Guest Post - Loving My Holborns

Planners have been part of my life for many years, as I have a pea-size memory and a disorganized brain.  But they were never fun and I got bored and abandoned one after another. And none of my friends used them.

Then a happy accidental discovery: Flickr, with all the scrumptious pictures of Maldens, Cubans, Astons, Holborns and other planners .  Decorated—great idea!  People who loved to photo their Filos!  I worshipped at the feet of  PopcornFeet  (CrazySuburbanMom), Jotje (NotAnotherFilofaxBlog) and TrueRedhead and others.  Philofaxy--a whole community of people who shared their ideas and pictures and systems happily.  The light dawned.  

So I jumped joyfully onto the Filofax wagon; first with a personal mushroom Aston — such soft leather, so nice to touch; I adored it, but it just didn’t have enough pockets to be a wallet. Then came a gray Malden and I loved the inside layout, but didn’t like the color or the shininess at all and couldn’t love it.  Much research for nearly a month and the more I looked, the more attractive the Holborn seemed.  A black personal popped up on Adspot and that was it.  

It came with some fabulous bright colored paper

The smell and feel were just bliss; the pockets—oh, the pockets; the softness and flatability.  This binder has dignity and subtlety.  I spent an entire weekend moving in: dividers—washi—a little tweaking to accommodate its’ quiet elegance.

My system is pretty basic (but decorated!):  four main sections (Lists, which migrate to the Calendar or Reference sections; Calendar- wo2p and monthly; Money; Reference — the A-Z index dividers are used extensively).  And totally perfect for a wallet with all the pockets and card slots.

The gray Malden got swapped for a brown Holborn; then I discovered that there  was a lovely gray color and bought it immediately;

Last but definitely not least came the wine.  I haven’t moved into it yet because I’m still waffling with the color scheme.

I don’t wait very well;  my postman is not fond of me.

So I have them all.  The Holborn is everything I thought it would be and I don’t have the least desire for any others.  It is my wallet and a large part of my brain.  It is part of my life-it keeps me organized, tells me where to go, reminds me about what I need to do and keeps important things handy. I love my Holborns.

Web Finds - 15 October 2013

Our charity auction has got off to a good start, check out the charity page and don't forget to put in your bid in plenty of time to win a great prize package.

So here are the latest Filofax blog posts from around the Internet:

1. New Filofax diary inserts - My Life All in One Place
2. This Bug’s Life’s Gillios say: - This Bugs Life
3. 4. Filofax Photo-A-Day Challenge (2) - Filomaniac
4. First Downloadable Insert! - Hop Skip Jump
5. Filofax: Pink Florescent Original - A Pretty Obsession
6. Through My Planner's Eyes: The Daily Planner Review - Giftie Etctera
7. Just because I can doesn't mean I should... - The Crazy Suburban Mom
8. My Filofax "Travel Kit" - Simplify Your Life & Mind Part 11 - The Contemplative Belle 
9. 2014 Inserts - Finally!! - Hop Skip Jump
10. Why I changed from A5 to Personal size - Zoe At Home
11. Planning can be easy – Life Mapping Planner - DiY Fish
12. There's Still Room For Filofax(es) - The Storage Studio
13. Post No. 2 for The Lifestyle Project - This Bugs Life
14. Planner Madness - Supply Cabinet Chronicles
15. Post No. 4 for The Career Project - This Bugs Life
16. Checkbook Register in A5 now available - The Velvet Filo
17. Filofax Week on 2 Pages Inserts - Kel & Filofax
18. Post No. 5 for The Start Up Project - This Bugs Life
19. Breakfast and Bedtime: Connecting Daily With Your Planner - Giftie Etcetera
20. Guess who's back?? - Filo Fabulosity
21. DIY Planner: Notepads Using Graph Paper Printables - Giftie Etcetera
22. My Review Monday: Baroque Filofax - My Purpley Life
23. Beyond The Usual: New Ways To Write In Your Planner - Giftie Etcetera
24. Flex Notebook - Roses in December
25. Video: Planner Processing - Giftie Etcetera
26. My week round-up #41 - Paper Lovestory
27. Time management Mondays: A minimalist in a maximalist’s purse - Quo Vadis Blog
28. We Want Your Feedback: Clairefontaine dotGrid Graf-It Pads - Rhodia Drive
29. School holiday "to do" list (and free printable) - Twenty5seven
30. To-Do List- Autumn Themed, Part 1 - Incarnations of Organization 
31. A5 Fusion Filofax - It's My Life!
32. Introducing the new filofax - It's Bluetiger

