Preferred method of transportation:
Train for sure, but I try to walk as much as I can. But then again, I get most of my best ideas on long-haul flights too.

Place you’ve never been but dying to go:
Dying to do a few weeks in Scandinavia — I’ve only been to Copenhagen, but would love to go to Stockholm, Oslo, Helsinki, etc.

My favorite thing to look out for when traveling? Local paper shops!

Place you’d never go back:
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I went a few years ago as part of a Asian backpacking trip with college friends and we were super underwhelmed. Then again it was probably because it felt so much like Manila that we got pretty bored easily. ;)

Most memorable trip in 2 sentences or less:
Three weeks: Switzerland, London, Mediterranean cruise (Greece/Italy/Turkey), Rome, Mexico. One carry on bag with a coat + boots, a bathing suit, and a formal gown to boot. :)

More design work inspired by travel.

How do you prepare for a trip?
Most of my obsessing comes in booking flights (always looking for the cheapest deal) and figuring out where to stay. Almost always leave packing to the night before (panic!) and light research before the trip. I usually like to figure things out when I get there, as long as I have a general idea where I am and what I’d like to see.

How do you record your travels when you’re traveling?
I collect everything and anything. Usually at the end of each day I try my best to write in bullet points some highlights or the activities for the day so I don’t forget for my scrapbooks. Usually the amount of iPhone photos I have is enough to remind me, though!

Another rare photo of myself — sometimes I feel like I need to take these as proof that I was there. In this case, “there” was Snaefellsnes in Iceland.

What is your favorite thing to photograph in a new place?
I love street signs and well-designed advertisements. Sometimes shop fronts with good type is fun too.

A set of travel cards for scrapbooking that I designed with prompts I use — because it’s not just about what you see and do, but what you eat, too! ;)

On an average, how many pictures to you take on a trip?
Ooh, too many to count. Maybe 300, I’d say.

What’s in your “designer travel kit”?
I bring my Instax camera but am usually too shy to whip it out and take photos in a quiet cafe (especially when I’m alone). A blank sketchbook/notebook for sure, always. My phone is my main camera.

An example of what goes into my travel scrapbooks.

What do you do after a trip? How long after a trip does this happen?
In the past I’d gather the stuff I’ve collected and put them into a Project Life album — probably a few months after. Lately haven’t had the time to really collect nor write anything down (cry!).

Another peek at my scrapbook — this one was from a trip to Melbourne I saved mostly restaurant business cards and the empty shell of the local SIM card I got.

Favorite souvenir/thing to bring back?
Local magazines and publications, smaller art pieces (prints, postcards) from local designers/illustrators. I do pick up a lot of random paper things along the way — ephemera like maps, brochures, postcards, tickets, postcards, and flyers. I see it as getting a taste of the local design scene (and I hoard paper, in general.)

A few things I saved from my last trip to Seoul. A favorite piece was the small instruction card that came with my meal on the flight, explaining how to eat the traditional dish they were serving.

What inspired your Everyday Explorers journal?
I love collecting a lot of bits and pieces when I travel with grand plans of turning them into finished pieces and scrapbooks when I get home. Buuuut, we all know how it goes: you get home exhausted, and all the stuff you’ve collected ends up in a big ziplock bag that you can’t throw away. This kit was born out of my desire to document on the go and give myself a place to put all the bits and pieces, whether or not I end up creating something with it or not.

Collected pieces from a day (!) around Paris = design inspiration.

I actually got the idea for a portable box during a trip to Paris to see Anne, as we observed how we both loved to collect paper pieces and just needed a place to organize and put them all. A lot of the prompts [see image #3 above] included in the journal kit are things I used to notice on my own travels, and having them all in one place will hopefully make documenting and reflecting much easier while you’re in the moment!

Custom box design for the Everyday Explorers Journal Kit.

What was the first trip that really got you excited about traveling?
I remember getting the chance to tag along with my parents to a trip to Beijing when I was 15. History was already my favorite subject then (I ended up becoming a history major later) and I had just learned about the Forbidden City in class. I found myself standing in front of the actual Forbidden City (and its size blew my mind and was larger than I had ever imagined) close to tears and so excited to see more, more, more.

Elsewhere on the web

• website: christineherrin.com
• shop: christineherrin.com/shop
• blog: christineherrin.com/blog
• instagram: @christine.herrin
• twitter: @_ch21
• Feature on the Adobe Create blog.
• Christine on It’s Nice That. Christine on Raise Your Hand, Say Yes podcast with Tiffany Han.

Boarding Pass is a series that explores the creative ways people see the world.