Aston Filofax and Holborn zipped - love at first sight

ASTON FILOFAX (Personal)

I saw and held an Aston Filofax today. As a Filofax addict, I should have known better ...

What happens when you can't decide between two gorgeous Filofaxes?  Well, if you're anything like me, you basically end up with two stunning new organisers, and a rather alarming dent in your virtual wallet.  I couldn't help myself.

I didn't purchase them both on a whim though.  No no... When you are deciding on your next Filofax, it is, of course, essential that you check every single review, blog post, and Youtube video.

I exhausted them all, and a week later I came to the conclusion that if I didn't purchase both of these stunning planners, there would always be that - what if...?

It all started when I was browsing the Filofaxes in Paperchase on Tottenham Court Road - Not because I was looking for a new Filofax, but because I couldn't resist. I never can.

The Aston Filofax 

I picked up this ordinary looking Aston Filofax and was immediately taken aback. It felt... right. Suddenly the rich dark chocolate colour was just so... me.

The leather was soft against my fingertips, and ever so slightly cushioned. The graining was so subtle, and the stitching - talk about elegant.

It fitted into my palm so comfortably that I had to have a private moment with the Aston right then and there, whilst standing in the middle of Paperchase, with the security guard looking on suspiciously as my eyes rolled back and my fingers fondled the merchandise.

When I opened the snap and looked down, I knew exactly what to expect - I held my breath, almost hoping it wouldn't be so... but it was. The Aston leather cover was totally flexible.  It bent right back onto itself like the cover of an old paperback book - heart-wrenching perfection.

Now then, in the reviews, the Aston Filofax is often referred to as plain and lacking that certain je ne sais quoi; I assure you these people don't know what they are talking about!

I honestly don't know how anyone can hold this beauty in the palm of their hand and not experience the magic.  The Aston, in my opinion, is just so classy and sexy; but in an understated, elegant sort of way... a bit like me I suppose.  Dogs look like their owners, do Filofaxes?

The price tag brought me back down to earth though - Eighty quid?  Yikes.  Better think this through. Reluctantly, I returned my soul mate to the shelf and sheepishly walked away, past the freaked out security guard and out onto the sunny street.

My love encounter wasn't about to end there though.  It was when I pulled my stubby old 80's burgundy planner out on the bus to console myself (it has always worked in the past) that I knew it was over between us.  I craved the elegance and subtle beauty of the Aston like nothing you could possibly imagine.

So I spent a whole week scanning my laptop for reviews and pictures and deals. That's when I came across a Youtube video that compared my beautiful Aston, with a Holborn zipped. Suddenly I was very, very confused.

The Holborn zipped 

I have never been a fan of the idea of a zipped Filofax.  Perhaps they remind me of those bulky zipped school pencil cases from back in the day. I was always more of a slim leather or tin pencil case kinda schoolgirl.

My opinions were challenged though when I watched greedily as an American woman ran her hands all over this Holborn zipped Filofax in a Youtube video, whilst comparing it with my beloved Aston. I couldn't figure out the feeling I was experiencing at the time, but I know now - I was jealous.

Initially, it was the colour that attracted me. Not burgundy, but a beautiful classy wine colour.  Then it was the look of the buffalo leather.  Bear in mind that I had never handled buffalo leather before, but as soon as this American lady described it as "buttery", I knew I was intrigued.

The smooth leather caught the light in the video which totally enhanced the wine colour.  I think I watched this video five or six times in a row trying to imagine what it felt like to hold it in my hands.

When the woman started to reveal all the pockets and space there was inside, I realised I had a problem. This Filofax was like a little clutch bag!  I am a woman okay?  The idea of a Filofax/clutch was too much... I had to have it! A woman can never have too many bags.  It wouldn't be like I was purchasing two Filofaxes... because obviously, that would be nuts! No, I was going to purchase an Aston Filofax planner, and a Holborn Filofax clutch bag -  This is my story and I'm sticking to it!

So that's exactly what I did. Thoughts and comments anyone?



Stay tuned for more about these beauties!

Loved it and want more?

Watch my video where i show you my new Holborn Filofax Clutchbag

Review: Slim magents Flex by Filofax (with pics of my Aston and Holborn)

Content page: Explore all of my blog posts in one place!

How to create a unique dashboard for your Filofax - the Filofancy way!

TRUST me... This is going to be the most useful thing you create for your Filofax.  Have you ever heard of such a thing as a Filofax dashboard?  

This is quite an old post, and planner dashboards are well-known now, although they have evolved a lot. But I still think this post has some unique ideas that you may enjoy ...

How to create a unique Filofax planner dashboard

If you are an active member of the online Filofax community then you probably have heard of planner dashboards because everybody is using them.

Most people tend to use the Filofax sticky-notes insert as their dashboard.  Well, as usual, I have an alternative and a rather clever way of creating a dashboard for your Filofax or other planner. 

