Friday, December 13, 2013
New Video: Day per page diary vs notebook vs Filofax
I just posted a video comparing the pros and cons of using a day per page diary vs an undated notebook vs a Filofax on my YouTube channel. You can click here to see it!
Free For All Friday No. 14: Annual Review 2013
Now is the time of year when I start my annual review. I don't do anything intensive or formal, I just look back at what my goals were at the beginning of the year, how they changed and developed during the year, and where they are now.
I'm happy that I was able to complete many of my goals. Some didn't get completed due to circumstances beyond my control, some are nearly there, and some became irrelevant. I'll use this review to determine what my goals will be in 2014.
My Plannerisms planner has designated pages for the Annual Review, but you could just as easily write it in your journal or in your Filofax.
Do you do any type of annual review? Where do you write it?
And as always on Fridays, feel free to discuss anything planner-related!
I'm happy that I was able to complete many of my goals. Some didn't get completed due to circumstances beyond my control, some are nearly there, and some became irrelevant. I'll use this review to determine what my goals will be in 2014.
My Plannerisms planner has designated pages for the Annual Review, but you could just as easily write it in your journal or in your Filofax.
Do you do any type of annual review? Where do you write it?
And as always on Fridays, feel free to discuss anything planner-related!
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Covers that fit (and don't fit) the Plannerisms planners
I've had several people ask what covers fit the Plannerisms planners because they want card slots and a pen loop. There are several covers that do fit, and some to keep in mind that do not.
First, covers that DO fit the Plannerisms planners:
The Success Choice covers all fit the Plannerisms planner wonderfully (and their covers are delightful). The Success Choice covers come in a selection of beautiful leathers, with either an elastic or tab enclosure. Also now they have limited edition felt covers which look beautiful. I have one of the new felt covers on its way to me, expect my review next month!
Below you can see my Plannerisms planner in my leather Success Choice cover (which I reviewed here). It fits perfectly with a little room to spare.
In fact there is enough space to use the cover to have your Plannerisms planner in with your notebook (shown with my large Moleskine notebook).
It's a nice way to keep both books together in one gorgeous cover, with slots for cards, papers, a checkbook and a pen loop.
The Success Choice (www.thesuccesschoice.com) ships worldwide. You can see all of their covers here. Don't forget you can get 15% off your entire order at The Success Choice by entering the code plannerisms12 at checkout!
Some covers I haven't tried but seem like they should fit are the Franklin Covey Classic size covers for their wirebound (not ringbound!) planners. The Plannerisms pages are 5 1/2 by 8 1/2 inches, the same size as the Franklin Covey Classic size pages so it seems like the books should be the same size and the covers should fit. But since I don't have one myself I can't confirm for sure. **Updated: Please see Linda's comments below that the Plannerisms planner fits perfectly in the Franklin Covey Classic size covers for their wirebound planners!
Another option is a customized cover from Renaissance Art (www.renaissance-art.com). If you give them the dimensions of any book they can make a cover to fit it. They have loads of colors of leather to choose from, and you can choose from lots of styles with card pockets and pen loops.
I've also seen covers on Etsy and elsewhere designed to fit planners with the same page size as the Plannerisms planners (5 1/2 by 8 1/2 inches). If you send them the dimensions of the Plannerisms planner they will be able to tell you if the cover will fit.
The dimensions (as measured by me) of the Plannerisms planners are: height of the cover is 8 11/16 inches, width of the cover is 5 5/8 inches, total measurement of the cover from the edge of the back cover around the spine to the edge of the front cover using a measuring tape is 11 3/4 inches. With that information you can ask cover manufacturers directly and they should be able to tell you if their covers will fit the Plannerisms planner.
***Edited to add: another option without adding the weight and expense of a cover is to get a stick-on pen loop from Leuchtturm 1917, which sticks into any book (google to find your local supplier) and stick a Planner Pad Insta-Pocket into the front cover for cards. (You can see my post on how the Insta-Pocket works with the link to its product page here, no affiliation, it just worked for me).
