In the bleak mid winter is a splendid time to fondly look back on travels made and to make plans for further adventures. It is also approaching the Christmas season … and I have the ideal gift idea for travellers. It is a gift that reminds you of your travels and gives an added incentive to make some more. From Journeys Made, it is a luxurious leather travel key ring with a Pandora – like token, engraved for each destination visited – whether it’s a country, city, town, state or island. Founded in 2021 by Jade Scammells, I caught up with Jade to find out more about her gifts, her travels and her fashion tastes 😊 Hi Jade & welcome !

Hi, I’m Jade Scammells, the founder of travel gift company, Journeys Made. I created Journeys Made as a way for me to stay connected to the experiences I’d had and memories I had made around the world. I founded the business shortly after closing my travel agency due to the pandemic.

What inspired the founding of your company, Journeys Made?

At a time when we couldn’t travel I found myself reminiscing on my past adventures and wanted to create something that kept all my travels in one place, a keychain that I could carry with me wherever I went. So that’s what I made, a leather travel keychain that holds engraved destination tokens each representing a place visited.

I love the idea of collecting tokens for countries visited or even cities, mountains, US states and  you can get personalised tokens done too. What is currently the most popular token asked for?

The most popular country token that people ask for is France, which makes total sense as it is consistently the most visited country in the world. Spain, Italy, Scotland and Greece follow closely behind for the top 5 most popular country tokens I sell.

Apart from the keepsakes, you also sell stainless steel necklaces to collect tokens on.  Have you got any other ideas in the pipeline for future Journeys Made items? 

As an entrepreneur I always have ideas on what I could do with Journeys Made; what new items I could create, how I can elevate the current products – perhaps by introducing new colours, different metals. Someone once suggested I make an exclusive keepsake out of solid gold! At the moment, I’m focusing on collaborating with brands to get my products in their stores. My dream would be to get my keepsakes on cruise ships, stocked in their onboard gift shops. 

As Journeys Made is based in the UK, are your products on the website available to purchase & ship worldwide? 

Yes they are. I ship to every country in the world, including the British Forces Post Office for those serving in the HM Forces abroad.

Thinking back to your own past travels, what places are in your top 3 destinations?

That’s a tough question because I’ve been very fortunate and have travelled quite a bit. I’d say in third place would be Finland because it was an experience like no other, the scenery is absolutely breathtaking and the locals are so friendly. Second place would be Mexico, it will always have a special place in my heart as I went here on my honeymoon, but I love Mexican food and all the Mayan ruins. My top destination would have to be Costa Rica, this country is incredible, the food is fantastic, the people are the friendliest people ever – everyone is so happy, the landscapes vary from the Arenal volcano to the Pacific coast beaches, it’s so diverse, and of course, I can’t forget the wildlife; toucans, monkeys, sloths, we saw them all. There is so much to do in Costa Rica, from relaxing on the beach to canyoning through the rainforest, it’s a truly eye-opening destination.

Have you visited any places that you felt didn’t live up to your expectations? 

We went to Washington DC as part of a twin-centre New York – DC holiday, we took the Amtrak from New York and stayed in DC for 3 nights, I found it quite disappointing. I thought it would feel empowering to visit but it didn’t. There were protests outside the White House, coach loads of tourist groups everywhere, and bizarrely not many food options that appealed to me for dinner. I do think spending 3 nights in Washington DC was too long, we did all the landmarks and a couple of museums in one and a half days, I would say a maximum of 2 nights here would have sufficed. Visiting the Lincoln Memorial and Reflection Pool was really great though and quite moving.

Bucket list time… what’s place is top of your list? 

Another tough question, there’s so many places on my bucket list. The top for me would be the Maldives, I know it’s cliché but I live such a busy life and the idea of being on an island listening to the sea and enjoying quality family time together is bliss.

Personal now – what outfits and shoes would you normally be found wearing?

I do prefer a basic style – neutral colour t-shirts or long sleeves, paired with some jeans and ankle boots. Although, I do love knitted jumpers when the weather turns cold, you can’t beat that cosy feeling of being wrapped up warm.

Do you have any favourite shops or online sites?

I love H&M, that’s my favourite shop, and I do like Apricot.

What’s next on your clothes/shoe wish list?

I’d love a new pair of Chelsea boots, we’ve recently bought my daughter some and I’m jealous because they look great!

Personal now – what outfits and shoes would you normally be found wearing?

I feel like boots are always a great choice because they go with a lot of the clothes I wear. Plus, I spend most of my time either running around after my toddler or handmaking my products so I need to be wearing something sturdy and comfortable.

Links you would like to share e.g. website/facebook etc so that readers can find out more about Journeys Made. 

My website is: www.journeysmade.co.uk

You can also follow Journeys Made on Instagram: www.instagram.com/journeys_made

Many thanks for joining me on the blog,Jade. The leather key ring is really well made and I love the discs to remember and collect…. I will hopefully be adding some more to mine in the future!

Linda x

All photographs have been published with the kind permission of Jade Scammells of Journeys Made ( Pinterest & header photo by Linda Hobden).