• 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... 
• For some general tips on Filofax Blogging, please see this post

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

1. Unboxing of my new pocket sized grey Malden Filofax - Kym Brown
2. A5 Chameleon Filofax Teaching Setup Autumn Term 2013 - Sarah Pings
3. Decorating my Filofax - week 42 - mits t
4. Decorating My Filofax - Week #42 - mypurpleylife
5. My pocket Malden Filofax set up with handmade dividers. Divider giveaway - Kym Brown
6. Update about my daily planners - Sonia S
7. Liposuction for my Filofax - Tracy Reinhardt
8. My current daily planner set-up - Sonia S
9. Word Tutorial: Using Tables/Filling Shapes for Filofax & Spiraldex Pages - Sarah Pings
10. Filofax/planning questions - Jen Fregin
11. Fluro Pink Personal Filofax Review - Katerina S
12. Sunday Chit Chat - I'm baaaaaack! - adamsfilo

• For tips on how to improve your videos, please see this post. 

Enjoy the posts and videos.

Ryman have got a great offer on at the moment, click on this Ryman link and use the offer code to get the discount.

Save £5 When You Spend £30 Or More Online at Ryman.co.uk

Code: RM88

Starts: Now

Expires: 20th October 2013

Terms and Conditions: 
Save £5 When You Spend £30 Or More Online. Expires 20th October 2013. Quote RM88 at the checkout when ordering online. Valid Online Only. Only one voucher per customer, per transaction. Discount cannot be applied retrospectively. No cash alternative. The offer excludes: Printers, Gift vouchers, EPAY products, Post Office products, DHL services, Charity products, Tablets, Kindle, Cameras and Apple products. This voucher is not to be used in conjunction with any discount card including staff discount, student discount and Ryman Business Accounts. Ryman reserve the right to withdraw or change these offers at any time.

Free For All Tuesday No. 141

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.

London Writing Equipment Show 2013

Myke from The Pen Addict podcast went along to his first pen show in London a couple of weeks ago, he described the show and his thoughts on the pod cast. Pen shows are also popular in the USA and no doubt elsewhere too.

There are pictures on the 'Vertical Paper' blog. Listen to the Pen Addict podcast here.

Can you imagine a show like this, but for planners? Walk in to a room with tables laid out with all different makes and sizes of organisers and bound planners? Other tables and racks filled with inserts and dividers, it would be like Etsy and Philofaxy and My Life All in One Place all in one large room with people wandering around looking and buying?

Charity Auction

We are holding a charity auction with all the proceeds going to Chimwemwe. Who and what is Chimwemwe? and here is the latest news from Amanda after one of her recent visits to the centre.

You are bidding for a Faber Castell Pocket size personal organiser in a funky orange colour, as featured in our review by Anita.

You will also receive as a bonus prize signed copies of Alison Morton's two 5-star thrillers INCEPTIO and the just published PERFIDITAS.

Find out about the alternative world of 21st century Romans and follow the adventures of its heroines:

• INCEPTIO where Karen Brown, an ordinary girl from New York, finds herself thrown into a new life in the mysterious Roma Nova, how she struggles with her new lover’s deception and above all fights to stay alive with a killer hunting her…
• PERFIDITAS, six years on, where betrayal and rebellion are in the air, threatening to topple Roma Nova and ruin Carina’s life.

What a fantastic package. Get bidding now. Visit the Charity Auction page to find out how to bid and what the current price is.