Reader Under the Spotlight - Laura

Hi all,
My name is Laura and I'm 32 years old. I live in Oxfordshire, UK and run my own ironing company. I became addicted to stationery at an early age and used to love 'back to school' shopping. Now I shop for stationery all year round!

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

I bought my first Filofax when I was at University in 2000 but I can't remember which one it was!

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

I have used various generic binders from WHSmith or Paperchase but not for a while now as Filofax is my binder of choice.

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

My favourite is my daily Filofax - my purple personal Malden. I love the feel of the soft leather and the look of the colour.

4. How many Filofax organizers do you own?

I recently moved some into the loft to make more room in the office, but in the office I have 11. Apart from my personal Malden these are mostly A5 Maldens which I am planning to assign uses to very soon! I also use a purple compact zipped Malden as a purse.

5. What is the oldest Filofax in your collection?

My oldest Filofax is one of my pocket sized ones, I think the Finsbury. I'm not sure exactly when I bought it but it's at least 8 years old.

6. What do you use your Filofax for?

I have one Filofax for a purse, one for a daily organiser, an A5 Finsbury for my business, an A5 Malden for my running Filofax and an A5 Malden for a travel diary. I plan to use one of my other A5 Maldens for a home organiser. The others are currently holding spare inserts.

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

That you can keep the same binder for years but change the inserts/diaries every few minutes if you want. It's ultra-customisable!

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

It would have the look and the leather of the Maldens, an extra pen loop and bigger rings. Other than that I have to say the personal Malden is pretty much my dream Filofax!

9. How do you carry your Filofax?

If I need to take it with me it goes in my handbag but most of the time it sits on the shelf in front of my computer desk so I can gaze at it adoringly as I work.


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

I like the aqua Malden personal/A5 but have no plans to buy it as I don't need it (even though the voices tell me I do!) I think my next Filofax purchase will be the Journey Travel Companion.

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

I spent around £100.00 on my A5 Maldens and bought three at once. Oops.

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

My favourite tip is to let your Filofax be an extension of you. I tried to be all crafty with washi tape and haphazard with stickers as I liked the look of other people's diaries who did this, but I soon got frustrated when it didn't work for me. My pages are regimented and organised and might look a little 'bare' to some, but I can find everything I need easily and am more likely to use my organiser when it's laid out right for me. Experiment and have fun to see what works for you - you can always buy or print more diary pages!

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

I like the printable pages the most - these have saved me an insane amount of money!

14. And what do you not like about Philofaxy?

I sometimes find it hard to get around and find what I'm looking for via the page links but the search feature usually solves this.

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

Luke Bryan's album - Crash My Party. It's great 'New Country'.

16.  Mark Darcy or Daniel Cleaver? 

Neither, I'm perfectly happy with my own hubby, thanks!

Thank you Laura for agreeing to appear under our spotlight. And if you would like to appear in this feature please contact steve at philofaxy dot com