My Top 20 Bible Journaling Supplies
Bible journaling is a great way to get creative with your faith and spend time in the presence of the Lord. And with the right supplies it can be even more enjoyable. Here are my top twenty supplies for Bible journaling that everyone should consider adding to their collection. These items range from pens, pencils, paints and markers. They are all guaranteed to bring a unique and beautiful touch to your Bible journaling.
Bible Journaling Supplies
Acrylic Paints
Washi Tape
Stickers
Stamps and Ink Pads
Date Stamp
Die Cuts or Ephemera
Watercolor Paints and Waterbrushes
Canva.com
Clear Sticker Paper
Baby Wipes
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Journaling Bibles
This is one of the hardest and most important Bible Journaling supply that you will need. I want to suggest that you begin with an art journal, sketchbook, composition notebook, used book or used Bible. This way you can test out whether Bible Journaling is the right creative outlet for you.
Once you discover that this is a way that you want to spend time with the Lord, purchase a Journaling Bible.
My favorite Bible is the ESV Interleave Bible because it has a blank page between each scripture page. This allows me to create in a larger format plus I’m not covering up the scripture.
Waterproof Black Pens
My favorite pens are Faber Castel Pitt Pens. Sharpies are another good option because they are cheap, but they can bleed through the thin Bible Pages.
There are all kinds on the market, you just need to pick the one that works best for you and your budget.
White Gel Pens
I use the Uniball Signo White Pens. These pens can be a bit temperamental…it usually depends on the surface that you are writing on. Always make sure that the paint or whatever you are writing on is completely dry or you can ruin the pen.
There are other brands available like: Gelly Roll, Molotow Acrylic Marker and Posca Paint Marker. Another way to get a crisp white line is to use Dr. Ph Martin’s Bleed Proof White Ink with a paint brush.
You can also use the White Gel Pen to write out a prayer, scripture or just add dimension to your title on a dark background.
I used the Dr. Ph Martin’s Bleed Proof White Ink to paint the daisies on the “Rejoice Always” bible journaling page.
Colored Pencils
Any brand works great from Crayola to Primacolor. Use whatever your budget allows and then if this is something that you really enjoy, a lot of the bigger craft stores have open-stock Colored Pencils. So for a few bucks you can see if you can tell a difference.
Gamsol
I love using Gamsol when I use Colored Pencils because the Gamsol smooths out the pencil marks by using a blending stump.
For more information on using Gamsol, check out this blog post “How To Create Magic with Colored Pencils and Gamsol”.
Acrylic Paints
I use whatever acrylic paints that I have from FolkArt, DecoArt, Americana, Blick, Liquitex Heavy Body, etc. There are all different types of acrylic paint on the market, but I have found that the cheaper paints leave the page a bit sticky and so the pages may stick together. If this happens, just place a sheet of deli or wax paper between the pages. You don’t want to do all that beautiful, creative work and then have the pages stick together and ruin your page.
Watercolor Paints and Waterbrushes
I love to use watercolor paints in my Bible. You can purchase anything from Crayola to Daniel Smith. The cheaper brands of watercolor paints can leave a bit of a chalky finish. After the paint has dried, use a used dryer sheet and buff your paint. This will remove some of the chalky finish.
Start with a cheaper set of watercolor paints and then if this is a medium that you really enjoy using, upgrade to a more expensive, nicer brand of watercolors. The more expensive brand has more color pigment added to the paint.
Waterbrushes are great, especially when you are traveling. They have a barrel that holds water with a brush on the end. You gently squeeze to make the brush wet and then paint.
Washi Tape
Washi Tape is great to use with your Bible Journaling. It can be used to highlight words, add color to the page or even tell a story. One of the ways that I like to use washi tape is when I add a Tip-In to my Bible.
Helpful Hint: If using washi tape for adhering something to your Bible, it’s best if you add a line of glue to the washi. I add a piece of washi on the front of my tip-in as well as the back.
UHU Glue Stick
This is my favorite glue stick which can be purchased on Amazon. It’s affordable and works well to glue any embellishment down on your Bible Journaling page. There are all different brands and styles of adhesive like: tape runners, double-sided tape and regular glue. Use the glue that works best for you.
Stickers
Stickers are a great way to add a bit of style to any Bible Journaling Page. The letters stickers make it easy if you don’t like to use your own handwriting to write out the scripture or important words.
You can find Christian stickers on Amazon. Etsy also has a lot of Devotionals and Kits that can be purchased, downloaded, and printed on your own printer.
Stamps and Ink Pads
I use Ranger Distress Inks and Distress Oxides for a lot of my pages. These inks give the Bible Journaling page a watercolor look.
If I’m using a stamp, I use Archival Ink which is a permanent water based ink.
Date Stamp
Keep track of when you created a Bible Journaling page. This is helpful to look back to see your creative and spiritual growth.
Die Cuts or Ephemera
Die Cuts or Ephemera is wonderful to way to add dimension. quick and easy focal point to your page. You can also just Die Cuts as a tip-in, journaling card or a tag.
I love using small paper doilies to a bit of class to my page!!!
Canva.com
Canva is probably my favorite tool that I use for Bible Journaling. You can create templates for what you want to do and then trace the design onto the bible page. This way you don’t have any pencil or eraser marks on your Bible Journaling page.
You can experiment with different fonts that you want to use for your lettering. There is also a lot of great “elements” that you can used as embellishments to add to your Bible journaling.
Clear Sticker Paper
Purchase white sticker or clear sticker paper to create your own embellishments in Canva. I didn’t suggest a particular brand because you need to purchase what works with your printer.
I have provided a FREE download for you to use in your Bible Journaling.
Frixion Pen
This pen works like magic. Use this pen to trace your pattern onto the page. Once you’ve finished painting or coloring the area in, use a heat tool and the lines of the Frixion Pen will disappear.
Heat Tool
If you are impatient like I am, a heat tool is a must. I prefer the Ranger Heat Tool because it’s small, quiet and gets really hot quickly.
Gelatos
Gelatos are like lipstick. They just add the finishing touches to your Bible Journaling page. I especially like the metallic Gelatos because they add a shimmer to your page.
I use gelatos to create a quick and easy background. Just rub a color on and wipe with a baby wipe. They blend so beautifully.
You can also remove some of the color by placing a stencil on top (while it’s still wet) and then using a baby wipe, wipe through the stencil.
Baby Wipes
Baby Wipes is a must, not only for cleanup but for applying Gelatos and Paint onto the page.
You can also use a baby wipe to remove paint through a stencil.
Tab Punch
When you are finished with a Bible journaling page, it’s best to add a tab or a Paper Clip embellishment to your page. This way you can easily find the page when you need to refresh your memory about God’s promises.
Let’s Start Bible Journaling
I hope that you will give Bible Journaling a try. It has helped me so much in my Christian and creative walk with the Lord. I’ve used Bible Journaling to record sermons, Bible Studies and my emotions on a particular day. I’ve also recorded special holidays memories and worldly events like COVID-19 in 2020 and Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
Bible journaling has endless possibilities, and these twenty supplies are the perfect selection for anyone just getting started.
I encourage you to use what you have. Start small and with inexpensive supplies. Raid your kids or grandkids supplies. I encourage you to see if Bible Journaling is the right fit for your creative journey.
Try out these supplies the next time you sit down to do Bible journaling for yourself and share the results in the comments!
