Investigation​

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I've always had an interest in aesthetic things—things that required effort to work on and carry out. I also really like personal gifts that mean something to the receiver, instead of going out and buying something anyone else can buy. I like them to be personal.

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I was scrolling on Instagram earlier this year, and I noticed an account that posted beautiful calligraphy. She had her own bullet journal—a personal planner with decorations and layouts that were all hand drawn and written. I really liked that idea because that means I wouldn't have to buy a planner, and I could personalise my own layout depending on my mood. I also liked the idea of being organised—I really want to stay on top of my work at school.

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Preparation​

 

I looked through many other accounts that were similar to this one to look for inspiration and tips, but this one really caught my eye the most. It really inspired me to create beautiful things.

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In order to start bullet journaling, I had to go out and get the supplies. I went and bought all of the markers and pens I needed—from chisel tips to brush pens and calligraphy pens and bullet tips. Most importantly, I was really excited to get the notebook, as it isn't the same as the normal ones we use for writing notes—the lined ones. These notebooks were different, and I didn't know they existed until I saw that person's Instagram account. These notebooks have evenly spaced dots on them. All of the dots form a small square, and are spaced evenly throughout the page.

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Action

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Because I have never done fancy lettering before, I decided that it was best for me to follow the person along in one of her planning videos. Basically, I copied the whole plan because I didn't have the my own inspiration for my design and layout. I did that for the next few months, and over those months I kept practising my calligraphy and lettering skills. Along the way, apart from the traditional, cursive calligraphy that popped up in people's minds once they hear the word calligraphy, I also learned how to write titles differently, such as block letters, thin letters, wide letters, and different ornaments and decorations on them to make them look more aesthetically pleasing. I originally started this project during the start of the IB course, and I loved it so much that I still journal during the last semester of IB.

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Reflection​

 

I really enjoyed this project a lot because it was really fun, and I was able to improve my creativity. After copying a few layouts from those videos, over time, I learned to create my own layouts and designs without the help of those videos. I have a higher sense of creativity now, and I am more conscious of the different ideas that come to me.

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Bullet journaling and hand lettering all of those layouts for every month was time consuming, and being an IB diploma student, it started to become more difficult for me to keep up with both my school work and my bullet journal. This defeated the whole purpose I had for bullet journaling at the beginning of this project—to keep up and stay organised with my school work. I solved this because I ended up creating my own, minimalist layouts that were easier to create while staying on top of school work. They also looked really nice and they came from my own ideas, so I am really proud of that.

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Apart from learning about time management, I also learned that creativity takes practice. Different people have different ideas that can clash together, but sometimes people can't express their ideas and come up with new ones. I learned that it takes practice because no one is perfect, and people have to practice using their brain to come up with something new.

 

It was very frustrating  at the beginning of this bullet journaling project because I kept comparing my work to someone who had so much more experience than I did. I had to learn to be patient and practice the upstrokes and the downstrokes of the pen. I had to learn to accept my mistakes and start over, even if it seemed like I caused too much damage that it was beyond repair. I'm talking about those little mistakes that I did while writing: small pen marks on areas of the page that weren't supposed to have pen marks, forgetting to write a before the s in my own name, and accidentally spilling water onto the page I worked hours on. I learned that it takes time and patience to succeed in something.

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Overall, I enjoyed this project so much that it became a hobby of mine. From the beginning of the semester until today, I have never stopped bullet journaling, and I don't think I ever will.

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Demonstration​

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I was very proud of my work and my effort, and I decided to show some pages to some of my friends and family. Even though it wasn't perfect, I got so many positive responses from them. They were amazed and proud of my effort, and I really like that feeling. Some teachers even noticed my lettering in some of my creative work and commented positive things about them. This inspires and motivates me to put more effort into bullet journaling and other aspects of my life.