by Linda | Aug 9, 2020 | my creative journal
Looking for vintage printables free pages to print and make into a journal? Check out this freebie for creating your own junk journal.
Vintage Printables Free Download
We all love a bit of vintage, shabby chic style at times and I think it’s a very pretty look for scrapbooking and keepsakes. Here’s an entire set of vintage paper background designs to print, along with some embellishments in the same theme.
Great for holiday journaling, memory keeping and just fun junk journaling and crafting – anyone who loves vintage and the Tim Holtz type of shabby style will enjoy these FREE printables.
I designed this whole set of printables to create a journal of keepsakes – things that make me smile. Originally it was an Etsy junk journal printables product, but it’s retired now and instead of keeping designs on my hard drive, I think it’s a lot more helpful to spread the love and post it here on my blog for FREE download.
The cool thing about printables is the ability to share it freely on the internet, across the globe and no matter what your craft budget might be, it can definitely be easier to get a few prints on paper and be able to make something yourself at home.
All the printable papers are included in printable kit:
- 10 vintage background pages
- 10 matching tags
- 1 cover image
- 1 cover label
- 1 interior pocket design
- 1 blank page and 1 blank tag so you can DIY and create your own unique designs and embellishments
Since this product is printable, you can pick and choose the pages you want to use and print however many copies you need for your particular project. Please note that the cover image size does limit how thick your book spine can be – unless you have access to print larger than a regular sheet of paper or can piece two pieces of paper together – get creative and see what you can make!
Vintage Printables Free Download Instructions
Here’s a quick summary of how I created my vintage journal with this printable kit. I’ll offer alternatives and tips along the process as well.
STEP 1 – DOWNLOAD PRODUCT and PRINT
First, if you want to make this exact journal, download the printables files to your computer or alternatively you can follow these instructions and just use other materials you have on hand.
I have these vintage printables free downloads in multiple PDF files, so download all of them or just designs you want below…
Download Vintage Printables Freebies Below
The PDFs make it easy to just print everything at once or you can choose to print only certain pages. When printed actual size, the final journal will be approximately 6x4inches.
Vintage Printables Tips
- consider what paper you would like to use, the thicker the paper the more sturdy your journal will be
- the thicker the paper, the fatter your journal will be
- since you are only printing on one side of the page, you might want to consider printing on colored paper or back side of patterned paper, if you don’t want blank backsides. however they are nice for journaling and decorating too!
- consider adding patterned paper, kraft paper or colored cardstock along with printed pages to expand your journal
- remember when printing to check your printer settings, use the highest quality possible
- make sure no parts of the imagery are cut off in printing
- I recommend using heavy cardstock for your cover image at least, it will protect your journal pages
STEP 2 – CUT and INK
Use your preferred cutting tool to cut out all the printed designs. Note that you don’t have to be super exact, because you can also ink the edges of your pages after trimming to hide any imperfections and finish off your printables, giving it an inked edge look.
For my journal, I also cut some kraft papers to add more blank pages. I also folded my printed pages in different directions, since I only printed designs on one side and the back is blank. To vary how they would appear in my journal, I folded some pages to show design on the front and others on the back and mixed up all the pages to create variety.
More Vintage Printables Tips
- ink the edges of your pages for a finishing effect
- consider how many pages you would like in your journal, print more copies if you would like
- consider adding plain pages, lined pages, kraft paper, cardstock, etc if you would like to expand your book
- consider cutting pages in different sizes for variety
For your the cover design, I sewed the printed piece onto another piece of kraft paper to make the cover thicker and sturdier. Then I sewed the label for decoration and embellished with alphabet stickers. You can embellish your cover in a number of ways, but creating some kind of border or reinforcement all the way around helps to keep the journal cover sturdy. Not that the size of the cover page is a bit larger than the page size to help protect the pages within.
If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can easily glue pieces of paper together to get a thicker cover and glue embellishments on the cover to decorate.
STEP 3 – PUNCH and BIND
There are a number of ways you can put your journal pages together. I chose to punch 3 holes (because I had varying paper sizes) and stitched together all the pages folded in half. However, you can also glue your pages back to back – which might be better if you don’t want to see the back sides of your pages if you only printed on one side. There are many book binding methods out there, so take a look on this blog for other ideas as well. But any basic long stitch or pamphlet stitch will do!
