Blog Archives

November Random Holidays

October 24, 2019 2 Comments

It’s time to start planning your November Calendar, and I have some inspiration for adding November Random Holidays to your schedule.

I know you’re with me on this – how can it be nearly November already? I’m starting to believe the conspiracy theory that time is moving faster. Perhaps it’s because I’m getting older, and so each passing day is just a smaller part of my overall life.

In an effort to slow time down or at least return it to normal speed, I make an effort to celebrate little things. It’s possible to make memories every day, even if it’s not a significant national holiday or a huge life event.

You’re Invited to Celebrate

Wouldn’t you want more reasons to celebrate? Wouldn’t your kids or work-family pause for just a moment, a significant moment to enjoy a doughnut? (By the way, National Doughnut Day is November the 5th!)

I invite you to pursue the small things, the seemingly insignificant events. Because when you look back on your week, month, or even year, it will be these moments that create a special place in your heart. These pinpoints of joy that stand out among the blurred days. Even if you don’t like any of my chosen random holidays, you can select some days that you prefer.

Random Holidays Challenge - Find Reasons to Add Joy to Your Life | ChocolateMusings.com #randomholidays #challenge #findjoy

Random Holidays – Google Calendar

After celebrating different holidays for over a year, I decided to create a Google Calendar to see all the holidays I’d love to celebrate. It makes it easy to share creations, words, and ideas on social media and with friends and family. The best part about Google calendars is that you can toggle them on and off when you don’t want to see them.

If you click on the calendar item, it has a link to the source & relevant hashtags! I’m always evolving this calendar – and I will add calendar days or corrections all the time.

Tip: The calendar will show the current month, you can navigate to the month of your choice by using the arrows or dropdown.

If you want to add my calendar to your Google calendar:

Go to your Google calendars and click the + next to other calendars
Choose ‘add other calendars.’
Then click Subscribe to Calendar
After that, paste the text below in the “add calendar.”
Toggle the schedule on and off when you want to access it – that’s what I do.

chocolatemusings.com_q316ucpnldal611fs2q2nnk7v0@group.calendar.google.com

I won’t list all the random holidays, but just the ones that work with ChocolateMusings.com – so, of course, you’ll see a lot of food, art, creativity & some miscellaneous holidays are thrown in as well.

More Random Holidays

Click the picture below or go here to find the Random Holiday Archives.

Find your reason to celebrate today - Random Holidays Challenge | ChocolateMusings.com #randomholidays #findjoy #daytoday

November Random Holidays on the Chocolate Musings Calendar

After adding appointments and scheduled items to my calendar, I add the Random Holidays. Even though they are small moments, my family looks forward to them. I find that my kids look through my calendar just to see the random holidays and then share it with their friends. November’s Random Holidays don’t disappoint.

Month-Long Celebrations

Pick a day or multiple days for these November celebrations!

Gratitude Month
Peanut Butter Lovers Month
National Novel Writing Month #NaNoWriMo

November Random Holidays – Fun Celebrations

1st – National Author’s Day
2nd – Look for Circles Day (Check out my Circle-related posts here! I love to use circles in my bullet journal. In fact, here’s a post on creating circles in your bullet journal)
2nd – Ohio Day
5th – National Love Your Red Hair Day – since we have many red-heads in my family, we celebrate their lack of pigment this day!
9th – Go to an Art Museum Day
9th – Louisiana Day
10th – Forget-me-not Day
11th – Veteran’s Day (USA)
13th – World Kindness Day

Everyone should celebrate World Kindness Day every day! Without a doubt, the world be a better place if we gave the benefit of the doubt and treated everyone just a little better? I know I could improve, so I’ll start with one day and take it a step at a time.

15th – Clean Out Your Fridge Day – clearly excellent preparation for the coming food holiday! Though I’d probably need to do it again before Thanksgiving.
16th – National Button Day – my mom used to have a big box of buttons that I would string together even though I don’t have a button box, I plan on sharing this memory with my family. Did you have a button box as a kid?
16th – Indiana Day
18th – Mickey Mouse Birthday
18th – National Princess Day
19th – National Play Monopoly Day
30th – National Mason Jar Day
30th – Mississippi Day

State Holidays

In celebration of the state’s statehood birthday, each month, the honored state will be on sale! I created 8 variations for each state, and they make lovely wall displays. Print it out, and frame it, and show it off!

