Midori Traveler's Notebook & Filofax video




This is a rather sleepy video of me showing off my Midori Traveler's Notebook...


Why? Well because I keep meaning to do more videos, and I keep putting it off. But last night, I wasn't having much luck getting to sleep, so I bit the bullet and this was the result. 

I think I will wait until I look a little bit more presentable for the next one though! Sporting a bit of a bedhead.


WATCH THE VIDEO HERE



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Swapping my personal Filofax for a Midori Traveler's Notebook




The appeal of a Midori Traveler's Notebook is the raw and rustic, non-pretentious, gritty realness of it. There's something incredibly honest and humble about a traditional leather notebook cover – it kind of feels like another limb, another part of me – and the more I use it, the more battered and beautiful it becomes.


There's something about a tatty old journal that has lived with you through the good times and the tears that makes them really personal. 

My old journals are all dog-eared and warped having acquired that 'used' look over time. So I knew I was going to fall for a Midori Traveler's Notebook the moment I discovered them.

The thing I love about the Midori is that you can refill it. This means you can have the joy of watching a leather journal age with you, but also enjoy a brand new notebook refill every other month or however often you use it. 

This is perfect because I love old and tatty but I also get excited by a crisp new notebook.

My dilemma is that I am a dedicated Filofax Lover, and I have a blog all about Filofaxes!


How I use a Midori and an A5 Filofax together


Surely there's no need to give up my Filofax system completely though? 

My beautiful A5 Aqua Chameleon Filofax can remain as my 'work' organiser. It's already set up and works well. Plus, because it's big and heavy I keep it at home where I work.

My new TN has more portability so I have decided to use it as my everyday non-work-related planner, journal and sketchbook all rolled into one.






The one ongoing issue I've felt when using a Filofax is the feeling that nothing is fully permanent. 

I think this is because I know that anything can be taken out, replaced, re-ordered etc. While that obviously has its benefits, I've always missed the more permanent nature of a bound notebook, which is why I usually have a separate notebook as my personal journal for thoughts and reflections.

It's is something I can bend on its spine, snuggle up in a chair and get comfortable with, and secretly share all of the thoughts inside my head. 

In a similar way to the Flex by Filofax, the Midori Traveler's Notebook gives me the opportunity to use bound notebook refills and go back to taking a pride in the marks I make on the page because I know they'll be kept forever. And because there is the capacity to use more than one notebook in the same cover it'll be easy to have a journal, a diary and a sketchbook together.

I love seeing how other people personalise the diary pages of their Filofaxes, but I have never really enjoyed decorating pages in a Filofax in the same way that I have enjoyed expressing myself creatively on the bound pages of a notebook ...

...so I'm looking forward to seeing how my everyday personal planner evolves creatively into something that I can enjoy looking back on over the years to remember what was going on in my life at different times.


My Midori Traveler's Notebook setup


Don't ask me how I did it but I managed to fit FOUR refill notebooks into my new leather Midori binder. Yes it's fat n' gorgeous, but still easy to carry around with me.

I love the Midori refill system, it's so simple and clever. The Leather binder comes with a doubled piece of elastic attached to its spine so that you have two pieces of elastic to slip two notebooks through and carry in the leather binder - but you also have the option of doubling-up! 

To do this you get two notebook refills and attach them together by fitting an elastic band down the spine in the centre of the two notebooks so that they are held together. You could just fit the covers of each notebook together with the elastic, but if you do it down the centre they stay together better. 

Then you open them up so that you have one notebook on each side, held together in the middle by the elastic and slip them through one of the elastics attached to the Leather binder. So now you have two notebooks in the binder and part of the doubled-up elastic for two more to be fitted in the same way. 

There are different ways to do it though, that's just mine. I don't know if it makes any sense... I should have included a diagram. 

Anyway... of the four notebook refills in my Midori, one is my personal journal...






As you can see I have many thoughts and I am already into a second refill! 

I like to decorate my journal refills with lots of cuttings from magazines and stickers. I like personalise each one for they all feel different with their own personality. They are like a reflection of who I was at different times in my life. 

It'll be interesting in years to come to look back through my Midori refills to see how much I have changed. I love looking back through old journals. 

