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Peek Inside a Journal | Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel

Last updated on October 21st, 2023 • Peek inside a Journal

Isn’t it fun to look inside other people’s journals?

Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel is a graphic designer in marketing and PR in Kiel, Germany. She is also the creative spark behind @IllustratedJournal on Instagram where she has over 24,000 followers–with good reason. Her journal is fascinating.

Kathrin is one of the first people I started following on Instagram when I realized other people were posting their journals there. She really stretched my imagination as to what was possible in a journal.

In this interview, Kathrin gives us a behind the scenes glimpse at how she approaches her personal journaling practice.

When did you start journaling? 

I’ve been writing a diary for a long time, but it wasn’t until 2001 that I started to illustrate my diaries. I had bought a Moleskine Pocket Diary as an appointment calendar and started making little sketches of the day’s events. I liked that because it made it much easier for me to find certain entries. Better than flipping through pages of text.

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

How has journaling impacted you? What has it meant to you? 

I loved doing these little drawings. For a long time I hadn’t painted or drawn, I had lost the desire to do so during my studies. In my diary, I had the option of just drawing for myself, and it didn’t matter what the result was. The memory was important to me. Over the years the drawings got better, and I discovered on flickr that other people are also using their Moleskine books as an illustrated diary. I signed up there and started showing my diary pages on flickr. This created an inspiring exchange that motivated me a lot.

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

Tell us about your personal set up? What type of journal and tools do you use? 

I still use the Moleskine Pocket Diary in the size 9×14 cm. The paper is actually very unsuitable for watercolors, but I use them most often. The paper does curl a bit, but that doesn’t bother me. I use pencils and fineliners for the preliminary drawings.

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

When do you find time to journal? 

Actually, I think it’s best to draw before work. But since I started working around 6 a.m., I couldn’t do it anymore. So I usually paint in the afternoons and evenings. I always leave the painting supplies on my kitchen table so that I can continue at any time. Unfortunately, I rarely manage to paint a picture in one go.

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

Do you go back through old journals? How often do you review? 

Every now and then I leaf through old journals, but there are now so many that I don’t get to them too often.

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

The more you draw, the better you get over time. Learn to love your own style.

Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel

What advice do you have for people just getting started? 

The simplest trick is: just do it. Many think they cannot draw. But it doesn’t matter, you can start with stick figures. You shouldn’t measure yourself against others and think: “I can never do it that well!”, but try first and foremost to have fun drawing. The more you draw, the better you get over time. It’s hard to break free from comparisons with others, but I think it’s an important realization that you paint the way you paint and you won’t paint the way someone else paints. That doesn’t mean you can’t get tips from others to develop further. But you shouldn’t try to paint the way someone else paints, but learn to love your own style.

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

Where can people connect with you to learn more?

I am most active on Instagram, where I am always happy to receive comments, criticism and questions. 

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A post shared by Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel (@illustratedjournal)

We hope Kathrin Jebsen-Marwedel’s work inspires you to start your own visual journaling practice. All you have to do is pick up a journal and start practicing different techniques until you develop your own style.

About Cathy Hutchison

Cathy Hutchison helps people get more joy, meaning, and freedom in a world of demands through the practice of visual journaling.

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Cathy helps people
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1 cappuccino later. #urbansketching #sundaymorning 1 cappuccino later. #urbansketching #sundaymornings
My favorite part of #urbansketching is when the ba My favorite part of #urbansketching is when the basic idea is captured then I can add the ink. People move. Pencil is a good place to start!
One of the things I’ve enjoyed about carrying a One of the things I’ve enjoyed about carrying a notebook everywhere is that l can capture things during times when I would otherwise be scrolling. 

It takes me from consuming to creating. 

I drew this woman while waiting for a music and meditation program to start at the library last night. 

This morning, I finished the sketch at Starbucks. You don’t have to be able to draw to carry a notebook. Random notes and doodles also put you in creation-mode. And who knows? If you do it long enough you might pick up some skills. (That’s what happened to me.) #urbansketching #yourvisualjournal #carryanotebook
This book! I read The Buy Nothing Get Everything This book! 

