Have you ever lost your Filofax? Has it ever survived a fire, flood, or other emergency? What condition was it in when you found it, and how did you restore it?
Is your Filofax the first thing you'd grab if (heaven forbid) you ever had to run to safety? Mine sure would be!
Eeeehm, yes.
ReplyDeleteMy very First Filofax was the A5 Bond.
I forgot it on my cartop.........
I'll never forget the moment, when I was at my boyfriend's House, searching everywhere for it and then suddenly "it was on the Car o.O"
The lovely Person who picked it up from the Street, called me a few hours later and told me where to get it.
I gave him 20 Euro as thank you.
There where few People driving over mr. Bond. And though we tried to get the upper rings back in shape, they never worked again :(
He's now a great Storage Filo and I still feel ultra sorry for him. :(
A few years ago, I grabbed a big pile of my dirty washing from the bed and bundled it all into the washing machine. There was a bit of clunking and it was only at the end of the full wash cycle that I saw my beloved - and now forlorn looking - tan leather Time Manager (Golden Line) staring back at me through the glass! The pages were all stuck together and barely legible. Despite my various attempts, the binder never recovered and became the only organiser that I've ever thrown away.
ReplyDeleteOne of my car keys suffered a similar fate, it got washed. But after drying it out for a week in the airing cupboard and replacing the battery it has worked fine ever since!
DeleteIf you put Duplo in the washing machine at 60 degrees C, and then tumble dry it, it shrinks.
DeleteNot by much, it's barely perceptible.... until you try to use it with non-machine washed Duplo and it Just Doesn't Quite Fit any more.
I've never left a filofax on the roof of the car but I ruined the lenses on a very nice pair of Oakley sunglasses that way... polarised mirror-coated lenses don't do very well when dropped onto gravel from about 4 feet up.
DeleteI do remember reading that back in the 80s and 90s, fixing or replacing ring mechanisms due to them having been run over by a car was one of the most common repairs requested by Filofax users - of course back then the mechanisms generally were clip in/slide out rather than the cheaper riveted arrangement they mostly use nowadays.
I also had a very narrow escape when a vintage Parker '51' fountain pen hid inside the pocket of a pair of jeans going into the washing machine. Fortunately it was a 40 degree wash on the woollens cycle... even so, the heat and agitation melted the shellac sealing the front end of the pen and it needed remedial attention afterward. Unlike the Duplo, it still works though!
I've left a filo behind while visiting a customer site but was, thankfully, able to return and fetch it when I remembered what I'd done... but the most inconvenient one was when I left my filo in my desk drawer at work and there was then some kind of bomb scare - my car parking ticket was in my briefcase and my parking card was in the filo and I needed both to get the car out of the car park... and both were stuck in the office behind a barricade. In the end a manager was deputised to go in and retrieve critical objects for his staff and I got home about 3 hours late that day!
Fortunately my organizers have never been victims of any mishaps. I hope it stays that way!
ReplyDeleteI think my organizer would be either the first or second thing that I would grab if I had to run out because of an emergency.
Uh, yes as a matter of fact. When the fire alarm went off at work, I grabbed my personal Malden before I grabbed my purse!!
ReplyDeleteIf I may begin another topic:
ReplyDeleteIf made available, who would buy a "The Original Grand" if produced -think of the old Winchester 5/4's, the Eton and the Portland Grand? I think I would, given two reasons:
- We've seen in reviews of this binder that the new-style pen loops restrict how many pages the binder will hold and still clasp;
- the relative lack of card pockets in The Original means that, if you count on the binder to hold more than two or so cards(as I do) that you need to carry cardholder inserts. Again, this limits the page count on the rings.
Curious what others think.
To avoid confusion, I'm referring here to the Personal size. Thanks.
DeleteNot me. A lightweight, portable organiser with tiny rings is all I want these days. Just about all my data is on iPad/ iPhone/ laptop. Much as I would love a return to 1986 (in some ways), it's not going to happen.
DeleteSo, a Winchester slimline A5 compact in tan leather with 15mm rings...