In the front of the journal refill I made my own little slip-pocket for my stickers ...






In the back of the journal I stuck an envelope, which is really useful for slipping loose bits of papers in and receipts. 

Also I do this cool thing now when I come to the end of a journal – I like to write myself a little letter as a sort of reflection on the past few weeks. I write about what I think I've learnt, things I want to remember and thoughts or prompts for the future. Just a few things I might find interesting to read back over one day.






I also like to create lots of secret pockets, because they're useful and they make things feel even more personal. So when I tape the envelope to the back of the refill, I only tape the top and bottom, so that I have an extra secret pocket behind the envelope - cool huh?

You can pretty much do this to all your refills and have secret pockets all over the place.

I decided to make my own diary because I like the layout of the Moleskine Diary with a week-on-one-page and the opposite side blank for notes. 

Yes it took a while to draw it all up, but I managed to fit six months in, so I'm sorted until Christmas just about. I filled in each page of the TN refill by hand with a ruler and pen.






I use this refill book as my daily planner in the same way I'd normally have used my everyday Personal Filofax. I love the scrapbook-feel of it. I know that I can't move things around like in my Filofax, but I like the fact that I can stick things in and clip notes here and there with paper-clips to create a kind of organised chaos that only I can decipher.

I also have an artist's sketchbook refill with thicker cartridge paper for sketching and using my watercolours, and an extra home-made refill book at the very back that I just use for scribbling and doodling in.

I find it very easy to section the Midori as a whole. I have a silver leaf pendant attached to the original Midori  string page-marker which I use to mark my place in my personal journal section, and a pink metal bookmark clip from Paperchase that I use to get to my 'Today' page in the planner section. 

That's all I really need, but I do use little silver petal page-marker clips from Waterstones to mark out sections I use regularly like my Artist's sketchbook and general notes section.

I have to say that my Midori has a wonderful way of opening up onto the page I need when I need it.






And that is that! I hope you have enjoy reading my ramblings. Leave your thoughts in the comments, I'd love to read them.


See you in the next post!


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Cool ideas for Moleskine Postal Notebooks

Moleskine Postal Notebooks

I love it when I discover innovative little notebooks! 


Small pocket notebooks are always a tempting purchase, they sort of grab you by surprise. You never usually need yet another pocket notebook, but at the same time, another wouldn't hurt. 

When it has a quirky little feature - like transforming from a notebook into an envelope ready to seal and pop in the post - well, resistance is futile.

Why would you need a pocket notebook/ready-made envelope? Well, who cares... don't you just want one? 

Ideas for how to use the Moleskine Postal Notebook


Encourage children to create storybooks


I have a five year old niece, and being a fan of good old snail-mail service, I developed a penpal hobby with her so that we could write letters back and forth. It was the perfect opportunity for me to go to Paperchase to purchase lots of girly letter-writing sets and stickers. (I always take advantage of reasons to spend money in Paperchase!)

Most of her letters consisted of pictures. I like to think I'm a bit artistic too, and one day I got carried away and wrote a whole mini picture book for her to read. It was about a little owl's first day at school, and I used lots of cute owl stickers. 

I knew she was nervous and excited about moving up the the big school. So I designed and hand-crafted a little pocket storybook specifically to fit into an envelope and pop in the post for her. 

Now if only these Moleskine Postal Notebooks had been available then – they would have been perfect!


Therapeutic 'sealed' journalling


I got into the habit of writing hand-written letters to myself as a form of Journal Therapy while I was going through a break-up. 

I'd write myself a letter and get all the emotional analysis out of my system. Then I would seal the letter and put it at the back of my bookcase and feel SO much better.

I don't know why, but there was just something about finishing the letter, saying everything I needed to say, and sealing the envelope, that felt really good. And then of course not being able to re-read or mull over what I had written.

It was my way of saying that I had dealt with those feelings, said what I needed to say, and that was the end of it. And if I felt the feelings resurface, I would simply write another letter, until one day I got a bit bored of it, had nothing more to say, and miraculously I was over my break up!

You could do the same thing with these Notebooks. When you come to the end of the notebooks, just seal them like a letter, and store them away somewhere for future entertainment or self-reflection. In fact, these Moleskine Postal Notebooks could be dedicated specifically to journal therapy needs. I like it!


