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I not only get asked  all the time how I use so many planners but I ask myself this same question. It’s honestly difficult to pass up something beautiful that I see on Instagram and just buy it!! I know that since the beginning of my time using planners I have always used more than one planner but not like I do today. Social media is a huge influence on what I am using and also why I feel the need to use so many things. I get frustrated with myself because I say to myself ‘ Can’t I just love one?’. I am filled with guilt that I have so many that are beautiful and are not being used all the time. I want to use them all and I try and find uses for them all to justify having them. I have the same thoughts that most people in the planner community have. I have times that I feel at a loss and then some times that I feel i’m on top of it!

What I have found since being in the community which was back in 2012 is that I have relaxed a lot more. I don’t have quite as much guilt because I know that it’s my passion and my hobby. I like to change out my planners and they all speak to me in a different way. Some of them are more strict and some are more free flowing. Some allow me to draw and watercolor in them while in others I’m setting a time management plan. In some of them I like to just use stickers and in some of them I like to only use pen. I have found this to be the answer to feeling overwhelmed and guilty.

I of course will use some examples to paint a clear picture of what it is that I mean. I will begin with travelers notebooks. I have them in all kinds of sizes from field note, personal, regular to extra wide and they all speak to me in different ways. When I want to plan on a larger scale and use the planner perfect method for example I will dive right into an extra wide travelers notebook. I love setting the notebook up and the excitement of the journey that it will take me on. It’s that experience that I really enjoy and love. In a regular size midori I tend to try and plan more creatively in it. So I love to make tabs and splash my water colors through out. I like to experiment with all the wonderful printable inserts that can be found on etsy and see what I like and what I don’t like.

I do highly recommend taking notes while using different planners and journals. This is how you will most learn about what you love. In addition to choosing a size I like to use I also have to consider what size depending on where I am in my life. When I worked on the unit as a nurse I had a small planner that I kept in my scrub pocket. It helped me to stay on top of crazy schedules and also keep little cheat sheets for different drips in the back. At this time in my life this is what worked best for me.  I currently work from home and have a toddler and one on the way so I’m not limited to which planner I can use but I like to have something more on the creative side and more portable. I love documenting everything that my daughter does. I love keeping track of the things she likes to do. If she is ill and has a fever I like to write down her symptoms and when I am giving her tylenol. I write down questions about my pregnancy etc so planning has changed with me because life changes all the time.  The planner that I had in college was letter sized and filled with appointments and time trackers and very very regimented. Having options is really wonderful because I can let them change as my life changes and with so much on social media I am able to allow that influence to add to my creativity and make sure that I am making the most of my days.

Since the age of 8 when I first picked up a planner I have learned that ring binders like filofax and franklin covey open up the more strict side of my brain. The cap that I put on with these planners is much more business. I’m more serious and use a lot less creativity with them. This is the place that I keep my information for my online classes as well as a more structured schedule for youtube videos and social media analytics. I like to keep notes from people who ask to do reviews etc and I consider this to be a very professional interaction so it all goes into rings. I struggle with ring sizes from the personal to the a6 to the a5. These are all things I like to change up. I tend to leave the A5 at home and the other sizes I will take with me and throw into my bag. It all depends on how much I am leaving the house and if I need anything for a business meeting.

Allowing myself to feel the freedom of different planners and travelers notebooks and exploring so many different methods keeps me interested in using a planner. It keeps me on my toes and keeps me excited to set up new planners and try new sizes. In my opinion if my planners did not change over the years I would have never grown as a person. I look at my planners as an addition to my life. It adds to my day and doesn’t take away. It keeps my brain sharp and allows me to not only make plans but pull together ideas for what I want out of my life. It’s really very exciting if you look at  it this way!! Do you love all your planners and switching in and out of them?

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I recently was asked ‘what’s a great way to get kids into planning?’. I love this question because I had a chance to sit down and think about how I got started as a kid. I was about 8 years old and purchased a Chandlers chandlers  planner (sadly they no longer make planners). This was a fantastic planner that came out every new school season and the most difficult choice for me was color selection and my parents knowing my stationary addiction allowed me to always get two! With that said, it brings me to the point that support and sharing with your kids is so incredibly important. Now, my mom was never a scrapbooker and never used a planner or lists or anything. My Dad was more organized and loves pen to paper. He always carried a daily agenda and loved using yellow legal pads for list making. I was never restricted if I wanted to look at his lists or his daily agenda. I do remember that he carried that with him ALL the time. It always would sit on the dash of his car and on his desk. I remember he always referenced it for phone numbers and notes and anything else that ‘grown-ups’ need access to. So I highly highly encourage showing your kids your planners and sharing examples of things to put inside of your planner.