For the cover, I decided to add some eyelets to holes to reinforce the paper. You can also smear some glue on your punched holes and let it dry to reinforce them without eyelets. You can even use nail polish – just something to stop the punched edges of the holes from tearing with use.
Using linen string, I stitched the entire book together, nothing fancy, just stringing through, in and out, long stitching and tied a knot at the end. Super simple.
Final Vintage Printables Binding Tips
- You can use a hole punch to punch holes, or simply a needle for something smaller. Depending on the thickness of your paper, you might want smaller holes.
- Consider using other materials such as ribbon to bind your book together. If your pages are all the same size, you can just do two holes as well.
- Note that I have not folded or scored my cover paper…I want to keep it sort of softly rounded in the spine area
STEP 4 – EMBELLISH
Finally, after making your journal, you can embellish and use it!
For the cover, I used alphabet stickers to create a title. You can also write directly on the label or print out something you have typed on the computer to add on.
For the pocket on the inside cover, it’s best to fold the larger flap behind and up first, then glue the little flaps on either side. This gives you a smooth inside pocket to slip things into. Then glue the whole pocket into your journal. I put it on the inside of the front cover, but you can also add it to the first page of your journal or the back cover instead. You can also print more copies and create more pockets within the journal for more space!
For the tags, I punched holes at the top and added some linen string. Pretty simple, but cute. I’m keeping them int the pocket, before adding them throughout my journal. The pocket is nice for keeping ephemera or to store some materials that you will use in the journal.
Vintage Printables Tips for Embellishments
- Consider how you would like to embellish your journal cover.
- Consider what you would like to include in your pocket or print more than one to include throughout the pages of the journal.
- You can ink up or pre-embellish your tags as well
- Many like to embellishment the binding or spine of their journals with fiber, charms, etc
- Use ribbon or other material to create a closure for your journal (I used braided ribbon for mine)
Above all, have fun with it and make it your own! My goal was to start things up and create a template for the creation of a vintage styled journal…but where your creativity takes you, along with unique supplies… makes it a custom book just for you!
As a final touch, I decided to braid up some ribbon and wrap it around my journal, to keep it together and to add a little special touch. Whatever crafty supplies you have lying around would be great to use!
I hope my documentation gives you enough instruction to create the vintage journal, but I also hope this has provided some good suggestions and tips on how to make it your own as well.
Enjoy this Vintage Printable Freebie and have fun creating!
by Linda | Jun 16, 2020 | DIY printables
Check out these posters for activism in multiple skin tones. You can download these free PDF posters featuring a heart in a fist hand.
Previously, I posted free printable black lives matter and antiracist protest signs for download and after receiving some feedback, I thought it would be nice to create a set of posters with the same fist and heart motif, but in multiple skin tones.
In these variations I don’t have any specific slogan or phrase, because I’m thinking you can write your own message when creating a protest sign. Also, my thought is that the symbol itself is about activism from the heart for the good of everyone. Are you an activist?
It’s really symbolic in terms of pledging to yourself that you will pay attention and do what you can. You can decorate your house, your planner, your refrigerator, etc as a reminder to keep yourself accountable. Keep reading, learning, listening and doing what you can to help make this world a better place.
For those who are crafters like me, we also love to have imagery for memory keeping, papercrafting, writing letters, etc – so these printables can be used in a variety of ways for your paper projects as well.
Of course, the skin tones I have included are by no means a perfect representation of all skin tones possible. I wanted to include a variety, but obviously when it comes to printing on paper, subtle differences in color and even certain colors in general might not print as you see them on the computer screen. So ultimately, it’s just an indication, an idea, a representation to show diversity amongst activists.
I love the idea that creativity and illustration can help one to express their feelings. I hope that by sharing this heart in fist hand motif… I can start a wave that ripples out into the world.
Download Posters for Activism in Multiple Skin Tones
For Personal Use Only
Download Activism Heart in Fist Hand Printables PDF
I have to admit that the more I learn, the more I am angry, frustrated and saddened… there’s so much going on and there are so many emotions… It’s just not easy to come to terms with the injustice and the worst thing is feeling helpless and unable to enact change.
Although the protests started in the United States, the effects have been global and protests have been seen across the globe. Ultimately, racism is a problem everywhere – no one is untouched – whether overtly or unconsciously. I believe that we have to actively work on making this world better for everyone and every little action ripples out into the world.