Winchester slimline A5 compact with 15mm rings... MMMMMmmmmmm...
DeleteSeriously. If Filofax made one I would buy one! Perhaps in bridle leather... at the moment I'm using an A5 Pimlico which has 25mm rings but it's really still on the chunky side. Definitely need the A5 page size but smaller overhangs and less thickness!
I haven't lost one but I did have one stolen out of my backpack purse while my husband and I were in San Francisco this past St. Patrick's Day. They probably thought it was my wallet and tossed it. Or if not, and the thief is reading this, what time was my hair appointment on Thursday? Ha ha. Seriously, no one that reads Philofaxy or loves planners as much as I do would do something like that, but I just thought I'd interject some humor. I did love the planner but it wasn't just that,,,,,I had pictures of my parents (who are now in Heaven) that were in there, I loved the pages, and had it set up just the way I wanted it. As my mother would have said, a pox on the person who stole it!!
ReplyDeleteOh Yes! Unfortunately, about a week after I got my very first filofax, a personal raspberry Finsbury, and a day after I got my diary inserts, it took a dunk in the little pond at my town park. I had it in my purse, at the bottom of my son's carriage. I didn't put the brake on, and the carriage rolled down the slight hill right into the pond and my brand new purse and Filo was submerged! I pulled out every page to dry, and luckily the damage wasn't too bad. The planner dried perfectly. The first few pages and last few pages have the most water damage, the bottom edge of every page is a little wrinkly,, and throughout the planner there are spots where you can tell that got wet. A little ink smudging, but on nothing really important. And I lost some sticky notes that just dried too wrinkled to use. But I just put everything else back in and I'm using the pages, wrinkles and all. In a way, I don't mind because it's a memory that I now laugh at - but I was furious when it happened... and every wrinkled page reminds me of that fun day at the park. I have some pictures on Flickr and you can see my pages in my you tube videos if you are curious! I'm janisbennett on Flickr and janyben on YouTube.
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ReplyDeleteI've just recently regained interest in my old filo from 1987. Burgundy calf leather (made in England), I'm sure it was called a Gloucester or Gloucestershire rather than Winchester though it looks similar. By 1990 it rather fell out of use and was packed away. Now 22 years and a few house moves later I was sorry to find that the ring mechanism - the old style clip/slider type - had somehow sprung apart.
ReplyDeleteI'm still working on restoring it. Nothing broken or bent except my patience, but I'm slowly getting there, or was. Armed with information gleaned on Philofaxy (thank you Steve) and a little WD40 carefully applied, I finally coaxed the rings back in only to realise the tabs are missing. Argh! I'm sure I'll find them eventually but until then it's been put away again - carefully!
Lost one due to someone breaking into my car. Left it on the seat under a Tilley hat. Course had my passport in to back flap, guess that was not a good idea...
ReplyDeleteOnly binder ever lost or destroyed since starting to carry (1985).
Over the last few years, I have "lost" several Filos---and then months or weeks later, found each one of them. It happens so often, it almost feels like I just received a new one in the mail. Is it a senior moment? I'm really not sure. All I know is that I feel like I keep adding to my collection, even though I still have the same number of them.
ReplyDeleteThe only major mishap that has occured to my (personal Crimson Malden) Filofax was men the cap of my fountain pen got lost in my purse, with the Malden sitting next to it. I had major ink stains all over the leather. I gave a cry for help on Twitter, after water and a bit of soap wouldn't help. I think it was Steve who recommended using a Q-tip with some alcohol? Well, that did the trick, and I got all the ink out and the leather is still gorgeous as ever. Phew ....!
ReplyDeleteAs for emergency situations: No, I would probably NOT grab my Filofax. I have 4 kids, 2 dogs, 2 guinnea pigs and myself to rescue (in that order). If there's time left after that (but what kind of emergency would THAT be, I wonder?), I will surely take my purple Malden.
And my hubbie would have to see himself to safety, 'cos there REALLY wouldn't be time for such trivia ...