My daughter is 3 and she shows some interest in notebooks and journals but I don’t push it. I think that kids need to naturally stumble upon things and showing them by example I personally feel is the best way to get little ones interested.

The next best thing I can recommend is a space for kids to have all their own. Whether that’s a little table or a space in the kitchen, bedroom, family room, kids need to have their own place. For myself growing up my parents always had a desk for us. 2016-10-13-10-45-04To this day I have always always had a desk! Each apartment that I have lived in and each house that I have shared with my husband I have a desk space. It is something that is essential to me. I have to have somewhere where I can sit down and write, draw and color. I have done this for as long as I could remember. I have a hard time writing while lying in bed or sitting on the couch. It happens but usually I like having my designated space, lighting a candle and becoming creative or planning my next day. 2016-10-13-10-43-19

I have a small desk that I purchased for my daughter and put it in the same room as my desk. Whenever I sit at my desk she will wonder on over to her creative space even though most of the time she wants to sit at my desk, it’s an option for her. The desk I purchased was $20 at Ikea and I placed some paints, scissors, markers, pencils and crayons. I tend to stock up on these items whenever it’s back to school shopping. All extra supplies I keep in a cabinet high up and replenish when needed.

I will often times sit with my daughter and show her the journals I have put together. She loves to look at the pictures and point out different family members. I love to remind her of the things we have done. I have not shared too much of my planners because I think it’s something that might come a little later. I  focus on more of the creative process with her right now.  Letting her play with finger paints and use all kinds of bright colors. Gluing down scraps of paper and cutting up magazines, it’s all lots of fun and I use inexpensive composition notebooks and write down dates so that it’s something my daughter can look back on.

When I was first using planners as a kid one of my favorite things to use inside were the pens! I loved using the bic pens with all the different colors. I loved using stickers and markers to decorate the pages and make them my own. I know that some of my girlfriends in school use to clip out magazine articles and glue them into their planner. We use to write notes to each other in our planner as well. Every Sunday night before school would start I had a dedicated pen color for each subject and I would for example, write Math and underline it. I wrote out all of my tests and quizzes to make sure I knew when I needed to study and I was never surprised and  never missed assignments. I use to love sitting at my desk and decorating my weeks. I clearly remember drawing christmas lights and using them as borders in my layouts. I remember purchasing lisa frank stickers and holiday stickers and posting them throughout my pages.

Getting your kids excited about their planners and having them pick out what THEY want. Do they want to color and fill it with stickers? Let them! It’s their own planner let them play and explore and see what works for them. I have my daughters calendar on our kitchen fridge with dates highlighted and share with my daughter important dates. When she comes home from preschool we go through her folder and look through everything she has done and we talk about her assignments and things that are coming up. I am not someone who is a type A personality but I do think it’s important to have some kind of plan. Having some kind of skeleton for what you want out of life is the way that I like to look at it. Things happen and life has it’s bumps but having an idea of what you want out of your day, for myself has helped me get things done and have a successful life.

These are some of my tips to help kids get excited about planning and getting organized. Share your calendar with your kids show them fun activities they can plan out and that way they have things to look forward to! Show them that writing down assignments and tests and quizzes helps them to be prepared ahead of time and nothing feels better than to get a good grade on an assignment! The reward of doing well in school will help them see how great it is to have a planner. Making it fun and something that is their own is usually a good recipe! Don’t push anything on kids just show them the options and allow them to grow into it! Do your kids use planners? Any tips that you recommend?

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2016-09-21-10-52-41Journals have been my best friend since I was about 8 years old. I think I just learned early on in life that if I wrote down everything that I was thinking and going through it made it easier. I felt so much better when I was able to share my deepest feelings and get them out of my head and heart.  Why or how this started I couldn’t tell you but I just remember finding notebooks at any store that had carried them and loving to fill them up with Lisa Frank stickers and filling the pages with different colored pen inks.

As the years went on I never gave up on my best friend. I continued to fill up journals and the ones closest to me would even buy me journals. I still remember in high school when my boyfriend’s mom bought me this beautiful floral journal and it was just the perfect size and shape. I loved that journal. I haven’t always had this incredible bond with a journal right off the bat but after a few weeks in my journals they quickly become a part of me and we are usually inseparable. I have journals from vacations when I was a kid and also journals where I had really hard times in my life. I recently found a journal that shared the experience in detail that my family went through when my dad had a terrible accident.

