Reader Under The Spotlight - Janet

I live in Stockholm, Sweden and work as Director of Courses for the Nordic Branch of The London School of English which is the oldest accredited English language school in the world.

I work mainly within the Swedish Parliament as a translator, interpreter, language coach and speech-writer.

In my spare time I like extreme sports like bungee jumping and ziplining. I blog about all my passions at thisbugslife.com

1. When did you buy your first Filofax and what was it?

I am not sure what model it was but I bought it in London in 1984 with my first pay cheque.

2. What other brands have you used or considered using?

I use Mulberry, Aspinal, Smythson and Ordning och Reda (a Swedish brand). I always come back to Filofax though.

3. Out of the organisers you own which is your current favourite (Style and Size)?

I am loving my Compact Personal Violet Temperley. I was very critical of this binder when it came out but I fell totally in love with it after receiving one as a gift.

4. How many Filofax organisers do you own?

About 18.

5. What is the oldest Filofax in your collection?

A black Metropol which I have had for many years.

6. What do you use your Filofax for?

Making appointments for work, shopping lists, invoicing details, client notes, travel documentation and as a wallet.  I have a very stressful job so my Filofax is where I empty my brain when it gets too full!

7. What was the feature about Filofax you like most?

Flexibility and customisability (is that a word?). I can move things around, add and remove them, make my own refills, and move the contents from binder to binder. I like being able to remove months as they are finished.

8.  If you could design your own Filofax what would it feature?

• gold rings
• lockable clasp
• an outside pocket
• metal zip
• classy zip tag. 
• really nice leather like the Mulberry ones
• full leather lining
• at least six credit card slots

9. How do you carry your Filofax?

In my handbag if I am going out for a while. In my hand if I am just popping out as it contains everything I need from keys to phone. I just have to grab it and go!

10. Which Filofax in the current range do you like the most? Are you going to buy it?

I love the A5 Original in Fluorescent Pink. I always say I won’t buy another Filofax and then end up buying one anyway, so yes, probably!

11. What is the most you have ever spent on a Filofax? Which model?

Probably the A5 Siena as my Personal Deco was 80% off on sale. Non-Filofax it would be my Oak Mulberry Agenda.

12. What's your favourite Filofax tip or hack?

Using the clear plastic cover sheet that comes with a new Filofax as a ‘dashboard’ at the front. It protects the front pages from catching and becoming worn and I can put a few post-its or sticky notes on there as well as draw maps of what my Filofax contains.

13. Turning to Philofaxy, what do you like the most?

The community which is always there to help out and answer questions. I feel that it kept the Filofax brand going when Filofax seemed determined to scupper itself.

14. And what do you not like about Philofaxy?

Nothing!

15. What was the last music track you downloaded or bought?

The Kills - Future Starts Slow

16. Mark Darcy or Daniel Cleaver? 

Mark Darcy

Thank you Janet, I enjoy reading your blog every day and to prove Janet wasn't joking about her thrill seeking hobbies.... jump!

Of course if you would like to stand under our spotlight and be featured here then please contact us at philofaxy at gmail dot com

Web Finds - 29 June 2013

As usual for a Saturday morning here are the latest Filofax blog posts from around the Internet:

1. Simplicity - Cloudberry Musings
2. If Filofax Did Makeup Bags… - Vivianna Does Makeup
3. Washi Tape Wednesday #1 - My Purpley Life
4. Tranquility - Cloudberry Musings
5. FlyLady Pages Added To Files Page - JarFM
6. My NEW Pink Domino Review.... - The Filofaxtory
7. Peru Pocket Filofax Review! - The Wonderful World of Alice
8. Reflections - Cloudberry Musings
9. The Great Filofax Roundabout - Wandrrlust
10. You can carry an A5 Filofax with you everywhere: here’s how! - Zoe at Home
11. My next binder… will it be Filofax, FC, or Gillio - I love Filofax
12. The Blues Brothers - Cloudberry Musings
13. Topic divider set for your Filofax to print at home - My Life All in One Place
14. Update; What custom made organizer to choose? - My Filo World
15. A Pocketful of Birthdays - Chocolate and Filofaxes
16. Very Berry Red Filofax - Cloudberry Musings
17. Moving into Mulberry: Vintage Pocket Book Review! - Cat's Corner
18. Broken Today, Cool Things, and Good (Filo)keeping - Well Planned Life
19. A request to Filofax company to make a modern sophisticated Filofax with 30 mm rings - MySummerTouch1
20. I keep on trying.... In and out of the Cuban Filofax - Angel Jem's City Cottage
21. My Current Filofaxes; A5 Osterley in Brown & Pocket Classic in Pink - My Filo World
22. My Week...in The Original Filofax in Fluorescent Pink! - Filocuteness
23. Die Gewinnerin des Let's Doodle-Gewinnspiels - Filomaniac
24. The insidious nature of paper - One pair of shoes at a time
25. Filofax Friday: My New A5 Filofax - Planning with Printed Portal
26. Franklin Covey Flower Charm (Japan) review - I love Filofax
27. Planner Problems? 10 Questions To Ask Before Making Changes - Homemakers Daily
28. Filofax Washi Love..... - The Filofaxtory
29. Organised Mum inserts – a Filofax update - Creating Apples
30. Time Out - Well Planned Life
31. Oooops, I'm doing it again! - The Crazy Suburban Mom
32. Filofax Pockets - Roses in December