State Outline – Indiana

$10.00

Select options
State Outline – Louisiana

$10.00

Select options
State Outline – Mississippi

$10.00

Select options
State Outline – Ohio

$10.00

Select options

Food-Related Celebrations

Despite having a busy schedule, it’s easy for me to add a treat or plan a meal around a random holiday, my kids love it, and it’s effortless to add those moments of joy I seek in our lives.

3rd – National Sandwich Day – since sandwiches are my husband’s favorite food, he’s all too happy to celebrate this holiday multiple times in the month!
4th – National Candy Day – for this holiday, I think we will rid ourselves of all the Halloween candy sticking around our house
5th – National Doughnut Day
10th – National Vanilla Cupcake Day
11th – National Sundae Day – YUM
12th – National French Dip Day – one of my favorite sandwiches
14th – National Pickle Day – my kids LOVE pickles
16th – National Fast Food Day – this is a day I know we can celebrate, how about you?
17th – National Baklava Day – my boss makes THE Best Baklava, I’ll have to convince her to celebrate this holiday with me.
19th – National Carbonated Beverage Day – My poison of choice is Diet Dr. Pepper. What’s yours?
20th – National Peanut Butter Fudge Day – YUM!
21st – National Gingerbread Cookie Day – check out the National Day calendar for this one, they list out the other National Cookie Day Celebrations.
23rd – National Cashew Day
25th – National Parfait Day
26th – National Cake Day
28th – National French Toast Day

Whew! I didn’t even include all the food days!

Random Holiday Links:

Choose The Holidays Right for You

What if you don’t like the holidays I choose? Below are links to the other random holiday sites I found – pick your favorites and celebrate the ones that resonate with you! It’s about breaking out of the monotony and creating your happiness.

Find more to celebrate – I compiled my random holidays from the websites below. There are so many holidays to enjoy! If you find a day you’d like me to feature – leave me a note below!

Pick and Choose

You don’t have to celebrate them all, but choose a few dates that you pause the rush of life and take a moment to yourself or as a family to create lasting memories. That’s the point of these random holidays for me, and I hope you gain the sense of what it could mean for you.

Among the November Random Holidays, this month is #nationalgratitudemonth, and I fully intend on keeping a one-line or one-word gratitude journal for the month. Is that something you’d like to do, too?

What other days do you think you’ll add to your calendar? Hint: if the date doesn’t fit for you – there’s no hard rule stating you can’t celebrate another day. Use a weekend or a free weeknight to create your memories.

25+ Gratitude Quotes for Your Planner

October 17, 2019 2 Comments

25+ Gratitude Quotes for Your Planner

Celebrating #NationalGratitudeMonth

Considering that November is #NationalGratitudeMonth I plan on focusing more thoughts and time to developing gratitude. Do you feel like it’s something you could improve in your life, too?

I found some great quotes on gratitude and I wanted to share them with you. Feel free to use any of them in your planner. Many of these quotes would work well in your planner or bullet journal. In fact, many of them would work well inscribed on a wall.

Gratitude isn’t just for #NationalGratitudeMonth in November. I know I need to include the practice of celebrating gratefulness more often in my life. In fact, I’d like to make it a daily practice, more so than I do right now. But what better time to start than now?

Want More Random Holidays?

Find my stash of random holidays here.

If you’re coming across this post whether it’s November, February or June or any time between, these gratitude quotes are a great starting point as a reminder to stop and appreciate the world around us and the things we have in our lives. My challenge to you is to find some way to elevate your expression of gratitude. I’d love to know about your adventure.

If you use any of these quotes in your planner, I’d love to see and share them so tag me on Instagram @ChocolateMusingsCreates.

Subclasses of Gratitude Quotes

After reading many of these quotes, it occurred to me that I could classify these gratitude quotes into sub-categories. I’d love to get some feedback from you – if I should move a quote to a different sub-category or create a whole new sub-category for these reminders of gratefulness, please leave me a comment below!

Also, I’d love to know if I skipped over any of your favorite gratitude quotes. Drop me a line and let me know!

