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Set your goals - make the plans - artfully create your life - live it beautifully. Grab the good chocolate and find your muse.

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Home » Get Organized & Start Planning » Planner Spreads » Artsy Planner Spreads » Page 6

From Drab to Fab #2 Finishing off the Fancy Title – Part 2

May 20, 2018 3 Comments

Now What?

In the earlier drab-to-fab headers post, I showed you how to create a header for a page – I use my fancy headers like this on collection pages where I might spend a little more time creating the page because I will refer back to it time and time again. The header looked great ‘as is’ but outlining around the edges of the text is another fun way to enhance the look of the header. Now we will create a border for the header.

Read the original post – “Have 10 Minutes?” 10-Minute task list, clear your mind and the clutter.

Create a Border for the Header

You could call it good. And it would be good! I decided to go a bit further and outline the outline of the text – essentially creating a border for the header. I had all the swirls and flourishes in place – so I knew where the edges were.

Step 1: Outline

To create this outline, don’t worry about all the nooks and crannies of the text, just stay an equal distance away from the edges of the design or text.

Step 2: Blend in a Shadow

After I did that, I wanted some edges on the outline so I could color it in almost as a shadow – but with the same blended technique used on the number 10. I did this just to add more color because the blue blended so beautifully together. So I added more lines along the bottom and the right sides of the outline. Then I added more and more outlines for more depth. I’ll use these lines to know when to start the color blends.

The darkest blend will be the closest to the outline in this case since that is where the darkest part of the shadow is. But you will still start with the lightest color on the outside then blend darker and darker.

Create fancy titles - add even more emphasis by outlining and color blending behind the title, create a border for the header and make it stand out even more!

Finishing off the Page:

Sub-Headers & Mind-Maps & Task Items

Sort the 10-Minute Tasks into categories by location and create headers for the categories. For my collection, I laid this out mind-map style (start in the middle with the main item, then sub-items expand out, then add list items beyond the sub-headers). I like this method because no one sub-header has more importance than other headers so I don’t neglect the tasks listed at the bottom and only do the items at the top.

I am practicing a new all-caps font so it was a perfect opportunity to do some extra practicing. If you look closely, you can see that I needed to move a couple of tasks. Whiteout tape is a good source for quickly masking mistakes.

So there you go! Please let me know what you think and what you do to dress up your collection pages.

Dress up your Bullet Journal Collections with Fancy Titles - step-by-step instructions to create this one + Printable

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully and don’t be afraid to find your inner muse.

~Tricia

Save this layout to Pinterest for later – while you are at it, follow me on Pinterest for more inspiration!

Follow @ChocolateMusingsCreates

3 Comments
Filed Under: #InMy10Minutes, Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Creative, Get Organized & Start Planning, Planner Header Ideas, Planner Spreads, Tutorials & How To Tagged: #BuJo, brush calligraphy, brush lettering, Bullet Journal, bullet journal collections, collections, how to make a pretty title, how to make a title, how to make pretty letters

Creating Circles in Your Bullet Journal

May 3, 2018 5 Comments

How to Create Circles in your Bullet Journal

Creating Circles in your Bullet Journal: There are lots of ways to use circles in your journal. I have experimented with a few ways to do it. I have several tools that I’ve purchased (most are very inexpensive – as they’re usually intended for school-aged children). So creating the circles is one thing, but getting the spacing even is another thing. My favorite tool for measuring circles is the Helix tool – because it has each degree marked on the outside so once you have your calculations, just find the number and make your marks.

Creating Circles in your Bullet Journal

Do me a favor – click on the little red ‘subscribe’ button in the video. I’d appreciate it.

How I use Circles in My Pages

Here are some ways I have used circles in my bullet journal: Weekly logs, Accents for pages, I use it in my Gratitude Log, & Level 10 life my January 2018 Habit Tracker has one of my very favorite circular trackers. I am sure there are hundreds of other ways to use circles. All of my pages for April have a circle theme.

They add some fun to the layout. I know, it’s tricky creating them and getting the spacing right. Keep reading for the tools I use and the calculations to create the circles. I’ve created a circle measurement guide that you can print and keep in your bullet journal for reference. I am working on a printable for those who want to print, stick and go too!

Ways to use circles in your bullet journal - find the printable guide on chocolatemusings.com

Ready to include some circles? Here are some calculations and some examples to use:

Some Basic Knowledge:

A circle is made of 360 points or degrees, so you take the number of sections you want and divide that into 360.

To Divide by 7:

360 / 7 = 51.42…… well that’s not going to divide evenly. So now it’s time to get creative.