This is a great way for me to seg way into what do I put into my journals…well here we go. When I was younger I would fill my journals with things about my days, the friends I played with, my days in the pool and little wish lists of toys that I really wanted. As I got older more troubling things came my way. In high school maintaining friends and a boyfriend was both exciting and scary. I filled journals about a best friend that I had and how upset she was once I got a boyfriend. She began spreading rumors about me and made me feel just horrible. At the same time I was excited in my relationship. My high school sweetheart and I were together for 5 years. That means that my journals quickly became filled with awkward experiences and things that he said that made my heart just flutter. Reading about those days now is just so sweet. There is nothing better than young love and that feeling that you could never live without that person. I had so many firsts with this person and I loved sharing all of it with my journals. As my high school days came to an end I remember journaling and dreaming about what college would be like. What would my roommate be like and living on my own in the dorms. Many of my journals at this time were filled with mixed emotions. Leaving behind high school friends but at the same time embarking on such an exciting journey. If I were to thumb through those journals right now I remember writing about each of my friends as they each left for school. I was one of the last ones and before each of us left we would all get together and just have a wonderful time together.

Once in college these were some of the most eye-opening and wonderful times of my life. This was truly the turning point for me when I was able to realize who I was as a person and learn what it was that I wanted. My freshman year was very significant. Many ups and downs with my roommate to the emotions that ran through me when I broke up with my high school sweetheart. As I go back on these pages I just cherish them so much more than I did at the time. I think this is where the reward comes in and why I continue to journal. It’s a treasure that you have forever of experiences that can easily be forgotten. If it wasn’t for my journals I would have forgotten so many little memories that I loved in my life. It helps me to really appreciate the life that I have and embrace the good with the bad. If I look back it’s easier to understand why something bad needs to happen in order for the rainbow at the end of the road to appear. Throughout the years I have documented holidays and who was there and what the feelings was to me. Again, this is so cherished because many of my family members have passed away and having these memories of them makes me so happy to look back on.

Towards the end of my college career I spent ALOT of time in my journal. I was using a Miquel Rius notebook and filled it completely front to back. That a good 600 pages. This was the most critical time for me during nursing school. I had dreadful thoughts of not becoming a nurse and I would spend nights filling my journal with prayers and wishes to have the strength to get through school. I also had moments where I could not believe that I was becoming a nurse. I would fill pages of what scenarios looked like once I was on the unit. How would I handle a code or even taking on my first patient load. Many many pages were dedicated and focused on nursing. After passing the boards and becoming  what my dream was my journals quickly became filled with the experiences that I began having. The first body that I had to send to the morgue, what that looked like and how I felt. Some of the codes that I was involved in, the different experiences I had with preceptors and peers on the unit. Interactions with physicians. Unique cases and terrible traumas that I took care of. These are some really precious and treasured journals because this was a time in my life that I really and truly felt like I found my purpose in life. This was my calling and to see it all evolve in my journals fills my heart with so much joy. Soon after the journals began to get filled with relationships. Being that I was now in my mid 20s the thoughts of marriage and children began to fill my thoughts. I wanted a family now that I had my career settled. Boy did I learn ALOT about myself in my journals going through these relationships. I shared within these journals emails and text messages and arguments along with wonderful vacations and places that I was able to travel to. These journals are the really thick journals from Barnes and Noble and I love looking through these journals. I also have a journal that I shared when my husband proposed to me and in that journal I even have little notes that my husband use to leave for me when we were dating and he would have to leave really early in the morning to drive back to work. At the time we only saw each other on the weekends so our time was so precious. I love being able to go back and look at these journals and be immersed in the feelings all over again. I took a journal with me on our honeymoon and share all of our days in Hawaii and places that we were able to see, becoming pregnant and having my first baby, I have documented all of this in journals.

I hope that you are able to see just how meaningful and amazing journals are. I cherish my journals and love looking at them on my shelves. I love running my hands through them and occasionally picking one out to look at. I know what time of my life each journal is from. I had developed such close relationships with each of them that it’s like reconnecting with an old friend every time I go back. Some journals stay closed because even though the journal was a good friend what’s inside is something that I don’t want to visit. It’s something that I am happy is over and stays in the journal.

I can’t even express how many tears and love have gone into these notebooks and how much a part of my life they are. I hope that I am able to inspire you to pick up a journal and start writing. Is something  weighing on your heart? are you excited about something or scared about doing something? Fill your pages with all of this and watch as your life story unfolds in these amazing books we call journals!