• Your blog post could appear here next week if we missed you this time around. Email us the details and we will include it if we can. 
• We can not guarantee people will read your posts, but we know there is a higher chance of people reading your posts and returning to read other posts if you make them interesting with pictures and good hints and tips. Do not forget to give your posts a title... 

And here are a selection of the latest Filofax videos for your enjoyment. 

1. Gillio Planner Firenze - Changing rings - Tom Van Haelen
2. My Week...in The Original Filofax in Fluorescent Pink! - Amy Weimann
3. Gillio MIACARA planner review - Tom Van Haelen
4. Filofax Compact Calipso in Teal - Amee Filo
5. Gillio Planner famous scratch test ....WATCH THIS!! - Tom Van Haelen
6. Personal Size Life is Crafted Planner Inserts for Filofax - lifeiscrafted
7. Life Crafting Lovely Lisa Fox from Open Shed & her LIC A5 Week On 2 Page Planner - lifeiscrafted
8. DIY Washi Paper Clips - mypurpleylife
9. RAPESCO Adjustable Diary Punch 66-P - Natasha Hensel
10. Moving Into My Filofax Original Orange - scrapjoy
11. Not really am unboxing of the A5 Fusion Filofax - Stevie Filofly
12. Want to win a Filofax? - Tracy Reinhardt
13. Filofax Art Decoration - week 26 - (no tools!)(except for a pen!) - mysummertouch
14. Filofax: How to Set up a NEW Filofax out of the box - mysummertouch
15. Filofax bargain U.K - WellThatsNat
16. My Filofax Color Coding System - TeamFilofax719
17. What's in My Filofax Pocket Aston? - TheGLOSSette
18. First Impression Xyron X150 Sticker Maker - Adamsfilo
19. For the love of Filofax: A5 Filofax Business Setup Update - SecretAgentBover
20. Decorating My Filofax Pages - love4creativity

• I have recently started to monitor You Tube videos in the same way we monitor blogs for new posts. The number of channels monitored will steadily increase in the coming weeks, but if your channel is in the list above then your channel is now in the monitoring system. 
• Why isn't my video in your list? Most probably because it's a 'Haul video', an 'Unboxing Video' or a 'Vertical Video'  Videos that are about set ups and reviews of Filofax organisers and other ring bound organisers will nearly always be included. 

Enjoy

Enthusiasts Collection

Since we met with representatives of Filofax in London last November, one of the topics under active discussion has been different design inserts either dated or undated. 

Filofax is inviting all enthusiasts to send in refill concepts as part of a competition - the winners of which will be credited with the new pack and see their ideas created, printed and made available widely to other Filofax fans via the Filofax website.

So we would like you to contribute some designs of your own that could be included in the Filofax range of inserts. This new range will become known as the 'Enthusiasts Collection' to honour our dedication and love of Filofax personal organisers.  

The Brief

Filofax has existed for nearly a century and although its usage has changed over the decades its appeal is still strong.

The first ‘File of Facts’ appeared in 1921 and since then it has grown and developed from a simple loose-leaf paper system and diary, into an indispensable business and personal accessory for many. The concept is as relevant now as it has ever been as people continue to use paper.  A Filofax personal organiser is unique to its owner.  The cover is an outward reflection of your personal style but even more unique are the papers you chose and how you arrange and use them.

Filofax would like to give enthusiasts the opportunity to create a diary or undated refill concept to become part of an Enthusiasts Collection.  This collection will be produced in a limited run and sold on the Filofax website/s.  Full details on how to enter are provided in this information pack.

When you are thinking about your design/format, bear in mind that the winning concepts will be selected in a Facebook vote. So, as well as being useful to you, you might like to consider its wider appeal.  You will have the opportunity, if you wish, to write a short overview of your idea – what it could be used for and who might use it etc.


