KPOP Journals: The Ultimate Guide To Fangirling

Fangirling is part of our nature where you can’t help but root for someone. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that and if you have discovered Korean artists, consider yourself blessed. However, even if you’re a long time journalist, I’m about to explode your experience with none other than Kpop journals.

So, what is a Kpop journal? It’s a compilation of your thoughts, feelings, notes, and ideas of kpop artists or individuals you stan all written in one place. Not only can you explore the thrilling reasons as to why you’re a fangirl of a particular group, but you can also dive deep into self-awareness to discover more about yourself and interests (your likes, dislikes, motivation, happiness, etc).

If keeping a Kpop journal is something you’d love to incorporate into your life, we’ve put together everything there is to know. Let’s start, shall we?

What Supplies Will I Need?

Okay, so the next step is to acquire your supplies. There are a few basic things you’ll need to get:

• Notebook/bullet journal
• Markers
• Micron Pens
• Glue
• Printer

How Do I Start A Kpop Journal?

Starting a kpop journal is incredibly easy and quick to do but if you’d like a full step by step process, follow along with this tutorial.

Step 1: Choose a journal

As mentioned above you’re going to need a pretty journal, to begin with.

It really doesn’t matter what kind of journal to use whether that’s lined or dotted but if you’re planning to write long written journal entries, you might want to opt for the lined paper since this will impact how neat your handwriting turns out.

But this all depends on what you would prefer.

You’ll also want to take into account the type of paper you’re going to use in terms of how thick the paper is. Some paperweight can be incredibly thin which will lead to marker bleeds on the other side creating a messy look.

But our recommendation is the Leuchtturm1917 Medium A5 or this Dotted Grid Journal that is madly raved about by every bullet journaler. 

However, if you’re aiming to just use one simple pen without any fancy drawings or colorings, you can use just about any type of paper.

Step 2: Pick a topic

The next thing you’ll want to decide on is the topics you’re going to journal about.

You can pick individual groups or add them all in one place but on a spare page, write down which sections you’ll be including, the names of the groups, the page ideas to add, and pick out the cutest images to print and stick in your journal.

If you plan ahead, this will save you time and effort from having to cover up mistakes or figure out how to fill up blank pages.

Other things to include in kpop journals:

• Your Story
• Facts about your idol
• Album Collection
• Favorite Songs
• Favorite Moments
• Monthly Favorites
• Fashion Wear
• K-Dramas/Reality Shows
• Hair Style/Color Changes

Step 3: Use Prompts

Prompts are fantastic when you’ve hit a brick wall and confused when deciding what to journal about. It’s quite a common problem when journaling more often but with these kpop journal prompts, you’ll never run out of things to say!

1. My favorite kpop music video of all time is . . .
2. The best airport fashion award goes to . . .
3. An empowering song with the greatest impact
4. A life-changing moment in kpop history
5. The song that makes me feel guilty is . . .
6. The last played song in your playlist is . . .
7. Artists that should sing together . . .
8. The best dance routine goes to . . .

Step 5. Create Weekly Spreads With A Particular Singer As The Theme

If you’d like to always have a little Kpop thrown in your daily life, create a weekly spread but print out stickers to decorate the spreads.

You can also go further by adding funny quotes from these members to liven up your week.

Take a quick look at this step by step tutorial that will show you a simple and easy kpop journal weekly spread that is easy to recreate while adding a touch of your favorite kpop idol.

Step 4: Customize

Here comes the fun part – decorating! I always love to decorate before writing down words (but it’s just as fun to do it afterward). Here you can pick a particular theme to follow for every month or keep it simple with a minimalistic style.

You’re really not restricted when it comes to customizing since this is the perfect way to express your creativity. However, there are many ways to decorate a journal such as with washi tapes, stickers, midliners, glitter, and patterned paper.

In just a little bit, you’ll find various ways to decorate the different pages of kpop journals as well as a few inspirational ideas to take into account when starting your own.

Ways To Use A Kpop Journal

There are many ways to keep and use a kpop journal that will be fun and entertaining for weeks and months but there are also many ways to incorporate your love for kpop in your current bullet journal.

Here are the best ways to use it:

1. Keep Track of Upcoming Song Releases (Comebacks)

Up the excitement of a group’s new comeback by dedicating spreads to what excites you the most, what the teaser includes, your expectations, and the general release dates of all the comebacks from each group or individuals.

2. Discuss Each Group In Detail And What They Mean To You

You can also use kpop journals to truly explore what each group or member means to you, what your feelings were when you first watched their debut while exploring how the group came together, which members you would like to see have more lines, who’s the best dancer or singer from the group. The topics are really endless!

3. Do A Case Study On A Particular Member (Bias Study)

We all have at least one bias (or two) from a group and to have a bit of fun and make your journal interesting, write down what makes this particular person special, their likes and dislikes, remarkable moments, acts of kindness, and their life pre-debut.

Image Source: AminoApps

4. Write Down Your Concert Experience

A first concert(or if you’re really lucky a personal fan meeting) to your ultimate bias can be a nerve-wracking experience for some but it’s a moment to remember for a lifetime.

Give an account of what your morning was like, how you managed to score tickets, what was it like seeing your bias in person, who you went with, and basically how the day or night played out.

5. List Your Favorite Songs And Their Meaning

Songs are a big part of Kpop (including the epic dance moves) but pass all the excitement, there’s a meaning behind every song.

Make use of the journal to relate which song was your favorite for particular groups and how it touched you in a special way.

