Silent Sunday

 

Photo by Seaview N. on Unsplash

Web Finds - Saturday 14 September 2024

It is time to enjoy a few blog posts from around the internet, grab a drink and make yourself comfortable for our weekly round-up.

Here are some Philofaxy posts you might have missed this week:

1. Web Finds - Saturday 7 September 2024
2. Silent Sunday
3. Filofax 2024 Catalogue
4. Free For All Tuesday - No. 710
5. Video Web Finds - Wednesday 11 September 2024
6. Guest post series - 'Filohax' No. 14 - Paul
7. Free For All Friday No. 827 by Laurie

Here are the latest Filofax and other brand blog posts from around the Internet. Don't forget to leave a comment on the posts you enjoyed reading, all bloggers enjoy getting comments.

1. New Filofax and Safari rollerball - love the colors! - Filofax
2. Finding Your Purpose - FranklinPlanner Talk
3. ️Plan your month – like you mean it! - Lime Tree Fruits
4. Master To Do List or Brain dump insert for my personal Filofax - Filofax
5. Episode #275: GTD and Holacracy Intersections - Getting Things Done
6. How is the flatability of the Saffiano Mini? - Filofax
7. Put your focus glasses on - Lime Tree Fruits
8. How to Efficiently Plan a Month-Long European Itinerary in Just One Week - All About Planners
9. Filofax Finsbury in Pocket size - full width pocket behind the rings or not? - Filofax
10. ‍When those goals keep NOT happening - Lime Tree Fruits
11. How do you mark blocks on your calendar? - Filofax
12. The best stationery shops in Singapore (pens, highlighters, washi tape, stencils etc.) - All About Planners
13. RELEASE: Pocket Slim Compagna - Gillio
14. Filofax Finances - Filofax
15. Link Love: Reading Mojo - The Well-Appointed Desk
16. Buying vintage - some questions. - Filofax
17. Web Finds – 11 September 2024 - Travellers Notebook Times
18. Your blog post could appear here. Please let us know if you have a blog that features ring bound organisers.

• Please leave a comment on any of the blogs you enjoyed reading and mention that you saw their post mentioned on Philofaxy. Thank you
• We monitor over 400 blogs and sites, your Filofax/Organiser blog posts could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• 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. 
• Your Filofax/Organiser posts could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• Consider joining our Facebook group - Filofax for Philofaxy fans
• Follow Philofaxy on Reddit
• Follow Philofaxy on Threads

Enjoy

Free For All Friday No. 827 by Laurie

The thickness of the paper in your binder makes a big difference in the weight, bulk, and number of pages the rings can hold.

In the past, Filofax brand inserts were 70 gsm. A few years ago they increased to 80 gsm to make them more fountain pen friendly. 

Some planner brands use paper that is 100 gsm or even 120 gsm, to prevent show through and bleed through of inks. 

Paper doesn't have to be super-thick to prevent inks bleeding through. Tomoe river paper and other similar papers are very thin, but are specially treated to prevent ink bleed-through. The thinness of the paper allows a ring binder to hold more pages. However, if you print your own pages, very thin paper can be problematic when going through a printer.

What thickness of paper do you prefer? Do you like thin paper for reduced bulk? Do you like thick paper for better ink performance? Or do you like something in the middle?

As always on Fridays, feel free to ask and/ or discuss anything ring binder organiser related!

Guest post series - 'Filohax' No. 14 - Paul

Thanks very much again to Paul for this fourteenth instalment of his wonderful guest post series.
You can find all of the 'Filohax' posts here.  

Filohax Gloucester review 

Second of my recent purchases is the Gloucester.

 

First a bit of back story. 

