The Amazing Versatile Expandable Travel Journal

I have been pondering the Perfect Travel Journal for several months. Something you can write in, draw and paint in, personalize, store photos, scraps and memorabilia and that would just be fun to use. Something equally useful for artists, scrapbookers and journalers alike. Neither too large not to small but just right. I'm thrilled to finally have completed a form that I think works on every level.

(Update May 2015:  I now offer three unique custom map journal designs to fit the needs of many different kinds of travelers.  Visit my "For Travels" page here to see them compared side by side, complete with prices and links to my Etsy shop, and see which one is right for you!  Visit my new home on the web at FreeRangeBookbinding.com) 

The basic structure is an accordion book made from heavy weight 220 gsm paper. Not only does this provide an excellent substrate for the other elements in the book, it takes paint and collage work very well.


At 4-3/8 x 6-3/8, the journal perfectly accommodates 4 x 6 photos. There's window in the front cover so that you can personalize it with a title, artwork or photo of your own choosing. Whatever you affix to the first page becomes your cover image!

There are separate closures on both sides of the book so that you can open it either way to expose the section you want . . .




















or you can open both sides and spread the whole thing out.

One section on each side consists of a pamphlet book with 20 pages (40 front and back): 12 from 70 lb drawing paper and 8 from graph, ledger, legal and primary paper for variety and a touch of whimsy.

There are also two pockets made from a manila business envelope and four tabs made from sturdy manila folders which you can use to add in MORE photos, brochures, menus, anything that fits, as separate "pages" in the book.

My favorite inclusion is a manila catalog envelope that has been cut and the bottom, folded and stitched into the book so as to form two envelopes, concealing when opened two small coin envelopes inserted between them. I've added a wrapping closure to keep everything secure.


There are also some blank folds of the heavy paper left open for your art or photos. And because it's an accordion, you can keep adding stuff till your heart's content and it will grow with you.

These are available at my Etsy shop here. They can be customized with any map you like and personalized to make it the perfect gift for any traveler, including you!

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My Critic from Journal Spilling

I've been looking at the page that contains this exercise for a while. It's just been open on my desk. I finally decided to tackle it tonight, and the only thing I had in my mind was a magnifying glass. I so over-scrutinize, over-analyze and parse my work. It's exhausting. My critic got a name in the process: Scrooge. Tight-fisted, nose-to-the-grindstone, stingy, miserly Scrooge. The balance came in as I thought about how I measure myself against "better" artists. I'd love to say I thought of the verse in Daniel about the writing on the wall, but it was "A Knight's Tale" that brought the line to my mind: "You have been weighed, you have been measured, and you have been found wanting." Painful words I have spoken to myself regularly.

So here's what I have to say to Mr. Scrooge: Dude, lighten up! It's just art.

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Lessons from Walkies

I developed a wonderful habit of walking a few years ago, and learned to really enjoy it. Missing a morning made me sad. But then we went on a 3-1/2 week vacation, and I completely lost the habit and have never picked it back up. I went yesterday for the first time in ages and had such a nice time! My weimaraner, Griffin, got to go along this time, but I don't think he enjoyed it much. My two short little legs just don't set a pace his four legs can adjust to. I got some excellent insight into myself from watching him though and enjoyed journaling about it when we got home.

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Wordless Wednesday - Goldfinches

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Art Journal Page: Your Inner Critic Part 1

Continuing through "Journal Spilling," the next few exercises involve "Taming the Critic." It's an old cliche that we are often our worst critic. We analyze our work in excruciating detail and stamp it "Not Good Enough" compared with some vague and indeterminate vision that we alone possess of what it "should" be. While we'd never dream of judging someone else's work by that same ethereal standard, we discount our own without prejudice.

Since I am a great lover of words, I did a little study of "criticism" and related words. We generally think of the first meaning: judging harshly or finding fault. But it also has an evaluative meaning as in simply making an assessment. A critic evaluates and issues criticism, which can be negative or positive, as in "critical acclaim." Another interesting word from the same Greek root is "criterion" which is the standard by which something is judged. When a critic evaluates, he is measuring against criteria, broad or narrow, specific or general, for success.


It's really not possible to "silence the inner critic" as some suggest. We will always evaluate our own efforts, and we should! Without reflection on our work, we will never have the insights needed to learn and grow.

What we can change is the criteria against which our inner critic judges. If my standard for success is to create, learn and enjoy the process, then I only fail if I don't create, don't learn or don't enjoy.

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Wordless Wednesday

For more Wordless Wednesday, look here.

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Open Door Tryptych Book

I took a class a couple of years ago and learned to make this unique book. It makes a great statement displayed open, so it's perfect for a special art journal, scrapbook or wedding guest book. I've had couples use one side as a guest book and the other for candid photos from the wedding. The coptic binding allows it to lay completely flat for signing, painting or journaling.

I've been snatching up all the pretty books I could find with identical front and back covers just for the purpose. Old Readers' Digest Condensed Books work well. Not the waxy ones from the 80's but older. Anyway, I've finally gotten on a roll and made a few that I wanted to share.

The trick to making these is getting the angles in both the covers and the paper to match perfectly. If you have a paper trimmer sturdy enough to cut binder's board, I've discovered a method that gets it right every time. I started by marking the angle I wanted on one cover and carefully cutting it on the band saw leftover from my woodworking days. The little triangle you remove becomes the key to getting all the other angles right. I couldn't begin to give you step by step instructions for the rest of the procedure, but a picture is worth 1000 words . . .

The only trick is marking the height of the spines from your first cut on the other front cover piece and adjusting the paper guide on your cutter so that it lines up to cut the right height. Once that adjustment is made, the back cover is a cinch. Prepare and fold the signatures, then cut them the same way, reducing the height by about 3/16 with one further adjustment of the paper guide.

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