  • You could do 51 degrees for each – it will be a little harder to measure – so turn your wheel carefully.
  • Using the Helix: make a mark at 0, 51, 102, 153, 204, 255, & 306 the last will be just a little bigger than the rest, but it’s tiny.
  • You could do 50 degrees for each and have a little sliver left over – that’s what I did for the penny farthing bike in January.

Measurement guide for adding circles to your bullet journal

To Divide by 6:

360 / 6 = 60

  • Layout Idea: Combine the weekend into one segment.
  • If you wanted everything even and are ok with a combined weekend, that works out.
  • You’d make your marks at 0, 60, 120, 180, 240 & 300.

To Divide by 5:

360 / 5 = 72

  • Layout Idea: use it ONLY for weekdays and leave the weekend for another location) this makes it a little more complicated, but it’s even!
  • Make your marks at 0, 72, 144, 216, 288.

To Divide by 4:

You’re now dividing into quarters – 360 / 4 = 90

  • Ideas for this layout: To-Dos, create two circles one with 3 and one with 4 for the week, or two with 4 and have a meal planner
  • Make your marks at 0, 90, 180, & 270.

To Divide by 3:

360 / 3 = 120

  • Layout Idea: You could have two sets of circles for the week and combine the weekend
  • Make your marks at 0, 120, & 240

Other Ideas:

Another idea is to create 7 circles, one for each day and split them in half for to-dos, appointments & meal planning or split it into 3’s. I used one like this for a weekly spread. I liked it! It was different than normal.

Here is one other idea – divide by 12. Think I’m crazy? It turns into a clock. An inner circle is the AM, and the outer circle is PM.

360 / 12 = 30

Make your marks at 0, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210, 240, 270, 300, & 330.

Multi-Layered Circles for Tracking

Now I’ve opened up a whole other realm. I will do another post about making multi-layered circles for habit tracking and mood tracking – just like the mood tracker in January.

Want a quick measurement guide for making circles? I created one for you.

Save this to your Pinterest board you’ll want it for when you create circles in your own bullet journal. Who knew you’d be reaching back to the time you were in grade school and doing math? I guess those teachers were right. You would use math every day. Well, at least when you need to count out those dots and measure circles in your bullet journal.

5 Comments
Filed Under: Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Creative, Get Organized & Start Planning, Planner Spreads, Tutorials & How To Tagged: Bullet Journal, bullet journaling bujo, Circle, circle measurement guide, circles, circular trackers, create circles, how to, how to create circles in my bullet journal, how to use circles, ideas for circles, planner, planner circles

From Drab to Fab #1 – Headers, Calligraphy & Outlines – How to Make Fancy Headers Part 1

April 12, 2018 3 Comments

Turn a Drab-Looking Collection into Something Fabulous by Adding a Fancy Header

I love to make pretty headers for my bullet journal. Here’s a guide to dress-up your collection. Organizing the information in the journal is another way to make it pretty. I like lists, but I also enjoy variety (thus a huge reason why I like bullet journaling – I can change things up every single day for variety). Here are some ways to make your lists ‘pretty’ or just change-up the format.

But I also know that another key part to refer back to information is to make it look amazing. Making fabulous headers is a very easy way to dress up the page – especially if a majority of the content is a list. I realize that a lot of lists are day-to-day tasks compiled on Daily Spreads or Weekly Layouts. Not every list needs a fancy header. Personally, I just list those out and check them off when done. Because the next day or the next week, I turn the page and rarely refer back to that page again.

Dress up your Bullet Journal Collections with Fancy Titles - step-by-step instructions to create this one + Printable

A Collection is Different

A collection is something that you’ll probably refer back to time and time again and probably won’t be recreated regularly. These are the ideal page to dress up the titles and organize your lists into unique spreads. A collection is a little more special than a calendar spread. So it can look a little more special.

Side note: I have (for over a year) kept my collections intermingled with my weeklies and monthlies. Since starting my new journals, I have a planning journal and a permanent collections journal and I love it!

Learn to create fancy titles like this in your bullet journal, includes step-by-step instructions + a printable

10-Minute Collection – Title

I created the “Have 10 Minutes?” collection page in my Bullet Journal on a whim. I started making a list in Google Keep on my phone (you can read the post here and a follow-up here) but then I decided to move the content over to my collections in my Bullet Journal because I knew I would use (more) it if I wrote it down.

My ideas are best started in pencil. Just like a rough draft when writing a paper, the pencil provides a good outline, but you can change it easily as the ideas develop and progress.

