Lay • Journal Crochet Create (@slayedbeyondbeautiful)

I started Morning Pages about two years ago. Three handwritten pages. First thing in the morning. Whatever is there. Some mornings it is prayer. Some mornings it is irritation, nonsense, lists, fear, ideas, gratitude, or something I did not know I was thinking until my hand wrote it. That is why I keep doing it. The page gives the noise somewhere to go so I can hear myself underneath it. Try it tomorrow before you touch your phone. And if three pages feels like too much, write one. Begin there. Follow Slayed Beyond Beautiful if you want to journal alongside me. 🤎 #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalingPractice #JournalWithMe #TheArtistsWay

How to Seam: 1. Lay squares directly on top of each other (right sides facing in). 2. Sew: • One full side • Second full side • Top side 3. Leave the fourth side open → this becomes the brim. You are basically creating a “pouch.” When you turn it upright, that open side is the head opening. Add Ribbing (Recommend) Join yarn to bottom edge: Round 1: Single crochet evenly around Then: Back loop half double crochet for 3-5 rounds This gives that stretchy beanie feel. #GrannySquareHat #CrochetLive #BeginnerCrochet #CrochetCommunity #CrochetTherapy

I love when something I read finds its way into the life I’m actually living. I’ve been reading Amor Fati: Love your Destiny in the evenings, and somehow these little quotes keep meeting me right where I am. Tonight’s especially did. I had literally been talking about this very thing with my cousin and a friend earlier today. That’s part of why I love this book so much. I don’t just read the quotes and close the book. A lot of nights, I let one become the beginning of my evening pages. Not necessarily a question to answer, just somewhere to begin. Sometimes we don’t need to go searching for the perfect journal prompt. Sometimes life gives us one. 🤎 Book is linked below ⬇️ video. #AmorFati #bookreccomendations #EveningPages #BookTok #SlayedBeyondBeautiful

Choosing crochet colors can be a whole creative process by itself. 🧶 Sometimes I love two colors separately but can’t quite picture them together. Here’s something worth trying before you commit to a project: Place a short strand of each yarn beside the other on a neutral background. Experiment with which color will dominate. Add a third color if you want to see whether it changes the relationship between the first two. And when you’re still uncertain, make a small swatch using your intended stitch. It’s interesting how different the same colors can look once they’re actually worked into fabric. Save this for your next crochet color-planning session. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #CrochetTips #YarnColors #CrochetDesign #CrochetCommunity

Sometimes an experience is real, the feeling it brings up is real, but the explanation we’ve attached to it hasn’t actually been confirmed. I find that distinction worth exploring. A message goes unanswered. A conversation feels different. Somebody behaves in a way we didn’t expect. And our minds begin trying to explain it. I’ve come to appreciate how journaling lets me examine what I’m thinking without immediately deciding that every thought is a fact. Try two headings in your journal: “What I know.” “What I’m assuming.” See what changes when you separate the experience from your interpretation of it. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalWithMe #JournalingExercises #SelfReflection

You can tell somebody what happened yesterday, right down to what time you got home. Then they ask how you feel, and you really don’t know what to say. Try a little drawing before the words this morning. Let one line wander across your page. Give it the turns, loops or sharp corners that feel right. It doesn’t have to become a picture of anything. Look at one part of it and finish: “This part feels like…” Maybe that tight little knot reminds you of a conversation. Maybe the open space is the part you want more of. Use your own meaning, even if it surprises you. And if all you have today is a line, leave it there. You can come back to it. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #ArtJournaling #JournalPrompt #CreativeExpression

Pay Attention Sometimes you don’t want another instruction. You want a few honest lines to sit with. Pay Attention gathers poetry from my early journals and lived experience. This video shares words from “You Are NOT Alone,” “I am—All Woman,” and “A simple wish”: writing, accepting ourselves, and wanting love and peace. Read one poem in a quiet moment. Underline a line you want to keep. Return to it another day and notice whether it meets you differently. You get to bring your own meaning to the page. This is the original paperback by Walayee C. Whitlock, with these poems inside. Tap the product link on this video for Pay Attention. #PayAttention #PoetryBooks #PoetryReaders #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #TikTokShopBooks

