11 of My Favorite Weekly Spreads from This Year

Need some inspiration for your weekly spreads? Here are a few of my favorites from 2018!

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Weekly spreads. They are something we make on a very regular basis. Well, unless you are an overachiever and set up your entire journal in one go. Cheers to you, friend!

However, for the majority of us, every 6-7 days we are creating a new weekly spread. 

Some people have it down pat. They have their ideal weekly layout and aren’t going to change it because it works. And that’s awesome! That’s what we all strive for.

But, then there are those of us who need a little change. I need something fresh to look at each week. It helps keep me motivated and it gives me a good reason to put my creative pants on.

Don’t you have creative pants? Oh… you call them leggings? Who knew?!

Anyways, I am one of those people who needs change regularly. I get bored easily. Typical millennial.  And, if I’m being honest here, I think the creative side of my brain often overpowers the logical side. 

So, over the course of the last year, I have created roughly 49 different weekly spreads. Here in the last few weeks I have used the same layout (different decorations) because December is my busy month.

So, for your viewing pleasure and possible inspiration — and also some reflection for myself, I decided to go back through my 2018 journals and pick out my top 11 favorite weekly spreads.

On top of that, after going back through my weeklies, I thought it would be helpful to share some tips that might assist you when making your weekly spreads. 

Tips for Setting Up Effective Weekly Spreads

I’ve said it once; I’ve said it a thousand times. And you can bet your cheeks I’ll say it again.

One of the best things about the bullet journal system is the flexibility.

It can be anything you want it to be. So, if you want to skip this section entirely, do it. If you want to start your weekly spread on Wednesdays, fine. Do what makes you happy and what is relative to your life.

But, with that being said, I do have a few tips that I believe can help you achieve the perfect balance of aesthetic and efficiency in your weekly spreads. 

Be Honest About Your Typical Day

Some people have lists longer than Santa’s. Some people might have one or two items one day and then none the following. 

The important thing is that you are honest with yourself about how much space you need for your list of daily tasks, appointments, events, etc. 

This will save you stress and possibly space in your journal. If your days typically consist of only a few tasks and you aren’t using your weekly boxes to journal or take copious amounts of notes in, there’s no reason to create boxes that fill the entire page. 

Similarly, if your normal day is hectic with 35+ tasks, that cute little one page weekly you saw on Pinterest is probably out of the question. 

ALWAYS Use Pencil First

I cannot stress this enough. There have been times I get overly confident in my pre-planning skills and then make a huge boo-boo. Like leaving out Sunday entirely.

Or the many times I have messed up a calendar layout and posted it on YouTube for the whole world to see.

Using pencil doesn’t automatically guarantee you won’t make any mistakes. But it does reduce the chances significantly. 

What Are the Top Priorities in Your Life?

Your weekly spreads are going to be some of your most frequently visited pages. If you are using your bullet journal consistently, you will be looking at them at least once a day.

So, it makes perfect sense to want to use any extra space efficiently. 

Think about what matters most to you in your life right now. Is it your work? That you cook a homemade dinner every night? That you workout five times a week? 

These are all examples of categories to fill in that extra space in your weeklies. Almost every week, I have a meal planning section where I write out a week’s worth of dinners in advance. This way, I’m not scrambling to come up with something or ordering pizza for the sixth time this week.

You can create mini weekly trackers for activities such as exercise, self-care, personal development, a book you’re reading, ounces of water drank, etc. 

Again, this comes back to your individually. If you see a spread you love on Pinterest, but the extra boxes don’t fit your lifestyle or routine, change them. 

Don’t Do it For the Gram

This has practically become my mantra over the last few months.

If you are my age or older and have no idea what I’m talking about, or think I’m talking about drugs, let me explain.

The bullet journal community thrives off of beautiful layouts and spreads that take hours to create. Some are done by professional artists and graphic designers.

That thriving community lives on Instagram. And, there is so much beauty and kindness and compassion there. But, there is also comparison and feelings of inadequacy, too. 

My advice is to make your weekly spreads for you. Not for Instagram. Not for a Facebook group. 

Because, when you do that, you might end up with a spread that is beautiful but not functional. Or, you might end up under pressure, feeling like you aren’t good enough. And neither of those lead to a better, more organized life. 

Do it for you. And then, if you want to share, by all means, share away!

11 of My Favorite Weekly Spreads from 2018

It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes I just like to sit with a good cup of coffee and flip through old journals. It’s humbling. It’s a good reminder of where I started.

But, even more, it’s a huge dose of inspiration. 

