care 🙏 -M
Recent examples of a minimal traditional approach, combining personal memories, nature drawing, and news events.