I think envy is one of those feelings people don’t always want to admit to having. But I’m curious about it. Because sometimes we look at someone else’s life and there’s one particular thing that catches us. Maybe it’s how freely they travel. How they spend their time. The friendships they have. Their courage to try something completely different. And maybe we don’t want their whole life at all. Maybe we’re noticing one experience that we wish existed in ours. That seems like something worth exploring without immediately judging ourselves for it. Take today’s question to your journal and be specific about the part that caught your attention. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #GrabYourJournal #JournalPrompts #SelfInquiry #journaltoks

One of the things I love about mixed-media journaling is how ordinary materials can become part of what we’re creating. A piece of an envelope. An interesting scrap of paper. A receipt from somewhere we visited. Something with a color or texture we like. It doesn’t have to become an elaborate scrapbook spread. Sometimes the pleasure is simply arranging things on a page and seeing what happens. That’s also why I enjoy creative expression beyond traditional journaling. If you’re curious about exploring the page in other ways, my creative workbook When Words Aren’t Enough is available through my profile at SlayedBeyondBeautiful.com. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #ScrapbookingIdeas #JunkJournalInspiration #MixedMediaJournal #WhenWordsArentEnough

Here’s a little creative journaling experiment that doesn’t require you to know how to draw. Choose three colors. Make three shapes. Decide where you want them on the page. That’s it. What I find interesting about simple art exercises is how many choices we’re making without necessarily thinking about them. Sometimes a color carries a memory. Sometimes a shape feels familiar. And sometimes we just like what we like. Not every creative choice needs to reveal a deeper truth. There’s something enjoyable about paying attention to what we choose simply because it interests us. Try this little experiment with whatever materials you already have today. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #ArtJournaling #CreativeExpression #MixedMediaJournal #JournalWithMe

I’ve been thinking about the difference between enjoying a beautiful journal and feeling obligated to create one. Because I genuinely love decorated pages, watercolor, handwriting, doodles, and all the beautiful ways people express themselves. But I also love a journal that looks like it has been lived in. A notebook filled with ordinary thoughts, unfinished questions, messy handwriting, and pages that weren’t created for anybody else’s approval. To me, the interesting question isn’t whether aesthetic journaling is good or bad. It’s whether we’re enjoying what we’re doing or measuring ourselves against another standard. Have you ever felt pressure to make your journal look or sound a certain way? Tell me in the comments. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #PerformativeJournaling #JournalingInspo #JournalWithMe #CreativeJournaling

I think sometimes we place the same expectations on our journals that we place on ourselves. We expect them to produce something. An answer. A breakthrough. A better mood. But there are mornings when I write and nothing is resolved. That doesn’t mean the writing was meaningless. Sometimes the value is in noticing a pattern, putting language to an experience, or simply having an honest record of where I was that day. And sometimes I don’t notice anything extraordinary at all. I’ve come to appreciate that journaling doesn’t have to perform for me. If you’d like to explore the real practice of Morning Pages with me, including the ordinary and difficult mornings, follow along. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalingJourney #HonestJournaling #JournalWithMe

You were so sure when you said it. Now you feel differently, and somehow explaining that feels harder than making the decision. Maybe you tried something and found out it wasn't for you. Maybe you learned something you couldn't have known at the beginning. You can be surprised by your own answer, too. If someone was counting on you, that conversation still matters. But before you rehearse it for the tenth time, give yourself a little room on the page. Write what you believed when you first made the choice. Then write what you've learned since. Put this question beside the two: “What do I know now that I didn't know then?” You don't have to make the earlier version of you foolish to understand why today's answer is different. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalWithMe #JournalingPrompts #SelfDiscovery

