Here’s a nice collection of over 60+ free printables for your planners and bullet journals.
I focused on goodies that will help embellish or enhance your notes, items such as DIY stickers, cards, graph and dot grid papers, doodle sheets, etc.
Personally I’m a minimalist when it comes to my bullet journal, mainly because I’m not artistic enough to pull off gorgeous spreads but also because I don’t have the time to go all out with decorative elements.
If I start a new writing/planning routine with grand artistic expectations, things go sideways real fast. I get overwhelmed & struggle to stay consistent with journaling.
If you’re like me, these resources will help your notes pop without the time & effort…and that’s useful when you want sections to stand out for easy reference and scannability.
They will also help scratch that creative itch and beautify notebooks so you stay interested and engaged.
For easier browsing, I organized this collection into the following galleries:
- Assorted Journal Cards
- Printable Stickers
- Miscellaneous
- Doodles, Borders, Banners
- Grid / Dot / Paper & Pages
- More Resources (helpful tips & tutorials)
New Collection Update: March, 2022
As always here on Tipnut, I only include freebies that require no email submissions or memberships to download. If things have changed since publishing this list or I made a mistake, please let me know in the comments section at the bottom of this article so I can remove the resource.
You’ll also find a bunch of goodies here that are sure to come in handy:
- Free Printable Labels For Organizing: {A Nice Collection}: Several that are suitable for planners, will work well as stickers.
- 90+ Ways To Make Your Own Bookmarks: There are several clips & corner covers that will work well for notebooks (and assorted printable bookmarks too).
- 50+ DIY Envelopes & Liners: {Free Templates & Tutorials}: I find it very useful to have an envelope packet on the inside back cover, here’s an assortment that you can DIY then paste in place.
Directions:
- Click on the images you are interested in to visit the source for downloads. A new browser tab should open so you won’t lose your place here.
- Files are mainly in pdf format but there are a few image files as well (typically jpg and png).
Assorted Journal Cards
These are an ideal way to add extra real estate for notes (front and back) or to add a touch of whimsy and color to a minimalist spread.
How to use them? They can be added to notes with a strip of washi tape, pasted in place with a glue stick or printed on adhesive paper to fully adhere to the page (only the top can then be used). They can also be printed on cardstock or index cards and used as bookmarks, pockets, quote trackers, photo frames, to do lists, shopping lists, fold outs and more (tip: attach with clips for moving back & forth between sections). Laminate them and you have a handy spot to keep a washi stash handy.
Here’s a nice bunch to get you started…
Printable Stickers
These are popular for decorating pages and to use as organizational & tracking aids, but they’re also a great way to highlight important parts and labeling sections. There are a few printing options:
- Full sheets of white matte sticker paper
- Clear translucent sticker paper
- Label sheets (if the sizing & setup works)
- Regular computer paper (then carefully apply with packing tape over top)
Miscellaneous
This is a stash of odds ‘n ends that deserve some space here but don’t really fit in the other galleries. Mostly functional items like tabs & sticky notes, but I’m sure I’ll be adding more decorative goodies too at some point.
Doodles, Borders, Banners
Learning basic doodling skills is one way to add a bit of decoration to your planners and it’s something within reach for those of us who aren’t talented artists. Typically quick & easy to do, here’s a bunch of practice work sheets and instructional pages to get you started.
Free Grid / Dot / Paper & Pages
There are multiple uses for printing off grid & dotted paper:
- Making DIY journals
- Inserting into purchased notebooks to add extra pages
- Figuring out new layouts before making them permanent in your “good” book
- Tearing pieces or cutting shapes to add flip notes
This year my goal is to make my Stalogy last the whole year. I’m using a B5 which has 365 pages, but with the weekly setup I require and the extra trackers, future logs, etc., that I need…365 isn’t quite enough.
Solution: I printed off dot grid sheets which were then tipped in with pretty washi tape.
I only need 12 of them (one for each month which are used as monthly logs–see pages 91 & 92 of The Bullet Journal Method by Ryder Carroll) and it’s enough to get me through the year. If I decide to include additional trackers, etc., I can always add more sheets.
This method also has a perk, it’s a quick way to find the beginning of each month since the paper weight is different than those in the Stalogy.
How many sources of printable graph & grid paper does one really need? Well some prefer a darker/softer ink or larger/smaller grid or some other type of paper. I think this collection provides great range and options.
More Resources
- How to trace images to your pages: Longing for something beautiful but can’t draw well? Here’s a terrific option for adding lovely designs to spreads.
- DIY stencils tutorial: If working with design elements that you use again and again (boxes, banners, etc.), here’s an affordable way to make your own stencils.
- 10 Bullet Journal Hacks You’ll Want To Steal: A nice list of ideas such DIY pocket/envelope; color coding; utilizing washi tape; fold-out keys (the cards above would be ideal for this); dutch doors; etc.
- Another 16 ideas for next level planning: Similar tips as above but also a few more ideas (using corner bookmarks, layering post-it notes, etc.
- DIY Binder Tabs (made from paint chips): Just in case the printables listed above aren’t quite what you want, here’s how to make your own tabs with paint chips.
- The Ultimate Guide to Dutch Door Layouts: Great instructions for tackling dutch doors.