Travel pen pals


If you're doing a bit of travelling it would be nice to collect thoughts and scribbles to send back home to friends and family. 

Moleskine Postal Notebooks would be perfect for that. 

Or even if you have a pen-pal that you write to regularly, whether you're travelling about or not, you could still use these notebooks as a fun and alternative way to write your letters.

I know that I would love and treasure a letter if I received it in such a cool form! It would be like a little piece of art or a mini travel-journal – someone else's adventures in a little bound book written specially for me. One of a kind. how wonderful :)

Who knows, maybe 'notebook mail' could be the next big thing? What do you think? Tell me how you'd use a Moleskine Postal Notebook in the comments below...


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The time I bought my sister a Filofax... and KEPT it!




I was convinced that I could change my sister's life by converting her to share my secret love-affair with Filofaxes. So I bought her one, but had trouble letting go ...


Like me, my sister is a virgo, and in many ways we are quite similar. She also has the same strange interest in pens and paper that I have, and we both used to keep diaries and scrap books as kids, Although being my younger sister, perhaps she was just being a bit of a copy-cat. 

If I could just get a Filofax into her hands though, I knew it would be contagious.

So I ordered her a beautiful bright red personal Chameleon Filofax. 

I was so excited. Was this just an excuse for me to buy more Filofax Goodies and not feel guilty? Probably. 

The thing is, when my sister's Filofax arrived, I had the pleasure of unwrapping it, and as soon as I had it in my hands – I felt oh-so-confused

How could I possibly part with this beautiful thing now that I had seen it?

It was so vibrant, and when I placed it on top of my A5 Aqua Chameleon Filofax I saw something very special indeed. The colour combination was exciting and delicious. There was no way that I could part with it.






As you can see below, that bright vibrant red follows you as you open the Filofax up, it's everywhere. 

Now then, I'm not normally a 'bright red' type of gal – that has always been my sister's thing, which is why I chose the red one for her. 

But I was beginning to think that maybe I could be...






And inside it came with these tutti-fruity coloured numbered tab dividers. 

I was jealous. I wanted them, end of story.







The only thing I could do was go straight back online and purchase another red Filofax for my sister and keep this one for myself. Yes, I was officially purchasing two of the same Filofax. My addiction and insanity was finally confirmed. But what's a girl to do?

I gave my sister the second Filofax last Christmas and she laughed when she opened it, but I had faith that it would soon seduce her, and it did. 

It's all about the personalisation, as you dedicated Filofax lovers know. 

She gradually gave in and made it her own, and then one day she called me up and made me the happiest sister on the planet ...

"Zara," She gasped with angst in her voice, "Zara, I can't find my Filofax! What am I going to do? I don't know what I'm doing tomorrow!"

That's my girl, I thought with a big smile on my face :)






I hope you enjoyed my silly story :)


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Unboxing: My new Midori Traveler's Notebook arrives



When you fall in head over heels in love – nothing will stand in your way. No, nothing... Not even a fifty quid price tag! 


I discovered the Midori Traveler's Notebook months ago, and no matter how much I tried to push it to the back of my mind, I knew there would come a day when I would, loaded with guilt, dip my hand into my virtual pocket and part with fifty quid for this slice of leather, some elastic and an over-priced paper notebook refill. It was inevitable.

Last week I had enough of the self-torture. I'd justified it to myself in every way shape and form – for weeks! It was too late for any more consideration. I hit the purchase button ...






It arrived in a matter of days. 

I was so nervous in case it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I've spent many evenings ogling pictures online, and I knew it would arrive in brand spanking new condition, and that the leather would improve the more I use it because that is what attracts so many people to the Midori Traveler's Notebook. So I was preparing myself to initially be a bit disappointed at the newness.

I opened the package and I was very pleased with the simple cardboard container, I knew I'd put that to good use with it's cute elastic band. 

I was equally pleased with the thin canvas pouch that was revealed next when I opened the cardboard packaging up. I took the Journal out of the pouch and this is what it looked like ...






I was prepared for this. I knew about the natural animal fat that would be present on the leather, and I was actually quite relieved to see it, because it showed the product's authenticity. 

