Pre-bound Junk Journal Signatures

If you’ve been in the junk journaling world long enough, you’ve probably heard of new sew binding methods for junk journals, where you attach groups of folded pieces of paper to a junk journal spine with rubber bands, string, etc. But what if you want your signatures (groups of pages bound into a book) more bound before putting them together into a book, or if you don’t really care that much about backgrounds for your journal (for instance, if yours is more of a glue book or scrapbook style), there are various kinds of pre-bound signatures that you can collect or purchase for your junk journal.

Blank signatures:

These may be what you want if you generally decorate blank pages. In general, any small notebook stapled or sewn into a cover can work for this purpose. You could also save or collect used notebooks for your junk journal. Some notebooks are more convenient for this purpose than others.

Blue books are nice and small (few pages) and are relatively inexpensive. They are also a nice size, not as large as composition books, but not tiny. The covers are also made of interesting paper that can be used as part of the design.
Composition books can also be used, but they are more suited to a large book. It would even be possible to use just one and make it into a junk journal.
Moleskin-type books have more pages than blue books, and they tend to be smaller. They may be bound with sewing instead of staples, making them stronger.

If you live in Eastern Europe, you should have no difficulty finding notebooks to use as junk journal signatures. For those who don’t know, Eastern European children use staple-bound notebooks in school, about the size of blue books, but with more pages. These books are available at any school supply store in Eastern Europe. Many of them have interesting covers that can be incorporated into the finished junk journal. Maybe pick up a few for your travel journal if you ever see them for sale.

Pre-bound

If you want more interesting pages, various kinds of pre-printed publications can be made into junk journals.

Some people make books into junk journals. This often involves removing some pages, but it provides the junk journal with a nice cover.
Shorter, staple-bound books can be used similar to the way you would use notebooks, as signatures for a junk journal.
More interesting, perhaps, are magazines, catalogs, and pamphlets, and these often accompany junk mail. You can also pick up things like these at many state welcome centers and other places that cater to tourists.
Church bulletins are also sometimes multi-page and bound with a staple. Their covers often feature interesting designs.