Keep reading to find out more ...

What is a Filofax planner dashboard? 

If you still have no idea what I am talking about when I mention the term "Filofax dashboard", let me explain ...

Your planner dashboard your first port of call.  You open your Filofax - and there it is - with everything you need to immediately be reminded of. (Nowadays you may recognise it as an 'inbox')

Your dashboard can be decorative, it can be functional, or it can be both.

The most important thing about a planner dashboard is that you are able to truly make it your own so that it is appealing and useful.

How to use the Filofax sticky note insert as a dashboard 

Maybe you are wondering why so many people are using the Filofax sticky notes insert as a dashboard? (Or creating their own dashboard of sticky notes.)

Well, it is because sticky notes are the easiest way to write notes down, then tear them off and dispose of when you're done! It's a great pace to jot noted that you don't want permanently in your planner.

Because they are sticky notes, you can also tear them off and then stick them elsewhere in your Filofax to remind you of things later.

What makes the Filofancy planner dashboard different? 

I have come up with a fabulous idea for a Filofax planner dashboard. It's simple, affordable, reusable, and highly personalised. What more could you want from a dashboard?

Just purchase a Filofax business card holder insert - then use a credit card for sizing, and cut up a nice little pile of pretty coloured paper to slip into each pocket (as much as each pocket will hold). 

Now you have a great little note-taking system!

Dedicate each space to specific types of notes:

• personal reminders
• work-related mind-joggers
• shopping lists
• telephone numbers
• websites

When you have finished with the note, take it out to reveal a fresh sheet of notepaper.

You can also use your dashboard to display photos and keepsakes, such as inspirational quotes to motivate you when you open up your planner. 

The pockets are also a great place to house your planner stickers, sticky tabs, paperclips, and anything else that fits and might be useful or cute in your planner.

I use my Filofax business card for sizing which came with my Aqua Chameleon A5 when I bought it.  It's ideal because I can either keep it attached to the rings in my Filofax or slip it into the dashboard itself, ready for when I need to cut up a few more slips of notepaper.

I don't know about you but I'm not so keen on the neon-bright colours of the Filofax sticky-note insert dashboard. 

The great thing about the Filofancy dashboard is that you can choose your own paper – coloured, plain, squared, lined, or dotted.

Use your dashboard pockets to keep reminders, to-do lists, or even to slip folded up bits of paper like receipts if you need to remind yourself to file them away later for your expenses.

Store your stickers and paper-clips, like I  have below ...

What makes the Filofancy dashboard ultimately versatile is that you can modify the Flex jot-pad like I have in order to attach it to your dashboard for longer lists and notes that you may need immediate access to (see above).

I just took my Filofax sizing card and measured around it on the back cover of the flex jot-pad, and then I cut the back-cover so that it fits into the top card slot of the dashboard.

MORE ALTERNATIVE WAYS TO USE FLEX PRODUCTS

I use the underneath card slots to store my star-stickers and my little silver Waterstones bookmarks, which are very useful for marking pages in my Filofax when I don't want to forget where I have put them!

(Find out how you can design your own personalised stickers for your Filofax here)

You can even make a mini index to remind you of what you have recently written and where in your Filofax you have filed your notes away. I am forever losing or forgetting things I have written down and filed somewhere in my fat Filofax, so this system is such a godsend to me.

My dashboard is now the first thing I look at when I open my Filofax.  It is my memory jogger, and it also directs me to the things in my Filofax I may otherwise have forgotten about.

You can also use the back of the dashboard in the same way because the cards insert is double-sided.

DISCOVER ANOTHER GENIUS WAY 

TO USE THE FILOFAX CARDS INSERT!

I am sure you will find many other creative ways to make the dashboard your own. Thank you for reading, and please leave your thoughts and ideas in the comments below, because I love to read them!



Until he next post ...

Loved it and want more?

To-do lists – How to create good planner habits

How to use a 'brain dump' or 'master' to-do list in your planner routine

Contents page: Explore all of my blog posts in one place

How is Flex by Filofax better than a notebook?

If you are a Filofax traditionalist, you may be wondering exactly what is a Flex by Filofax? And why have Filofax designed a new planner system without rings? Keep reading to find out more about this new Filofax planner hybrid notebook system.

This is an older post and sadly Filofax don't make the Flex anymore. However, I hope that you still enjoy the nostalgia of this post and others I have written about the Flex.

What is Flex by Filofax?

The Flex by Filofax is essentially a very versatile notebook binder cover. It allows for a range of notebook/diary solutions.  The Flex has been designed to offer a large variety of notebook inserts and combinations - Supposedly offering more than a million ways to make the Flex your own.

(Yes, according to the Filofax Website, Flex offers more than a million ways to make the Flex your own!  I thought I'd repeat that whole sentence, because I'm still trying to get my head around it.)