How exciting! 

It was very easy to wipe it off with a soft cloth, and the leather underneath was exquisitely... and I don't know what other word to use except... divine! It is velvet black and I am completely in love.

The Leather Journal cover came with one plain notebook insert, extra elastic, and a smell that reminds me of my dad who used to own a small leather factory. 

I felt immediately connected to the journal, and I have a feeling that my Filofaxes have some stiff competition!

You will be hearing a lot more about this little beauty, trust me.


See you in the next post!



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Part 2 - Filofax setup – my 'notebook' section


Wecom to part 2 of my Filofax planner setup. Read Part 1 to find out how I have paired my Flex with my Filofax, and also how I created a useful planner dashboard. Next we'll look in detail at my notebook section ...


Why have a notebook section in your planner?


I'm a writer, and I think every writer must have a 'notebook' section in their Filofax or other everyday planner. It's a convenient place to jot down notes and thoughts throughout the day.

For me, it's important to make it a beautiful personalised and inspiring space in the planner, instead of just chucking in a wad of loose blank paper inserts. When I open my notebook section I consider it to be 'me-time' and so I find it a very enjoyable space in my planner.

You may like to use your notebook section as a personal journal to jot down thoughts that come to you throughout the day. Alternatively it might be more of a general commonplace notebook, in which you jot quotes and snippets of info to keep safe. 

I've personalised my Notebook section divider with some quotes that inspire me as a writer. Many of us love to express our personalities and interests int a Filofax or planner so that we feel at home and comfortable and want to spend lots of time in them.  I think the more your planner reflects who you are, the more you are likely to use it to its full potential.  


Create secret pockets in your planner!


You can see in the picture below that behind this divider tab I have taped some secret paper pockets to hide loose notes in.  


I love anything that's a little bit mysterious, and having secret spots to hide things that are a little bit more personal, like passwords or private poems and letters can be useful. 

When I was younger I used to have a fascination with things like keys, and secret compartments in furniture, or loose floorboards where I could keep a secret stash of trinkets.  Perhaps that's why I'm so attracted to Filofaxes with all of the pockets and sections.

pockets are really useful. If your Filofax is fairly simple and you don't have many pockets in the actual cover, you can get creative like I have. 


Here are some ideas:

  • Hole-punch envelopes to use as pockets in your planner
  • Tape pages together and leave the side open to slip notes into 
  • Make your own secretary pocket inserts out of your divider tabs
  • Create fold-out inserts with extra pockets for stickers and sticky notes

Write notes to yourself, fold them up and slip them into the secret pockets in your planner and then forget about them. It's always such a delight to discover something months down the line that you had completely forgotten about. A bit like burying a little tin of treasures and then digging it up years later.



My main notebook section


After the secret pockets in my planner I have a wad of lined and plain notepaper for my notebook section.  I write down my ideas and thoughts, and scribble all sorts of nonsense.

It's a place I often have to return to to declutter and top up with more paper.

At the end of my notebook section I have a few permanent sheets for jotting down useful websites, which I mark with a pretty pink bookmark that I got from Paperchase for easy access.




I also use random paperclips, bookmarks and sometimes even hair grips to find certain sections in my planner. It's a kind of secret system that only I know how to use, which is useful for privacy. 

I don't really like the idea of a stranger being able to open up my planner and see a tab that says 'personal info' or 'contacts'. Why make it easy for people to access private content?

Well, that's really all I have to show you about my notebook section. I hope you enjoyed taking a peek into my setup. Please leave your comments – I love to read and respond!


See you in the next post!









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Part 1 - Filofax Setup - How I use my Flex with my Filofax and a Dashboard


To celebrate the beginning of a new year I have decided to move into a different filofax for a fresh start ... 


Sometimes a change is nice and refreshing. Plus, I've been dying to break in my new Personal Aston for a while now. It's the yummy chocolate-coloured one – Read about how I discovered it here.

The first thing I did was de-clutter. It is amazing the amount of junk you can accumulate within the pages of your everyday Filofax. 

I decided to remove every sheet I haven't looked at in months, which meant removing half the tabs too – I was brutal, and I only kept what was absolutely necessary.


