bullet journal

I love, love, love, my bullet journal. At first I wasn’t sure if this was just another time-wasting gimmick to sell more stationary supplies, but this hobby has boosted my productivity through greater organization of my personal and business life.

Before using a bullet journal, I had three separate notebooks and three apps on my phone to keep track of business and personal notes, goals, ideas and plans. Crazy, right!? The worst part was not being able to find information quickly because I’d forget which journal I had put it in. Now with everything noted in one journal, I can quickly reference the index and find important information in one place quickly. No more — Where is that piece of art hanging right now?

The journal also has become a creative outlet I use to wind down at the end of day. Some people color in coloring books, I draw a flower mood tracker or sketch out my latest inspiration for a painting. Call me “old school” but there is something very satisfying putting pen to paper and physically charting out your week just how you want it.

bullet journal

The beauty of the bullet journal system is the simple and indexed organization of information in a personal design. Your bullet journal will be completely different from anyone else’s since your needs are unique. As artists and creative people, our needs are unique as well. We have inventory to track, shows to schedule and the compulsive habit of drawing on anything close at hand. How nice it is to keep it all in one place!

I’ve been keeping a bullet journal for seven months and have learned what information is useful to log as a working artist. I’ve listed 10 ideas for artist collection pages to save you some time and help jump start your bullet journal love affair.

10 BULLET JOURNAL IDEAS FOR ARTISTS

1. Keep track of art show deadlines and event dates
2. Inventory for each show and gallery
3. Taxable income for filing state sales tax
4. Art show supplies checklist (See my complete list here.)
5. Art project ideas and sketches
6. Subscriptions, membership fees, app fees
7. Monthly expenses and revenue
8. Social media scheduling calendar
9. Hours spent in the studio
10. Class and student schedule

bullet journal

Need help starting your bullet journal?

Go to my “Favorite Things” page for all the supplies you need to get started. There are plenty of YouTube videos and Pinterest posts for tons of design ideas. Here’s my bullet journal Pinterest Board and a link to my Facebook group Bullet Journal Junkies if you’d like to see what we’re up to. The original bullet journal video by Ryder, the inventor of the bullet journal, explains the set up.

TIP: From one artist to another, there are different weights of paper used in different journals. If you’re going to use heavier mixed media like acrylics, go for the one with heavier paper. The original Leuchtturm1917 bullet journal has more pages but the paper is a lighter weight and a cream color so you might see some ghosting from the previous page. I’ve used both and don’t mind the ghosting. But, it’s a personal preference.

 

 

 

In the spirit of full disclosure and transparency, some of these items may contain links to vendor affiliate programs. This means that when you decide to purchase the item through the link that I’ve provided, I may receive a small commission with NO ADDITIONAL COST to you.