When I channel my energy to design, to help provide resources and to focus also on the good and positivity that is possible… that is at least a little something that I can do from where I stand. I know that it can feel overwhelming at times – I feel it too – but positive energy can make a difference – we can make a change – we just have to keep on moving forward.
I hope these printables will provide you with a starting point or as a helpful resource and tool for expressing your feelings and ultimately as a catalyst for making change in this world. Sending you love where ever you are!
BTW, you can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page here and I’m also on Twitter here. Thank you in advance for stopping by my blog.
Want more FREE printable designs?
You can find my original post with Black Lives Matter and Antiracist posters here >>
My name is Linda and I’m a graphic designer, born and raised in Los Angeles and currently living in Italy. I regularly share free printable designs on this blog for free download, so check out all the freebies and don’t miss out on new posts by signing-up for my email newsletter >>
Thank you for your support! Keep spreading the word and share this post with anyone who could use these designs.
by Linda | Jun 1, 2020 | DIY printables
Looking for printable black lives matter protest signs and posters? Download these FREE poster designs for your personal use and keep spreading the word!
My beloved country of America is currently in much turmoil over the injustice and racism that runs rampant no only in the criminal justice system – but throughout all aspects of living in a society that was designed for the privilege of white men.
I too am angry. I too am sad. I too am frustrated.
I stand with the #blacklivesmatter protestors with my heart and my money, donating to Black Lives Matter and Reclaim the Block. I know that change is possible and we need to FORCE the changes needed – changes that are long overdue.
I wanted to share some designs that I have created, if you are going out to protest and want to make a sign with them. I also think it’s helpful and important to openly display your support for BIPOC and declare your anti-racism in general. You can put these up in your house, in your office, on your doors and neighborhood spaces. I think it’s important to declare it!
Download Printable Black Lives Matter + Antiracist Signs and Posters
The PDF file includes 6 pages of printables, so you can choose what works for you.
DOWNLOAD: Free Printable Black Lives Matter Anti Racist PDF
It took me awhile to realize it, but I know now that it is extremely important to DECLARE that you are ANTIRACIST. Why? Because we NEED to ACTIVELY change the system and correct the injustices in our society. Although there is a huge problem in America, racism exists everywhere and so this is truly a global problem. I’m Asian, born in America and now living in Italy. Most of my family is still in California and there are so many emotions running through me at the moment… I had to do whatever I could… even if I’m far away.
BTW, you can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page here and I’m also on Twitter here. Thank you in advance!
I hope that by sharing designs – something I’m able to do right now – can help spread awareness, enable you to declare your intentions and push this movement along. Does protest make you feel uncomfortable? Maybe this will help you understand on IG by Trevor Noah.
We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Want more printable designs?
After receiving feedback and suggestions, I decided to create another set of posters for activism in multiple skin tones for free download here.
My name is Linda and I’m a graphic designer, born and raised in Los Angeles and currently living in Italy. I regularly share free printable designs on this blog for free download, so check out all the freebies and don’t miss out on new posts by signing-up for my email newsletter >>
Thank you for your support! Keep spreading the word and share this post with anyone who could use these designs.
by Linda | May 14, 2020 | DIY printables
Download these free printable animal print paper designs for scrapbooking, art journaling, planner decoration and more papercrafting fun!
Animal print patterns, from leopard to cheetah are super trendy these days and I have seen many variations out there. I decided to try my hand in creating an animal print design pattern and throwing in some non-traditional colors as well.
The tan colored spotted leopard cheetah pattern is classic and very earthy feeling to me. However, I wanted to share a splash of hot pink and turquoise blue as well. What do you think of the variations? With a bit of texture, this large-scale animal print pattern is great for planner dashboards and all kinds of happy mail papercrafting projects.
You can decorate your planner pages or collage them in your creative journal. Or maybe make some cards for friends? I love sharing printable papers because I think they are the most versatile for paper lovers and crafty folks like us! What project do you have in mind for these beautiful animal print papers?
Download Free Printable Animal Print Paper
Just click on the link below to download all three variations of animal print paper designs in 12×12 inch, high-resolution size. You can print smaller or larger using your home printer settings, depending on the project you are working on. Enjoy!
