Gemma 
For my October bullet journal setup, I wanted a theme that would be suitably spooky (it is October, after all), but wasn’t too labour-intensive to create. I settled on this simple, black and white theme, complete with bat doodles and torn paper accents (hello, my old friend) and, I have to say, I really love how it turned out!
Table of Contents
- Equipment
- Cover + Quote Page
- Monthly Calendar
- Project + Post Planning
- Weeklies
- October Review
- Final Thoughts
Equipment
To create this spooky bullet journal setup, I used the following materials:
- Sakura Pigma Micron black fineliners: 05, 08 and 10.
- Tombow ABT Dual Brush Pen, N15 Black.
- Sakura Gelly Roll, 10 Bold, white.
- Sakura Quickie Glue pen.
- Alphabet stamps.
- Black paper.
- Ink pad, black.
- Hole punch.
- Ruler.
- Scissors.
- Pencil.
- Eraser.
Cover + Quote Page
I kept things super minimal for my Cover + Quote Page this month- I used my alphabet stamps to create the ‘October’ heading, then added some quick bat doodles alongside it using my Tombow N15 pen. For the Quote Page, I tore two rectangles of black paper and stuck them onto the page using my Sakura Quickie Glue pen (I love using this pen for glueing smaller pieces of paper- it’s so much less messy!). I used my white Sakura Gelly Roll to write ‘HAPPY’ and ‘SEASON’ on the rectangles, in simple block capitals, then used the alphabet stamps again to write ‘spooky’ in the space between- giving me a simple, yet striking, quote (though is it even really a quote? I’m not sure…) page that reads: ‘Happy Spooky Season’.
Monthly Calendar
I recently saw a super cool bullet journal spread on Pinterest that had used this black and white cobweb design, so I thought my Monthly Calendar spread would be the perfect place to give it a go myself! I stuck pieces of torn black paper into two of the corners, then used my white Sakura Gelly Roll to draw the cobweb pattern on top of them. I then used my size 10, black Sakura Pigma Micron to extend the cobwebs past the black paper, like in the original design.
For the calendar itself, I used my size 08 Pigma Micron to draw a simple grid (following the dot grid of the journal, each individual box was 6×6). I then used a hole punch to cut lots of little circles from the black paper, which I stuck in using the Quickie Glue pen and wrote the dates on using the white Gelly Roll. To help the calendar stand out from the cobweb decoration, I outlined the whole grid with a thick, black line using my Tombow N15. Finally, to finish off the spread, I used my alphabet stamps again to make the ‘October’ heading, then added a couple more bat doodles in the bottom left-hand corner for good measure.
Project + Post Planning
Last month, I introduced a new spread to my monthly setup for keeping track of my Projects + Posts. I really loved using that spread throughout September and found it really useful for keeping on top of all my various creative endeavours, so I decided to keep that spread in my monthly setup this time around. This time, though, I’ve split the spread into 4 sections (as opposed to just 2): one for keeping track of my Projects, one for my Posts, one for any Blogmas Posts I’ve been working on and, finally, one for any notes. Each of the post/project trackers is set out in a simple table format: for larger subheadings, I used a torn strip of black paper. For smaller subheadings, I used hole-punched paper circles.
In my Project table, the far-left column is labelled ‘c’ for the type of craft (e.g. knitting, crochet, baking etc.). Then, there’s a space to write the name of the project itself, followed by columns for the start and end date, before the final ‘checklist’ column that I will place a tick in when I’ve finished each project.
Both of the Post tables have the exact same format, but I did want to keep my current posts separate from the posts I’m working on in advance for Blogmas At Home 2024, just to help me keep things straight in my head! For both tables then, there’s a larger column for the post title, followed by 7 ‘checklist’ columns, for when I’ve made the item (M), taken photos of the item (P), written the post (W), edited the post (E), edited the photos (EP), proofread the post (P) and, finally, for when the post is all done and ready to go live.
I didn’t have much room in this spread for any extra decoration, but I did manage to squeeze a couple more bat doodles into the ‘Notes’ section in the bottom left!
Weeklies
I decided to try something a little new with my Weeklies this month, because I’ve been struggling recently with my weekly task lists. I LOVE having a ‘master’ task list within my weeklies, because it allows me to keep track of the tasks that I need to do without having to assign them to a particular day or keep carrying them over in my daily logs. However, over the past couple of months, I’ve been finding that tasks have been slipping through the cracks when I start a new week. This month, then, I opted to trim down my weekly spread pages and use the blank space on the far-left and right of the whole weekly section for my ‘master task lists’, so that, no matter which weekly I’m on, I can see my task lists and keep them going throughout the month. I’ll see how this works for me as the month goes on.
I set up each weekly spread in the exact same way by dividing each spread into a 4×2 ‘grid’ of boxes, using seven boxes for the daily logs and one for the weekly subheading. I used my size 08 Pigma Micron pen to draw the boxes, leaving the tops open and sticking in a small, torn rectangle of black paper for the headers.
In the eighth space, I used my alphabet stamps to write out the weekly subheading and added some more bat doodles for decoration.
To decorate the pages even more, I added a strip of black paper to the edge of the first and last spreads, next to the task sections. I kept the side of the paper closest to the weekly section straight and tore the other side, to tie it into the torn paper accents I’d used throughout the setup..
I also added thinner strips of paper (not torn, this time) to the cut edges of each of the weeklies, both to add some decoration and to soften up (quite literally) the edges (to help prevent paper cuts!). To make these, I cut strips of paper that were double the width of the ‘stripe’ that I wanted on each spread, then folded them lengthwise and stuck them over the edge of the paper, so they covered the sharp cut edge but still added a bit of decoration to both sides of the paper. This was a little time consuming and finicky to do, but I’m really happy with the finished result!
October Review
Finally, we have my October Review page. The content of this spread is exactly the same as my usual, monthly review spreads: on the left-hand page, I have space to note down the ATP & WTA Top 10, my #1 memory and my 6 favourite songs from the month. On the right-hand page, I have the ‘October Review’ heading and space to stick in a polaroid of my favourite photo from the month.
I switched up the layout of the left-hand page ever so slightly, cutting down the size of my playlist section so that I had room for a few final bat doodles (and a super spooky ‘boo.’). Like the rest of the setup, I used my size 08 Pigma Micron to draw the boxes, then made the subheadings using torn black paper and my white Gelly Roll. For the ‘Playlist’ section, I added the smaller squares (for the album covers) and lines using the size 05 Pigma Micron.
For the right-hand page, I opted to create another black-and-white cobweb design, instead of a frame. If I stick the polaroid on the page centrally, I should still be able to see lots of cobweb peeking out from behind it, giving the page some decoration. I stamped in the word ‘October’ using my alphabet stamps, then wrote ‘REVIEW’ using my Gelly Roll on another torn piece of paper, just to tie in all of the design elements that I’ve used throughout this setup.
Final Thoughts
I really love how this spread turned out- I did struggle a bit with inspiration for this month, so this setup was very much born out of a combination of desperation and necessity, which I find doesn’t usually yield the best results, but seemed to work out for me this time around! I love the simple, minimal vibe of the setup, paired with the occasional, rather un-minimal cobweb design (which I had so much fun recreating after seeing on Pinterest!), and I really like the classic, black-and-white colour scheme. I was also super happy to return to my paper-ripping roots, after a long time away from the style in favour of quicker, more doodle-y spreads.
Overall, I think this spread is going to be perfect for the spooky month ahead, without feeling overly garish- I feel like it’s Halloween-y, but not too Halloween-y, if that makes sense! As always, though, I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below!
Gemma
xxx