25+ Gratitude Quotes Perfect for your Planner or Bullet Journal | ChocolateMusings.com #planning #journaling #gratitude

Gratitude Quotes – World Around Us

When you view your world with an attitude of gratitude, you are training yourself to focus on the good in life. – Paul J Meyer

Give yourself a gift of five minutes of contemplation in awe of everything you see around you. Go outside and turn your attention to the many miracles around you. This five-minute-a-day regimen of appreciation and gratitude will help you to focus your life in awe. – Wayne Dyer

The more grateful I am, the more beauty I see. – Mary Davis

Some people grumble that roses have thorns. I am grateful that thorns have roses. – Alphonse Karr

The world has enough beautiful mountains and meadows, spectacular skies and serene lakes. It has enough lush forests, flowered fields, and sandy beaches. It has plenty of stars and the promise of a new sunrise and sunset every day. What the world needs is more people to appreciate and enjoy it. – Michael Josephson

Personal Transformation

Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings. – William Arthur Ward

The deepest craving of human nature is the need to be appreciated. – William James

Gratitude is one of the strongest and most transformative states of being. It shifts your perspective from lack of abundance and allows you to focus on the good in your life, which in turn pulls more goodness into your reality. – Jen Sincero

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more, it turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. – Melody Beattie

Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul. – Henry Ward Beecher

When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears. – Anthony Robbins

When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around. – Willie Nelson

If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness. It will change your life mightily. – Gerald Good

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle. – Albert Einstein

Happiness

I am happy because I’m grateful. I choose to be grateful. That gratitude allows me to be happy. – Will Arnett

I don’t have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness – it’s right in front of me if I’m paying attention and practicing gratitude. – Brene Brown

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude. – Dennis Waitley

Gratitude & Action

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. – John F. Kennedy

Enjoy every moment.

You cannot do a kindness too soon because you never know how soon it will be too late. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Abundance

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. – Cynthia Ozick

Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for. – Zig Ziglar

Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. – Robert Brault

The way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement. – Charles Schwab

The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness. – Dalai Lama

“Enough” is a feast – Buddhist Proverb

If a fellow isn’t thankful for what he’s got, he isn’t likely to be thankful for what he’s going to get. – Frank A Clark

Want More Quotes? Here’s My Growing List

Quotes are and forever will be among my favorite things in this world. So I will strive to share more with you. View my list of quote-related blog posts.

Which Gratitude Quotes Do You Like the Most?

After reading some of these quotes, I know I am lacking in the gratitude department and will strive to live with an attitude of gratitude. Which ones are your favorite or how would you classify the gratitude quotes?

If what they say is true, gratitude will help enhance your life, bring more meaning to your days, make you see clearly the true blessings in your life and enhance the peace you feel.

I am all for these things, and if you are too, let’s try adding a little more gratitude every day to our lives. Rather than feel guilty, let’s become more grateful. We can do this, together.

Because I want to be sure that expressing more gratitude actually works, I plan on writing either a sentence or a word that I’m grateful for every day in November. Either dedicating a page in my planner for the word or phrase or writing it in my journal. Do you want to express more gratitude as well? And as a result of your gratitude experiment, what do you think it will do to your outlook on life?

Want to start planning or bullet journaling? Here are some of my favorite supplies to get you started.

No Matter Which Notebook I use – You’ll Always Find These Supplies Close at Hand

Why I Weigh-in Every Day – Creating Healthy Habits

October 6, 2019 3 Comments

How Weighing-in Every Day Helps Me Create Healthy Habits that Last | ChocolateMusings.com #tracking #habits #weightloss

If you’re working on losing a few {or a lot} pounds, you probably understand the battle with the scale. Should you weigh-in every day or should you designate a day to record your wins and losses?

Why I decided to weigh-in every day doesn’t have to do with continually checking my ups and downs. Instead, it has to do with creating habits.

I’m no expert when it comes to fitness, nutrition or weight loss, and I only have one test subject {which is me}, but I’m sharing my habits & my journey to lose weight and increase my fitness in hopes that I might inspire someone out there. Because I know some people have inspired me. Check out this post – 3 Things to Learn From Your Friend’s Weight Loss Journey.