Covers that DO NOT fit Plannerisms planners:
Covers designed to fit the large Moleskine planners and notebooks sadly do not fit the Plannerisms planners. This includes the Rickshaw Bagworks Moleskine folios, even the ones designed for the daily planners. Here's why:
The Plannerisms planner is a little wider and slightly taller than the large Moleskine.
The Rickshaw folios are designed to fit the back cover of the large Moleskine notebook:
Since the Plannerisms planner is wider, it overlaps inside the spine of the folio:
...preventing it from closing.
The Daily Planner Folio has the same interior dimensions as the regular one, the only difference is the wider zip area to accommodate the thickness of the book. For this reason, the Plannerisms planner doesn't fit it either.
If the cover were designed to fit all the way around the book onto the front and back covers, it would make sense that a cover designed for a thicker book should fit the wider Plannerisms. But since the folio fits the back cover only, the Plannerisms is too wide.
I have a Renaissance Art leather cover specifically designed to fit the large Moleskine notebook snugly, and the Plannerisms planner cover is just slightly too tall to fit into it:
**Edited to add: I took some quick photos to show the Plannerisms planner with the Dodo Pad slipcover, which unfortunately is too big:
The Plannerisms planner is a full two inches narrower than the Dodo Pad original desk size diary:
The cover is very loose on the book:
Top view, you can see how the Plannerisms cover doesn't stay in the slipcover pockets very well and tends to slide out:
It's too bad because the Dodo Pad slipcovers are so nice!
Another cover that does not fit is the Flex by Filofax. It is designed for A5 size books, which are slightly shorter and wider than the Plannerisms planner. For this reason the Plannerisms is too tall to fit. I don't have a Flex so I can't show photos, but this has been the report from Flex users.
I hope this helps!
Have you found other covers that do (or don't) fit the Plannerisms planners?
First, covers that DO fit the Plannerisms planners:
The Success Choice covers all fit the Plannerisms planner wonderfully (and their covers are delightful). The Success Choice covers come in a selection of beautiful leathers, with either an elastic or tab enclosure. Also now they have limited edition felt covers which look beautiful. I have one of the new felt covers on its way to me, expect my review next month!
Below you can see my Plannerisms planner in my leather Success Choice cover (which I reviewed here). It fits perfectly with a little room to spare.
The Success Choice (www.thesuccesschoice.com) ships worldwide. You can see all of their covers here. Don't forget you can get 15% off your entire order at The Success Choice by entering the code plannerisms12 at checkout!
Some covers I haven't tried but seem like they should fit are the Franklin Covey Classic size covers for their wirebound (not ringbound!) planners. The Plannerisms pages are 5 1/2 by 8 1/2 inches, the same size as the Franklin Covey Classic size pages so it seems like the books should be the same size and the covers should fit. But since I don't have one myself I can't confirm for sure. **Updated: Please see Linda's comments below that the Plannerisms planner fits perfectly in the Franklin Covey Classic size covers for their wirebound planners!
Another option is a customized cover from Renaissance Art (www.renaissance-art.com). If you give them the dimensions of any book they can make a cover to fit it. They have loads of colors of leather to choose from, and you can choose from lots of styles with card pockets and pen loops.
I've also seen covers on Etsy and elsewhere designed to fit planners with the same page size as the Plannerisms planners (5 1/2 by 8 1/2 inches). If you send them the dimensions of the Plannerisms planner they will be able to tell you if the cover will fit.
The dimensions (as measured by me) of the Plannerisms planners are: height of the cover is 8 11/16 inches, width of the cover is 5 5/8 inches, total measurement of the cover from the edge of the back cover around the spine to the edge of the front cover using a measuring tape is 11 3/4 inches. With that information you can ask cover manufacturers directly and they should be able to tell you if their covers will fit the Plannerisms planner.
