an ode to the paper republic pocket

There is something so so so special about having a dedicated pocket journal that goes everywhere with you. And I mean a pocket/passport journal size, specifically with several different inserts for several different things.

pocket journal by the water with rocks and rings

pocket journal held up with charms on the elastic

black pocket journal stacked on a brown leather journal

black pocket journal on a cutting mat with charms and pen

It's like another arm or a leg, like an extra hard drive outsourced. If you're on a walk and suddenly receive a download that should go on paper immediately, you're ready to go. If you get the urge to doodle in the Uber, you're ready to go. If you find a new cool lunch place and need to write yourself a review for later, you're ready to go! If you're on the train with nothing to read, you can read the crumb trail your past self left you.

At the moment (May 2026), I have 6 inserts. I recently picked up a National Parks Passport… and it's now a part of my pocket journal. I went on their website and purchased all the park stickers from parks and national monuments I've visited, and retroactively filled up my passport. I bought about 25 different stickers (my family loved to travel so we've been to almost every US state).

national parks passport open to statue of liberty page

lime green moleskin next to national parks passport

passport stamps spread at a national parks station

passport with statue of liberty stamps and sticker sheet

Aside from the National Parks Passport insert, I have 2 Field Notes inserts. One is a simple Log — I log and review every food spot / restaurant I visit. The Log also has stationery store reviews, and a Log of museums we've visited. A simple Log.

The other Field Notes is basically a junk journal — you'll find autumn leaves taped to pages, random business stickers, receipts, washi tape, the little coffee order stickers that are stuck to your to-go cup.

field notes junk journal open with stickers

field notes open next to a cup of coffee

Then we have a hardcover mini Moleskin. It's lime green and it's for writing and all girllovespaper stuff, brain dumps, Important Things ™.

lime green moleskin open by the river with rocks

lime green moleskin by the water with rings and rocks

We also have a pocket paper republic 2025 planner. We're still using her, undated, for Lists and To-Do's. Mostly grocery lists and weekly meal plans.

paper republic planner open with butter sticker on cutting mat

paper republic planner outside with winnie the pooh charm

Lastly, I recently purchased a Majuscule mini lime green gridded softcover notebook. The cover is recycled plastic and semi-translucent so you can see the grid through the cover and back. I couldn't help myself it was so beautiful.

yellow translucent majuscule notebook open on cutting mat

stack of translucent majuscule carnet notebooks in blue, yellow, and green

I have a few charms from haricot vert that I got last year when I purchased the journal. The girl at Topdrawer let me know they were right around the corner so it was an easy sell. I also added a star brad to one of the ribbon holes on the spine.

black leather pocket journal with silver charms on red elastic

star brad on ribbon hole next to pack of brads

She is my pride and joy, thank you for reading this, I hope you also have a beloved pocket journal or plan to make one in the future.