Some nights, my Evening Pages are full of thoughts I’ve been holding onto all day. Other nights, I sit there trying to figure out what I even want to say. But I keep coming back to these pages. Not because I always have something profound to write, but because I need somewhere to put the things I haven’t had time to feel. A little time at the end of the day that belongs to me. 🤎 If you’ve been wanting to begin an evening writing practice, my Evening Pages journal is available through my profile. Do you write before bed, or do you prefer mornings? #EveningPages #JournalWithMe #EveningJournaling #JournalTok #HealingGently

I love a well-written crochet pattern. I love knowing how something is constructed, understanding the stitches, and learning why certain techniques work. But one of my favorite parts of crochet is what happens when we begin making choices of our own. That’s the idea behind Make It Yours. A pattern gives us a starting point. Our colors, materials, creative decisions, and sometimes our modifications give the finished object its own personality. Of course, some changes affect stitch counts, gauge, and fit. Learning what we can change without losing the intended construction is part of growing as makers. Now that my first two Make It Yours crochet pattern books are finally here, I’m so excited to share them with you. Volume 1: Journaling and Reading. Volume 2: Everyday Creative Life. You can explore the Make It Yours volumes through my profile. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #MakeItYoursCrochet #CrochetPatternBooks #CrochetCommunity #CrochetCreativity

I think communication can become surprisingly complicated when we start defending everything except the thing we originally wanted to say. What I find interesting is how easily a conversation can move away from the actual feeling, question, or experience that started it. And sometimes, long after the conversation is over, we’re still arguing our case in our own minds. Here’s a journaling exercise worth trying: “What I kept trying to explain was…” “What I actually wanted them to understand was…” Notice whether your answers are different. Take those two sentences to your journal after a conversation that leaves you feeling misunderstood. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalingExercises #SelfReflection #CommunicationAndRelationships #JournalWithMe I think there’s such an interesting difference between wanting someone to agree with us and wanting them to understand what we’re actually saying.

I think sometimes we expect our journals to explain us to ourselves. But there are mornings when I don’t have a neat explanation for how I’m feeling. And having experienced depression, I know not every difficult day arrives with a name attached to it. Morning Pages don’t require me to solve that before I begin. Sometimes I start with ordinary observations and let the writing go where it goes. Sometimes nothing extraordinary comes of it. That is still part of keeping a record of my life. If you’re having one of those mornings when you don’t know what to write, try naming three things you can actually observe. Let that be your beginning, without demanding that it become something deeper. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalingPractice #JournalWithMe #JournalingForBeginners

Sometimes the word we write isn’t a description of how we’re feeling. Sometimes it’s an acknowledgment of what we’re longing for. And I think there’s something worth exploring in that difference. Today, my word is PEACE. Not because I’ve figured everything out. Not because writing the word will magically change how I feel. But because peace is something I want to make room for in my life. And I don’t necessarily have to understand everything about that desire before I write it down. That’s one of the things I enjoy about journaling. We can begin with something so simple and allow it to remain simple. A word can become a sentence. A sentence can become a page. Or that one word can stand on its own. Grab your journal, a notebook, or any piece of paper and write one word that describes either how you feel or how you’d like to feel. Let that be enough for today. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalWithMe #CreativeJournaling #JournalingIdeas #ExpressionBeyondWords

You finally get yourself together. Then you look at her, and here you go again. 😂 That kind of laughing deserves a little room in your journal, too. Think of one time you couldn't keep a straight face. Write where you were, what started it, and what the other person did that set you off again. Keep the exact words if you remember them. You don't have to find a lesson in it. Tell it the way you'd tell her: “Remember when we…” #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalWithMe #JournalingPrompts #EverydayMemories

I just got this adjustable selfie stick/tripod from TikTok Shop! 📱 Since I’m always recording something, whether it’s journaling, crochet, or talking-to-camera content, I wanted something that could work for different filming setups. I like the idea of being able to use one accessory as a handheld selfie stick or a standing tripod. If you’re recording videos on your phone and looking for a flexible setup, take a look at this one. 🛍️ I’ve linked the exact tripod in this video. Tap the product link to check it out. #TikTokShopFinds #SelfieStickTripod #ContentCreatorTools #PhoneTripod #TikTokShopAffiliate

