2015 Planner Layouts, Week #38

Wow! I can't believe how long it's been since I updated. I'm a little behind on my personal goal here. This goes to show why it's so important to keep your planner handy, and keep it working for you! Yep, that's a hint into my recent struggle. I got my new Happy Planner and have been terrified to write on the pages! Decorating is one thing, but tarnishing it's beauty with my handwriting is another. Want to see how I filled it in last week?

Yep, everything was written on sticky notes. At first, it was so I could figure out how I wanted to write it all in to look nice and organized. Then, as the week went on, I got a little overwhelmed, freaked out, over my poor handwriting. I couldn't get myself to commit. Geez, it's only a planner, right? What's wrong with me! 

So I decided to just do some decorating in it and maybe fill in a bit here and there about what was done during the week, kinda Memory Planner style. I even made the claim on Instagram that I may convert it, but who am I kidding, I want to make this planner work.for.me! This bound stack of pretty paper doesn't own me, I own it! And, by golly, I'm gonna start acting like it. Anyway, here are some closeups; I really like how it turned out.

I also mentioned on Instagram how bulky this planner is. I really don't feel too good about the exposed rings as well as how much calendar is in there. I may just have to order smaller rings and remove the last six months. Hopefully, that will be a workable solution to the bulk and I can carry it in my bag ring side up to appease my fear of dirtying the pages. 

Who knows, I'm still trying to perfect my planner team so it's still subject to change again by the next time I do an update. So stay tuned to found out!

Welcome

Happy September and Welcome to my little space.

I can’t believe how quickly this summer has gone by. I’m really excited to get back after a long blogging break. It’s funny how this hobby can really get a hold of you and keep you excited for more. While away, I had a chance to back up and really figure some things out. I had the opportunity to be creative in figuring out what I was capable of and where my passions lay. I feel more confident in my abilities and comfortable pushing myself to try new things… and finish them.

So, Welcome to my KISS blog where I’ll be ‘Keeping It Short & Sweet’. I won’t always have a lot to say, and that’s OK, I just get excited about sharing what I have going on. First and foremost, I will definitely be sharing how I keep myself and family on task. Yep, that means planner stuff and the prettier the better. I have several pen pals and like to make stuff for them so I’ll share those goodies. You’ll also find some doodling, drawing, coloring, mail art, and possibly some mixed media. I’ve always been a sucker for organizing and efficiency so I may just throw some of my printables and tips into the mix. My goal is to post a minimum of twice a week; the first of which will be my planner layouts. I’ll be participating in the #ListersGottaList Challenge this month so once I figure out how I want to format my pages I’ll start posting those here too!

For my first post, I’ll be sharing pics below of last week’s setup in my planners. I decided to move back into my 7-ring planner so I had the option of finding new inserts or making my own. After several failed attempts, and too many wasted hours, I settled on altering my extension pack of The Happy Planner. This is my first time using a vertical layout and went with this options because it was only $9.99. I won’t feel as if anything is wasted if after this month I decide on a new product. I’m also warming up to the idea of the arc binding system; I need the flexibility to add and remove pages regularly. I’m trying to justify switching over to this system and purchasing all the goodies that go along with it.

The planner I moved out of was the DayTimer Family Plus; it’s full size with 8.5x11 pages. I really enjoyed this size for most of the year but now that my needs have changed I’m downsizing. I set a goal to finish the year in it so, as a compromise, I’ll now be using it as my memory keeping planner. I think I’m gonna love it very much; I was able to cram in lots of journaling and even some pictures/mementos. All right, now for the planner pics…

This planner is a Day Timer Flavia. I've haven't fully set it up because I'm not planning on using for much longer. I like to have my planner with me at all times and this one is just to bulky with all the extra padding they use. I only have September prepped for testing out the Happy Planner layout and a few other sections. I also had the great idea to coordinate how I decorate my planners. I forgot to take pics of each page separately but I'll get on that for next weeks layout post. As you can see, I did not accomplish much in the blog/instagram category; but I did in my memory planner and even eluded to why!

This is the full size Day Timer that I unbound to try using as a desktop planner. I haven't figured out a way to improve the look of the remaining binding holes. The stickers I used are from the Dollar Tree that I modified to reduce bulk. I also used some bits from a Sn@p kit I got at Hobby Lobby. I opted to not print on photo paper for this week because I wasn't sure if they would work out. I like them so I will definitely be fine tuning the photos for size and quality in the upcoming weeks. Oh, see that little horse paperclip? My six year old son made that for me, it even matches my theme. Isn't he adorable?

I hope you’ll come back Thursday; I’ll be discussing my planner search and wish list. I have a basic idea of what I want my planner team to look like and how I will be using each. The hard part is paring down all the options.


See you next time and thanks for stopping by.