What a Junk Journal Template Actually Is
A junk journal template is just a set of printable page layouts you can drop into your own mixed-media journal. It gives you pockets, flap pockets, lined sections, and spots for tickets or photos. You print it, score it, fold it, and glue it into a binding. That's basically it. The reason people buy these instead of making them from scratch comes down to time. A solid template with three or four layered pages will save you somewhere between 45 minutes and two hours of planning. Most adult junk journals end up taking about 30 to 45 minutes per page when you're doing it properly. The template cuts the measuring and layout phase down to almost nothing.
Junk Journal Template For Adults
If you're looking for a ready-made one, you can find several free options on Etsy and Creative Market, or paid ones from independent paper craft designers. I usually download from either a free blog post or a small shop at a place like PaperArtsy or Crafty Templates. My go-to was a pack called Junk Journal Basics that had four different pocket layouts and a few lined inserts. It ran about five dollars and came as a PDF. You want PDFs, not PNGs. A lot of the cheap ones are raster images and when you print them at full size they blur or get pixelated. Check the dimensions before you buy. Standard US letter and A4 are the two you'll see most often.
How to Actually Use a Template
Here is the practical process. Print the template pages on whatever paper you want. Most people use cardstock between 65 and 80 lb. Anything lighter and the pocket flaps sag under the weight of added items. Thicker than 110 lb and scoring becomes a fight. Score along the fold lines before you fold. Use a bone folder or the back of a butter knife. This creates a crisp fold without cracking the paper. Most templates have faint gray score lines built right in. If yours doesn't, measure and mark with a ruler and a mechanical pencil. Fold along the score lines, then apply glue. I use a glue stick for most things. Liquid glue warps the paper too much on thin cardstock. For heavier pockets that are going to hold something substantial, I switch to a thin line of PVA applied with a brush. It spreads out more evenly and doesn't pool.
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My Actual Worked Example
I worked through one last week with a template that had four gate-fold flaps. Two of the flaps had a habit of not sticking down flat after the glue dried. The adhesive area on those particular flaps was too narrow because the template designer had made them slightly tapered. What ended up working was adding a small square of scrap paper behind each flap before folding. It gave the glue something wider to grab onto. Total extra time: about three minutes for the whole journal. Another thing that came up: one of my pages measured 0.5 mm off after printing. This is normal. Most home printers drift a bit. I caught it when I tried to fold one of the pockets and the edges didn't align. I just trimmed 0.5 mm off the outer edge with a guillotine paper cutter and moved on.
Things That Usually Go Wrong
The biggest issue I see is that people treat the template like it's a finished product. It isn't. The template is a starting point. Every page you add to a junk journal is supposed to be customized over time. You add washi tape, stamps, pressed flowers, ticket stubs, handwritten notes. A template doesn't come with any of that. It just gives you structure. Another common mistake is skipping the binding step. A lot of free templates assume you have a blank book already. If you don't, you need to bind the pages yourself or insert them into a ring binder. I made the mistake once of gluing twelve printed pages together without a spine and the journal fell apart two weeks later. Use a Japanese stab binding or a simple pamphlet stitch if you're making it from scratch. Both take about fifteen minutes. There's also the issue of pocket weight. Junk journal pockets are meant to hold things. Pens, cards, photographs, folded notes. If you fill a pocket designed for light paper items with metal clips or thick photo cards, the journal will sag and the binding will strain. I learned this the hard way with a metal bookmark that weighed about 40 grams. It bent the pocket and pulled the adjacent pages out of alignment. Now I stick to lightweight items unless I reinforce the pocket with double-layer cardstock.
Advanced Detail Most People Miss
One counter-intuitive thing: you can actually reuse the same template file multiple times by printing it on both sides. Flip the page and keep the score lines aligned. This gives you two usable pages per sheet instead of one. It's how I doubled the output of a single sheet of cardstock without buying a second one. Also, if you're using a template with multiple layers, start with the bottom-most layer and work upward. This keeps your workspace clean and prevents you from accidentally gluing a flap down before the layers underneath are properly positioned. I used to do it in reverse order and spent about ten minutes every time adjusting misaligned pockets.
When a Template Is the Wrong Choice
If you already know exactly what size and shape you want for every single page, a template is unnecessary overhead. Making your own layouts from scratch takes longer upfront but gives you full control over dimensions. For someone who journals with the same pocket sizes every single time, the time investment pays off after the second or third journal. Templates also fall apart if you need very specific sizing. A template built for standard letter paper won't work well if your journal is bound differently or if you prefer A5 or B6 formats. You'd need to scale everything, and scaling can distort score lines and margins.
Where to Find One Right Now
I keep a folder of template links I've used. Here are the ones that actually work well: Free option: The Junk Journal Template pack from Studio Calico. It includes six pages with pockets and flaps. It's a direct PDF download, no account needed. Search "Studio Calico free junk journal template" and you'll find it. Paid option: The Complete Junk Journal Kit by Crafty Templates on Etsy. Twelve pages, three different pocket styles, and matching cover designs. Around eight dollars. Worth it if you plan to make more than two journals.
Alternative: If you don't want to print anything, you can skip the template entirely and just cut and fold plain cardstock. The learning curve is steeper but you avoid the alignment issues that come with pre-printed templates.
Bottom Line
A junk journal template is a practical tool. It speeds up the layout phase and gives you something that looks finished right away. It doesn't replace the creative decisions you'll make afterward. Those still take time. But if you're starting out and want a reliable structure to build from, a well-designed template is the fastest route to a journal that doesn't fall apart after a week of use.