They’re finally here! 🧶🤎 There’s something about holding a book you’ve created that feels different from seeing it on a computer screen. These are my first two Make It Yours crochet pattern volumes, and they bring together so many of the things I enjoy about making. Volume 1: Journaling and Reading Crochet patterns inspired by journals, books, and the little things that accompany our creative rituals. Volume 2: Everyday Creative Life Patterns for pouches, wearables, and useful everyday pieces, including the Solid Granny Hexagon Cardigan featured on the cover. The idea behind Make It Yours is simple. Start with a pattern, learn something along the way, and make choices that turn the finished piece into something that feels like you. Because two people can follow the same instructions and create two completely different things. I love that about crochet. If you’d like to explore the books, visit 🔗 in my profile and look for the Make It Yours collection. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #MakeItYoursCrochet #CrochetPatterns #CrochetBooks #CrochetCommunity

I think we can spend years living as the people everyone knows us to be without ever really stopping to get acquainted with ourselves. Mother. Daughter. Sister. Friend. Business owner. We know what we do. We know what people expect from us. We know the roles we fill. But how well do we know the person moving through all those roles? One of the things I find most fascinating about keeping a journal is that, over time, you begin noticing yourself. The things you repeatedly think about. The way you respond. The contradictions. The parts of yourself you never really paid attention to. And sometimes you meet someone on those pages you genuinely didn’t know very well. Yourself. What I love even more is that she keeps changing. So there’s always something new to learn about her. After almost two years of Morning Pages, I don’t feel like I’ve finished discovering who I am. I feel like I’ve finally begun paying attention. Follow along if you’d like to continue exploring journaling, creativity, and this ongoing experience of getting to know ourselves. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalingJourney #SelfDiscovery #WomenOver40

One cup beside the sink can feel like a ridiculous thing to be upset about. Especially when you’re already telling yourself it’s no big deal. Maybe it really is just the cup. Maybe you wanted someone to notice you could use a hand. On your page, describe what happened, then finish: “I wish someone had noticed…” You don’t have to settle the whole thing this morning. #MorningPages #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #JournalPrompt #Journaling #EverydayLife

Today’s reading came from Day 44 of Amor Fati, Love Your Destiny. And it had me thinking about how much of our lives we spend having conversations with ourselves that nobody else ever hears. The doubts. The fear. The second-guessing. The voice that reminds us of everything that could go wrong before we’ve even given ourselves a chance to begin. I’ve had plenty of those conversations with myself. And I wish I could say that knowing better always meant thinking differently. But it doesn’t. Sometimes I recognize the thought. I know it isn’t helping me. I know I’ve survived things I once thought I couldn’t. And still, that little voice finds its way back. I’m learning that I don’t have to believe every thought that passes through my mind. And I don’t have to wait until every doubt disappears before I live my life. Sometimes I can be afraid and still be curious about what’s possible. That’s what this reading brought up for me today. If you’ve ever struggled with your own thoughts, maybe take a few minutes with your journal today and ask yourself: “What have I been telling myself that I no longer want to believe?” Happy reading and happy writing. 🤎 #AmorFati #BookTok #ReadingReflection #JournalTok #SelfInquiry

A button tin, a saved ribbon, somebody who could make something out of almost nothing. Sometimes one ordinary detail brings a whole person back to mind. Prompt 22 in The Remembering Pages: A Deeper Return leaves room for that kind of remembering. Start with “I remember seeing…” and let one detail lead into the next sentence. If you would like questions and sentence starters beside you as you write, the printable and tablet PDF editions are included for $18.99 USD. No physical book is shipped. See my profile. The Remembering Pages: A Deeper Return — Digital Journal or paperback. #ADeeperReturn #TheRememberingPages #CreativeJournaling #JournalPrompts #SlayedBeyondBeautiful