Printable Tracker Game Board – Turn anything into a game!

$6.00

Select options

I also use this gameboard tracker to record progress in my journey.

Should You Weigh-in Every Day?

There are countless articles and studies on habits & weight loss. Some say that you should weigh-in every day, some disagree. I didn’t follow any given research, I decided how I would track my progress, and it’s worked for me, so far.

It’s essential that you get to know yourself and figure out what motivates you on a personal level to create habits and achieve your goals.

Why I Weigh-in Everyday

I weigh in every morning first thing because it creates a habit. Honestly, it’s not for the number on the scale, it’s because it creates a pattern, a momentum for the rest of the day. Since I chose to create a healthier lifestyle as a focus in my life, it’s my way of aligning my thinking every morning with the way I want to live my life.

Never in my life would I think that I would be an advocate for creating habits. But habits have been the thing to help me make the most improvements in my life. And when it comes to weight loss or a health journey, it’s no different.

What Does Habit Have to Do With It?

Over the past two years, I’ve read a lot of books on habits. If you were to ask to distill them all down into a one-paragraph summary, I would say: “Habits create a framework for your life. Automate processes for the actions you don’t want to consciously think about so you can focus your attention and daily energy on the activities that produce joy and significance in your life.”

In other words, I want to train myself so those healthy decisions (should I eat this, or do I need that?) to become second nature. And I have learned that if you want something to become second nature, you have to focus on it and create a habit so when the practice ‘takes’ you don’t have to think about it anymore.

Habit Books

Here are some books I’ve read on organizing, decluttering, and habits. I’d love a recommendation and add it to my list. Let me know if you have more to add in the comments below.

Many people don’t like to step on the scale every day and instead designate a ‘weigh-in day.’ When I forget on that appointed day, I would feel like a failure, even though it wasn’t a big deal.

If I make a habit of weighing in every morning after I wake up, and it spurs me into making the right choices throughout the day. I’m sure you know this, but if you mess up one day, it doesn’t mean you’ve messed up all of the days.

I know a lot of people and studies state that it is not about weight, it’s about how you feel, it’s about how your clothes fit, etc. Well, I’ve been there, done that and I cheat on it. So I need something tangible to track and action to do each day to focus on my end goal.

We are what we repeatedly do. - Aristotle | ChocolateMusings.com #quote #habit #handlettered

How Weighing-in Every Day Sets the Tone for the Day

Stepping on the scale every day helps me look forward to making healthy choices day-to-day, so I can see the impact it has overall.

I’m not saying that you have to create this habit for you, especially if it hinders your progress instead of helps you. I know it helps me and from what I’ve read and experienced, one person’s practice can impact you more than knowing the statistics from hundreds or thousands of people.

Habits & Weight Loss Tips

First of all, to quote Gretchen Rubin in her book Better Than Before I want to decide not to decide – I want it to become a habit to live well and eat right. Secondly, habit tracking has taught me that we manage what we monitor. I know that it works for me. I’ve been able to make and break habits in my day-to-day life.

We Manage What We Monitor - handlettered quote #change #habits #handletter #quote #handlettered

So tracking every food every single day and weighing and recording every morning helps me monitor and keeps my goal top of mind. But all of these things work ONLY if I make it a priority.

A habit will only successfully form if it is given priority while you are developing it. I found a quote a while ago “wherever you are, be ALL there” and I think that this certainly applies.

Decide on your goal, then focus all your efforts to help you achieve that goal. Track the things that you need to track, make the choices that you need to make, every day. Do the hard things every day. Eventually, these choices will sink in, and they will become a habit. That’s the goal for me. Focus until I create habits.

What’s working for me:

What works for me may not work for you, but feel free to take notes and experiment or try it out. I’m sharing because I hope you might find something to help you on your journey, whether it’s losing weight or not.