I have always wanted an aqua malden. I missed the boat on them because I honestly did not really care to invest in something that I wasn’t sure about yet. I have used planners forever but a malden seemed like a very pricey investment and when the aqua maldens were on sale I thought geez they are beautiful but goodness they are expensive. I kick myself each and everyday for that thought process because I always come back to looking at photos on pinterest and just drooling about having one in my life.  Back in April I was at an event and I ran into a woman who had painted her Kate Spade Wellesley planner and it really looked fantastic. It looked like the planner was intended to be that color. I immediately began researching the paint and how to go about doing it. The process seemed simple and relatively inexpensive. I of course didn’t pick up my Malden immediately and start to paint instead I went with a less expensive planner, my faux Daytimer Malibu. I loved the planner I even have a review on it,  but I could stand to change the color and I found a beautiful kelly green color. I was just so impressed with how it turned out!! I couldn’t stop touching it and playing with it! I used it and found that it did not change the texture or feel. It did not peel or crack or add a funny smell to it. I endlessly looked at all the pictures again of the aqua malden and tried to find a shade closest to it so that I could change my Malden and finally have the planner I have been lusting over.

The supplies are really very simple, you will need a foam tip disposable brush that you can pick up at any craft store. I used the gift box blue paint and a satin finish to help seal everything together. I don’t officially know if it is required to add the top sealer but it’s how to I like to ensure that everything is properly sealed and finish. I don’t know if the paint will crack or peel with or with out but I do like the satin finish.  To begin you want to put a small amount of paint onto the brush and make small circles onto the planner. It may look messy and scary but I promise the end product will be well worth it! DSC_0109 DSC_0110You can seen that only after one coat it looks like maybe this project wasn’t such a good idea but I promise if you stick with it you will most likely be fine. I went from the darker purple color to a lighter aqua color so the amount of coats of paint required are more, about 4-5 to be exact. I initially thought that I could save the stitching and use a small brush to go around the stitching. It looked ok but then in different lighting I could see the purple trying to peek out from behind the threading so I needed to go back and paint over the stitching which is fine because I LOVE how it all turned out. The paint does not have an overwhelmingly strong smell and I wouldn’t say that the smell of the Malden is gone. It still has the softness and I am still able to bend and move the Malden so the floppiness is not gone from the planner. I took the plunge because I was hoping for something amazing and I feel I got what I wanted. Something in the future that I look forward to is trying to paint things onto the planner, add spots or patterns and mix colors to make planners much for unique to me!! It’s a fairly exciting journey to take to achieve something that is truly yours!!  DSC_0098Just to prove to you that the stitching idea didn’t turn out quite the way I wanted to turn out here is an unclose shot. I did my best to paint around but you can still see how it is peeking through with the purple color. I believe from photos that I have seen online the stitching is white but again this is a DIY project and I must say I am very grateful to have found the paint and the idea to be able to create this planner transformation.  In the picture below you can see the original color and that it is a beautiful egg plant purple. I loved it initially but then put it aside after last fall and started to lose some of my love for it. So when I started changing it I could feel in my heart that I would be in love with the new color!! The inside when painting is really no different than painting the outside. The only hiccup I found was around the zipper. The zipper is a material and so the paint gets really absorbed into it. I needed almost 8 or 9 good heavy swipes of paint in order to cover up the color. It works out fine just keep adding paint onto it. I also recommend letting every layer dry fully before adding more paint. I say this for both the zipper portion and the leather cover. I found that if you do not wait between layers the paint will just keep swirling and you end up with a lot of paint on your brush and then unable to add more color to the leather. Have no fear the acrylic paint dries almost instantly so luckily this does not take a very long time. I like watching a really long youtube video or putting on some Netflix and it helps pass the time. DSC_0089

 

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DSC_0110  Before putting the satin finish onto both the inside and outside I did give it a good 24 hours just in case. I also waited about two days after applying the satin finish before filling the planner with paper. I know it’s hard not to use it right away but I used caution just in case and didn’t want to  ruin my hard work.   To the left you can see how gorgeous this color is unclose!! If you would like to see the final product I have a video !! I also share what inserts I will be using inside of the planner. Have you painted your planner? Do you want to? Please share!!