Submission Details

1. Submissions may be made in the following formats:

• Hand drawn sketch or illustration
• Computer generated design.

2. A maximum of two colours may be proposed one of which may be a tinted background.  It is not mandatory to submit your entry in your proposed colours, but please indicate if you have specific colours in mind.

3. Submissions do not need to be exactly to scale, although should be designed with the personal size paper format in mind (95mm wide x171mm high). Filofax may decide to extend into other sizes if suitable.

4. Entries may consist of one or two different page layouts (ie two pages are required for week on 2 page diary format).

5. Filofax will decide the number of printed pages in the finished pack, however, entrants may propose total number of pages if this is integral to the concept.

6. Designs do not need to show the position of holes or any technical printing details such as gutter or crop lines.

7. Entries must be accompanied by the following information:

• Entrants name, address, email and a contact phone number
• Optional background (max 500 words) on your idea – how to use it, who might use it etc.

8. Entries may be received via email or post as per competition T&Cs

9. By submitting an entry, you agree to the competition T&Cs as outlined in the section below.

Stages & Timelines

• Submissions by 12 midday (BST) Friday 30th August 2013
• Shortlist announced Friday 13th September 2013
• Winners announced Monday 30th September 2013

Announcements will be made on Filofax.co.uk and Filofax Facebook page.


Competition Terms & Conditions

1. Entries to be received by midday BST on 30th August via email enthusiasts@filofax.co.uk or by post: Filofax Enthusiasts  Competition, Filofax Group Limited, Victoria Gardens, Burgess Hill, West Sussex, RH15 9NB.  See entry submission details.

2. Entries will be reviewed by Filofax and appointed representatives of the Philofaxy blog community and up to ten shortlist finalists selected.  These will be announced on filofax.co.uk and the Filofax Facebook page on 13th September 2013.

3. Finalists’ designs will be posted to the Filofax Facebook page on 13th September and will be open to public voting for a period of two weeks in order to select THREE winning designs.

4. Winning designs will be announced on filofax.co.uk and Filofax Facebook page on 30th September 2013.

5. Filofax will be responsible for creating, from the winning design concepts, the finished artwork and finalising the product specification (number of pages, sizes and colours – max of two).

6. The three winning design concepts will be produced as a limited edition product on 70 gsm paper for sale on the filofax.co.uk website at a price to be established by Filofax.

7. No employee of Filofax or Philofaxy representatives involved in deciding the shortlist entries shall be permitted to enter.

8. One named entrant per entry.

9. Up to three entries per person.

10. Filofax shall market the product under the Filofax brand name as part of The Enthusiasts Collection.  No payment shall be made to the winning entrants.

11. Filofax shall decide on the number of finished product to be produced for sale.

12. Any repeated print runs shall be at the discretion of Filofax and will be dependent on the success of the pack.  For the avoidance of doubt, this means the item may only be printed once as a reprint may not be commercially viable.

13. In consideration of the promoter agreeing to consider entrants, each entrant hereby assigns to the promoter copyright and other intellectual property rights (including any rights in artwork, labels, designs, logos or text, including any goodwill) and any other rights, title or interest in the entry.

14. All entrants hereby warrant that:
i They are the sole owner of the intellectual property rights in their entry
ii They are free to assign those rights to the promoter; and no third parties hold
any rights, charges or interest over all or part of their entry.

15. All entrants hereby waive their moral rights, where such rights may arise under the copyright, designs and patents act 1988 in relation to their entry.

16. The winning entrants’ will be credited with their design concept in marketing material and on any packaging or in the pack itself and by entering the competition, are agreeing to this.

17. Any personal data relating to entrants will be used solely in accordance with current UK data protection legislation and will not be disclosed to a third party without the individual’s prior consent.

18. Entries received after the deadline will not be considered.

19. By submitting an entry, each entrant agrees to these terms and conditions. Promoter: Filofax Group Limited, Victoria Gardens, Burgess Hill, West Sussex


Company Overview

Filofax is part of the Letts Filofax Group with owned subsidiaries in the UK, US, Germany, France, Italy & Scandinavia and offices in Hong Kong. Over 30 distributors around the world make up Filofax’s international markets.

In the UK the Group principally operates out of two sites and has a flagship store in Conduit Street, Central London - a fashionable shopping destination and home to several designer brands.

Filofax is recognised worldwide – the logo symbolises quality, authenticity and innovation in our field.

In a world where technology is widely embraced Filofax strives to offer simplicity and a sense of balance. To inspire, through evolving and relevant product design, the use of stationery and technology accessories that work alone or side by side. In essence, to bring together paper essentials and digital devices - helping take the stress out of staying organised.