Make your health journey a priority.
Make it a project – choose to enjoy it.
Don’t try and get away with something.
Figure out a suitable compromise (have the eggs, sausage & bacon, but forego the tortilla).
Eat the things that give you the most return for your investment.
Eat your favorite breakfast, or drink your favorite breakfast shake to start off the day right.
Decide if it’s worth it before consuming it.
If you overspend for a meal, adjust the rest of your day. Remind yourself: just because one moment is lost doesn’t mean the whole day is shot.
Weigh-in every day.
Record every meal.
Record every snack.
Have an incentive to stick with it! Mine is if I cancel before a particular time, I will be charged a fee.
Plan meals ahead of time.
Get active!
Make it your goal, then work like it’s your goal.

Hiding in Plain Sight?

Many of these insights are hiding in plain sight and are quite obvious, but I tend to ignore the simple and look for something more complicated.

Keep in mind that what works for me does not necessarily work for you. You need to find your own motives and regimens that work for you. But finding inspiration from someone else is a fantastic way to start exploring your motivations.

The Most Significant Thing to Make a Difference (Hint – It’s Not the Scale):

I asked myself if I was really ready to make a drastic change – and my inner self agreed that I finally was willing to make fundamental changes without reservation. I’ve tried to follow the same path in the past, but I was never ‘ready,’ never fully committed, always finding a way to ‘cheat’ or get around the rules.

This time, I wanted it to be permanent. I wanted to create a habit in my life and change the way I carried out my life, so that means I needed to change my day-to-day functions, at the core, I needed to create new habits and break old ones. Part of that is tracking every single day and weighing in every morning.

What permanent change do you want to make (and what habit have you been avoiding)?

10 Easy Halloween Headers in Your Bullet Journal + Video Tutorial

October 3, 2019 2 Comments

Easy Halloween Header & Doodle Ideas for your Planner or Bullet Journal | ChocolateMusings.com #halloween #doodles #headers

Here are some Bullet Journal Halloween headers to include in your planner. I hope you’ll try some of these easy to create headers – including spiderweb, bat wings, pumpkin, leaf, cauldron, bone, Frankenstein, witch hat, broom, candy wrapper or moon Halloween headers.

You can use any of these easy Halloween headers on your monthly calendar, weeklies not to mention throughout the month as your daily headers. Substitute the word ‘October’ to suit your bullet journal or planner.

For all of these headers, I started with the word “October” written out, then doodled around the text. I always recommend drawing in pencil then lining with a pen afterward.

Watch the Video to See How I Create Each of these Easy Halloween Headers

Skip to the easy Halloween header at the time stamps listed below! Click on the link to jump to that section on the page. Save a pin to your Pinterest board for later!

Spider Web: 0:08
Leaf: 1:00
Broom: 2:06
Candy: 3:11
Frankenstein’s Monster: 3:57
Witch’s Hat: 4:56
Cauldron: 5:50
Moon + Clouds: 6:56
Bones: 7:44
Pumpkin: 8:19
Bloopers: 9:12

Bonus: Bat Wings

Bullet Journal Easy Halloween Header: Spider Web

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Spider Web | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw #spiderweb

The spider web header is effortless to create – create the symmetrical design, so it’s mirrored on both sides, or on just one part.

Start by drawing a straight, horizontal line on either side of the word. Add slanted lines on the top and bottom of each section. Connect the individual straight lines with bowed line strokes that look like parentheses. Add little spider details to make it extra creepy & you’re done!

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Leaf

Bullet Journal Headers - How to Draw a Leaf | ChocolateMusings.com #howtodraw #leaf #bulletjournal #headers

Absolutely one of my favorite bullet journal headers. In fact, I made a weekly spread a couple of years ago using only leaves.

Start with your header text then draw a curved line on either side of the word. Add the outside of the leaf using curved lines for the base and add jagged lines to show the shape of the blade slowly tapering to the point of the centerline. Add another line for the stem and erase any extra marks.

Color your leaf header or ‘leaf’ it as is. #sorrynotsorry for the pun.

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Witch’s Broom

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Witch's Broom | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw #broom

Tip: Add a little extra room to the right for this bullet journal Halloween header!

Draw two horizontal lines around your header text – longer than the bone or Frankenstein’s monster headers. Use a c shape to connect the end on the left side. On the right side, add several curved lines to attach the broom to the handle.

To add the broom, draw two curved lines going out from the handle. Tie the bristles together by adding vertical stripes near the end of the broom. Add uneven strokes to show the bristles at the end.