Since reconnecting with my Filofax past, I've made it known in my friends and contacts circles that I am 'Mr Filofax', and this had bagged me an unwanted Personal Pimlico from my friend network. However, I hit the big time when a contact of a contact had an old unused and unwanted Filofax. Several very poor photos were emailed which gave nothing away, until I asked for a photo of any serial number visible on an inside cover. When I saw the serial number '6CL 7/8' I knew I had hit pay dirt, and I'm too embarrassed to say how low a fee I paid (let's just say I hit the 'bullseye' ). 

 

I realised I had a few more bonus' once I received it; the first was its almost pristine condition (save for a slight scuff on the bottom of the front cover), but the real one was realising I had purchased the working binder of a Filofax trainer from the mid 1980's, as it contained a 44 page 'Filofax Retail staff development course' punched course notes, again in mint condition. I had a bit of a chat with the now 80 year old ex trainer, but he could only recall delivering this training in high end London stores such as John Lewis and Harrods to sell 'to the yuppies '!... well it was 40 years ago!). 

 

 

Its condition was as to be expected for a binder used for a short period in the 1980's, and then stored flat in a drawer for nearly 40 years - clean-ish but dry and quite poor flatability. 

After cleaning and feeding the leather it's looking as good as new, and the rings are as good as if purchased yesterday (well, maybe not yesterday if quality standards these days are anything to go by!) 

 

As with my other recent purchase, the Argyll, the Gloucester doesn't have ring protectors and as a consequence, I've come to appreciate the aesthetic qualities of the 'ring impressions' this lack leaves in the leather. Due to the Gloucester's lack of use this isn't yet showing, but as I've moved my work inserts into the Gloucester I'm hoping that these will break in soon as I love the 'lived in look' of vintage Filofax. One major benefit I'm finding from using it for work is its lack of fastener - I use a man bag and can be pulling the Filofax in and out of it 30 times a day, so now there is no fastener to snag on the bag. 

 

The other benefit of these 'clean lines' is the lack of a pen loop - ordinarily this would pose a problem, but as I use a pen loop WITHIN the 7/8 rings there is nothing to snag on the bag as I retrieve it. A real benefit for using the Gloucester for work. I also love the authentic quality of the leather - it just feels like calf hide cut to shape and dyed, that's it, no padding or stiffening giving a very straightforward feeling. 

Do any Gloucester owners have any insights or stories to tell?

Video Web Finds - Wednesday 11 September 2024

I hope you have had a good weekend.

Now it is time to enjoy a great collection of videos from around the internet.

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

1. Where I am at with my 2024 Planner lineup - Planner Mumsy
2. August Flip Through - Ring Sojourner (Personal Size) - Dia Meraz
3. Pocket Filofax Haul: Saffiano / Norfolk / Holborn - Lisa
4. Planner Haul | Filofax and Van Der Spek - Nicole Danielle
5. Filofax Norfolk Unboxing | Gillio Medium Compagna XL - Nessie Plans 
6. Franklin Covey Tyler Binder: Daily Planning - Samantha Gibson- Choose_Your_Planning
7. Monthly Plan With Me! | August Recap and New Goals for September | Franklin Covey Compact - Buy Sell Plan Inc.
8. Timeless Tips From The Franklin Planner That Will Change Your Life Forever - Carl Pullein
9. Plan With Me || Franklin Classic || Sep. 9 - 15th, 2024 || Tyler Binder - Sandra Dahl
10. I Moved My Hobonichi Cousin into a A5 Filofax - RhomanysRealm
11. how i'm using my filofax as a wallet | filofax finsbury mini wallet setup - helena diana
12. September Set Up | Franklin Covey Compact | How I Trim Inserts | Wellness Journal - Buy Sell Plan Inc.
13. Filofax flip through & other planner systems | heartsfailing - Heartsfailing
14. How I Clean My Leather Planners | Filofax Malden | Bonus Flipthrough - Shirley Joss 
15. 2025 Personal Rings & Custom Filofax Inserts - plannercoven
16. Plan With Me! Week of September 9th | Franklin Covey Compact | Vintage Aurora - Buy Sell Plan Inc.
17. Filofax Wochendeko KW 36 2024 | heartsfailing - Heartsfailing
18. It’s an Amazon Planner Haul | Filofax Haul - Latrice Sherell
19. Relaxing Weekend Setting Up New Filofax Personal Organiser - Smol Hobbyist
20. Filofax Malden pocket, Filofax Croc pocket, TN, Ptaho и другие +ответы на вопросы - Planner & Me
21. September Planner Setup: Sharing My Rosie Papeterie & 8lotus Orders - dr_alvaplans
22. Pocket rings planner update + 2025 wish list - Kati plans
23. Closer Look: A5 and Personal Foundations Planner | New Cypress Color | Cloth & Paper - CLOTH & PAPER
24. Detailed Planner Flip - What is inside my Moterm - Franklin Covey Compact Inserts - Plan with Fran
25. September 09-15 l Week 2 l Functional Plan with Me l Work & Catch All Planner - Lilies & Paper
26. NEW 2025 Planner Inserts - Tonya Plans
27. Filofax Pocket Holborn Setup - Lisa
28. Your YouTube video could appear here. If you have a YT channel that features Filofax organisers or similar, please let us know. (steve at philofaxy dot com) Alternatively ensure your video contains 'Filofax' or 'Rings' in the title or description. 