***Edited to add: another option without adding the weight and expense of a cover is to get a stick-on pen loop from Leuchtturm 1917, which sticks into any book (google to find your local supplier) and stick a Planner Pad Insta-Pocket into the front cover for cards. (You can see my post on how the Insta-Pocket works with the link to its product page here, no affiliation, it just worked for me).
Covers that DO NOT fit Plannerisms planners:
Covers designed to fit the large Moleskine planners and notebooks sadly do not fit the Plannerisms planners. This includes the Rickshaw Bagworks Moleskine folios, even the ones designed for the daily planners. Here's why:
The Plannerisms planner is a little wider and slightly taller than the large Moleskine.
The Rickshaw folios are designed to fit the back cover of the large Moleskine notebook:
Since the Plannerisms planner is wider, it overlaps inside the spine of the folio:
...preventing it from closing.
If the cover were designed to fit all the way around the book onto the front and back covers, it would make sense that a cover designed for a thicker book should fit the wider Plannerisms. But since the folio fits the back cover only, the Plannerisms is too wide.
I have a Renaissance Art leather cover specifically designed to fit the large Moleskine notebook snugly, and the Plannerisms planner cover is just slightly too tall to fit into it:
**Edited to add: I took some quick photos to show the Plannerisms planner with the Dodo Pad slipcover, which unfortunately is too big:
The Plannerisms planner is a full two inches narrower than the Dodo Pad original desk size diary:
Top view, you can see how the Plannerisms cover doesn't stay in the slipcover pockets very well and tends to slide out:
Another cover that does not fit is the Flex by Filofax. It is designed for A5 size books, which are slightly shorter and wider than the Plannerisms planner. For this reason the Plannerisms is too tall to fit. I don't have a Flex so I can't show photos, but this has been the report from Flex users.
I hope this helps!
Have you found other covers that do (or don't) fit the Plannerisms planners?
Monday, December 9, 2013
Guest post from Raine: LimeTreeFruits Planner giveaway!
This giveaway is now closed. Please check the post on Tuesday December 17, 2013 to see the winner.
Hello everyone!
.jpg)
Hello everyone!
Raine here, artist & illustrator blogging my art and my heart away at
LimeTreeFruits.com. Very nice to meet you all.
:)
Laurie was extremely nice to let me come
over here today to tell you about a ‘lil project of mine that just went live.
You see, I am a tad {maybe a lot} obsessed in love with
Filofax binders. A year ago I decided to combine my artistic skills with the
above mentioned love and started creating calendars and inserts week after
week.
This year
I’ve decided to kick it up a notch and create a whole range of LimeTreeFruits
Planners, with different month layouts, weeklies, dailies and a few extra
goodies in there. ;)
Take a
quick peek!
.jpg)
Cute and cheerful, aren’t they? :) {And I am soooo
modest!}
And why
am I telling you all this?
Well
darlings as mentioned, Laurie has been a peach and let me come over here to
spread out the LimeTreeFruits Pre-Order Planner Party beyond my little corner
of the web.
I am here
because it is GIVEAWAY TIME!
Super-excited
to have something to give back to the community after a whole year of love and
support! You guys rock! ♥
To enter
the Giveaway is easy-peasy. Just leave a comment below telling us what kind of
binder you use or are planning to use with those babies {Filofax, Day-timer,
Franklin Covey, Arc System, etc}, AND log your entry here on Rafflecopter:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
The
Giveaway will run from today till December 16th and the winner will
be announced on December 17th here on Plannerisms.
By the
way, if you need more details about LimeTreeFruits Planners head over to this page
to check it out --> click for LimeTreeFruits Planners.
Then come
back over here and add your entry! ;)
Thank you Laurie + the Plannerisms Community for supporting me here today with the GiveAway!
Smooches,
Raine.
Thank you Laurie + the Plannerisms Community for supporting me here today with the GiveAway!
Smooches,
Raine.
Friday, December 6, 2013
Free For All Friday No. 13: Work vs. Struggle
Using a planner requires a certain amount of work. You have to write in it and look at it often. Then you have to carry out those plans. But at what point does work turn to struggle?