I wrote this poem many years ago, back when I was in love. ❤️ And there’s something about reading your own words years later that takes you right back to the woman you were when you wrote them. I remember what it felt like to love someone, to be inspired by them, to find pieces of my own voice through that connection. And now, all these years later, I get to revisit those feelings through something I created. That’s one of the things I love most about writing. Our words remember things about us. They hold versions of ourselves that time has carried us away from. The things we believed. The things we hoped for. The people we loved. And sometimes, reading those words again is like sitting down with a younger version of yourself. This is “Will You Be Mine,” a poem from my published poetry collection, Pay Attention, published in 2012. If you’d like to read more of the pieces of myself I’ve left behind in poetry, you can find Pay Attention through my profile. 🤎 #PoetryTok #SpokenWordPoetry #LovePoetry #PayAttentionPoetry #SlayedBeyondBeautiful

Here’s a different way to begin a journal page. Instead of trying to describe a place you remember, draw a simple map of it. Where was the door? Where did you sit? What was beside the window? It doesn’t need to be accurate or artistic. Even a few boxes and lines can help you remember how a place felt to you. And sometimes another detail comes back while you’re drawing. That’s one of the things I enjoy about creative journaling. There are so many ways to revisit an experience beyond writing a paragraph. Save this little memory-map exercise for a day when you want to try something different. If you’d like to explore more ways of expressing yourself when words don’t come easily, take a look at my creative workbook, When Words Aren’t Enough. You can find it through my profile. 🤎 #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #ArtJournaling #MemoryJournaling #CreativeJournaling #JournalIdeas

I wanted to show you what some of those random scribbles and marks can actually become. These are real pages from my mixed media journal. Some began with a pen moving across the paper without any particular plan. Then came doodles, watercolor, markers, and whatever else I felt like adding. Others began with handprints, including some I made with my son and my granddaughter. And I love those pages for a completely different reason. They’re little records of us, made with our own hands. That’s what I enjoy about mixed media journaling. One page can be playful and colorful. Another can become a memory. And neither one needs to begin with a written sentence. You can start with a line and see where it takes you. Save this video for a little inspiration the next time you feel like playing in your art journal. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #MixedMediaJournal #ArtJournaling #CreativeJournaling #JournalWithMe

I’ve caught myself thinking about all the things that need to happen before I can finally relax and enjoy certain parts of my life. And some of those things are real responsibilities. Bills have to be paid. Decisions have to be made. Life doesn’t stop requiring things from us. But I also wonder how often we turn circumstances that may take years to change into conditions for allowing ourselves any enjoyment at all. I’m not suggesting we ignore reality. I’m wondering whether we’re allowed to experience some happiness while we’re still figuring things out. That’s a question worth taking to the page. If there’s a woman in your life who’s been waiting for everything to settle down before she lets herself enjoy anything, send this to her. #SlayedBeyondBeautiful #MorningPages #JournalWithMe #WomenOver40 #LifeReflections

I finished my Morning Pages this morning, but I still didn’t feel finished. I’d written until I couldn’t find anything else to say. And yet, there was still something sitting inside me that I needed to express. So I turned to the next two pages and started painting. Random squares. Rectangles. Different colors. Nothing that was supposed to look like anything. And I think that’s one of the things I love most about art journaling. I don’t have to know how to draw. I don’t have to create something recognizable. I don’t even have to like how the page looks when I’m finished. I just get to explore. There’s something about the movement of my hands and watching color fill an empty page that quiets something in me. And I love knowing that someday those colorful pages will hold words, too. By the time I put my paints away this morning, I felt lighter. The writing gave some of my thoughts a place to go. The color gave the rest of me somewhere to go. If you’ve never tried painting in your journal, maybe start with a few shapes and colors. No picture to make. No rules to follow. Just see what happens. 🤎 #MorningPages #ArtJournaling #JournalWithMe #CreativeExpression #SlayedBeyondBeautiful