• Please leave a comment on any of the videos you enjoyed and mention you saw a link on Philofaxy. 
• For tips on how to improve your videos, please see this post.  Also this video too Webfinds 
• Your Filofax/Organiser Videos could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• Consider joining our Facebook group - Filofax for Philofaxy fans
• Follow Philofaxy on Reddit
• Follow Philofaxy on Threads

Enjoy

Free For All Tuesday - No. 710

What questions or discussion points have you got for us today?

It doesn't matter if you are a beginner or a more experienced user of organisers, we want to hear your thoughts, questions, opinions etc.

We are here to answer your questions.

Make today the one day you post a comment or post a question. If you are commenting as 'Anonymous', please include your name in the text of your comment. 

It is Tuesday after all, so fire away with any questions and comments.

If you are commenting below, please include your first name at the end of the comment. Thank you. 

Filofax 2024 Catalogue

It has been a while since we have been able to feature a new catalogue on Philofaxy. I came across this one on a site here in Europe. 

It's the global catalogue for Filofax most probably published late last year. 

You will find our full catalogue collection here.

The content of all these catalogue posts are the intellectual property of Filofax Group Ltd. They are reproduced on Philofaxy with their full permission for research and educational purposes only.

If you have any old Filofax catalogues that you would like to donate to our digital archive, please contact Steve: philofaxy at gmail dot com Thank you

Filofax 2024 Catalogue this is the full PDF (20 Mb) 

Silent Sunday

 

1988 Lefax calorie guide UK - including caviar, roast goose and shelled lobster!

Web Finds - Saturday 7 September 2024

It is time to enjoy a few blog posts from around the internet, grab a drink and make yourself comfortable for our weekly round-up.

Here are some Philofaxy posts you might have missed this week:

1. Web Finds - Saturday 31 August 2024
2. Silent Sunday
3. Highlights for August 2024
4. Free For All Tuesday - No. 709
5. Video Web Finds - Wednesday 4 September 2024
6. Guest post series - 'Filohax' No. 13 - Paul 
7. Free For All Friday - No. 826 by Anita 

Here are the latest Filofax and other brand blog posts from around the Internet. Don't forget to leave a comment on the posts you enjoyed reading, all bloggers enjoy getting comments.