I read The Buy Nothing Get Everything Plan at the intersection of: 

+ Feeling overwhelmed by how much plastic I use (and learning the severe limitations of plastic recycling.) 

+ The extreme cost of alternatives like toothpaste that comes in tablets, biodegradable plasticware, etc.

This book is SO PRACTICAL! Not only did it connect me to the Buy Nothing app which has resulted in some great gifts with people in my neighborhood, but it also reminded me that our grandparents didn't use all this stuff. (Commercials changed the way we live.) 

This book reminded me that: 

1) My mom brushed her teeth with baking soda as a child. (I put some in a diner-style sugar dispenser with peppermint essential oil and the cleaning results are pretty great.) 

2) Homemade salad dressing is easy and WAY more delicious than what comes in a plastic bottle.

3) Tons of things can be repurposed. (And Amazon doesn't need to be my first move.) 

I highly recommend downloading the free @buynothingapp and grabbing a copy of this book. (I first listened to it on my library's app, then decided to buy a copy so I could mark it up and use flags on the pages where I want to implement the ideas. 

#sustainability #plasticfree #artjournaling #yourvisualjournal #booksofinstagram
This is the most complex #urbansketch I’ve compl This is the most complex #urbansketch I’ve completed to date. Saturday, my @starbucks was crowded. I started with a quick pencil sketch, but the reality is that the scene kept moving. People standing there are amalgamations of those who came and went. 

It's interesting the decisions you have to make to simplify what's there so the drawing communicates, but still remains authentic to the scene. (ie. there's a lot of stuff missing behind the counter) I'm deeply enjoying this practice of drawing everyday scenes. 
#urbansketching #urbansketchers
#yourvisualjournal #artjournaling
Ever hear something that resonates so much you hav Ever hear something that resonates so much you have to write it down in your #journal word for word? #artjournaling
I'm finding that the more digital my world becomes I'm finding that the more digital my world becomes, the more satisfying it is to touch pens and paper. It's part of why I'm enjoying practicing #urbansketching.

The thing about urban sketching is that you learn it by doing it. I have a small pouch of pens and #watercolors with me all the time, so when I had some wait time at the Arboretum I tried to capture what was right in front of me. It became the backdrop to a #journal entry.

#yourvisualjournal
I carry my notebook with me everywhere and capture I carry my notebook with me everywhere and capture whatever feels significant or particularly charming. Because it is such a hub I keep my calendar here as well. It gives me a visual overview of the month and the doodles make me smile when planning. #journaling #yourvisualjournal #bulletjournal
Wine and I are not friends. (Yes, I know. Shocking Wine and I are not friends. (Yes, I know. Shocking.) 

However, I do enjoy wineries (= sitting on patios in beautiful locations talking with friends.) 

So, this weekend, I went with my wine friends which gave me the chance to practice #urbansketching in new locations. 

I find I keep focusing on the people and ignoring the scenery. By far to me the best part of any “place” is the people who are part of the fabric. 

It’s been fun exploring this type of #visualjournaling
Sometimes when faced with a whole #journal page it Sometimes when faced with a whole #journal page it’s easier to draw a smaller canvas to work in. Plus botanical #doodles are fun. #artjournaling #yourvisualjournal
I love capturing moments in a conversation in my j I love capturing moments in a conversation in my journal. This page was captured while sitting around Melanie’s kitchen table drinking tea.
Yesterday I went out solo for lunch to practice mo Yesterday I went out solo for lunch to practice more #urbansketching. This is such a fun challenge trying to build the skill.
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Disclosures

Some links on this site are affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The author receives a  small (really small) commission if you happen to buy something.  Funds are used to support journaling supplies & four crazy sweet Aussies who bark for treats every time I come in the door. (To be fair, I have a pattern of giving in to them.) I write about all kinds of journaling, and if Bullet Journaling is your thing, I’m here to support you. But if you want to go deep, go to the original source–Ryder Carroll, who created the system, and started it all at bulletjournal.com. I use the method daily which is why I started writing about it here.
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