One Year. One Journal. A Childhood Worth Keeping.
Chelsea Anne De Leon
Imagine every year, each of your children starts with a brand new journal.
And over the next twelve months, those pages slowly fill with drawings, paintings, photographs, little keepsakes, and everyday memories. By the end of the year, what started as a simple journal has become a time capsule of their childhood.
And once it's full, it makes one final stop before joining the family's bookshelf.
It comes here.
To my bindery.
This was the second year their mom entrusted me with restoring their journals.
Not the same books, but a brand new batch filled with another year's worth of growing up.
The original journals were only about an inch and a half thick. By the time they reached my workshop, they had grown to nearly four inches. With all the added photos and artwork, the spine had finally given way, and several of the folded pages had begun to tear under the weight.
Before taking anything apart, I carefully marked every page so each one could return to its original place. The journals were then disassembled piece by piece, photographs were safely removed whenever needed, and every damaged fold was reinforced.
Because these journals had grown far beyond their original size, repairing the spine wasn't enough. I built an entirely new accordion-style spine to give the pages the room they now deserved, before carefully sewing everything back together in its original order.
This year's covers were also a little different.
Last year's journals wore Regal-style covers, but this time their mom chose plain linen instead. The reason was simple.
She wanted her children to paint directly onto the covers themselves.
I loved that idea.
The journal wouldn't just hold their childhood.
It would wear it too.
Every restoration reminds me that journals aren't meant to stay pristine forever.
They're meant to be filled.
To grow.
To become a little worn around the edges from being loved.
I'm simply here to make sure they can keep telling their stories for many years to come.
And somehow, I have a feeling I'll be seeing next year's journals before long. 🤍