Ways I Dressed Up the 10-Minute Collection:

  • Title – added a fancy-schmancy title with blended colors outlines and swirly-twirly flourished fonts
  • Sub-Titles – separate sub-titles for each area of my room help organize the page
  • Organized Lists – Classify each item and list them under the correct sub-title
  • Mind-Map Layout – Change up the layout – the title doesn’t have to be at the top. Put the title in the middle of the page and spread the sub-categories out and around the title.
  • Uniform Font List – use a uniform font to write out all the items in the collection

Dressing Up the Title:

The Number

Starting with the number – I wanted that to be big and bold but have a unique look. I looked through my font list on my computer and chose Algerian. I think this is a pretty standard font on most computers. If not – you can find it on fontsgeek.com or myfonts.com or a variety of other font websites. I chose this font because it was thick in parts, thin in others, I liked the flip on the 1 (the serif) and the line on the right side kind of like a shadow.

I sketched out the number and made it bolder than the referenced font so I could blend colors from lightest at the top to darkest at the bottom and have more space to color it in.

Tip: draw inspiration from fonts, but if your font doesn’t look exactly like what you see – now it’s yours.

Create fancy titles - start with a pencil outline in your bullet journal and add the words

Blending Colors

Start with the lightest color as the base when blending. Then add the next darker color slightly overlapping the lighter color and so on. I added black to the bottom in this case. Use the lighter color to smooth the edges. Then use the colorless blender or a water pen to further even-out the color. Don’t blend too much or you might make the paper pill.

Tip: Blending colors can sometimes make messy edges on the outside. Outlining the text after blending can ‘clean up’ the lines or disguise uneven edges.

Create fancy titles - blend the colors together

Finishing the Blending

I find that I when I use the next lighter color to blend – it ends up looking more even. But sometimes you need to use the colorless blender to smooth out the edges. The blending marker I have has a stained tip, but if you clean it after each use (just rub it along some paper until it goes clear) it will be fine. I have noticed that the tips of the lighter colors will stain, but that doesn’t matter.

Flourished Text

After sketching the number, I wrote the text in script font. But I didn’t add all the flourishes. I wanted the word ‘have’ to mingle in and out of the numbers – so I could rearrange the text to adjust placement. Once I liked the layout, I added the flourishes with a pencil. After working through the flourishes, I added the thick and thin lines of the text.

Normally I’d have used a brush pen to make the thick and thin lines, but I decided to use a mono pen and thicken the lines on the downstrokes because I thought it might be hard going across the center of the two pages.

Tip: Anytime you pull the pen or marker down, that would be the thick line. When the lines turn up or are horizontal, those are the thin lines.

Create fancy titles - outline the main text, then fill in the downstrokes on your faux calligraphy

In the next fancy headers post, I will show you how to outline the text and finish off the spread.

If you’re just anxious to have the header, you’re in for a treat. I have it available in my shop! Click here to visit.

 

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully and don’t be afraid to find your inner muse.

~Tricia

Save this layout to Pinterest for later – while you are at it, follow me on Pinterest for more inspiration!

Follow @ChocolateMusingsCreates

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Want to know what I used in this post? I’ll tell you. (Contains affiliate links – if you click-through and end up purchasing a product, I receive a small commission – though the cost is the same to you.)



3 Comments
Filed Under: #InMy10Minutes, Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Creative, Get Organized & Start Planning, Planner Header Ideas, Planner Spreads, Tutorials & How To Tagged: #BuJo, #InMy10Minutes, brush lettering, Bullet Journal, bullet journal spread, collection, collections, creativity, hand drawn, header, how to, how to blend letters, how to hand letter, how to letter, how to make a header, how to make your page pretty, in my 10 minutes, mind map, page layout, tips and tricks

January Week #1 Bicycle Weekly – Using Objects in your Design

January 5, 2018 3 Comments

Using Objects in your Weekly Layout

Bicycle Weekly

I love the idea of using objects as functional pieces of my layout. I call this one ‘Bicycle Weekly’. Just so it adds some extra flair to the page and changes it up. Especially for the weeks I don’t have a lot of plans. This week was perfect because the kids wouldn’t go back to school until Thursday. So I used the big wheel from the bike to track weekly ‘to dos’ and appointments, the small wheel for dinner meal plans. I’m not saying that every week should be like this, but it is fun for a change every once in a while.

Question:

Do you have any objects you’ve included in your bullet journal as part of your design? What’s your favorite? Or do you have one that you want to include but just can’t find a way?

Bicycle Weekly: Turning objects into functional designs in your bullet journal: bicycle spokes for a weekly layout:

This Week’s Layout

This week I sketched out the circles and added details to the penny farthing bike (I think that’s what it’s called). The tiny 7 boxes on the right are so I can include flower doodles – which I want to start learning to draw. As you saw on the welcome page for 2018/January (or if you haven’t seen it, view it here). You can also watch an overview wrapping up December and the January’s spreads planned out. For those of you who are nervous about creating circles – never fear! I am working on a post to put your mind at ease when creating circles.

