A Christmas journal fills up fast: ticket stubs from the tree farm, a recipe card with flour on it, the list of who got what. This Christmas junk journal kit gives you the paper and ephemera to hold all of it, in classic red and green with a soft aged-paper look.
There are ten US Letter pages: three background papers, a lined journal page, journaling cards, tags and labels, stamps and tickets, a December calendar with a recipe card, and a pocket template with a belly band. Everything is drawn from scratch, so it prints clean at any size you trim it to.
What’s in the kit
- 3 background papers: red tartan plaid, green gingham and a cozy pattern of ornaments, candy canes and holly
- December Days lined journal page with a holly frame
- 6 journaling cards (about 3.6 × 3.1 inches): Tree Trimming, Cookies & Cocoa, Gifts Given, Snow Day, Merry Moments and Family Traditions
- 8 hang tags and 6 labels with Christmas greetings
- 6 postage-style stamps and 3 tickets: tree farm, holiday lights tour and cookie swap
- December 2026 calendar card, a to-do list and a “From the Kitchen of” recipe card
- Pocket template and belly band
The kit pages
Plaid, gingham and pattern papers
Use the papers as full-page backgrounds, cut them into strips for spine covers, or fold one in half to make a signature cover. The red plaid and the green gingham work well side by side, and the ornament pattern is busy enough to show through a vellum or tracing paper overlay.
December Days journal page
A lined page with a holly frame for longer entries: the week’s plans, a letter to your future self, or the story behind a photo. Print it on regular paper if you write with gel pens, or on cardstock if it will be a divider page.
Journaling cards
Six cards with a colored title band and writing lines. Tuck them behind a photo, glue them onto a tag, or slide them into the pocket. The titles cover the usual December moments, from trimming the tree to the snow day nobody planned for.
Tags and labels
The eight tags have a punch circle at the top for ribbon or twine, a small picture and a greeting: Merry Christmas, Season’s Greetings, Joy to You, Ho Ho Ho, Noel, Be Merry, Peace on Earth and Let It Snow. The six labels under them name what goes in a pocket or behind a flap: Cookies, Cocoa, Wish List, Memories, Keepsakes and Ticket Stubs.
Stamps and tickets
Six faux postage stamps with perforated edges (ornament, tree, candy cane, holly and star) and three admit-one tickets. Cut the stamps with plain scissors; the scalloped edge is already printed. They make good page corners and look nice tucked under a paperclip.
December calendar and recipe card
The calendar card shows December 2026, which starts on a Tuesday. Next to it is a to-do list with checkboxes, and the bottom half is a full-width recipe card with room for ingredients and directions. It is a good place to save the cookie recipe everyone asks for.
Pocket and belly band
Cut the pocket on the solid line, fold the side and bottom flaps along the dashed lines and glue them down. It holds journaling cards, receipts and photos. The belly band wraps around a finished journal and closes with a dab of glue.
Every page of the kit, one by one
Every page is shown on its own below. Click a page or its download link to open the full-size printable, then print it or save it. The PDF in the download box has all of them together.
How to put a Christmas junk journal together
- Print the papers first. Fold three or four sheets in half to make a signature, with a patterned sheet on the outside.
- Sew the signature with a simple three-hole pamphlet stitch, or staple it along the fold if you want it done in five minutes.
- Glue the pocket inside the back cover and fill it with a few journaling cards.
- Add tags with ribbon to the page edges so they stick out when the journal is closed.
- Keep the stamps, labels and tickets loose in an envelope and add them as the month goes on.
Christmas junk journal ideas: 6 pages to make with this kit
Not sure what to put in a Christmas junk journal? These six page ideas use only the free Christmas junk journal printables in this kit, plus the bits and pieces December hands you anyway:
- Tree day page: the tree farm ticket, the Tree Trimming journaling card and a photo of the tree before the ornaments go on.
- Cookie page: the “From the Kitchen of” recipe card, the Cookies label and the cookie swap ticket.
- Gift record: the Gifts Given card on a red plaid background, with a hang tag for each person on your list.
- Lights night: the holiday lights tour ticket and two or three faux postage stamps along the page edge.
- December at a glance: the December calendar card and the to-do list on the first spread, so the plan for the month is easy to find.
- Keepsake pocket: the pocket template glued inside the back cover, labeled Ticket Stubs or Keepsakes.
You can also use the kit as a ready-made December Daily: write a few lines a day on the December Days page and add one journaling card each week.
Printing tips
Print at “Actual size” on US Letter. Plain 24 lb paper is fine for the background papers and the journal page. For tags, stamps and the pocket, use light cardstock (65 lb) so they hold their shape. The papers print edge to edge only if your printer supports borderless printing; otherwise a thin white margin is normal and gets trimmed off.
Want a different look? The Victorian Christmas junk journal kit comes in burgundy and gold, and the Winter Wonderland junk journal kit works all winter. More ideas: the vintage junk journal kit has aged ledger and letter pages, the Christmas scrapbook paper set adds 12 more patterns, and the vintage Christmas printables include postcards and a fold-up card. For quick decoration, try the printable Christmas stickers.
FAQ
What is a Christmas junk journal?
It is a handmade journal built from paper scraps, printables and keepsakes collected over the holidays. There are no rules: some people journal daily, others just glue in tickets and photos.
Is this kit free for personal use?
Yes. Print as many copies as you like for your own journals, gifts and classroom crafts. Please don’t sell the printables or share the PDF file itself; link to this page instead.
What paper should I use?
Plain printer paper for backgrounds and lined pages, light cardstock for tags, stamps and the pocket. Matte paper takes ink pens and glue better than glossy photo paper.
Can I print it on A4?
Yes. Choose “Fit to page” in the print dialog. Everything scales down slightly but stays in proportion.
How many pages should a Christmas junk journal have?
Three or four sheets folded in half make one signature of 12 to 16 pages, which is plenty for a first Christmas junk journal. If you fill it before the 25th, sew in a second signature.
Can I make a Christmas junk journal without a sewing kit?
Yes. Staple the folded pages along the spine, or punch two holes and tie them with ribbon or baker’s twine. The belly band in the kit keeps the journal closed either way.
More free Christmas printables
- Christmas scrapbook paper: 12 patterns for backgrounds and pockets
- Free printable Christmas stickers: 127 stickers for pages and envelopes
- Vintage Christmas printables: postcards, labels and ephemera
- Free printable Christmas gift tags: 31 tags and To/From labels
- Free printable Christmas cards: 8 fold-in-half designs
