Reader Review - Filofax Malden - Doris

Thank you to Doris for sending in this review of her Filofax Pocket Malden organiser which she calls Emma...

Meet Emma
(Disclaimer: Please excuse the quality of the pictures. Photography is not one of my strong suits.)

Emma is my Pocket Malden. I bought her in November from Pens and Leather at a lower price vs. Filofax USA. Living in Manila, I can only order online. I needed another one after my Chocolate Pocket Domino, which has remained nameless its entire life, was on its way to retirement. I hadn’t used that Domino for a while and after months of disuse in a drawer, its suede interior was starting to peel away. It now serves as storage for my inserts.

My Filo History.

I started with a Personal size in the mid-90s, first with a non-Filofax one I got locally. It was a black sturdy leather version from Fino that served me for years. It still looks very good. I moved on to a Pocket Portobello with a PDA slot when Palms were in vogue. I used that for years as well, but after I retired from my 9-5 Marketing job, I needed (read: wanted) another one. My Domino was my next Filo. It didn’t get the love and attention it deserved as I moved on to other things like Interior Design school, enjoying unemployment, and exactly a year ago (anniversary!), my own home décor business.

Enter Philofaxy.

After browsing online for the Domino’s replacement, I chanced upon Philofaxy, and an obsession was born. I see-sawed between the Finsbury and the Malden because I wanted a leather one. I chose the Malden, but couldn’t decide on the color. It was a toss-up between the Ochre and the Vintage Pink. The Vintage Pink won out. (I eventually got a Mini Ochre because I loved the color so much.)

Emma is now decked out like no other Filofax I’ve had. I’ve borrowed (stolen, really) lots of ideas from other Filo fans on the web. I have top tabs, side tabs, a dashboard, a DIY swing pad, etc., etc.

 

I love her. She’s as fat as she can get, with a full year of WO2P and tabbed MO2P. She contains my life, really, and I have all the information I need in one place. I carry her around, doodle in her, set appointments (not that many) and let her manage my life. I tried to make her pretty and fun. My card-making hobby came in handy for that. I color code like a maniac with my 2 Pilot 5-Barrel Coletos.

Emma has siblings. A Mini Malden is a food diary, a Mini Portobello is a wallet (purse to you), and a Mini Baroque and Pocket Baroque are on their way to me (the Baroque has arrived since the writing of this post). I plan to find uses for them all, or rotate using them depending on my mood. They deserve love and attention, and their leather needs to be handled.

The Setup.
This is how Emma’s set up. It’s pretty straight-forward -- my personal data up front, Tabs for different needs, Lists, a MO2P and WO2P Diary with a home-made transparent flyleaf as dashboard serving as my weekly to-do list, top-opening envelopes for receipts, cards, photos, and a DIY swing pad finally perfected after three tries. My major To-do and Shopping lists are in the Portobello.   

I’m now hankering after a Mini Amazona in Almond or Brown, it looks so grown-up.

So, that’s Emma. She’s loved and cherished, and I don’t need to be precious with her, she’s sturdy and doesn’t show wear. I love her size, pockets, and color, and 19 mm rings. She’s stuffed to the gills but she can handle it. She serves me well.

Thank you Doris you are certainly using your pocket to its full capacity!