Footnote: 

Filofax have asked me to point out that the competition rules need to be written to cover off legal aspects and so they can seem quite unfriendly.

However, the objective of the exercise is to give something back to the people who use Filofax products, who might miss some of the older inserts or would like to see particular inserts that are not currently produced.

The print run of this collection will be small and it will not be widely sold – only available on the internet. The creator will have their name associated with their insert pack on the cover.

Free for All Friday No. 241

For a few years now, I've used an A5 Filofax for work matters, Personal size for my personal stuff, and a Pocket for fitness records. Lately, I've moved the fitness up to Personal, since I'm focusing more on that now and need more room. I find I'm also leaning toward downsizing to Personal size for work, too. I guess I don't need to take as many notes as I used to. (Also, it would be a good excuse to buy a new Filofax!)

Anybody else thinking about lightening up? Downsizing?

Philofaxy Awards 2013

Some of you might recall the Philofaxy Awards held last year, winners in each category received a Filofax personal organiser from the London 2012 Olympics range.

Following my triumph in the recent Filofax Setting the Scene for Summer challenge I have the following Filofax personal organisers with Philofaxy cards to donate.

Fusion in Black, Saffiano in Aqua and Bright Purple

We would like to hold the Philofaxy Awards 2013 and we need your help.

These awards are in the following categories:

• Best New Filofax Blogger (Saffiano Personal Aqua) 
• Best Filofax Video Blogger (Saffiano Personal Purple) 
• Best Filofax Photography (Saffiano Personal Aqua) 
• Most Artistic Filofax/ Blog (Saffiano Personal Purple) 
• Best All Rounder (Fusion) - Reader, Commenter, Contributor to Facebook, Open catergory 

The awards will work like this:

1. Each reader can nominate 1 blog or person for each category listed above.
2. Each category will have a separate vote (all voted on at the same time) with people being able to vote for one entry in each category.
3. Nominations by Email only to philofaxy at gmail dot com with the category as the subject of the email. Include the name of the person and the name of the blog (if applicable), a link to the site, You Tube Channel or to the person's Flickr/Instagram pictures if they don't have a blog.
4. Voting to run for 10 days From 4th July onwards. 
5. The awards are open to everyone no matter where you are in the world...as long as you have a postal service and you are a reader/commenter on Philofaxy 
6. Prizes have been pre-allocated to each category as indicated above. Prize winners can choose to swap between them selves if they wish with the agreement of both parties of course.  No cash alternatives are available. 
7. If you doesn't wish to claim your prize, Steve will be quite happy to sell your prize on Adspot with the money received going straight to Chimwemwe and then posting it to the buyer. 
8. The decision of the judges will be final. 

Nominations must be received by 12 noon (UK time) 4th July 2013 for inclusion in the voting process.

We look forward to receiving your nominations.

Flex A4 Smooth

Understated style describes the Smooth range of Flex by Filofax Covers. Great for the office or for a moment to yourself, from notes to sketches, diarising your life to updating contacts, the A4 encompasses it all.

Combining innovative design with intuitive functionality, the Flex by Filofax Cover features a unique structure and arrangement of pockets allowing you to slot in your choice of Notebooks, Diaries, Contacts, Jot Pads and more. With over a million combinations, it's up to you.

Designed to fall open flat, your Flex Cover is simple, portable and ready to fit into your life and includes a Notebook and Jot Pad on cream coloured paper with tonal grey print.

• Width 230mm, height 315mm, depth 15mm.
• Material: Smooth PU with nappa leather grain effect

Inside left: 1 x slim sized jotpad pocket / 4 x vertical full depth slip pockets to fit slim sized flex books and accessories / 2 x vertical full depth slip pockets to fit  A4 sized flex books and accessories - one of which also includes a flap so pocket can be used to securely hold an iPad or similar sized tablet

Inside right: 2 vertical full depth slip pockets for A4 sized flex books and accessories

Includes:

• Ruled notebook
• Jot pad
• Moveable pen holder

Available in:

• A4 Flex Smooth Black
• A4 Flex Smooth Pink
• A4 Flex Smooth Navy

RRP £49 - available on line soon. 

Chimwemwe - News Update

Update on the work at Chimwemwe and a huge thank you!

Many of you will know that Philofaxy is a stalwart supporter of Chimwemwe, but some of you might not know who we are or what we do. I did a post on Chimwemwe a while back (which you can read here) and an update in January (which you can read here). Steve has asked me to give you all an update on where the project is at the moment, which I am more than happy to do.

