Your First Creative Journal Page: A Gentle Starting Point

Start with three honest lines and a small decorative corner. A beginner-friendly page that leaves room for your own style to develop.

By Kaagzy

Your first creative journal page: original illustrative layout by Kaagzy, not a product photograph

The hardest part of a new journal can be the first blank page. You might have saved dozens of beautiful spreads and still have no idea what to write. Start with a page that asks very little of you: a date, three lines, and a small decoration you enjoy.

You need a notebook and a pen first

Use a notebook you can comfortably open and write in. Decorative supplies are optional. The MY VIBE Journaling Book is a source of stickers and papers for the page; use a separate notebook if you want a place for ongoing writing. Add a strip or a few alphabet stickers only if you feel like it.

Your first-page brief: write something true, leave some empty space, and make the next page feel approachable. A finished-looking spread is not the goal.

Write these three lines

  • Today I noticed… Choose a small observation rather than a summary of your whole day.
  • I want to keep… Name a moment, thought, or reminder worth returning to.
  • Tomorrow I might… Leave yourself an invitation, not a promise you have to fulfil.

For example: “Today I noticed the light on the balcony plants. I want to keep the feeling of having breakfast without rushing. Tomorrow I might take my tea outside.” Your version can be shorter, funnier, or less polished. Nobody is grading the handwriting.

Add one decorative corner

  1. Choose a small paper piece and one sticker.
  2. Arrange them loose in an outside corner, away from the writing.
  3. Check that the page still closes comfortably.
  4. Attach the pieces according to the materials’ instructions.
  5. Add the date, then stop if the page already feels complete.

If you like a title, try a single word such as “Here” or “Today.” If choosing letters is holding you up, write it by hand. Use the first few pages to find out what you enjoy rather than committing to a complicated theme.

Creative journaling and planning can coexist

You may want a practical task list beside the decorative page. Keep it simple and readable. If you are specifically interested in the Bullet Journal method, learn the method from its official introduction; a decorated journal page is not automatically that system.

Further reading: the official introduction to the Bullet Journal method.

What if you miss a few days?

Open the next available page and write the current date. You do not need to fill every gap. Keep a short list of easy page ideas inside the cover: a small win, a meal you enjoyed, a colour you noticed, or a question you are carrying. The journal can change with you.