I wasn’t familiar with Ellie Claire before being given the opportunity to review these journals.  Maybe you aren’t, either.  Ellie Claire, an imprint of Worthy Publishing Group, is known for making lovely hardbound journals and related gifts (bookmarks, devotionals, etc.).  These are truly beautiful in construction.

Some of the Ellie Claire journals are simply that — journals.  They may have quotes in the corners of the pages or something like that, but they’re largely blank.  Others are more of a combination journal/book.

The journals in this post fall primarily into the latter category, and all of these are from the cloth spine line.  All of these have sturdy construction, lay-flat bindings, thick interior paper, and embossed front covers.

Faith & Lettering Journal

This beautiful journal would make a great companion to the Bible journaling book I reviewed last week.  The content portions focus on teaching hand lettering (and giving you space to practice), while the additional spaces are perfect for either journaling or more practice.

This has a heavy-duty cloth spine, with a built-in pen loop.

There are also some beautiful end papers…

…and a dedication page for those who are giving the book as a gift.

Most of the rest of the book is a mix of five different page layout styles.  The first style consists of a full page, full-color design, facing a blank lined page.

The second type consists of a two-page lined spread with wide side borders.  One side contains artwork; the other is blank for your own artwork.

The third type of layout is grid paper.  Each of these has either an alphabet or a set of arrows, doodles, etc. down the left side.  The remaining space is for you to practice.

The fourth layout style consists of two pages of dot grid paper but, apart from small pieces of art in the corners, it is blank.

And finally, the fifth type of page layout is predesigned lettered art, about the size of a wide-margin Bible margin, for you to learn.  There are several columns — one with the text to copy, a second with the text printed lightly so you can trace it, and three more columns for practice.

The Illustrated Word Journal

Of the three journals here, this one is probably my least favorite.  It’s pretty enough, and if you’re into coloring, this one might be perfect for you.  I’d rather keep my coloring and journaling separate, personally, so for me, this would just be a nice blank book.

This journal has similar construction to that of the previous book.  Unlike that journal, this does not have a built-in pen loop.  (I presume the makers assume you’ll need more than just a single pen, since it’s made for coloring.)

Made in connection with the Museum of the Bible, the art in this journal comes from old illuminated manuscripts.  The page layouts are pretty simple.  On a coloring page layout, the design looks like this, with a coloring page on the right, and blank lines on the left, decorated in the upper-left corner by a full-color portion of the image the coloring design is from.

Each of these is colored by a two-paged lined spread which has, in the lower-right corner, a color image of the original artwork.

Illuminate Your Story

This last of the three journals has a fun and unexpected theme.  The book revolves around illuminated lettering.  It’s a little smaller than the previous two journals.  They are about 7″x9″, while this is about 6″x8″.

Like the Faith & Lettering Journal, this one has a built-in pen loop.

It also has a built-in elastic band to hold it shut.  The end papers are beautiful:

And the back of the book contains an envelope for keepsakes:

The book begins with some information about illuminated lettering and the various historical styles.

There is also information about the process of creating illuminated letters, the supplies needed, etc.

The rest of the book is a mixture of how-to and journaling pages.  The journaling pages are pretty simple; they’re lined pages embellished simply with a quote.

The remaining pages are step-by-step instructions for drawing letters or related elements.  (Most are letters.  Some are animals, florals, etc. that you might use when embellishing a letter.)

This would make a lovely gift for a friend or family member who enjoys creative pursuits.  It would also be a fun addition to a study of the Middle Ages for those of us who homeschool.  It, too, would be complementary to the Bible journaling book from last week.

All of these journals are available from Amazon, as well as through major booksellers like Books-a-Million and Barnes & Noble.

 

Illuminate Your Story Journal (Deluxe Signature Journals)The Illustrated Word: An Illuminated Bible Coloring Journal (Deluxe Signature Journals)Faith & Lettering Journal (Deluxe Signature Journal) (Deluxe Signature Journals)