2022 Vintage Dark Academia bullet journal setup

With the start of the new year, it’s time to set up a new bullet journal. I just filled my fourth journal that’s a time capsule for the second half of 2021. It’s a great way to keep everything organized in my life between personal events, blog content planning, and work deadlines. It’s also a great way to have a creative outlet by planning and creating unique themes and layouts that suit my needs at any time of the year. 

To see how to create easy yearly spreads step by step, watch my 2022 bullet journal setup video to see easy, aesthetic and minimal spreads for beginners to get ideas to plan for the new year! 

Here are inspiring bullet journal layout ideas that I’m using to set goals and to get organized for the new year.  I used a lot of the supplies from my stationery haul in this setup (including the new journal I bought!). This year, I decided to go for a vintage and dark academia inspired theme and I really liked how it turned out. I kept the same neutral tone and brown color palette to keep it consistent since my monthly themes and color palettes will change every month.

COVER PAGE

I created a numbered grid guide in my dot-grid journal to easily refer back to when I need to divide spreads into different sections like thirds, fourths etc. I also included my key so when I know which symbols to use and what they mean when I’m creating my task lists. For my cover page, I used different scrapbook materials that had both writing and maps (two of my favorite things) and collaged them together. I used my Cricut machine and cut out “2022” both in black paper and kraft paper. I really like the effect of putting them perpendicular to each other.

2021 IN REVIEW

Just like last year, I created a spread to write down memorable parts of the past year. I’ll draw out arrows from the title, similar to a mind map. I wanted a place to capture some of the highlights and memorable moments of the past year. Like most of my other pages throughout this setup, I’m using my alphabet rubber stamps and black ink stamp pad to create the headers.

FUTURE LOG

Many bullet journalers have a future log and often put it all on one spread to write down dates they may know in advance. Instead of 2 future log spreads which I didn’t really end up using, I created a 2022 overview page on the right and an events page on the left. This way I can see the year at a glance and jot down events/appointments as I learn about them. I also saved space by only using 2 pages instead of 4 since I didn’t end up needing that much space to keep track of future events after all. That’s the beauty of the bullet journal – you can create and iterate depending on what works for you! 

GOALS

Last year, I broke down my goals into different categories and made some of them quantifiable. This time, I’ll write down my goals for the year and I divided the page up into different categories. I can refer back to this page throughout 2021 and see what I’ve accomplished at the end of the year. I’ll likely write fewer big goals per category so it doesn’t become overwhelming. This will also help me figure out which goals I want to accomplish or make progress towards in a given month and to include that in my monthly spread. 

BLOG TRACKERS & WHEN DID I LAST?

I also use my bujo to keep track of the blog stats so I created trackers for my socials and blog. Each month I’ll log how many followers I have to see how my platforms are growing.  Each box corresponds to a different social media network to keep track of followers that I gain (hopefully not lose!) each month. I made one for my blog views, one for Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok.

This is a new spread I made to keep track of tasks and appointments I need to do routinely, such as getting my car serviced. I lose track of when I last did it sometimes because it might be a yearly or bi-annual thing, so it’ll be nice to have it in one spot and I can add to my monthly pages once it’s time to do get that task done. 

TO WATCH / WATCHED

I love TV and movies and always have a running list of what to watch next on my phone. I also used to have spreadsheets for TV shows I wanted to watch and when they would premiere. Having this page will make it easier to keep it in one place to reference. I can also jot down what I watched and what rating I would give a show or movie. I watched a lot of TV last year, and it was fun looking back at everything I watched! It’s also a great reference source for when I want to give show recommendations to friends.

TO BE READ

I have a big list of books I want to read (including in a secret Pinterest board!), I wanted to keep it in my journal too for easy reference. While I do have that board so I can reference it if I’m out and about and need a book, I wanted to also put it in my journal. This way, I can cross books off the list if and when I read them. I think I have over 60 books I’m my list, so it’s a pretty lofty task but I’m really hoping to start reading more this year again.

22 BOOKS IN 2022 / BOOKS I READ

My goal is to read 22 books next year and I’ll prioritize the most interesting books to me, so those titles will go on this spread. I also want to keep track of what books I read overall (sometimes I pick up a random, unplanned choice!), so I can include my rating for it too. It’ll be interesting to see if I get through my priority list or switch it up and read random books instead!

PLAYLIST / WISHLIST & PACKAGES

This is a new spread for me. I thought it would be fun to include which song I listened to most in that month throughout the year. I associate certain songs with periods of my life, so it’ll be like a time capsule! I’ll print out the Spotify codes for the song and paste them in. This way, I can easily open the song on my phone whenever I want to listen back! 

Also a new spread for me! I wanted to write down fun things I want to buy and when I (hopefully) purchase them. I’ll randomly thing of something I want to buy that’s “fun” and not a necessity, and then forget about it. This is clearly a running theme which is why I’ve chosen to bullet journal. I’ve been wanting a new camera and espresso machine, for example, so it’ll be fun to see when I treated myself. The bottom half is a section dedicated to package delivery. I order a lot online now, especially since I’m fixing up my room and office, so I forget when a package is supposed to arrive, even with the slew of emails I get. Hopefully this section will keep me on track!

IDEAS

I always write down random ideas in my notes app and lose track, so hopefully this page will help me keep track. The left side has section for blog content ideas, and the right has sections for bullet journal themes and videos. The last section on the right is for random projects I haven’t gotten around to, such as compiling all family photos into physical photo albums. One day. 

TRIPS / THINGS TO CHECK OUT

Who knows how used this page will be, but I really want to take a trip or two in 2022. I have a bunch of ideas, so I’ll keep track of vacation spots this page – whether it’s by car or plane. I also always jot down restaurants and coffee shops on my phone and make repeat lists, so hoping this page will help me keep it in one place. I also added a section for sights since I need non food activities too!

I hope this jumpstarted you to put together your new (or first!) bullet journal to stay organized and keep track of things in 2022! You can also Pin this blog post for safekeeping. 🙂 Be sure to check out my other blog post for fun and easy ideas for bullet journal themes!