Why is the Flex by Filofax so useful? 

Why bother with a Flex binder when you can just pop a notebook in your bag? I am sure this is what you are thinking. Indeed, before I discovered Flex by Filofax I had an ordinary notebook in which I kept my writer's notes, doodles, scribblings, and loose bits of paper. 

One of the most annoying things was that when I was out and about and a creative idea would grab me - I'd dive into my bag to get my notebook out and jot the idea down as quickly as I could before it escaped, but usually, during this process, most of my loose notes would fall out in my bag or all over the floor. And, of course, I could never find my pen!

Spontaneous note-taking was just a hassle.  I imagine it would be the same for an artist who spots something they quickly want to sketch before it moves or disappears.

Now that I have my Flex though,  I don't have any of these problems because everything is kept neatly together in one place. I can just pull the Flex out of my bag and know that I have everything I need on my lap, without having to wade through my bag for a pen or calculator.  

The Flex is just the perfect little portable desk for bus or train journeys to and from work.

Flex by Filofax organises your notebooks 

If you are anything like me having a notebook involves one notebook that is crammed with creative writing notes, fractured poetry, appointment reminders, shopping lists, random chapters for different novels I'm working on, menus, receipts I need to keep to claim back expenses for my self-employment - you know, basically absolute chaos.

Flex is the solution. The Flex notebook binder system allows me to keep a number of separate notebooks bound together in one place.

This is useful if like me you want to have a notebook for your writing notes and a notebook for your personal thoughts, because then you can keep your writing notes and journal thoughts separate but also together, if you see what I mean?

It also works if you want to keep a notebook for factual snippets of info, and one for creative writing – or a lined notebook for written notes and a blank one for diagrams, sketches, brainstorming and flow-charts.

Many people find it useful to keep their diary with them, or perhaps a yearly planner.  Flex has covered all diary options with Flex inserts.  You can create your own combined diary and note-taking system if you want, using the diaries and notepads designed specifically for flex.

Alternatively, you can slip your Moleskine Diary into the Flex along with any pretty A5 notebook of your choice. The options truly are never-ending.

How versatile is the Flex by Filofax?

 
It really is amazing how many different ways there are to personalise the Flex by Filofax.You can make it what you want and what you need.

At one point I think I had about 6 separate slim A5 notebooks in my Flex binder. You know the school exercise kinds that come in different colours?  Well, I had a different colour for each of my creative projects, which I separated with coloured tabs like you would in your Filofax.  When a notebook was full I could just replace it.

I do this now with my journal and writing notebooks.  Whenever I complete the A5 journal, for instance, I replace it in the Flex with a brand new one from Muji, and the old one is taped to the journal previous to it so that I can keep my old journals stored in chronological order. 

Why the A5 Flex is better than a notebook 

I thought I'd put together a little list of reasons as to why I think the Flex by Filofax is better than a notebook.

I hope you enjoy reading them. Let me know in the comments what you thought!

• With the Flex pen-loop inserts you can keep up to four pens or pencils attached to your Flex Binder, ready for spontaneous note-taking, highlighting, and mark-making.  This means less fuss having to search for pens in a pencil case at the bottom of your bag, and less stress when you need to write something down quickly.

• There are slots for business cards inside the Flex.  These are useful to pop your oyster in if you are in the habit of carrying your Flex under your arm like a clutch bag.  Or you can use these slots to store stickers, sticky-notes, small bits of paper, page markers (I like to use hair grips! Weird but discrete and they do the trick.) You can even use this space to clip extra pens.

• The larger pocket beneath the card-slots is perfect for your smartphone, calculator, highlighters, slim diary, a packet of gum, etc.

• The inside pockets can house your Kindle eReader if you use one. 

• You can also slip the front or back sleeve of a paperback book into any of the Flex pockets and carry your novel around with your notebook. This could be useful for students who need to take notes while they are reading – or if you want to read a racy novel on the tube!

• The Flex protects your notebooks and prevents them from getting all dog-eared.

• Loose bits of paper and receipts can be slipped into pockets rather than in-between pages where they are likely to fall out.

• Instead of having to keep buying expensive leather-bound journals, you can have the same effect by replacing cheaper A5 notebooks in your leather-look Flex but not have to spend all that money if you're a fast writer like me and get through notebooks like loo-roll.

• The Flex is smart looking. The black and grey versions look very professional and are great for work, conferences, meetings etc.

• Flex is just so much more FUN than having one notebook!  It makes complete sense.

Thanks for reading – and don't forget to comment – I ALWAYS respond to comments, even new ones of=n old posts :)

Until the next post...

Loved it and want more?

Review: My new slim magenta Flex by Filofax

Minimalist planner tips

Contents page: Explore all of my blog posts in one place!