A photo album is more than just a storage place. It is a curated collection, a visual diary, and a physical testament to one’s work. To frame these albums, which often contain a mix of contact sheets, test strips, and final enlargements, requires certain aids.
The online shop Journalsay specializes in stationery and crafting materials intended for scrapbooking or journaling. Journalsay offered me a selection of their products to test. Below, I examine the contents of a package containing a variety of materials.
Stickers and Tapes
The largest part of the delivery consists of various adhesive tapes and stickers. These are useful for fixing photographs in the album or marking thematic sections without disturbing the purist character of a black-and-white image.
First, a set themed around architecture and travel catches the eye. The PET Boxed Sticker Just Go Travel Series Vintage Building Landscaping offers motifs of classic buildings and landscape elements. The transparency of the material allows these stickers to be placed over the edges of sketches or notes without completely obscuring the background.
https://journalsay.com/products/pet-boxed-sticker-just-go-travel-series-vintage-building-landscaping
The Journalsay 30mm 200cm Time Archive Series Vintage Tools Material PET Tape. It features motifs of a desk.
https://journalsay.com/products/journalsay-30mm-200cm-time-archive-series-vintage-tools-material-pet-tape
For more playful pages or personal travel diaries, the 3pcs Set Cartoon Flowers Leaves Kawaii Washi Sticker is suitable. The motifs are printed on washi paper, which gives them a matte and natural look that doesn’t shine as much as plastic stickers.
https://journalsay.com/products/3pcsset-cartoon-flowers-leaves-kawaii-washi-sticker
A small book of stickers is offered by the A Little Sence of Ritual Series Vintage Flower Character Landscape Sticker Book. Here you’ll find numerous landscape and character motifs, which are well-suited for emphasizing moods in an album when a suitable photo isn’t readily available.
The Literary Old Newspaper English Retro Journal Washi Tape is intended for visually connecting text elements like newspaper clippings or captions. It imitates the typography of old English daily newspapers and integrates seamlessly into collages that aim for a documentary character.
https://journalsay.com/products/literary-old-newspaper-english-retro-journal-washi-tape
For color accents reminiscent of color theory, there is the Journalsay 50mm 200cm Watercolor Galaxy Series Vintage Smudge Landscaping PET Tape. The color gradients are soft and can be used to create backgrounds for smaller prints.
For those who prefer simplicity and are only looking for fastening options, the 8pcs Set Retro Solid Color Basic Pattern Decoration Washi Tape Set is recommended. The solid-colored tapes are understated and do not distract from the actual subject of the photo.
https://journalsay.com/products/8pcsset-retro-solid-color-basic-pattern-decoration-washi-tape-set
A special feature is the 100pcs Set Special Shaped Monolithic Masking Tape. These are not on a roll but are pre-cut as individual elements.
https://journalsay.com/products/100pcsset-special-shaped-monolithic-masking-tape
To add small highlights that look almost like metallic embossing, there is the Journalsay Mini Letter Bronzing Hot Silver Sticker Goo Card DIY Journal Collage. These letters are suitable for initials or short titles on the cover of an album.
The Journalsay 35mm 200cm Go Watch The Firework Series Ins Landscaping PET Tape features motifs depicting light effects and fireworks. For night shots or long exposures, this can be a suitable thematic addition to the page edge.
Particularly relevant for us photographers is the PET Tape 60mm 200cm Collage Diary Series Vintage Film Border. It imitates the perforation of 35mm film and is excellent for framing digital prints to resemble contact sheets.
https://journalsay.com/products/pet-tape-60mm-200cm-collage-diary-series-vintage-film-border
For larger backgrounds, the Journalsay 300cm Vintage Art Multi Size Washi Tape DIY Journal Scrapbooking Background Decoration is suitable. Due to the width of the tape, entire page sections can be textured with it. Here, for example, with an old map.
Thematically suitable for documenting café visits during photo walks is the 27mm 200cm Coffee Is Lucky Series Vintage Coffee Label Landscaping Tape. The label look fits well into travel diaries.
Complementing this are the Journalsay 45pcs Set Vintage Rooftop Coffee Shop Stickers. These individual stickers pick up the coffee shop and urban relaxation theme and offer small vignettes for the page edge.
https://journalsay.com/products/journalsay-45pcsset-vintage-rooftop-coffee-shop-stickers
Finally, this category includes the Journalsay 7mm 300cm 20 Rolls Box Split Thin Washi Tape Set Simple Pattern Decor Tape. Since these tapes are very narrow, they are precise for drawing lines or dividing page layouts.
Papers and Notepads
Besides adhesive materials, paper plays an essential role in the feel of an album. It serves as a background for photos or as a carrier for notes on exposure times and locations.
The 60pcs Instagram Style Creative Retro Small Fresh Garden Series Memo Pad offers small, square notes. These formats are reminiscent of the Polaroid format or Instagram and are suitable for short annotations next to a square medium format print.