Tip: You can see in the video I had to scoot my broom over because I didn’t leave enough room for the bristles. Make sure to leave extra room on the right side for this doodle! But it’s super easy and fun once it is done!

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Candy Wrapper

Bullet Journal Headers - How to Draw a Candy Wrapper Header | ChocolateMusings.com #howtodraw #candywrapper #bulletjournal #headers

Create this sweet, easy bullet journal Halloween header by drawing one parenthesis shape on either side of the header words. Then add a couple of curved lines to make the plastic look twisted.

Like the spider web header, draw lines out at an angle from either side. Connect those two sets by drawing an uneven, random set of lines on either side. Add some extra details to make it look more candy-wrapper-like, and you’re done!

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Frankenstein’s Monster

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Witch'sFrankenstein's Monster | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw #frankenstein

This Frankenstein bullet journal Halloween header would look so cute with a green background!

Just like you’ll see with the bone header, start by drawing two horizontal lines on either side of the Halloween header. At the ends of the lines, draw two small ovals to connect the original lines.

Add smaller detail lines to make it look like the wood knobs sticking out of Frankenstein’s monster’s neck. You can add a curved line and add ‘stitching’ on top to make it look like a scar.

Easy Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Witch Hat

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Witch's Hat | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw #witchshat

Leave some extra room at the top for this hat! Start out by drawing two lines like the base of a triangle. Then connect the top and bottom with straight or slightly curved lines. Add a wrinkly triangle at the top with the top of the hat bent down, so it looks floppy. I do this by creating most of the triangle then drawing a straight horizontal line. The point of the hat is aimed down and is a smaller triangle.

Before you put on the brim, it could pass for an elf hat!

Complete the look by adding a ‘c’ shape at the bottom for the brim and adding extra lines inside the main hat area to make it look wrinkly.

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Cauldron

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Witch's Cauldron | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw #cauldron

For this header, you’ll need a bit of extra room at the bottom, so make sure to leave the room!

Start this Bullet Journal Halloween Header by drawing two ovals around the words. Then add a large bulb at the bottom. Add a rectangle on the side of the pot and two curved lines around the basin to create the handle. Add three boxes at the bottom of the cauldron to form legs.

To make the inside of the pot look full of liquid, add another curved line inside the pot. Additional details like bubbles floating and popping around the cauldron create a fun scene!

Instead of one curved handle, you could add two handles on either side like I did when I created a bubbling cauldron in my 300 Drawing Prompts book.

Bubbling Cauldron - 300 Drawing Prompts | ChocolateMusings.com #drawingprompts

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Moon & Clouds

How to Draw Bullet Journal Headers: Moon | ChocolateMusings.com #howtodraw #bujo #headers #moon

In the video, you’ll see another way to create this bullet journal header – substituting the moon sliver with a full moon!

Start by adding two connected curved lines for the moon. Then draw bouncing scalloped edges to make clouds. Draw as many clouds as you like to create a spooky scene.

Done!

Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Bones

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Bones | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw

Create this super-simple header by drawing two horizontal lines on either side of the header text. Connect the lines by drawing two sets of C shapes to make the end of the bones.

DONE!

Bullet Journal Halloween Headers: Pumpkin

How to Draw a Pumpkin Header in your Bullet Journal or Planner | ChocolateMusings.com #pumpkin #howtodraw #fall #halloween

For this Bullet Journal Halloween header, use the letter C as your guide. The pumpkin sections are each made of backward and forward ‘c’ shapes connected together. Since part of the pumpkin is behind the header text, draw lightly with a pencil then darken later with a pen.

Start with one of the inner pumpkin sections. Draw a ‘c’ then draw a backward ‘c’ and connect them. Then add two more ‘c’s for the extra pumpkin sections. Draw two curved lines at the top for the stem. Complete the stem with a triangle or an oval. Add some additional lines on the stem to make it look textured. Fill in the lines with a pen and erase any extra pencil marks. One of my favorites!

I had some fun with this one – skip to the end of the video for pumpkin bloopers!

Bonus: Bullet Journal Halloween Header: Bat Wings

Idea: Color the bat wings with a light gray and darker accents once you’re finished doodling for a fun effect!