1. Lightweight A5 leather filofax recommendations? - Filofax
2. Why the iconic 80s status symbol Filofax still means business in the tech age - The Drum
3. PLOTTER USA at the SF Pen Show 2024 - PLOTTER USA
4. The crimson Malden is in stock as a new colour. “Burgundy” - Filofax
5. Malden: A Timeless Stationery Icon - Filofax UK - BLOG
6. ‍When those goals keep NOT happening - Lime Tree Fruits
7. Reporter or super mini notebook.. any ideas? - Filofax
8. Episode #274: Slice of GTD Life with Ariadne - Getting Things Done
9. Filofax Inserts - Canada - Filofax
10. Book Club: Principles and Paradigms (pg. 23-35) - FranklinPlanner Talk
11. Japanese Fashion Professionals’ Planners - Notebook Stories
12. Filofax alternatives in the UK - Filofax
13. Link Love: I Smell Chai - The Well-Appointed Desk
14. Web Finds – 4 September 2024 - Travellers Notebook Times
15. Your blog post could appear here. Please let us know if you have a blog that features ring bound organisers.

• Please leave a comment on any of the blogs you enjoyed reading and mention that you saw their post mentioned on Philofaxy. Thank you
• We monitor over 400 blogs and sites, your Filofax/Organiser blog posts could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• 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. 
• Your Filofax/Organiser posts could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• Consider joining our Facebook group - Filofax for Philofaxy fans
• Follow Philofaxy on Reddit
• Follow Philofaxy on Threads

Enjoy

Free For All Friday - No. 826 by Anita

Whilst looking back through some of the posts here for inspiration, I realised that it's been ten years since I first purchased my beloved personal Kensington! However, it hasn't been in my possession for all that time as I sold it some years ago, so it's also belonged to three different members of the community in the US, before finally coming back to its forever home with me in 2020.

To celebrate my love of all things Kensington, here are some of my posts:

Filofax Kensington review - By Anita - my initial post back in 2014.

The Goldilocks effect (home in my Kensington - very kindly gifted back to me in 2016.

There and Back Again: a Kensington's Tale - by Anita - gifted back to me again in 2020! I am so appreciative of our wonderful and generous community. 

Personal Kensington flip through - by Anita

After it was so kindly gifted back to me in 2016, I gave it back again to the same person as I'd decided that I'd wanted to own only the one Filofax, and I felt at that time that I needed something more colourful. And then I reached out to them again on the off-chance that they might still have it in 2020... and it's been with me ever since. It does seem a bit silly now, but in the past I've pushed myself to own just the one binder, which means that I have rehomed some that I probably wouldn't now. However, I have enjoyed this journey, so I don't have any regrets about the others and have my all-time favourite back.

Do you have any organisers that you have gotten back again due to seller's regret, or re-purchased one again at a later date?

And as always on Fridays, please feel free to discuss anything organiser related. I hope that you have a great weekend. 

Guest post series - 'Filohax' No. 13 - Paul

Thanks very much again to Paul for this thirteenth instalment of his wonderful guest post series.
You can find all of the 'Filohax' posts here.  

Argyll C2CLF 7/8

This was a snap eBay purchase, after seeing it in an auction but with a very reasonable 'or buy now' price, which I quickly secured. I always try to find out my new purchases' history and this one was purchased in probably 1995 as a present for the then deputy headmaster of a secondary school. It arrived with me with Filofax printer paper (but no software) as the owner used to print off a shared diary. 

The binder had sat in a drawer since the mid 2000s, so my first impression on unpacking it was that it was a bit dowdy and quite dry looking. After addressing this, I realised that the down at heel looking two pocketed Filofax was in fact a very attractive patinaed Argyll (according to Filowiki an Argyll is a two pocket Filofax made of Calf leather). The first C of the C2CLF 7/8 designation apparently stands for 'custom', although I'm not sure in what way it was customised? 

The binder had obviously been well used as it has perfect flatability, and as this model doesn't have ring protectors their impressions are clearly visible on the front cover. I never thought I would say this, but I prefer my new Argyll even more than my trusty Winchesters - specifically due to this feature. There's something very attractive to me in being able to see the impressions of the rings through the leather, I think it's a 'form following function' thing. 