Chimwemwe Children's Centre is a charity based in Blantyre, Malawi, which helps street-children to return to education and to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. The children we work with have ended up on the streets for a variety of reasons - ranging from the loss of one or both parents (often from AIDs) leading them into poverty; to abuse by family or community members which has driven them away from home and onto the streets.

The new sign for the centre

At the moment, we are housing 14 children within the centre and supporting others within the community. Towards the end of January, we bought new beds and mattresses for the centre and there have been some major renovations to the building. Unfortunately, we had to close the building whilst the renovations were being completed. The Blantyre City Assembly said that they would help to house and shelter the children while these renovations took place, but they didn't and some of the children suffered abuse on the streets while the centre was closed.

New beds and mattresses arrive

Last month, Chimwemwe appealed for help to provide a sewing machine for the centre, in order to be able to teach some of the older boys tailoring skills. I am delighted to say that the donations that came from Philofaxy not only allowed us to buy the sewing machine and training for the children, but also let us buy a television for the children. The TV will be used partly for educational reasons – to be able to show the children educational programmes – but also to let the kids be able to watch television, like most kids can do. For some of them, this is the first time they have been able to. You can imagine their excitement! A huge thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all the donations. They really do make a difference to the lives of these kids.

Arrival of the new sewing machine

New TV for the kids

Indulge me? Let me tell you the story of just one of the children – Nicholas – and how your support for Chimwemwe has changed his life?

I met Nicholas when he was 13. He had met some of the helpers in Chimwemwe but was still living under some shrubs by the river until we could find space for him in the centre. He had lost both of his parents. There were five other boys also living under the shrubs and all of them have subsequently been given support by Chimwemwe.

Nicholas in the 'home' where I first met him. Nicholas is the first on the left

Nicholas is now 15. At the moment he is in school at the equivalent of primary 3. For his age he should be in primary 8 or secondary school but he has missed a lot of schooling whilst living on the streets. By the time he completes his primary education, he will be 18 and Chimwemwe will no longer be able to support him.

Nicholas (second on the left) in the Chimwemwe centre in October 2012

However, we are working with him now to ensure that he will be able to support himself when the time comes. We are employing a teacher who comes to help the children with their numeracy and literacy after school, to help with the missed schooling. Some of the boys, including Nicholas are also being taught tailoring and business skills such as finance and budgeting. Nicholas' hope is that when he leaves Chimwemwe, he will be able to set up his own tailoring business.

Nicholas getting his lessons in tailoring from Luciano

A huge thank you from me, the kids at Chimwemwe and all the staff there. Without such support we would be able to do nothing for these children. With your help we are able to rebuild lives and break the cycle of poverty. Thank you.

Amanda 

If you go down to the woods today....

Filofax sort of sneaked this one on to the website this week. So there isn't a marketing type press release for it!

The Woodland comes in Pocket (£18) and Personal (£22) sizes.

The organiser has a PU cover with wood grain effect and green rabbit motif with a cream PU suede touch interior.  The Pocket has a pink butterfly motif.

The contents includes a diary:

• Transparent flyleaf
• 2 colour front sheet to co-ordinate with organiser range
• 1-6 coloured index
• To do
• White ruled notepaper
• White quadrille notepaper
• White plain notepaper
• Contacts
• Blue ruled notepaper
• Green ruled notepaper
• Pink ruled notepaper
• Week on 2 pages diary, 5 language July 2013 - Dec 2014
• Frosted ruler/page marker
• Top opening envelope

The Personal size has a ring mechanism size: 6 rings of 23mm. Plastic pocket with pen loop within the fill. The Pocket is 19mm ring size.

Woodlands Personal Size £22

Woodlands Pocket

Both are now available on the Filofax UK website

Web Finds - 25 June 2013

Here are the latest Filofax blog posts from around the Internet:

1. Filofax Inserts - Kelsie
2. Return to the fold - Chocolate and Filofaxes
3. Filofax Subsections - This Hobbits Life
4. Franklin Fridays? Wha?? - My Big Bootyful Life
5. My Finsbury Filofax - Holly's Creative Crafts
6. So much stationery...so little time! - It's Bluetiger
7. Filofax 2013: Bright Blue Calipso A5 Organiser - Lou Federer
8. Mylo' s Filofax - Life of a would be Artist
9. Brightening Up: Personalising Your Filofax! - Lou Federer
10. Leather samples for my custom made organizer! What to choose? - My Filo World
11. Monthly Dividers in my Filofax - Planning with Printed Portal
12. Quick Organised Mum inserts week review - Life of Kitty
13. My little trick with a paper clamp and a notepad slot - She's Eclectic
14. 365/30: My favourite things in my Filofax are…? - Filomaniac
15. Raspberry Saffiano Pocket Filofax Review! - The Wonderful Life of Alice
16. New Filofax Diet Sheets, including A5 and goal page - This Bugs Life
17. My Filofax is minty fresh... - The Crazy Suburban Mom
18. Filofax Insert: BBQ Checklist - Planning with Printed Portal
19. The “Calipso Twins” Have Arrived - The Zeitgeist of Zoe
20. Planner help for the "unorganized" - Plannerisms
21. Mein Blog-Planer - Filomaniac
22. Journaling - It's My Life!
23. Five Filofaxes - Roses in December
24. My week round-up #25 - Paper Lovestory
25. Filofax Travel Wallet - Wandrrlust
26. A Year-Round Calendar - Lime Tree
27. What I Use The Most In My Filofax - Roses in December
28. Franklin Covey make over reveal. ;) - My Big Bootyful Life
29. Pen/Ink/Highlighter Review - Stephanie's Filofax Life
30. recent loot for my filofax - and then she read

And here are the latest Filofax Video alerts:

1. Sunday Chit Chat No.8! Rambling, Filofaxes & More Rambing - Adamsfilo
2. Make your own stickers and washi tape for your Filofax - Anna-Marie Hawthorne
3. Gillio medium Compagna in fuschia :o) - Miauuu71
4. Gillio medium Compagna planner update Part 1 :o)) - Miauuu71
5. Decorating My Filofax Personal Organiser - Week #26 - mypurpleylife
6. Unboxing of My Lavender Pocket Metropol Filofax - TeamFilofax719
7. My first filofax video!!! - Amee Filo
8. Filofax A5 Aston - Cape May
9. Filofax Art Decoration - week 24 - My Summer Touch
10. Filofax June Set Up (Slimming down Filofax) - mysummertouch
11. Weekly setup for Week #26 - TeamFilofax719
12. Filofax Metropol... Update... FINALLY! - empressdoinalot
13. My current Filofax setup - puddytatpurr
14. Holborn Personal Filofax - scrapjoy
15. UPDATE! Filofax Set up - Metropol personal size - Carolin Eggern
16. Straight-A Student Essential: The Filofax - LouFederer
17. Blog and Filofax Update - Stevie Filofly
18. Filofax - Make Your Own Flyleaf - Natasha Hensel
19. A5 Life is Crafted Planner Inserts for Filofax - Mid Year Organizer 2013-2014 - Life is Crafted

Enjoy.

Free For All Tuesday No. 125

Tuesdays are your chance to ask any Filofax related questions you might have.

So fire away and we will collectively try to answer your questions or offer opinions.

Today's post is a bit special in other ways too... this post is the 2000th post on Philofaxy!

Don't forget that our dear friends over at 'Write At Home' are offering Worldwide Shipping Free until the end of June. Check out their website today.

Philofaxy on Bloglovin

With the closure of Google Reader at the end of the month. We are making Philofaxy available on Bloglovin, click on the link below.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Oh Wait Here's Another One.... Nurse!!!

First of all, thanks to Filofax and Jess from The Ideas Network for sending me this scrumptious organizer to review!

With vibrant colors inspired by Latin America brought to life in soft deluxe leather, the new Filofax Calipso veritably screams summer. Featuring a fashionable contrasting croco-embossed closure, this binder is as eye catching as it is easy to use….like a bright, cheery sundress that looks great on a blazing summer day, but is secretly cool and comfortable all the while.

In my enthusiasm to move into the Calipso, it appears I tossed the inserts that came with it into the Never Never. As you know, I typically use alternative inserts in all of my planners but I had meant to hang onto the stock inserts this time, knowing I would be doing this review, so that I could provide you with an “Unboxing” section to start things off. Rarely one to do things the easy way, I hunted high and low and have absolutely no idea where they have gotten to, so you’ll have to rely on the Twin review to this one to provide you with the details on how Calipso comes to you from Filofax.

Typical right - one sister is responsible and the other…well, not so much ; )

For this review’s purposes, the Filofax website lists the inserts that come with the Calipso as follows:

• Transparent flyleaf
• 2 color front sheet to co-ordinate with organizer range
• Week on 2 pages diary, 5 language
• 1-6 colored index
• To do
• White ruled notepaper
• White quadrille notepaper
• White plain notepaper
• Contacts
• Blue ruled notepaper
• Green ruled notepaper
• Pink ruled notepaper
• Frosted ruler/page marker

Now let’s get to the fun part…the Calipso in use!