Tips on how to minimalise and declutter your planner


  • Take absolutely everything out first – this will give you a nice blank canvas
  • Then go through with a fine-toothed comb – only returning essential inserts and things that bring you joy.

These two steps will help to make the task of decluttering your planner feel more thorough. Plus, it will leave you with a clearer idea of everything that your planner contains, the order of things and you'll end up feeling that little bit more connected to it – which will hopefully help you to use your planner more effectively!




Looking at my new set-up, you wouldn't know that I spent hours de-cluttering - it still looks pleasingly packed! We all love a nice fat Filofax, don't we?


                   


How I pair my Filofax with a Flex


I like to use my original Filofaxes and my Flex Filofaxes together (read more about that here!)  

So, I am currently using my personal Aston Filofax with my magenta slim Flex slipped into the inside pocket, so that the Flex flaps open when I open up my Aston.  

Why? Well, firstly because the colours look so yummy together – the magenta matches my pink pencil, and colour coordination and accessories make me happy. Also, adding the Flex to my Filofax gives me more options.

For example, I find it very convenient to slip in a Flex jot-pad and use the pockets in the Flex to store random bits and pieces. 

As you can see below, I have personalised my jot-pad with a newspaper cutting that says "Why Women Can't Resist a List" -  It sums me up perfectly.





I tend to use the jot-pad for 'rip-out, screw-up and chuck-away lists' - Such as want lists, shopping lists, to-do lists...  Which reminds me, I need to buy more jot-pads, they run out so quickly.  

They are very useful though, especially when kept at the front of my Filofax. I find I use my jot pad a lot more when it is at the front, rather than when it is at the back. I don't know why Filofax always designs jot pads to go at the back of their planners.

If you want to make use of all the pockets in the Flex, including all those card slots on the left-hand side, rather than slip the left-hand side of the Flex cover into the inside pocket of your Filofax, you can just keep the Flex stored at the back on the right-hand side of your Filofax, behind all your usual inserts.  I don't find that it slips out because the pen-loop sort of keeps it in place when the planner is open.


Use your flex as a portable sticker station


At the moment I buy specific stickers for my personal Filofax which is my everyday organiser, and specific stickers for my A5 which is my business organiser, but it would be ideal if I had a portable sticker station that I could transfer to whichever Filofax I am taking out with me – I think the Flex slimline is the perfect solution!

Because of all the pockets, there are plenty of places to slip stickers into. If you're feeling particularly creative you could even design some sort of envelope book system in which to store stickers in the Flex.

Then just transfer your Flex over to whichever Filofax you're using, and you'll have all of your stickers with you.


More creative uses for using the Flex with your Filofax


  • Store extra things – like stamps, sticky notes and receipts
  • Hold extra notepads to keep notes separate – a journal, poems, transferable calendar
  • Extra pen loops – with the added bonus of them being elastic for fatter pens!
  • Shopping lists – it's easier to hold the Flex than a bigger Filofax in the supermarket

The idea of using a Flex to accessorise your Filofax might seem a bit weird, but as you can see from my photos, the Filofax closes perfectly well with the Flex inside, so why not?  


My new planner dashboard


Moving on from the Flex ...

I've posted previously about how to create your own planner dashboard using card-slot inserts - but here I use a slightly different system.

I have a 'front sheet', which is a pretty patterned insert sandwiched between two pieces of acetate and clipped together using metal page markers.

I slide in a sticky note pad which is kept in pace using the metal bookmarks.  I can then use this to jot reminders or notes and move them into the areas of my organiser that they relate to.




Behind the 'front sheet' I can also slip loose notes into the book marks, or stick sticky notes on the acetate sheet opposite ...




It may not be how you would incorporate a dashboard, but it's working for me right now. I think that's the most important thing – personalising your planner so that it works for you.

Most of the satisfaction is in getting creative and discovering how your planner can function in a bespoke way. We all have different needs and different ways of doing things, and a personal planner is a great way to express yourself.

So I highly recommend reading blogs like mine for inspiration, collect ideas and then adapt and apply them to your own planner system.
In Part 2 of my new Filofax setup I will be talking about my Notebook Section.


See you over there!









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