Journaling with Washi Tape

I have a roller coaster relationship with washi tape. Sometimes I won’t use it for months on end and at other times I use it daily.

In the last couple of weeks I’ve used it every day, multiple times a day. Seriously what is it with washi tape? I’m completely addicted.

Imagine my surprise when I went to Michael’s and noticed the dollar section had an entire bin full of washi tape for $0.25 each. I spent at least 30 minutes digging through it…and I go through it every time I’m there!

Anyway, journaling with washi tape can be tricky. The most important lesson/tip I can share is this – if I’m using the tape in my journal as a removable adhesive (meaning it’s not a permanent fixture in the layout) I will rub the tape on my jeans or carpet to make the tape less sticky and easier to remove. In my early journaling days, I’d stick the tape directly from the roll onto my layout and when it was time to remove the tape, part of my journal paper went along with it. I was absolutely devastated when the tape ruined my layout.

In this weeks layout, I use several strips of washi tape to create a striped design. Check it out.

Supplies

Step One

Before applying the washi tape to my notebook, I prepped the tape by rubbing it on my jeans – making the tape less sticky and easy to remove later.

Step Two

After applying the tape, I covered the area with a light coat of black Distress Ink followed by purple Distress Ink with my Ink Applicator Tool. Then I removed the tape and covered the area again, a light coat of black Distress Ink followed by the purple.

Step Three

Next, I grabbed my black Ink Pad and bat stamp (from Hobby Lobby) and covered the striped area with a bunch of bats.

Step Four

Then I divided the white areas with my ruler and purple brush pen, colored the bat’s eyes with an orange Gelly Roll Pen, and lettered the month with a purple brush pen. For more on my lettering style, get my guidebook here.