One thing that nearly made me pass on the purchase was its burgundy colour. I've never liked the look of burgundy binders in photographs, but there was something about this binder's patina that made me take a chance (that and it was going for a 'bobby' - cockney slang), but after its clean, feed and polish its well worn and darkened from use leather has really opened my mind to this colour, it's very 'vintage'! Also, it has the advantage of having its fastener popper missing - my personal preference, as it contributes to the lived in look I like. 

It's only a very minor criticism of this model, but at 9mm taller than the Winchester model, its profile is slightly too 'upright' looking for my liking! This is made up for however in spades by its fabulously textured calf leather, accentuated by the prominent ring impressions which imbue it with a well loved character. 

The limit of just two pockets would limit its use to me as an EDC (I need pockets with ring protectors, or better still zips to contain the random items I carry in mine, but as I will be putting it to work housing one of the four chapters in my 'whole life in a Filofax' project, this won't matter). 

All in all this is a quintessential English made Filofax which exudes vintage charm.

 

 

Video Web Finds - Wednesday 4 September 2024

I hope you have had a good weekend.

Now it is time to enjoy a great collection of videos from around the internet.

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

1. August Planner Reflections: C&P Order - dr_alvaplans
2. Mini Filofax Haul: Personal Rings / Saffiano Collection - Lisa
3. Comparing two Kensingtons - Hevo's binder channel
4. Filofax Planner 2025 - 24papershop
5. 2025 Planner Dilemma… - MomYePlans
6. Comparison between the A6 and B6 paper sizes - The Unplanned Life
7. VDS Personal Rings Flipthrough TM Rose Custom Planner | Ana Jolene - Ana Jolene
8. Franklin Covey Planner: planning week ahead - Samantha Gibson- Choose_Your_Planning
9. Detailed Planner Flip | Gillio Medium Compagna XL - Nessie Plans
10. FC Compact Plan With Me Reset | Week 35 | Caramel Moterm Personal Luxe 2.0 | FCC Inserts | EDC #pwm - My Moxie Dreams
11. September 2024 Monthly Franklin Setup || Classic Tyler Binder - Sandra Dahl
12. FC Compact SEPTEMBER Theme & Plan With Me | DUNE Moterm Personal Luxe 2.0 | FCC Inserts | #pwm - My Moxie Dreams
13. Comparing two Kensingtons - Hevo's binder channel
14. Reset my pocket rings for September with me - Lisa
15. Plan With Me || Franklin Covey Tyler || Steampunk || Sep. 2 - 8th, 2024 - Sandra Dahl
16. Filofax zip enclosure EDC hack - Flatability
17. September 02-08 l Week 1 l Functional Plan with Me l Work & Catch All Planner - Lilies & Paper
18. Goodbye August! Sad to see summer end but excited for fall. - Buy Sell Plan Inc.
19. Filofax Finsbury Mini Ring Agenda as my EDC - Linda aka tortagialla
20. Flip through my daily pages , how I do memory-keeping in my Filofax - My Nomad Planner
21. Mid-year Techo Kaigi | 2024 review with LindseyScribbles Bingo! Plumpaper + Filofax + Hobonichi etc - minimalish.journal
22. Filofax refills. John Lewis, Nottingham. - Nick Sturgeon
23. Amazon Planners: Which one suits you? - Plan. adayshay
24. Mini Filofax Haul: Personal Rings / Saffiano Collection - Lisa
25. Filofax Setup | DIY Filofax Einlagen A5 | Verlosung | deutsch - arya_nordicjournal
26. Ring Planer/ Filofax Personal - Setup/ Sommer 2024 - allesaufpapier
27. Hazy metaphors, chapter 8, july 2024: journaling, bookstores, art museums, Filofax, and planners - Kas
28. Filofax personal rings flip & September setup - plannercoven
29. Filofax Wochendeko KW 35 2024 | heartsfailing - Heartsfailing
30. New Filofax Domino Pocket Rings - talks from the heart
31. Filofax Diary Setup - wien
32. Filofax Haul - watchbeccaplan
33. My Current Planner System | Pocket Rings - talks from the heart
34. Your YouTube video could appear here. If you have a YT channel that features Filofax organisers or similar, please let us know. (steve at philofaxy dot com) Alternatively ensure your video contains 'Filofax' or 'Rings' in the title or description. 