Download Free Printable Animal Print Paper Designs ZIP
Happy papercrafting! If you love digital papers, consider supporting me on Patreon for exclusive patterned paper downloads >>
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by Linda | May 2, 2020 | DIY printables
A covid-19 time capsule printable to help capture this time in history. Full-color FREE DOWNLOAD for creative journaling and memory keeping.
Why Create a Covid-19 Time Capsule Printable?
No matter where you are in the world, no doubt you have been affected in some way by the Covid-19 Pandemic. Although there is a lot of frustration and anxiety coming out of this situation, it’s important to document your feelings anyway. You can make this moment in time an amazing keepsake for your family using this printable and a dash of creativity.
I’ve been seeing a lot of covid-19 time capsule printables created for kids. Some are part of distance learning programs and others just a fun activity in general. I love the idea and I think it’s a great way to guide children in processing this unprecedented experience. So I decided to create my own version for memory keeping purposes. With full-color pages and more open-ended spaces, there’s room to decorate and journal.
Download Covid-19 Time Capsule Printable
Journaling in all forms is a very therapeutic activity, so the act of creating documentation for this experience can really help alleviate stress! I post this on May 2nd – International Scrapbook Day – so it’s a perfect opportunity to do some memory keeping together.
I decided to use a little cactus illustration because it sort of resembles the whole covid-19 virus look, but a lot CUTER! It also made me think of this time period, where it’s all prickly and freaky like a cactus. However, we can always take some sort of goodness out of a bad situation. Find the silver lining as people say.
DOWNLOAD: Covid-19 Time Capsule Printable PDF
Looking for Other Time Capsule Printables?
The original Covid-19 Time Capsule Printables I saw are here…
I have also seen a couple more here and here – if you are looking for something different.
Whatever method you choose to document with, it will surely be a beautiful keepsake to look back upon.
Happy papercrafting and remember that you can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page is here.
Looking For More FREE Printables?
You might also like the following printable posts for freebies:
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by Linda | Mar 16, 2020 | DIY printables
Here’s a free printable coloring page for girls with the ‘i love myself’ positive affirmation – coloring fun and boosting your self-esteem!
Positive Girls Coloring Book
Finally, I have finished up my first coloring book with 25 original illustrations of my positive girls characters. Each girl supports a positive affirmation, because I love the idea of destressing while you color and repeating a positive affirmation at the same time. Double win!
Ultimately, there are universal truths for all of us… no if and or buts. You need only repeat the positive statements… and I know personally, even knowing something, I need the reminder regardless.
My hope is that this coloring book will be a joy for little girls AND their moms. It’s a lovely mother-daughter activity as well as something to do for parties and youth groups to boost confidence and self-esteem in girls.
Have fun coloring and actively repeat the positive affirmations at the same time. When your coloring book is complete, you will have a finished piece of beautiful artwork YOU have created personally to read and repeat every day.
It’s my hope that this helps girls all around world to love themselves, feel their worthiness and boost their self-esteem all around. We are positive girls, right?
Download the printable coloring page for girls sample below – I love myself
Download Positive Girls I love myself PDF
This page is the same one posted on my patreon page here. ENJOY and feel free to share this post and spread the word.
If you love coloring and positive affirmations, support my work by purchasing the book published on Amazon! Thank you!
And even if you are not personally interested in coloring or positive affirmations for girls, perhaps you might share this with a friend who would love it or gift it to the girls in your life. I would really appreciate your support in any way. THANK YOU!
Happy coloring and crafting! Remember that you can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page is here.
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by Linda | Mar 6, 2020 | DIY printables
Want to celebrate with inspirational quotes for International Women’s Day? Check out these free downloads to print or post on social media!
Quotes for International Women’s Day
Supporting women and celebrating women’s rights should be a given and neverending effort (I’m a woman afterall) but it is nice to have a specific holiday to help spread awareness. March 8th is International Women’s Day. The holiday dates back to the 1900s as “a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality,” according to the official IWD website.
When it comes to sentiments, I love sharing phrases and quotes to help spread the love. There are so many great quotes to share, so do your part by spreading the word about this holiday. From empowering sayings to quotes about equality – it’s all positivity!
I thought it would be great to take my favorite quotes for international women’s day and create some shareable graphics. These are free to download and pass around, print out for journaling and decoration. I’m happy to create something positive and uplifting to share with everyone for the occasion.