How to Draw Easy Halloween Headers in your Bullet Journal - Bat Wings | ChocolateMusings.com #headers #halloween #howtodraw #batwings

Start the bat wings by drawing two downward curving lines, then add another line under it and connect the ends. Make the bottom of the batwing by drawing reversed scalloped edges. Add lines in the negative space connecting the point to the two curved lines at the top, and you’re done!

Which (or should I say Witch) is Your Favorite?

Which bullet journal Halloween header is your favorite? I can’t decide, but I really like the leaf and the spider web. The candy is pretty sweet too….

I hope you’ll try some of these headers in your planner or bullet journal. If you do, tag me on Instagram @ChocolateMusingsCreates. I’d love to see your creations!

Want More Ideas for Easy Halloween Headers?

Check out the creative challenge prompts for October. Use the prompts to spur your creativity!

Halloween Alphabets Creative Challenge | ChocolateMusings.com #getinspired #halloweenideas

You can also try creating this wrapped text which creates a mummified look, this tutorial also includes a video!

How to Draw Mummy Text great for bullet journaling & planner headers video tutorial with complete step-by-step walk-through

Doodling Supplies

Even though these doodles require just a paper and pencil, it’s fun to add colors and use different pens. Here are some of my favorite doodling supplies.

No Matter Which Notebook I use – You’ll Always Find These Supplies Close at Hand

Notebooks: What’s the Difference Between Ghosting & Bleeding?

September 12, 2019 2 Comments

What’s the difference between Ghosting & Bleeding in a notebook?

What's the difference between ghosting and bleeding in your notebook? | ChocolateMusings.com #bulletjournal

Ever heard of the term ghosting or bleeding when bullet journaling or planning? Not sure exactly what ghosting or bleeding means? And what’s the difference between ghosting and bleeding? Don’t worry, you’ll be a pro in no time.

Hint: it does not mean that your planner is haunted or died a tragic death (although my bullet journal fails could argue otherwise).

Ghosting Vs. Bleeding in your notebooks - what's the difference? | ChocolateMusings.com #bleeding #bulletjournal

What is Ghosting?

Ghosting in a notebook is when you can see the ink or text you’ve written from the other side of the page. But the ink doesn’t come through to the opposite side. It’s like showing a ghost of the other page.

I used Leuchtturm 1917 A5 notebooks for a long time, and they ghosted on every single page. In all honesty, I didn’t care too much, as long as the ink didn’t bleed through to the other side. But when I started posting consistently on Instagram, I didn’t like the fact that you could see the previous page’s use.

You could say that the previous page haunted me. Oh wait, I said that your notebook wasn’t haunted.

If the ink seeps through the page, that’s when it’s called bleeding.

What is Bleeding?

When you write on one page, and the ink appears in full color on the opposite page, in spots or blotches or more. I find that notebooks bleed when they can’t handle the amount of liquid a pen or marker lays onto the page.

I started using fountain pens in my notebooks, but have reverted to gel pens and fine liners. But using Tombow Dual Brush Pens and Crayola Supertips for headers and coloring is almost non-negotiable for me and a notebook, so the pages have to withstand some coloring abuse. I also like to watercolor (with limited water in most journals). This tends to break through the fibers and bleeds through, especially if you use too much water.

Too much water trying to blend the marker made the ink bleed through | ChocolateMusings.com #bulletjournal

How Can You Test for Ghosting or Bleeding in a Notebook?

When starting a new notebook, I flip to the end pages and do a pen test using the most common pens & markers in my planner. Scribbles that Matter notebooks have a page at the back dedicated as a pen test.

TIP: I write the name of the ink/pen I’m using so I remember what it is in the future.

When Doing a Pen Test:

When you do a pen test, put the paper through more extreme examples than you might regularly use in a planner. I do this and it helps me know what the limits are on the paper.

For instance: I take the darkest Tombow Dual Brush Markers and layer them and blend them until perfectly blended. I find that most paper starts bleeding on the 2nd to 3rd layer. Using consistently dark colors will give you a better idea for ghosting as well. Light colors won’t show up as much.

Now you know what ghosting and bleeding are, and how to test for them in your notebooks. Happy Planning!