• Please leave a comment on any of the videos you enjoyed and mention you saw a link on Philofaxy. 
• For tips on how to improve your videos, please see this post.  Also this video too Webfinds 
• Your Filofax/Organiser Videos could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• Consider joining our Facebook group - Filofax for Philofaxy fans
• Follow Philofaxy on Reddit
• Follow Philofaxy on Threads

Enjoy

Free For All Tuesday - No. 709

What questions or discussion points have you got for us today?

It doesn't matter if you are a beginner or a more experienced user of organisers, we want to hear your thoughts, questions, opinions etc.

We are here to answer your questions.

Make today the one day you post a comment or post a question. If you are commenting as 'Anonymous', please include your name in the text of your comment. 

It is Tuesday after all, so fire away with any questions and comments.

If you are commenting below, please include your first name at the end of the comment. Thank you. 

Highlights for August 2024

Here are the highlights for last month.

We published the following posts.

General Posts:

• Highlights for July 2024
• Downsizing to Pocket
• You Tuber Under The Spotlight - 'Lethbridge Paper'
• Dates for your diary - Saturday 17th and Sunday 18 August
• Guest post series - 'Filohax' No. 12 - Paul
• Filofax - Lefax
• Diary Inserts for 2025 and beyond
• Printing Inserts in 2024 and beyond...
• Guest Post: Three Ring Circus! By gmax

Free For All Tuesday and Friday Posts:

• Free For All Friday No. 821 by Steve
• Free For All Tuesday - No. 705
• Free For All Friday - No. 822 by Anita
• Free For All Tuesday - No. 706
• Free For All Friday No 823 by Laurie
• Free For All Tuesday - No. 707
• Free for Friday No. 824
• Free For All Tuesday - No. 708
• Free For All Friday - No. 825 by Steve

Sunday Posts:

• Silent Sunday
• Silent Sunday
• Silent Sunday
• Silent Sunday

Web Finds Posts:

• Web Finds - Saturday 3 August 2024
• Video Web Finds - Wednesday 7 August 2024
• Web Finds - Saturday 10 August 2024
• Video Web Finds - Wednesday 14 August 2024
• Web Finds - Saturday 17 August 2024
• Video Web Finds - Wednesday 21 August 2024
• Web Finds - Saturday 24 August 2024
• Video Web Finds - Wednesday 28 August 2024
• Web Finds - Saturday 31 August 2024

If you have any ideas for future posts we look forward to hearing your suggestions, please comment below.

If you are on Facebook don't forget to join the Filofax for Philofaxy Fans group.

If you have a guest post idea, please contact steve at philofaxy dot com  or if there is a topic you would like to see us cover or revisit also please contact Steve.

I hope you find this post useful, please let us know in the comments and we will do our best to do a highlights post each month.

Wishing you all the best for August 2024.

Silent Sunday

 

Personal Kensington - gathering supplies to read in the garden

Web Finds - Saturday 31 August 2024

It is time to enjoy a few blog posts from around the internet, grab a drink and make yourself comfortable for our weekly round-up.

Here are some Philofaxy posts you might have missed this week:

1. Web Finds - Saturday 24 August 2024
2. Silent Sunday
3. Printing Inserts in 2024 and beyond...
4. Free For All Tuesday - No. 708
5. Video Web Finds - Wednesday 28 August 2024
6. Guest Post: Three Ring Circus! By gmax
7. Free For All Friday - No. 825 by Steve

Here are the latest Filofax and other brand blog posts from around the Internet. Don't forget to leave a comment on the posts you enjoyed reading, all bloggers enjoy getting comments.