With over 150 weekly spreads created to date, it’s easy to forget some of the fun and unique layout I have created.

So, as I flipped through, I found myself taking notes on which spreads I wanted to try again. Which ones I was not impressed with. And just some things worth tweaking,.

Through it all, here are my 11 favorite weekly spreads from 2018.

Vertical Boxes with Simple Block Headers

First of all, I am obsessed with this color scheme. But, I really love the size of the boxes for daily tasks and events. 

The other elements in this weekly include a mini habit tracker focused solely on stretching, a section to write in events for the upcoming week, a notes section, and a goals box.

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Crayola SuperTips | Stabilo Point 88 | Gold Gel Pen 

Horizontal Sections

While the boxes for daily tasks may seem small, I really like having all of my days on one single page and having the adjacent page for extras. 

In this spread,each day has space for tasks, food logging, workout logging, weather, and mood. Then, on the left hand page, I have spaces for goals, notes, a mini habit tracker, and a small calendar. 

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler

Black and Gold Weekly Spread

There are just times when I want an aesthetically pleasing weekly spread. This one did exactly that. And, despite the small boxes, it worked well for me. 

I love having a lot of extra room for tracking and planning priorities in my life. For example, I do way better at cooking at home when I pre-plan all my meals for the week. The same goes for workouts.

Each weekly box was large enough for my daily tasks and also a small doodle for gratitude/memories. 

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler |Black Tombow Dual Brush Pen | Gold Gel Pen

Vertical Dutch Door

I used the dutch door spread for quite a while while I was journaling in my bullet journal. Now, I have a separate journal specifically for daily journaling and reflections. 

But, at the time this was the best solution; and it looked good, too. If you want to know how I set up my dutch door spreads, check out this post, Everything You Need to Know About Dutch Door Weekly Spreads.

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Stabilo Boss Highlighters | White Gel Pen

Monochrome Dutch Door Weekly

Similarly to the spread above, this is another dutch door with the daily entries in the center. Then, along the sides that are visible throughout the entire week are the weekly overview, weekly goals, dinner menu, and notes.

The box provided for each day was meant for a small doodle. And the space below was left for journal entries.

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Zebra Mildliners | White Gel Pen

 Single Page Weekly Spread

I love this single page weekly spread! Most of the time, this is not functional enough for me because it lacks extra space for trackers and planning. But, in certain instances, this was perfect.

If you want to recreate this spread, you could easily start on Monday and then combine Saturday and Sunday into one box. You could also keep it very minimalistic and not use a fancy middle header.

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Tombow Dual Brush Pens

Kate Spade Inspired Weekly

How pretty is this weekly spread with a Kate Spade theme? 

This weekly spread has a horizontal layout with schedule and tasks on the left and space for a short journaling entry on the right. You could also use the space on the right for workouts, meal planning, doodles, etc.

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Circle Stencil | Tombow Dual Brush Pens | Stabilo Point 88 | Gold Gel Pen

Monochrome Divided 

To date, this may be my favorite weekly spread. It’s hard to choose, but I loved everything about this layout. 

The doodles in the center of each day are for tracking water, workout, and calorie tracking. Personally, I used the left-hand box for tasks and the right-hand box for doodles and memories of the day. 

But, you could use the right-hand box for more tasks, gratitude, positive affirmations, etc. 

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Circle Stencil

Circular Weekly Spread 

While this layout may look complicated, it’s rather quick and easy to make. And it has a lot of room for writing and spare space for tracking and planning.

If you want to see how I made this spread check out my post on this Circular Weekly Spread. And snag the free printable while you are there. 

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Compass | Tombow Dual Brush Pens 

Healthy Habits Weekly Spread

If you are looking to focus in on your eating habits, a spread similar to this one may be right for you. 

The boxes along the left allow you enough room for two rows of tasks if needed. On the right, track your daily meals, water intake, and thoughts. You could also change thoughts to workouts, motivational quotes, or something else that is relative to your life and goals. 

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Stabilo Boss Highlighters

 Goal Focused Weekly Spread

This may be one of the only layouts I have used three weeks in a row. For one, it was rather quick to set up. And two, it really allowed me to focus in on my goals.

The icons on the bottom of the left-hand page each symbolize a different category of goal: workouts, work, self-care, and relationships. And there’s plenty of room to write out your goals and break them down into smaller, more manageable tasks.

You can see this spread being drawn out in the video below.

Supplies Used: Black Fineliners | Ruler | Tombow Dual Brush Pens

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Which of the above spreads was your favorite? Will you be recreating any of them in the upcoming year? Let me know in the comments below.