Warning: that $60 journaling kit with fancy stencils was a total bust

I picked up one of those themed bullet journal starter kits on Etsy last month, $60 for stencils, washi tape, and a spiral notebook that fell apart by week two. The stencils were too flimsy to trace clean lines and the tape peeled right off the pages. I ended up going back to my $7 dotted grid notebook from Target and a ruler, works way better. Anyone else get burned by a 'complete' kit that was just overpriced scraps?

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samrodriguez2mo ago

Heard a YouTuber I follow talk about how these kits are mostly just pretty packaging and the actual materials are the cheapest they can find. The spiral notebook thing doesn't surprise me, they probably used the thinnest paper possible to keep costs down. My buddy bought a similar one with a bunch of washi tape that all had the same pattern, just different colors. The stencils being flimsy is the real kicker, you'd think for $60 they'd at least use decent plastic. Honestly you're better off just buying the pieces you actually need separate, like you did. Those kits are for people who want the aesthetic of journaling without the actual work.

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murray.robert2mo ago

@samrodriguez makes a fair point but honestly, are we really this mad about a notebook and some stickers? People buy overpriced stuff all the time, it's basically a hobby tax. You knew what you were getting when you saw the word "kit.

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