1. Filofax Fountain-pen Frustration - Notebook Stories
2. Book Club: Personality vs Character Ethics (pg 15-22) - FranklinPlanner Talk
3. Bring Plotter to Europe - Filofax
4. Episode #273: Are Long Lists a Problem for You? - Getting Things Done
5. Why I Don’t Recommend the 12 Week Year as a Female Productivity Guru - Strange & Charmed
6. Building Trust - FranklinPlanner Talk
7. Slimpad A8 for a Wallet+Notebook System - Filofax
8. Link Love: Recovery Day - The Well-Appointed Desk
9. Web Finds – 28 August 2024 - Travellers Notebook Times
10. Your blog post could appear here. Please let us know if you have a blog that features ring bound organisers.

• Please leave a comment on any of the blogs you enjoyed reading and mention that you saw their post mentioned on Philofaxy. Thank you
• We monitor over 400 blogs and sites, your Filofax/Organiser blog posts could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• 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. 
• Your Filofax/Organiser posts could appear in this list, just contact philofaxy at gmail dot com to be added to our monitoring list. 
• Consider joining our Facebook group - Filofax for Philofaxy fans
• Follow Philofaxy on Reddit
• Follow Philofaxy on Threads

Enjoy

Free For All Friday - No. 825 by Steve

La Rentree happens next week here in France.  This is when all school children return on Monday and also a lot of businesses will be reopening after their summer breaks. It's like a return to normal for us. 

As usual for me I've not managed to do as much as I would have liked to get done through the summer holidays. Various excuses/reasons, the weather... too hot or too wet (June/July) but if the weather stays fine during September I should be able to catch up! 

What do you have in your To-Do list at this time of year. Have you got your inserts for 2025 printed yet? 

As usual it is Friday so please feel free to discuss anything Filofax related. 

Guest Post: Three Ring Circus! By gmax

Keen eyed US readers may recently have spotted that some unusual format binders from Plotter were on offer at the San Francisco pen show.

One was the Mini 5 Square format (which, for some, would warrant a dedicated discussion), but the one that really caught my eye was their 3-Ring format.

Both of these have been available in Japan for some time, but are little known elsewhere. I’d spotted the 3-Ring offering a while ago and fell instantly in love!

I just find them irresistibly cute, being smaller than the Plotter Mini 5 or the Filofax Guildford Mini Extra Slim. Plotter describe them as “the smallest specification of PLOTTER’s Leather Binder line up…so far!”. (I can’t wait to see what might be even tinier.)

Here is a photo comparing the 3-Ring to the Mini 5 (left):

Three-ring formats have been around for a while – Filofax have the M2, which is discontinued but still supported for refills. Lefax also had a model called Soho (sadly long obsolete), which used a half-size personal paper.

Filofax today produce mini jot pads, which are of a similar size too.

The beauty of these three-ringed leaves is that they can fit into many of the other ring-bound formats.

For the Plotter models, the dedicated leaves are a “business card” size. Rhodia also offer lovely, punched refills in Japan that are still a perfect fit, but provide some extra writing space. They match the width of Filofax personal size, which appeals to me.

These five sizes are compared below (clockwise from top left Lefax Soho, Rhodia Organizer, Plotter Card Size, Filofax Mini Jot Pad, Filofax M2.):

 

Plotter and Rhodia pads:

Here’s the Plotter 3-Ring alongside a Filofax M2. 

This particular 3-Ring binder is made of Liscio (“tanned, oil-smooth authentic Italian”) leather, nominally blue but actually green in appearance. It has 11mm silver Krause rings and a pink gold backplate. I think it was a limited edition, which came with a matching “ring supporter” to help prevent indentations from the rings. The design is very minimalist, but you can purchase a leather card holder insert to provide a pocket if desired.

I’m currently finding the combination of a Plotter 3-Ring with a personal size binder is hard to beat.

Thank you Max for sharing the details of this binder with us and our readers.