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So I have to admit that since my first B6 size purchase of the ZenKraft old man comfort I have just been enamored with this size of travelers notebooks. B6 fist off is such an amazing size, it’s approximately the 7×5 size but it varies depending on the company. It’s shorter than your average TN but wider. It’s just the perfect size to have in front of you for writing!! I love the width because it allows me to be able to rest my hand comfortably. The size is not intimidating for those folks who don’t feel comfortable with larger spaces.  After exploring the B6 and just being so in love with this size I purchased an A6 size Gillio.  I very quickly became obsessed with this size too!! I think it’s the width that I love so much with these TNs but also the portability. The A6 size is also great for those of you who love making your inserts. To make them you simply fold a letter size piece of paper in half and that is A5 then fold that A5 in half and you have an A6! It’s that easy and I feel like you are not wasting too much paper. With the more awkward sizes that are out there I just feel like this makes it so easy and you don’t have to take out your ruler to make sure that your measurements are correct!

While on this journey of looking for more unique TN’s I purchased from three different sites. Two of them can be found on etsy and one has their own site.  To start with I went with a company called Speckled Fawns.DSC_0145 DSC_0140

I initially began seeing these beautiful little chunky notebooks show up on my instagram and of course I jumped on the band wagon and just endlessly stared at all the beauty that they were. I also joined the Facebook group which is always the route you want to take whenever investing in a beautiful TN. The reason I say this is because many of these pieces are pricey and you want to make sure you love and cherish these little notebooks. The FB groups give tons of inspiration and help you to choose the correct one and not create orphans!  The Speckled Fawn that I went with is the Nubuck Huggable leather! I can not even express to you how huggable this leather is. It’s like a wonderful little pillow that’s soft and squishy but yet will hold alot of your love on it. It’s not like any other leather that I have ever felt. It’s something you could easily bring with you to bed and write it and if you fall asleep it’s cuddly enough that you will feel as though you are holding a luxurious little piece of heaven. The stitching on this notebook is very precise and beautiful. The notebooks can also come in all different leathers and the spine can be doubled in size, so if you are someone who loves carry around about 10 or so notebooks you can comfortably do this! DSC_0149 DSC_0146 DSC_0151DSC_0148

DSC_0147Terri is the owner and she is really great to work with. I had a little hiccup with my shipping but she fixed the issue and I had my TN very quickly!! I can’t even express how happy I am with this little notebook. I have just been carrying it around and touching it and smelling it all day long! Love this little guy. It’s perfect to bring with you in your purse and carry around to jot down thoughts and ideas!

The second purchase that I made was with Sojourner. DSC_0158 DSC_0152I first found the company back last February and I just had to place an order! I since then have been following Rowena (the owner) and has constantly been amazed and inspired. She is a wonderful human being with a huge heart. She does mission work and shares her work on instagram and has been doing periscopes to share little helpful tips on how to add color to your TNs. Once again the importance of following people on social media behind these notebooks. It helps you to have an appreciation and to better understand where the notebooks origin is from. I personally love that the notebook comes with a story and then develops and longer tale in your hands! What makes the Sojourner so unique is that it comes in a B6 slim size! Something I had never seen anywhere else on the market! DSC_0153 DSC_0157 DSC_0156 DSC_0154

I love the B6 size and to have it in a slim means it makes it the perfect size to take with you. Again the added width allows for more journaling space but not so bulky that it becomes difficult to carry it around with you! I LOVE this size so much and I always come back to this little TN. It’s perfect for quick sketching and jotting down ideas. You will be pleasantly surprised with how easy it is to love on this TN and to begin filling the pages. If you were concerned that you would not be able to find inserts have no fear because Rowena sells some pretty beautiful inserts with Tomoe River paper. This paper is amazing for wet media and fountain pens. That is my favorite medium to use in TNs and it’s just the perfect little combo!

The next purchase and certainly not the last is from Pellestudio. A company I had seen floating around on Instagram with some delicious looking Tns. What made their TNs stand out to me is that they come in some beautiful colors almost like a candy shop! If you get bored with the browns and the blacks this might just be your cup of tea! I felt like I was dropped into a land of Willy Wonka and the Travelers Notebook Company. Just could not get over all the candy colored leather! I opted to get two because they did come from Hong Kong. I just adore these! The leather is beautiful, lightweight and just makes me smile. With the beautiful peachy pink color I just wanted bright and happy. The smell is just divine and I just Love love the color!! The blue wax jean one is something that not only do I love the color but the wax will begin to fade and the leather will take on that worn jeans look!! I am so excited to watch this take place. I really love when TN’s tell their own story. I already have a few more from this shop that I have on my wish list so I have to say I am beyond happy. The company also includes a charm and so many other wonderful little goodies. My tip for you is to opt for the expedited shipping and it takes about a week from the time you place your order and for it to show up on your door step!

Do You have any TNs’ you feel like I NEED to have in my collection? If so PLEASE include it in the comments!!

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