Here's how your trash can become treasure with this easy guide

On a fine evening my desk often looks like a recycling bin that exploded Movie tickets from last weekend a crinkled gift wrapper an old metro receipt scraps torn from magazines mdash nothing thatrsquod normally survive a spring clean But inside a notebook these fragments begin to rearrange themselves into something strangely meaningful Suddenly the page tells a story of an ordinary dayThis is the essence of junk journalling Unlike traditional scrapbooking which often aims for polished pictureperfect layouts junk journalling thrives on imperfection Your chaos is beautifully laid out on pages and the best part is that you are the one imitating your chaos Torn edges mismatched textures overlapping papers and uneven handwriting are not mistakes they are part of the charmIn an age dominated by screens and speed the appeal lies in slow pacing as you cut and arrange pieces by hand For many like myself junk journalling becomes a way to hold onto fleeting moments and untangle thoughts What begins as crafting often turns therapeuticBacked by sciencePsychologists have been studying the effects of journalling for decades Much of this work comes from research by social psychologist James Pennebaker whose early experiments asked participants to write about emotional experiences for about 15 to 20 minutes over several days Many participants later reported improved mood reduced stress and better emotional clarity Junk journalling essentially functions as a hybrid of diary mindfulness exercise and a form of informal art therapyHow to beginStarting a junk journal is surprisingly simple Begin with any notebook you have lying around My first and present scrapbook is my 7th standard school notebook Then start collecting scraps from your everyday life Fine tickets receipts chocolate wrappers postcards mdash anything that catches your eye can find a place on the page At the end of the week sit down with glue tape pens or markers and start layering them together Add small notes about your day doodles song lyrics yoursquove been playing on repeat or photos from your camera rollMost importantly donrsquot worry about making it look perfect Crooked pages messy layering and mismatched colours are exactly what make it personal Do what you do best Be yourselfWhat is junk journallingAt its core it is about turning everyday scraps into something expressive There are no rules Some pages end up chaotic and bursting with colour while others stay simple and minimalIrsquoll spend hours sometimes days slowly building pages with photos and small memories only to look back on them later with affection Not every journal has to be deeply personal either Some of mine are just dedicated to things I love music Irsquom obsessing over celebrities Irsquom currently crazy for little coffee moments or even visionboard style spreads about goals and exercising In the end the journal becomes whatever you want it to beThe right toolkit amp inspirationsOne of my inspiration accounts on Instagram PicInstagramSisleymarkMy scrapbook supplies have evolved over time In the beginning I mostly drew things myself or pasted simple cutouts from newspapers Slowly I started exploring journalling kits like Odd Giraffe and the stationary shops picking up materials that could bring a page together Itrsquos wonderful what one can discover in these small dingy shops Sometimes I even tear pages from wornout books or old notebooks Not everyone likes the idea of dismantling books but you really do what feels right For inspiration I spend a lot of time browsing boards on Pinterest where I keep a dedicated journalling collection I also follow art creators like SisleyMark on Instagram