The 50 Sheets Retro Pattern Book No Sticky Material Journal Paper provides a more literary look. The paper is not self-adhesive and has a pleasant texture reminiscent of old book pages.
https://journalsay.com/products/50-sheets-retro-pattern-book-no-sticky-material-journal-paper
For those who want to add color accents, the Journalsay 100 Pcs Cute Colorful Light Paper Memo Pads Retro Collage Decorative offers a wide selection. The papers are thin and slightly transparent, allowing for layering in the layout.
The Paper Color Ink Series Vintage Patterns Landscape Material Paper offers printed papers with landscape patterns. These can serve as a substitute for a mat or be used as a photo album.
https://journalsay.com/products/paper-color-ink-series-vintage-patterns-landscape-material-paper
A very simple set is the 80mm 200cm Blank Set Series Vintage Solid Color Landscape Material Paper. Here, the color is the focus, without distracting patterns, creating a calm base for image-heavy pages.
https://journalsay.com/products/80mm-200cm-blank-set-series-vintage-solid-color-landscape-material-paper
Stamps and Tools
Stamps are a classic means of bureaucracy that was often used in photography for dating prints. The stamps presented here are more decorative but can be used structurally.
The Vintage Checkerboard Grid Landscape Transparent Silicone Stamp features a checkerboard pattern. This can be used to suggest technical grids or to structure backgrounds geometrically.
https://journalsay.com/products/vintage-checkerboard-grid-landscape-transparent-silicone-stamp
To use the stamps, ink is required. The Journalsay 1pc 15 Colors Planner Scrapbooking Silicone Oil Big Ink Pad offers a wide range of colors in one pad. The oil base promises good coverage even on smoother papers.
Café motifs are found on the Journalsay 1 Pcs Transparent Silicone Seal Retro Stamp Aircraft Tower Building Clear Stamps.
https://journalsay.com/products/journalsay-1-pcs-transparent-silicone-seal-retro-stamp-aircraft-tower-building-clear-stamps
The Silicone Stamp Vintage Film Hollow Border Transparent is another highlight for analog enthusiasts. It creates a frame reminiscent of old film rolls and can be stamped directly around an inserted image.
https://journalsay.com/products/silicone-stamp-vintage-film-hollow-border-transparent
The Vintage Hollow Dots Landscape Hollow Masking Panel Stamp provides interesting light and shadow effects. The dot pattern can be used to create textures.
https://journalsay.com/products/vintage-hollow-dots-landscape-hollow-masking-panel-stamp
Labels can be created with the Silicone Stamp Vintage Hollow Border Label Transparent. You stamp the frame and then write the date or location of the shot inside.
https://journalsay.com/products/silicone-stamp-vintage-hollow-border-label-transparent
The Silicone Stamp Vintage Wave Lace Pattern Landscape provides a more abstract pattern. The wave lines can serve as a separating element between two thematically different image series on a page.
https://journalsay.com/products/silicone-stamp-vintage-wave-lace-pattern-landscape
Additionally, there is the Journalsay Multifunctional Plastic Painting Template Vintage Hollow Pattern. This stencil allows for precise drawing of recurring patterns, which is helpful for consistent design across multiple pages.
Writing Instruments and Accessories
No album is complete without handwritten notes. The choice of the right writing instrument is crucial for the legibility and aesthetics of the captions.
The Journalsay 30ml Bottle Pure Colorful Fountain Pen Ink Refilling Liquid 10 Colors is classic ink in a bottle. Writing with a fountain pen forces a slowdown, similar to shooting film, and ensures a clean script. I ordered blue, orange, and red. The ink is made in China.
For calligraphic headings, the Soft Brush Pen 1 Pc Colorful Metal Fine Glitter Beautiful Pen Painting Watercolor is suitable. The brush tip allows for varying line widths, adding a dynamic touch to title pages.
To highlight important passages in texts or color sketches, the Journalsay 4 Pcs Set Metallic Color Double Ended Highlighter Set Drawing Markers is intended. The metallic colors stand out well against matte paper.
https://journalsay.com/products/journalsay-4-pcs-set-metallic-color-double-ended-highlighter-set-drawing-markers
In summary, Journalsay’s offering provides a wealth of materials that can be quite appealing to photographers with a penchant for the physical.
The quality of the papers and tapes is solid, and the motifs are often chosen to support a nostalgic atmosphere without appearing kitschy. Those who want to do more than just slide their prints into clear sleeves, but want to stage them, will find useful tools here.
I never heard about the shop before
The film border tape is a genius idea for photographers. I’ve been struggling to find a way to make my digital prints look cohesive in a physical journal, and that looks like the perfect solution. Thanks for the review!
There’s really nothing like a physical photo album. It makes such a difference when you can actually hold your work. If you’re into this kind of thing, you might also want to look into archival-quality pens to make sure the notes don’t fade over the decades.