Identifiable by their colorful notes, plethora of stationary, and bullet journals, things like Studygrams (Instagram accounts) and Studyblrs (Tumblr accounts) are growing in presence all across the internet. You may have seen them on your own social media feeds, perhaps asking the question ‘why?’. It may seem silly to go through the trouble of putting in extra effort to something as dull as school, but for many, such as Irena Sun, (10) that’s just not true.

Sun runs her own Instagram account, under the username @octo_bujo, where she shares photos of her studying and, occasionally, her bullet journal.

“I began bullet journaling in the middle of February of 2017,” said Sun. “I remember seeing a bullet journal on a desk and thinking about how cool and organized it was.”

Bullet journals, if you haven’t heard of them, are customizable personal planners that sometimes, but not always, go hand-in-hand with study-based social media accounts. Sun has shared multiple photos of her personal journal on the account, boasting no less than intriguing, great-looking work.

“I get a lot of inspiration for bullet journaling and note taking through other Instagram accounts,” Sun noted. “I started off copying what I saw, but I rarely do that now.”

Not only does her creativity shine through in her journal spreads, but even her class notes are colorful and bright, perhaps making the process of studying and learning that much more fun. Don’t be deceived, though – most of the time, these intricate notes aren’t taken during lectures. Many use them as a form of review, such as Sun, who said that she “realized taking quick notes at school then re-organizing them at home really helps in general, especially for math.”

For Sun, it was the bullet journal culture that she was already a part of that encouraged her to start her Studygram. With the push of a friend who has a similar account, she began her own, and has been going strong since the beginning of this year.

Sun also explained how running her account motivates her. With the goal of being featured on larger study-based accounts and gaining a larger audience, that gives her the extra push to work hard on her account, and in turn, on her school work and studying.

Sun’s advice to others who want to start their own account, or get started with bullet journaling, is to just go for it.

“There’s going to be a lot of mistakes, but all of it comes with a product of a really organized lifestyle and a journal,” said Sun. “In general, just give it a shot and, if it works for you, keep going!”

Sun and a friend also have an OHS club based around the many different facets of journaling, such as bullet journaling, in the works, so keep an eye out for that!

Check out Irena’s Instagram account, as well as a few of her recommendations:

@octo_bujo

@bullet.journals

@coffeemlk

@studyflowerie