In addition to my Plannerisms weekly planner, I've been using my day per page diary all year as my daily record and capture device. Even though it works well as a record of each day, it has been a struggle to continue to use it all year due to the weight of the book, lack of list space and limit of one page each day. You can see in this year's What I'm Currently Using that I went back and forth a lot. Even though I intended to finish the year in it, I have so much going on right now I just couldn't struggle with it any more. So I started my new notebook system for 2014 a little early, and am already feeling better!
Ideally your planner itself should fade into the background and you shouldn't need to think too much about HOW to use your system, you just use it. But some systems are more work to keep up on than others, especially if it doesn't perfectly fit your needs.
At what point does your planning system tip from Work to Struggle?
And as always on Fridays, feel free to discuss anything planner-related!
In addition to my Plannerisms weekly planner, I've been using my day per page diary all year as my daily record and capture device. Even though it works well as a record of each day, it has been a struggle to continue to use it all year due to the weight of the book, lack of list space and limit of one page each day. You can see in this year's What I'm Currently Using that I went back and forth a lot. Even though I intended to finish the year in it, I have so much going on right now I just couldn't struggle with it any more. So I started my new notebook system for 2014 a little early, and am already feeling better!
Ideally your planner itself should fade into the background and you shouldn't need to think too much about HOW to use your system, you just use it. But some systems are more work to keep up on than others, especially if it doesn't perfectly fit your needs.
At what point does your planning system tip from Work to Struggle?
And as always on Fridays, feel free to discuss anything planner-related!
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Deaf Messanger 2014 diary and large notebook!
I love the street-art look of Deaf Messanger diaries and notebooks!
Deaf Messanger products are made by an artist called Kucin in Prague. Each item is unique because it incorporates found objects like post cards, pages from old books and letters, magazine pages and maps. The result is a fascinating and useful object of art.
This is the Kahlo 2014 diary from Deaf Messanger. I admire Frida Kahlo so when I saw this diary I had to get it! There are loads of cover images to choose from for the 2014 diaries, you can see them all here.
This diary is approximately A6 size and is absolutely featherweight at only 137 g so it can easily go everywhere with you in your pocket or bag.
It comes with a pencil in its loop so you are all set to use it immediately!
Inside the front cover is a pocket made out of paper scraps:
The first page is decorated with stencil art:
There is a year planner with six months per two-page spread:
Every week's page is different with stencil art and other items of interest:
Inside the back page is part of a dictionary from Russian to I assume Czech. If I could remember my Russian well enough I could learn some Czech!
I haven't shown everything here, there are plenty of fun surprises in this diary!
When I ordered my diary I asked Kucin if it would be ok to do a post about it with photos of the inside pages. I didn't want to give away any secrets! He said yes, and to thank me for my post and my review of the Square Journal I did a few years ago on LoveNotebooks.com he added a surprise gift for me: this awesome notebook!
This is the Big Notebook, which comes in a huge selection of cover images. The Big notebook is approximately A5 size, and weighs only 232 g so it's very portable.
Inside the front cover is a pocket made from a magazine page. Remember each book is unique so what's inside each one is different.
The first page has cool stencil art with the Deaf Messanger logo:
The recycled paper is unlined, and there is a ribbon placemarker:
There are lots of fun surprises in this notebook too:
I love old ledger pages like this:
The back page has the Deaf Messanger website (www.deafmessanger.com) and email address:
Even the backs of the books are cool. Here is the back of the notebook:
And here is the back of the pocket diary:
I love how these diaries and notebooks have bits of life already in them. It reduces that intimidation of writing into a fresh new book, because someone has already stuck bits in to get you started. I especially like the old letters and ledger books from years and years ago. Whoever wrote those was writing in their present, which is now our past. The diary and blank notebook represent our future, and when you write in it you are recording your present. Then you can read them later to look back on your past. Sorry to get all existential on you! These are just really cool books.
Huge thanks again to Kucin!
