Trash to Treasure

TNIE explores the new trend of junk journalling, in which 'waste' is converted into beautiful, free-flowing collages combined with reflective snippets

- MAHIMA NAGARAJU

An old bus ticket, a bill from a family dinner, maybe the wrapper from a chocolate you shared with your sweetheart, or the label from a pretty dress you bought—these scraps that accumulate in the gaps between sofa cushions, are brushed under the bed, or stashed in cluttered drawers, have the potential to be more than just ‘junk.’

First encountering it through social media videos, enthusiasts in the city are practising ‘junk journalling’, transforming their trash into treasure. “I was seeing a lot of my friends do it after seeing it on social media and wanted to try it out in my own style,” says Nandita G, an undergraduate student.

“It’s a form of journalling that uses any material that we would otherwise discard and see those junk pieces as a way to document memories. For example, if I have an empty packet of something I ate, I like to add it to my journal.”