Things that I have stuck into my journal

 Things that I have already glued in my journal:

Stickers, seaweed, photographs that I've printed of things that interest me, packaging from food and snacks, notes from the children, wristbands, printed quotes from books, washi tape, business cards, scraps of fabric, notes found in second hand books, printed information from things I've researched, photographs from leaflets, confetti, gift tags, sand, drink mats, teabag tags, seed packets, leaves, maps, wrappers from watercolour paint blocks, dried flowers, set lists from concerts...

Things that I have yet to stick in my journal:

Postcards, wrapping paper, greetings cards, photographs, dried earth, seeds, stamps, tissue paper, patterned paper, ribbon, jokes from Christmas crackers, tickets, recipes, envelopes...

Tips for keeping a journal flat when it is filled with ephemera:

If you are planning to stick lots of things into a journal then you might want to consider a spiral bound sketchbook. The pages will be thicker so they can hold heavier items, and as well as giving you a bit more room because of the spiral binding it will also be easier to remove pages.

Removing pages will mean that the journal will lie flatter and be easier to write in as it fills up. You can also try to stick bulkier objects to different areas of the pages to spread them out at bit and use photographs or scans instead of originals.

Or you can just embrace the look of a splayed out journal, overflowing with all sorts of interesting things!

Ways to attach items inside a journal:

PVA glue (be careful as this can make the page wrinkly and takes longer to dry), a glue stick (keeps the page flat, dries quickly, not so good for heavier objects like dried flowers or leaves), paperclips, staples, sellotape, washi tape (not as sticky as sellotape and can peel off easily), BluTack (will lose it's stickiness over time and is quite bulky), glue dots, double sided tape, sewing, storing items inside envelopes (good for more delicate items that you don't want to cover in glue).

Remember that many of these adhesive methods (and for that matter most of the things that you are sticking inside) are not archival and will not last forever. It all depends how long you want the journal to survive - just for your lifetime or for many generations to come! If you are very concerned about the longevity of your journal then it's worth doing some research on what supplies to use and ways to preserve it. There are some good tips here - Best supplies for archival journal making.

Personally I'm making my journals for myself so I'm not too worried, and as long as I can look back through them in a few years time then I'm happy!

If you want to read more about my journal then you might like this post - How starting an illustrated journal helped me to notice things