Rather than make a journal at the start of the year, I’ve made one at the end instead. Since January, I’ve been making small book sections for it out of folded scrap A4 paper. I fill each section with sketches, paintings collage, notes, magazine clippings, mundane observations, ephemera etc, etc. and then once it’s full I make another one. And now we have got to December I’ve bound them all together and made a cover.
I usually find empty sketchbooks and journals a bit intimidating; I never finish them, or I rip out loads of pages. But working on small sections at a time, with junk paper, felt relaxed and stressful-free instead and I ended up filling up page after page. It’s so good to have a record of my year to look back on. Definitely doing it this way again in 2026!
Emery Smith Studio 