The inside front of the Calipso features four vertical card slots with one full-depth pocket at the bottom, as well as a vertical slash pocket behind the card pockets. A fully elastic pen loop also graces the front cover. Materials used on the inside of Calipso are a combination of the external leather and color matched, lightly corded polyester lining.

As you can see, the pen loop can easily handle my fat Coleto Lumio multi pen. I’m very pleased to see a movement toward either partially or fully elasticized pen loops making their way into the leather binders, since so many of us prefer to use multi pens, fountain pens or the like in our planners. Nicely done Filofax!

While the elastic pen loop has quickly become a favorite feature of mine, even more of a deal-breaker (for me) is the fact that the Calipso Compact will lay flat.

Initially, straight out of the box, it did not. It was pretty close to flat but not all the way there.  However, within a couple days of normal use, it relaxed and now lays flat nicely (no “training” required).

The leather for the body of the planner is described on the Filofax website as “soft full grain leather with a small grain texture”. And it is very soft indeed! The leather is padded a bit (unlike the thick, one-piece leather body of the Original) and very cushy to the touch, but without feeling delicate; I have no qualms about tossing Calipso into my bag with my keys and other items.

The color saturation is AH. MAY. ZING! The Deep Pink of the model I was given to review is a nice balance between a bright, blue-based pink and fuchsia. Eye-catching without being blinding or out of place in a professional environment.

The main design element of Calipso is the concealed popper. A lovely, croco-embossed leather, the closure is much firmer than the body leather, and its thickness and width suggest it will provide security for all your valuable planning pages within.

To compliment the juicy, summery color of the Deep Pink Calipso, I trimmed down some Franklin Covey Her Point of View monthly tabs for use with my Filofax Week on Two Pages inserts. You know I love me some tabbed months!! Not only are they necessary to my planning system, in this case I also thought they looked bright and cheery with the binder.

The 2/3” rings provide ample room for a full set of the aforementioned monthly tabs interspersed with a full year of Week on Two Pages…with room to spare for some notepaper, if so desired. Even with a Filofax Plastic Envelope as the final entry in the rings (to hold my stickers), the pages turn smoothly.

As you can see, Calipso accommodates everything I need quite nicely. The slight bulge you see is from use of the vertical card slots inside the front. The vertical layout of the slots means that most of the bulk is at the top. This is not a big deal for my use, but those who prefer a sleeker Compact planner may want to invest in a pack of Filofax Business/Visiting Card Holder inserts and keep what goes into the card slots to a minimum. As you can see, I have the slots pretty full.

Even with the Coleto Lumio in the pen loop, the Calipso snaps shut securely.

The interior back of Calipso features a vertical zipped pocket. Unlike most Filofax with zipped pockets in the back cover, this one faces inward.

As such, it is a bit difficult to get in and out of quickly or on the go, and I have yet to find any real use for the zipped pocket after a few weeks of use because of that fact. I do have some smaller paper items tucked inside that I won’t need access to very often, but other than that I would have preferred to see the zip pocket facing outward, as we are accustomed to in the Filofax line, or an additional vertical slip pocket to mirror the front.

The attachment point of the croco closure to the back of the binder is well done and unobtrusive, despite it being quite a heft of leather.

For those of you who enjoy the slim profile of the Filofax Compact, but crave some color and excitement in your daily planning, I highly recommend Calipso. Between the luxurious leather body, the tropical inspired snap closure and the bevy of fun, vivacious colors to choose from, there is a lot to love about this beautiful binder.

Calipso is available in Bright Blue, Deep Pink, Teal, Burnt Orange and Solar Yellow for $79 on the FilofaxUSA website.

Thank you to Zoe and Susan for the reviews of their 'Twins' I'm sure they will up date us with news as the 'Twins' grow up.

The Twins Have Been Born!

If you saw this post, you may have known a review was coming.  Sorry if I misled anyone, but Zoe and I aren’t expecting actual twins, but rather twin binders.

First, I’d like to thank Jessica Proudfoot at Ideas Network for sending me the Compact Calipso to review.  I am very excited to participate in a review for Filofax.

With that said, on with the show!

Coming to the US from the UK, I thought it would take a long time for the Calipso to arrive and settled myself for an impatient two-week (or longer) wait.  So I was very excited to find this lovely note on my door only a week and a half later:

This is my first “official” package from London.  I didn’t think I would have to sign for it, but it makes sense, seeing as it came from Ideas Network.  Of course, I was working and not at home. It was a Thursday when it arrived, and I knew I would not be able to pick it up until Saturday.  So you can imagine my angst at having to wait (so much so, I almost had my mother pick it up on Friday) knowing it was waiting for me just down the road from my house.  But wait I did, no thanks to the hours held by the United States Post Office.

