Amazon Journaling, Scrapbooking & Notebook Supplies
A Growing Collection of Journaling and Notebook Supplies I Actually Use, All from Amazon
Scroll past the links and descriptions to browse the Amazon journaling, notebooks, and scrapbooking — with image descriptions and links to each volume.
Journals and notebooks are where a lot of my thinking, planning, and making happens, and the supplies around them have piled up over the years. This page collects the ones that earned a permanent spot on my desk: paper in a few weights and shades, laminating pouches, double-sided tape, eyelet setters for punching and setting holes, tabs for sectioning a notebook, pen holders that keep a pen from wandering off, and a few craft-aisle extras that turned out to be useful in a notebook too.
Every item here is something I've used myself. I've been ordering from Amazon long enough that the list keeps growing, and I'll keep adding to it as I use more. Each write-up sticks to how the product works in practice. You won't see prices listed since they change so often, but each entry ends with a link to check Amazon for current pricing.
These black Friendly Loom cotton loops are made for weaving potholders on a traditional 7 by 7 inch loom (the loom isn't included), but I've never used them that way. In my DIY journals, I use them to hold the pages in place. They're a soft, stretchy alternative to rubber bands and staples: nothing punctures the paper, and they come off without damaging it. Black also blends into the binding on a dark notebook, and the bag comes with plenty of loops. If you make your own journals and want a binding option beyond the usual suspects, they're worth a look. Check Amazon for pricing.
Double-sided tape is one of those supplies everyone can use, and this is the kind I reach for. Dollar Tree carries single rolls now and then, but not reliably, so a multi-roll set is handy to keep on hand (the one pictured has six). It's also not like the generic or Scotch-type double-sided tapes, where both sides are exposed and sticky right off the roll. On this one, one side has a white film over the adhesive, which makes placement much easier. You can position the tape where you want it first, then peel the film when you're ready to stick the second surface. For journals, paper crafts, and general DIY, it's a supply I'm glad to have plenty of. Check Amazon for pricing.
This is a great one. The Fiskars eyelet setters come as a set of three sizes (1/16, 1/8, and 3/16 inch), each with a built-in spring hammer. I use them to punch holes in paper, and they may work on leather too. The package says they also set eyelets, so a single tool covers both jobs. There's one catch, and I'm not joking: because they're spring loaded, the punch goes off with a bang that sounds like a small-caliber weapon. It's not dangerous, but it's loud, so warn anyone in the next room before you start. It's a great tool for journal makers, and the lifetime warranty on the package is a nice bonus. Check Amazon for pricing.
Paper sounds boring, but it does a lot of work in my journals. I use paper in various shades for my "Funk" journals (short for Functional Junk Journals, an up-and-coming DIY project of mine), and this cream Hammermill is one I've used and like. A soft cream gives a page a warmer, aged look than bright white, which suits a junk journal. The package advertises it as 99.99% jam-free, a nice thing to see on printer paper. I'm currently stocked up on white paper with no room for more, but this one is on my reorder list. Check Amazon for pricing.
No, the people weren't lamenting, they were laminating. Laminating pouches are a workhorse for journal makers, and I like to keep a stack on hand. Run through a laminator, a pouch seals a page, cover, or folder against wear, spills, and bent corners. It's what makes DIY journal covers and inner folders last, and it turns a printed template into something reusable: write on it with a dry-erase marker, wipe it clean, and use it again. I'll have more to say about that when my DIY tabs roll out. Check Amazon for pricing.
More paper, but this one has some personality. Sax School Smart white newsprint is listed on Amazon as drawing paper, and the package calls it newsprint. It's thin, and it curls easily when it's used or stored somewhere humid, so keep it dry and flat. The trade-off is texture: it adds visual interest to junk journals, scrapbooking, and my Funk journals, and since it's sold as drawing paper, it can double as sketch paper. Check Amazon for pricing.
This one is kind of fun. It's a cream pen holder with a rose gold swivel clasp, so it can hang from a keychain, work as a lanyard, or attach to a notebook. I tried it and it worked just as described. It's a cute way to keep a pen where you can find it. Check Amazon for pricing.
These are the more functional pen holders. Each one is a small square with a loop, and it sticks onto the journal itself, so your pen is always right where you write. The multi-color set has plenty of shades to match a cover or pick a favorite. Check Amazon for pricing.
Same idea, in black. Black is the classic choice, since it blends into most covers and stays out of the way. It holds a regular pen or a slim fountain pen like the one pictured. Check Amazon for pricing.
Sometimes you just want tabs that are quick, easy, and available, and this set is all three. The sheet has twelve rounded tabs in muted, earthy shades, shown here on a kraft spiral notebook. Dollar Tree occasionally offers white tabs, but not all the time, so it helps to have a dependable option on hand. I like to offer more than one way to get things done, and it fits my belief that you don't need a die-cutting machine to make a DIY journal. I'll be posting more tabs of my own later, and some of them will be printable. Check Amazon for pricing.
A laminator is one of the few places where I'd say skip the bargain. When I went looking for one, I went through several inexpensive machines on Amazon, and I fell for the lower prices. I don't remember everything that went wrong, but one simply stopped working, and a couple heated the pouch so much that it started to melt and jammed the machine. Finally I broke down and bought a name-brand laminator, this Scotch thermal laminator, and I've been using it since 2020. It costs more, but after all those false starts, I'd rather pay once for a machine that works than keep replacing cheap ones. Check Amazon for pricing.
This is the quiet cousin of the spring-loaded eyelet setters. It's a squeeze-style punch with a rotating head, so you turn it to pick the hole size you want and squeeze the handles to punch. It's relatively silent, which is ideal if you'd like to avoid any possibility of police involvement. Check Amazon for pricing.