DIY Junk Journal Pockets and Tucks + Free Printable Kit

Do you ever flip through your journal and feel like it’s missing a bit of magic? Sometimes our pages can feel a little flat, but there is a simple secret to bringing them to life: interactive pockets and tuck spots.

Including elements like this does more than make your journal look beautiful. It turns your pages into something of a treasure hunt. Pulling out pretty stickers and notes adds a fun element to your junk journals.

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A top-down view of an open junk journal spread featuring interactive elements from the artsy themed kit, including a floral belly band, a tabbed pocket with a stack of books, and various matching tags and fussy cuts tucked into decorative spots.

This layered spread uses tuck spots and pockets from the printable kit to hold artsy themed fussy cuts and tags.

Why Your Journal Needs Pockets

Pockets are more than just a place to put stuff. Here are three more practical ways to use them:

Preserving the Past: For original handwritten letters or vintage photos, pockets let you include them in your journal without using glue or scissors on the original piece.
Privacy Please: If you’re writing personal thoughts, folding your page and slipping it into a pocket adds a layer of privacy.
The Ugly Problem: We all have those bright yellow tickets or orange brochures from trips that don’t match our junk journal aesthetic. Tucking them into a pocket keeps the memory safe without clashing with your style.

Watch the Tutorial

In my newest video, I’m walking you through a few different ways to add dimension to your journals. (Including a clever hack for scoring paper when you don’t have a scoring board!)

Supplies I Used:

To get an artsy themed look, here's exactly what I had on my desk in the video:

The Pockets & Tucks Printable Kit, a free download when you sign up for my newsletter.
Plain White Cardstock.
Raspberry Cardstock.
Lavender Baker's Twine.
Distress Ink in Vintage Photo.
Rubber Stamp with Handwriting.
White Acrylic Paint.
TCW Stencil: Cosmic Swirl.
The Dyan Reaveley Creative Journal.
Fiskars Paper Trimmer.
Mini Scoring Board.

Download the Free Printable

I've designed a full set of artsy themed pockets and tucks that you can download and print. The kit includes 4 pages of pockets and tuck spots, plus a patterned page to make a folding corner pocket along with me.

Then, I don't want you to leave with empty pockets, so I also included 2 pages of matching tags and fussy cuts!

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