Did the meaning behind the song motivate you to do something incredible in life? Did it remind you to do an act of kindness when you listened to it earlier?

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You can also create a master list of your favorite songs by all the groups you stan.

Go further and create a list of playlist songs to refer to when you’re in the mood for something calming, exciting, soothing, or to pick you up when you’re feeling down.

6. Explore Your Favorite Artists Quotes and Lessons

If you love watching reality shows featuring your favorite artists, rewatch them to find impactful or funny moments that happened. You could also watch fanmade videos of hilarious interactions between members or when different groups team-up.

Alternatively, pick a few artists and write down the advice they have given to fans or to themselves in their younger days.

For example, a few members from BTS have many golden sayings such as RM who said ‘If you’re debating whether to go or not, go’ or as Jin says ‘Please study English.’

7. Have A List of Facts Guide

Create a handy list of facts guide that goes into detail for a particular group. This is a fun activity that will have you actively searching for new information about a group or member.

You can write down things such as their first debut, debut song, their hometown when they first audition, and their favorite food among others.

Ways To Decorate A Kpop Journal Spread

Decoring your journal is always the most fun part about journaling but it can be really stressful when you know what or how to make your journal look good. Here are a few sneaky ways we learned that might just help you create a beautiful masterpiece.

Cover

When decoring a kpop cover page, you don’t have to go all out but if you would like to make it top of the class then try this.

You can either write your name or the words ‘My Kpop Journal’ is a fancy block print and make it colorful. You can also add stickers or even the pictures of the members that you’re going to be journaling about.

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First Page

The kpop journal first page is pretty much a big deal so you’re going to want to make it special. Since this journal is mostly personal experience, you’ll want to combine these two elements together. How so? Write down your story and include your number one group that introduced you to kpop.

Spreads

Now that we’ve knocked out the main two pages, it’s time to find out how to decorate journal spreads. This one is really simple and easy plus there are plenty of tips you can use that will definitely make your spread look good but here’s a quick glance at the craft supplies to use:

Washi tape – These tapes come in all different colors and patterns so you have a wide range of ideas available. They can be used to decorate the borders of the page or even a small piece of the washi tape can make a huge difference to a spread.

Brush Pens – If you want to create fancy fonts or try those hand-lettering techniques you see in just about every spread, then you’re going to need a good quality brush pen. However, learning how to hand letter is easy and fun but you will need practice in order to truly get the hang of it.

a spread in my kpop journal i made a while back for bts’ jung hoseok his birthday!
byu/joyceying inJournaling

Watercolor Paint – I always believe a few splashes of watercolor paint with a paintbrush can really give off an artistic appeal. You don’t need to do anything complicated but you might want to go light on this one just in case your paper is not strong enough to hand the water. You could opt for acrylic but those are two different materials and you may not get the same effect.

Black Paper & White Pen – My latest obsession is the white marker on black paper. I’m completely in love with the way this one turns out. It’s bold, creative, and really catches the eye. Although you’re limited with just one color of a pen (but you can try a light blue, yellow, silver or gold glitter pens), you could always use patterned paper or washi tape to add a pop of color.

Stickers – These are incredibly helpful if you’re not that great at drawing or doodling yet and it’s much quicker than sitting down and drawing each item. You’ll find plenty of beautiful custom stickers as well to add to your journal or you could even make your own. Either way, they’re a great option for turning around a bland-looking spread.

Kpop Journal Spread Ideas

For the ultimate inspiration to increase your motivation to journal, you’ll want to take a look at these following spreads.

Referencing other people’s journals will help better yours since you’ll be able to pick out ideas that speak to you and leave out those that don’t.

If you ever hit a mental block when journaling, come back to these gorgeous spreads and your motivation to journal again will skyrocket!

1. Weekly Spread Ideas

2. Birthday Spread

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A post shared by ally 🇵🇭 (@minluv.jpg) on Apr 5, 2020 at 11:09pm PDT

3. Song Dedication Page

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A post shared by breana. 🌱🌻 (@milkyboos) on Nov 4, 2019 at 8:46am PST

4. Bias Swap Page

Image Source: AminoApps

Printing Tips

You’re going to need pictures for your journal and if you’re not living in Korea, this may be hard to come across. That’s why printing at home is much cheaper than if you had to do it anywhere else but the only problem is the quality.

Here are a few printing at-home tips you can try:

Use high-quality paper

Normal printer paper will not make your pictures look like a real photograph but you could try a gloss or matte paper that will give you a high-quality finish but these will, unfortunately, cost you.

Try an inkjet printer if possible

An inkjet printer is said to give you an amazing color print so you don’t need an expensive laser printer to get the job done.

Reduce the size of the images

After finishing the printer ink more often than I would have liked, it came done to reducing the size of the image drastically or not print anymore at all. But I couldn’t do without my images!

Use the best setting

There are options on the printer and each one will determine how your print turns out. Make sure to tick the best print setting to get that near-perfect finish.

Be aware of how much you’re printing

The last thing you’ll want to do is finish all your ink of an expensive (or cheap) printer. Monitor the ink levels and reduce the size of the images so that it will last you longer.

Conclusion

Having a Kpop journal is one of the most exciting ways to increase your enjoyment and dedication to Kpop and the members you stan. There are various ways of keeping one and you’re not bound to make it look artistic or creative.

A simple black pen and notebook are all you need to share your kpop thoughts, ideas, and to express your love for multiple things.

So, what are your thoughts and feelings on Kpop journals? Do you keep one or are you planning to jump right in?