Free Downloads
Feel free to right-click and download the images below for your social media sharing and posting. There’s also a link to a zip file with all the image JPGs, if you want to download in one shot. You are free to print them out and use for other purposes. There are so many crafts and fun paper crafts that can be done with these graphics, enjoy!
Download IWD Quotes ZIP
Remember that you can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page is here.
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by Linda | Feb 28, 2020 | DIY printables
FREEBIE printable shamrock templates and full-color paper designs for coloring and crafting this St. Patrick’s Day or any Irish themed craft project.
Printable Shamrock Templates
Lately I’ve been playing around with the shamrock design and shape. I love how the leaves of clover look like little hearts stuck together. Super cute and adorable, just right up my alley!
So I thought it was only right to create some shamrock printables to share here on the blog. For those of us with little kids, coloring and crafting are fun art projects to past the time. So I’ve create a printable shamrock template that has the 3 leaf and 4 leaf clover on one page. It can be a coloring page, use for collage and learning around the theme of plants, St. Patrick’s Day and green related lessons.
Of course, while I was at it, I also used the design to go a bit further and create a shamrock patterned paper design. It has lots of layered color and an organic textile texture to it as well. It’s a pretty printable paper design for scrapbooking, art journaling and all kinds of paper crafting projects. Everything is available for free download below.
BTW, if you like printable patterned papers, considering supporting me on Patreon here to get my entire feed of patterned paper printables >>
Free Printable Downloads
Download the zip file below that contains both shamrock template outlines and the full color shamrock patterned paper design I created. I hope these will help you with your next crafty project!
Download Printable Shamrock Template & Paper ZIP
Happy papercrafting! You can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page is here.
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by Linda | Feb 13, 2020 | DIY printables
Looking for a DIY printable love coupon template? Download this FREEBIE with a super sweet design as an alternative gift option.
Printable Love Coupons
Disclosure: This blog post may contain some affiliate links for products or services I recommend. This means if you make a purchase from one of these links, we might make a small commission at no additional cost to you, which helps this blog to keep running! Thanks!
Are you looking for a last minute gift item? Or maybe you want to give an experience or an alternative gift… enter printable coupons! I never knew about coupon books until recently and realized they are very popular. It’s a great way to give someone something, to express your gratitude and love… but not a traditional gift.
I love this idea especially for kids, giving them a bit of power in what they really want as a gift or if you write your own experience-type gifts. It’s a pretty amazing thing.
TheHungryJPEG.com has beautiful graphics, so I decided to use them to create a beautiful printable love coupon template. If you check the freebies section on TheHungryJPEG.com you’ll find plenty of graphics to use – so make use of them!
Using all the sweet graphics, I created this printable love coupon template, download below. Enjoy!
Free Download…
Download Printable Love Coupon Template PDF
If you love this design, but don’t want to print it all out yourself, consider buying the full-color printed booklet on Amazon here. I love creating designs and publishing them to make available for anyone who needs this kind of alternative gift idea!
Happy papercrafting! You can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page is here.
Looking For More FREE Printables?
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by Linda | Feb 7, 2020 | DIY printables
Looking for love you printable cards? This free printable is easy to print at home for Valentines and any other love related occasion.
Nothing like some chic, modern and pretty designs for your loved one. These freebie printable cards are great for Valentine’s and all your lovey dovey occasions!
Disclosure: This blog post may contain some affiliate links for products or services I recommend. This means if you make a purchase from one of these links, we might make a small commission at no additional cost to you, which helps this blog to keep running! Thanks!
I’m a big fan of using all the beautiful graphics and illustrations that are offered out there on the web. There are plenty of reputable companies that give you free and paid graphics to use, so definitely take advantage of it!
There are these beautiful modern looking black and white papers in the freebies section of TheHungryJPEG.com. They make a perfect background for printable cards, so I used a few of the backgrounds to create a variety of typography style printable cards.
Sometimes you can use graphics pretty directly, but consider overlaying colors, creating layers and other combinations. It’s truly a fun process to use something beautiful and make something else even more beautiful!
Love you Printable Cards
Download Love You Printable Cards PDF
Happy papercrafting! You can find me on Instagram as @tortagialla and my Facebook art page is here.
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