After picking it up, here’s what I had:

It says Royal Mail and everything—yay!

Inside I got a lovely note from Jess.  What lovely handwriting!

I added her note to my personal Guildford, where I keep all of my Filofax-related notes.

Upon opening the package…

Ahh, see her in all of her teal beauty.  (Pardon the photo colors—my camera doesn’t like to take true-color photos.)

I chose the teal color because I wanted something summery, yet not something that I would easily tire of.  And since I prefer more subdued colors in my planners, the teal fit all of my criteria.  For those seeking more vivid colors, the Calipso also comes in bright blue, deep pink, burnt orange, and solar yellow and is also available in the A5 size.

Here’s a close-up of the snap closure, which is much different from other binders:

The leather on the Calipso is soft and pebbly, much like that of the Finchley, though the “pebbles” are smaller on the Calipso than they are on the Finchley.

Here’s the Filofax “F” on the side:

Now for the insides…

The left interior:

You can see that the card slots are vertical in this binder, as opposed to horizontal, as is the case with most other binders.  I have gotten used to the card slots being the other way, but I love me some vertical slots, so I’m not at all upset about this layout.  You can also see that the pen loop is on the left side, whereas many binders (and all of the ones I own) have it on the right side.

There is a full-length pocket behind the card slots.

Upon first opening, the binder did not lay flat.

The binder comes with a week on one page diary layout.

Being a compact, the rings are 15 mm.

It also has the black Today ruler and A – Z tabs.

There is white notepaper too.

The right interior has a zippered pocket.

The back of the binder:

Those are the features of the binder.  As you can see, it’s pretty similar to most binders.

How did she do in the real world?

First, I love the teal color!  It lives up to my criteria of offering a summery hue without being too loud or too boring.  (The next photo is pretty true to the actual color.)

Although the pen loop is elastic, I found that it still didn’t fit my Uniball Jetstream pen.

If I forced it enough and often, I could probably get the loop to stretch out and get the pen in there easily.  But since I am used to having to put the pen clasp in the loop rather than the pen (I have to do this with my other compact binders), I figured I would go that route with the Calipso as well.

The pen does stick out from the binder a bit.

And at first, the clasp would not snap with the pen inside.

But once I forced it, it was fine, and it now closes without any effort.

I have to say that I don’t love the pen loop being on the left side.  All of my binders have the loop on the right, and since I’m right-handed, it just feels natural to put the pen on that side when I’m finished with it.  However, this is not a deal-breaker for me, and as I’ve been using it, I’ve gotten used to it.  I’d still prefer it on the right, but the left is okay too.

Upon opening the package, and after taking the initial photos, I moved right into the Calipso.  I put all of my items into it to see how it would hold up to everyday use.

Here I have my cards in the slots, some Martha Stewart stickers and some sheets of Russell + Hazel’s sticky to do sheets.

I have to say that although I love the idea of the vertical card slots, they’re not as great in practice, at least with this binder.  Since it’s thicker leather, and since one pocket is stacked on top of another, it creates a bit of bulk in the front.  That makes for skewed left-sided writing.  Again, this isn’t a deal breaker, but something that did annoy me at first.

I was very sad when the binder didn’t lay flat.

This is a must for me.  I can’t stand to use binders that don’t lay flat—when I have to fight with them to write in them, it’s a lost cause and only creates aggravation on my part.

I find that binders with a spine bubble tend to not lay flat.  Sadly, this is one of those binders.  However, seeing as the leather is soft and supple, I very gently bent the binder back on itself just a little.  To my happiness, it now lays flat.

I added my sheets of lists of projects, a year’s worth of monthly inserts, three months of daily pages, and a top-opening envelope at the back.

I don’t typically like zipped pockets since I find them tight and not easy to get into.  And I sorely miss the open full-length pocket in the back where I typically keep a small stack of papers.  However, I came up with a solution.

I simply unzipped the pocket and stuck the papers inside.  Since the pocket is tight to begin with, there isn’t any issue with the papers falling out.

Overall, I am delighted with this binder.  There are a few things I would change, but in the end, they are minor, and so it doesn’t change my opinion of the Calipso.  I mentioned that I moved into it right away—I have not moved out of it since.  It’s a great binder, and the last piece of my seasonal collection (more to come on that).  With her great color and free spirit, I have named her Gypsy.  May she always live carefree.

If you’re thinking of getting a binder from the range, I highly recommend it!  If you have further questions about the binder, please ask away.

Thanks again to Jess at Ideas Network for sending me the Compact Teal Calipso to review and to Steve for hosting my post here on Philofaxy.