You can find the entire range of Deaf Messanger products including diaries and notebooks, and their new wall calendars and tote bags at www.deafmessanger.com!
This is the Kahlo 2014 diary from Deaf Messanger. I admire Frida Kahlo so when I saw this diary I had to get it! There are loads of cover images to choose from for the 2014 diaries, you can see them all here.
It comes with a pencil in its loop so you are all set to use it immediately!
Inside the front cover is a pocket made out of paper scraps:
The first page is decorated with stencil art:
There is a year planner with six months per two-page spread:
Every week's page is different with stencil art and other items of interest:
Inside the back page is part of a dictionary from Russian to I assume Czech. If I could remember my Russian well enough I could learn some Czech!
I haven't shown everything here, there are plenty of fun surprises in this diary!
When I ordered my diary I asked Kucin if it would be ok to do a post about it with photos of the inside pages. I didn't want to give away any secrets! He said yes, and to thank me for my post and my review of the Square Journal I did a few years ago on LoveNotebooks.com he added a surprise gift for me: this awesome notebook!
Inside the front cover is a pocket made from a magazine page. Remember each book is unique so what's inside each one is different.
The first page has cool stencil art with the Deaf Messanger logo:
The recycled paper is unlined, and there is a ribbon placemarker:
There are lots of fun surprises in this notebook too:
I love old ledger pages like this:
The back page has the Deaf Messanger website (www.deafmessanger.com) and email address:
Even the backs of the books are cool. Here is the back of the notebook:
And here is the back of the pocket diary:
I love how these diaries and notebooks have bits of life already in them. It reduces that intimidation of writing into a fresh new book, because someone has already stuck bits in to get you started. I especially like the old letters and ledger books from years and years ago. Whoever wrote those was writing in their present, which is now our past. The diary and blank notebook represent our future, and when you write in it you are recording your present. Then you can read them later to look back on your past. Sorry to get all existential on you! These are just really cool books.
Huge thanks again to Kucin!
You can find the entire range of Deaf Messanger products including diaries and notebooks, and their new wall calendars and tote bags at www.deafmessanger.com!
Monday, December 2, 2013
The Women's Success Choice 2014 planners!
Anyone who has been reading my blog for awhile knows I love The Woman's Success Choice planners. They are so comprehensive, and so inspiring. I love all the motivational tips and goal-setting advice. Now they have several new products!
The Choosing Joy in the Journey Journal is based on the same excellent principles as the Success Choice Planner. And they now have gorgeous felt covers! And, their soft leather covers (which fit A5 and 5 1/2 by 8 1/2 inch books, including my Plannerisms Planners) now come with either a tab closure or an elastic closure. You can see all their covers and binders here.
I grabbed a couple of journals (one for me and one for my mom), a red felt cover and the Caramel Brown leather cover I've had my eye on for a long time in the Cyber Monday sale. My mom is bringing them with her when she comes over for Christmas, so expect to see reviews of these new products next month!
Last year I reviewed the excellent new features in the 2013 planners. This year I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that the 2014 planners have a new feature:
The monthly pages match the cover color! It's a beautiful new addition to these wonderful planners.
You can see the entire range of Success Choice planners, journals, address book, covers and binders at www.thesuccesschoice.com.
The Choosing Joy in the Journey Journal is based on the same excellent principles as the Success Choice Planner. And they now have gorgeous felt covers! And, their soft leather covers (which fit A5 and 5 1/2 by 8 1/2 inch books, including my Plannerisms Planners) now come with either a tab closure or an elastic closure. You can see all their covers and binders here.
I grabbed a couple of journals (one for me and one for my mom), a red felt cover and the Caramel Brown leather cover I've had my eye on for a long time in the Cyber Monday sale. My mom is bringing them with her when she comes over for Christmas, so expect to see reviews of these new products next month!
Last year I reviewed the excellent new features in the 2013 planners. This year I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that the 2014 planners have a new feature:
You can see the entire range of Success Choice planners, journals, address book, covers and binders at www.thesuccesschoice.com.
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