World Book Day is here, so let’s make a book tracker! We met up with Doodlelou.co, and she showed us the perfect way to log all the books you’ve read throughout the year or to encourage you to reach your reading goals in a fun and creative way. But this time, we’re going to level it up by creating a reading log to go alongside it so you can rate the books you read! Let’s get into it!
Prepare our tracker
Let’s begin by gathering all of the materials we need. For this spread, I’m using the Tombow Pastel Journal as my canvas and the following Tombow materials:
- Tombow ABT Dual Brush Pen
- Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pen
- Tombow TwinTone Dual-Tip Markers
- Tombow MONO100 Pencil
- Tombow MONO Drawing Pens
- Tombow MONO Dust Catch Eraser
To start, I’m using my Tombow MONO100 pencil to roughly sketch out my layout. I’ll be creating a bookshelf on the left-hand side of the page to track the books I’ve read and I’ll make a reading log on the remaining space so I can rate each book. Decide how many books you want to include on your tracker and make sure you’ve allocated enough space for them.
Establish your page
For my header, I’ve used the Tombow MONO Drawing Pen to outline the word ‘book’ in capital letters for emphasis. Then I've filled it in by layering a pastel Fudenosuke pen to create a two tone effect and added a light grey drop shadow. As this is a small format header, I’ll be pairing this with my black Fudenosuke pen, as it has a small and precise brush nib, to letter the word ‘tracker’ for some interest and contrast.
Making the Book Tracker
Now it’s time to put pen to paper and outline what we’ve sketched out. As this is a book tracker, I’ll begin with the basic shape of a bookshelf by creating three ‘shelves’ and use my Tombow MONO Drawing Pen to draw basic rectangles of different heights and sizes which will be my ‘books’. To make the page look more dynamic and create levels, try and draw some of the books upright, on their side and leaning against each other. Make sure to include spaces to add some decorative items to make the page more personal!
Adding Colour and Detail
Now let’s add some colour and life into our page! For colour, I’ll use the Tombow ABT Dual Brush Pen to colour larger areas and the Tombow TwinTone Dual-Tip Markers for smaller, intricate details. To add detail, you can create different tones of shading, add drop shadows or some finer details. I’ve included some small embellishments to each book, added my favourite plants and even drawn a tiny candle to make the page look more interesting and for some additional colour. When adding detail to the books, make sure you’re leaving enough space for you to write the book names in too!
Creating the Reading Log
To go alongside our main book tracker, I’m going to make an accompanying reading log which will allow me to rate the books I’ve read or add notes! I’ve chosen to create a list on the right-hand side in the same style as I’ve made the header. Since I’ve drawn out 18 books, I’ll count out 18 lines in my reading log so I know I have enough space. My last step is to add a small quote with my Tombow Fudenosuke pen which will tie the whole spread together and balance out all the elements.
Finished result
And that’s our book tracker completely finished! See how both sides work nicely together so they can be filled in simultaneously. Once you’ve filled in all the spaces, the spread will look like a full bookshelf and you’ll be able to refer to your reading log to see how you rated the book!