Monthly Theme: Transportation

This month’s theme is transportation. I was going to do superheroes but somehow the bullet train found its way in and that was it. I came up with a different type of transportation for each week. The last week I was running out of ideas – and I just could not get that cruise ship to look like a cruise ship! Ah well.

Here is the Plan With Me Video – watch below and if you’d like to see more, subscribe on YouTube. I already drew out the circles, so now it was adding details to make it look like a bike.

Just Keep Pedaling

Through writing this post, I’ve come up with several other ideas to help you in your bullet journal journey. I’m very excited for them (you might even get a sneak peek of my very first entry in my first attempt at bullet journaling!) My bullet journal has become a companion of sorts. It makes the adventure even better (in my opinion, of course). I’ve always needed some sort of notebook or planner but I have never found one that speaks…well…. speaks my language. I think bullet journaling and I soul mates. Did I just say that? Well if it’s posted on the internet, it’s true, right?!

I hope you have a fabulous week!

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully.

~Tricia

3 Comments
Filed Under: Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Organized & Start Planning, Plan With Me, Plan With Me 2018, Planner Spreads Tagged: #BuJo, 2018, Bicycle, brush lettering, Bullet Journal, bullet journal layout, bullet journal spread, Circle, circle design, circles, creativity, hand drawn, hand lettering, how to, January, January 2018, lettering, leuchtturm1917, minimal, minimalistic, modern calligraphy, plan with me, video, weekly, Weekly Layout, weekly log, weekly spread

2018 in a word: Grow

January 1, 2018 6 Comments

In November I started thinking about where I wanted to go in 2018. I’ve never had a theme for a year let alone a ‘word’ for the year. 2017 has been so momentous for me. It’s a wonderful feeling to rediscover yourself and finally feel like you are on the path of goodness in your life. That’s where 2017 led me. I found it by bullet journaling and once I started that, the creativity bubbled out once again. So why is my word for 2018 Grow?

2018 Theme: Let's Grow - Welcome January, Hello 2018 Spread

Why ‘Grow’?

I tucked my creativity away years ago – I just let life take over and honestly, those were a few miserable years. I call those the dark ages of my life. Once I found creativity, doodling, lettering, journaling, all enabled through Bullet Journaling, it was like a light opened and shined down like rays of sunshine on my soul.

Once this miraculous thing happened to me, I felt the need to spread this joy to others. Astounding changes started happening in my life. I truly felt the need to spread this experience to others who are stumbling through the dark ages of their own lives and I wanted to help them rediscover the creativity that was once lost.

What’s Next?

I would like to grow further. There are so many ways I want to grow. Grow a business, grow in my talents, grow spiritually, Essentially as a person, I want to enhance myself and become a better person. That is what “Grow” means to me.

I am not saying my journey is complete, but I would like to gather others along the way, grow with them and inspire them to grow on their own. I’m excited to start a year of growth and see where I end up at the end of 2018.

Read the pre-planning post for 2018 & watch the video to get a sneak peek of my weekly & monthly set up for January 2018.

Question:

Do you have a word or a phrase for the coming year? What’s your take on a ‘word’ for the year?

Watch the Video below to see my Hello 2018, Hello January Spread in my Bullet Journal.

Remember to plan your life so you live beautifully.

~Tricia

6 Comments
Filed Under: Artsy Planner Spreads, Blog, Bullet Journal, Get Inspired, Get Organized & Start Planning, My Muses (My Favorites & Inspiration), Plan With Me 2018, Planner Spreads, Quotes & Words to Inspire, Words of the Year Tagged: airplane window, bullet journal plan with me, Grow, handlettered, handlettering, hello 2018, hello January, lettering, plan with me, video, view from an airplane, watercolor, watercolor painting, welcome 2018, welcome January, word of the year

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About Me


Hi! I'm Tricia, the creative behind ChocolateMusings.com, I know how it feels to lose your inner muse. After years of darkness (which I call the dark ages of my life), I found my inner muse hiding in the forgotten corners of my soul, I vowed never to lose sight of her again.

Bullet journaling helped reignite the passion for art and living life again while organizing my days. I also discovered modern calligraphy and watercolor. Since then, my use of the bullet journal system has evlolved and I call it 'creative planning'. Here on the blog, I show you how to use your planner to ignite your inner muse and explore creativity and art while staying beautifully organized and living a joyful life.

I invite you to grab some good chocolate and dive into my musings. Let’s ignite your inner muse.

Read more on the about me page. You can also find my policies and disclosures here.

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