2. How to Start a Witchy Bullet Journal (Even If You’re Not “Arty” or Organised)

Practical guidance for the messy witches, the list-lovers, the dreamers with ten notebooks… and the kindreds just beginning. This is Part 2 in a Using a Bullet Journal as Your Book of Shadows Series.

Here are links to the rest of the posts in this series:

How to use a Bullet Journal as your Book of Shadows

How to Start a Witchy Bullet Journal (even if you’re not arty or organised)

Witchy Bullet Journal Spread Ideas for Beginners: Simple Pages to Start With

Witchy Goal Setting in Your Bullet Journal: A Practical, Magical Approach

Witchy Trackers, Planners & Collections: How to Use Your Bullet Journal Without Burning Out

Preparing Your Bullet Journal as a Sacred Book of Shadows: Creating Space for Your Magic

There’s also a FREE Printable Guide to Using a Bullet Journal as Your Book of Shadows, more details at the end of this post.

 

 

So, you’re feeling the pull to start a Book of Shadows — something real, tangible, and alive — but the blank page is staring back at you and you’re not quite sure where (or how) to begin.

Maybe you’ve seen the beautifully inked spreads online — the ones with perfect headers, colour-coded trackers, and goddess illustrations. And maybe that made you hesitate.

Let me say this clearly:

You don’t need to be a designer, an artist, or a super-organised planner to create a magical journal that works. You just need a space that feels like yours.

In this post, I’ll walk you through how to begin your own witchy bullet journal, whether you’re brand new or returning to your practice. We’ll keep it soft, simple, and sacred.

✦ What You Actually Need to Begin

Let’s strip it right back. Here’s what you truly need:

• A notebook — dotted is lovely, but any kind will do

• A pen — one that feels good in your hand

• A moment of quiet and an openness to begin

That’s it. Everything else is optional.

You can absolutely add to your setup over time — washi tape, goddess stamps, highlighters, tarot cards, stickers, pressed flowers. But don’t let the tools become a barrier. You already carry the most important part: your intention.

 

✦ Choosing Your Journal: A Few Practical Tips

If you’re new to bullet journaling, here are a few things that might help:

• Size matters — A5 is the sweet spot for most people: small enough to carry, big enough to write in.

• Dotted pages — These offer structure without being too rigid. Perfect for freeform spreads or drawing grids.

• Page numbers + index — Many journals (like the Leuchtturm1917) come with these pre-printed, which makes referencing and finding old spreads much easier.

But again — any notebook you already have is enough. Don’t wait for the “perfect” one.

 

✦ How to Set Up Your Witchy Bullet Journal

Your setup will shift and evolve over time. You don’t have to plan the whole thing in advance. You don’t need the “right” set of spreads. And you definitely don’t need to copy someone else’s aesthetic to make it valid.

This is your space. It’s not about perfection — it’s about practice.

But if you’d like a soft structure to begin with, here’s how I tend to think about it:

✧ 1. Annual Setup (Not Just for New Year)

I call these “annual” spreads, but really they can be started any time — the beginning of the year, your birthday, a new season, or just whenever you feel the urge to begin again.

Some examples:

• Word of the Year — or season, or cycle

• Card(s) of the Year — drawn intuitively or calculated using numerology

• Goddess of the Year — a presence that steps forward to walk with you

• Big-picture goals — not hustle goals, but soul goals

• Trackers — for moon phases, cycles, gratitude, dreams, daily draws

• Lists — books to read, spells to try, things to consciously consume

These spreads form the roots of your journal. They hold the long threads, while the months and days weave the details.

You don’t need to create all of them at once. Begin with what feels alive. You can always add more as you go.

 

✧ 2. Monthly Magic

At the start of each month, I tend to create:

• A title page with a word, image, or quote

• A calendar spread — with moon phases and astrology notes

• A list of focuses — intentions, cards, stones, goals

• A habit tracker and gratitude list

• A place for field notes — walks, rituals, things I notice in nature

Some people also love to include Sabbat spreads — pages for seasonal festivals like Imbolc, Beltane, Samhain. If that feels resonant, beautiful. But if you don’t observe that sabbat (or simply don’t have the energy), you don’t need to include it.

Your journal isn’t a checklist of magical duties. It’s a place of reflection and relationship.

Take inspiration, yes. But don’t fall into the trap of thinking there’s a “correct” list of spreads to include. You’re not a scribe recreating someone else’s Book of Shadows. You’re writing your own.

 

✧ 3. Daily Pages (Or Not)

I personally write a full page most days — and that’s part of why I go through multiple journals each year! But you absolutely don’t have to do it that way.

Other options include:

• A simple weekly spread with moon/tarot reflections

• A space to jot down rituals, dreams, or insights when they arise

• Seasonal pages for longer reflections or intention-setting

Some days you’ll write a lot. Some days, nothing at all. That’s part of the rhythm. Let it breathe.

✦ Mistakes Are Welcome

You will try spreads that don’t work.

You will skip pages.

You might abandon a tracker halfway through the month.

That’s okay. In fact, it’s good.

Because every “mistake” teaches you something. It helps you let go of perfectionism. It brings you closer to a journal that’s truly yours — not a facsimile of someone else’s beautifully curated grimoire.

Let your journal be real. Let it be lived in. Let it be enough.

 

✦ A Few Optional Extras

These aren’t necessary, but they can be lovely touches of beauty and intention:

• A blessing or sigil on the front page

• A seasonal colour palette or themed collage

• A special basket or pouch for your journaling tools

• Marking your journals by colour (I often buy one colour per year so I can see my stack at a glance — red for one year, green the next…)

Your journal can be as minimal or as expressive as you like. The point isn’t the prettiness — it’s the presence.

✦ You’ll Learn By Doing

You don’t need to “figure it out” before you start. You’ll figure it out because you start.

This is true for journaling. It’s true for witching. It’s true for most of the good things in life.

So begin before you feel ready. Begin imperfectly. Begin with a pen and a little space.

And if you’d like some company on the path, I’ve created a video series where I walk through:

• Choosing your journal and supplies

• Annual setup: word, card, goddess, goals

• Monthly magic and moonthly rituals

• Tracker ideas, daily pages, and more

Start watching here → How to Use a Bullet Journal as Your Book of Shadows SERIES

 

✦ Are You Starting Your Own Witchy Bullet Journal?

I’ve created a beautiful, practical guide to help you begin — whether you’re brand new to bullet journaling or looking to weave more magic into your pages.

Using a Bullet Journal for Your Book of Shadows is a free printable resource that walks you through the basics and gives you a little bundle of cut-and-stick elements to help you get started.

It’s gentle, non-prescriptive, and rooted in real practice — just like your magic.

You can download it for free here. https://www.jessicaandthemoon.com/products/using-a-bullet-journal-for-your-book-of-shadows-a-free-printable-guide-to-begin-your-witchy-journaling-journey

Warmest Blessings on your path

Jessica