Free For All Friday No. 16: Capturing on Paper vs. Digitally

Many thanks to Mstraat for sending me the link to this article on capturing memories on digital devices vs paper, click here to see.

It makes a great point that when a notebook is lost, it's gone forever, but our social media is backed up in the Cloud. And overall it's quicker and easier to record more, and in different forms (text, photos, videos) digitally than on paper or film.

I've written before about my doubts about the longevity of memories recorded digitally. One hundred years from now we will still be able to read what's written on paper (if it's written/ printed in suitably archival ink) but I'm guessing the information currently in the Cloud will be long gone as technology is replaced. What do you think?

And as always on Fridays, feel free to discuss/ ask anything planner related!

Daycraft bRead notebooks and WORLDWIDE giveaway!

This giveaway is now closed. Check tomorrow's post to see who won!

Merry Christmas everyone! It's time for a giveaway!

These are the remarkable new bRead notebooks from Daycraft:

These notebooks actually look like slices of bread, even the sides!

The bRead notebooks come in three varieties: White Bread, Wheat Bread and Whole Wheat Bread.

Click here to see the bRead notebook video!

To make these, they integrated photography with paper surface technology. The result is very realistic!

The texture of the cover even feels like bread!

 Each book measures 120 cm square and has ivory 100 gsm paper with 5.5 mm ruling.

 It looks like a real slice of bread!

I'm giving away TWO of these notebooks, the Wheat Bread and the Whole Wheat Bread. Here's how to win:

1. This giveaway is open to everyone worldwide!

2. To enter, please leave a comment here on this post. Your comment is your entry. Only one entry per person.

3. Entries will close at 6pm UK time Thursday January 2, 2014. Any entries submitted after that time will not be counted.

4. The winners will be determined via Random.org. The winners will each win ONE notebook, selected randomly.

5. The winners will be announced here on Plannerisms Friday January 3, 2014.

6. The winner must email me with your mailing address by Friday January 10, 2014. If I have not received an email from the winner by that time, a new winner will be chosen. So be sure to check back on Friday the 3rd to see if you won!

Two new videos featuring Plannerisms planners

Josh has two new videos featuring the 2014 Plannerisms planner! He had a lot of great things to say about it in his review, and also featured it in his 2014 goals video. Thanks for your kind words Josh!

8 Ballers messenger bag, gaming notebook and badges

This is slightly off my usual topic but I'm so excited to review this cool gaming gear from 8 Ballers!

First up: the awesome Tie Interceptor field bag:

This is perfect as an everyday bag. It is made from heavy canvas and measures approximately 13.5 inches wide and 11 inches tall, and is deep to hold all your daily gear. There is a full-size zip pocket inside:

 The front panel has pockets and pen loops:

 The adjustable strap can go cross-body or over the shoulder:

This bag is $60 USD and so cool-looking! My son nabbed this right away and I had to fend him off long enough to get the photos taken!

Next up is this handy game master field notebook:

This notebook measures 5 1/4 by 8 1/4 inches and is slim with a flexible cover so it can fit in the pocket of your bag and go everywhere with you.

 Sample pages:

These books are $10 each and come in other varieties too.

Check out these cool badges:

These badges are $10 each with free shipping.

For more details on their gear and how to order check out 8 Ballers Facebook page.

Huge thanks to my good friend at 8 Ballers for sending me these awesome products as samples to review!

Plannerisms planner review on Paper Pens Ink!

Huge thanks to Amanda at Paper Pens Ink for her very thorough review of my Plannerisms planner! Click here to see her excellent review.

Fountain pen ink tests in Plannerisms planner

TannieSpace did an excellent post on how she uses her Plannerisms planner with extensive fountain pen ink tests! Click here to see her awesome post.

I don't use fountain pens, and the 84 gsm paper in the Plannerisms planner isn't specifically designed for fountain pen use, but tests like these and the one Inkophile did in her recent review show that some inks work really well (and some don't).

Huge thanks to TannieSpace for her extensive review!

Free For All Friday No. 15: Form vs. Function

Josh's recent video on his Franklin Covey planner (and how he doesn't like how it looks or feels) made me think about something I think about often when it comes to planners: form vs. function.

If the form (appearance and style) is not pleasing to us, we are much less likely to use the planner no matter how well it functions. (And I'm not using the royal We here, I know I'm not the only one who feels this way, right?) 

And the reverse is true too: if a planner is beautiful and very pleasing to use, we will enjoy using it even if it doesn't function perfectly well for us.

In the case of Josh, he didn't care for the form (the appearance and the feel of the binder), but it worked so well for him he put up with it (while still searching for an alternative). And he used the planner less than he would have if he'd been using a planner he loved. It goes to show that even if something is highly functional, we can still feel dissatisfied with it if we don't enjoy using it.

Which is more important to you, form or function? Have you had a planner that worked well for you but you just didn't like it? Or have you had a planner you loved even if it didn't work perfectly for you?

And as always on Fridays feel free to discuss and/ or ask anything planner-related!

Paperblanks 2014 planners New covers: post 2 of 2

This is my second post on the new covers in the 2014 Paperblanks planners lineup. See my post yesterday for my review of the gorgeous Grande Filigree Floral Ivory and Maxi French Ornate Bleu weekly planners.

Check out today's planners! Aren't they beautiful???

Because this post is already so photo-heavy, I won't show all the features and info pages of each planner. I showed representatives of pages like the international holidays etc. in my post yesterday, so you can go there to see features that all the planners have. I will show you details of anything that is different in these planners. Please note these planners do not have notes pages in the back, which is different from the larger planners I reviewed yesterday.

I'll show you each planner, then will go into details of each.This is the Laurel Birch Florescence Slim weekly planner:

This is the Flutterbyes Mini weekly planner:

This is the Poe Tamerlane Mini weekly planner:

And this is the Papaver Micro day-at-a-time:

I'll show you this one first. The Micro planners are tiny, measuring only 2 3/4 by 3 3/8 inches. But despite being so small they are very functional!

At the front of the book the monthly calendars are across two pages:

The weekdays each have their own page with Saturday and Sunday sharing a page. (Hand model is my daughter, who was enthusiastic to help me get the photographs taken quickly so she could have her French Ornate Bleu planner that I reviewed yesterday!)

At the back of the book there are monthly calendars for the future year.

There is no address booklet, but there is a pocket and an elastic strap closure.

This tiny book literally fits in the palm of my hand! It can easily go in any pocket.

My son grabbed this cool little book!

Next up, the Poe Tamerlane Mini weekly planner, which my son also promptly nabbed because he likes the magnetic flap closure:

This planner is part of the Embellished Manuscripts collection. Here it is with the magnetic closure open:

I love the rich purple color of this planner! You might remember I bought the 2013 Ultra size version of this planner to use as a notebook, which I wrote about here.

The Mini planners measure 3 3/4 by 5 1/2 inches, so they are very portable with a good page size. The monthly calendars at the front of the book are oriented this way for maximum writing space:

Here is the weekly view, and you can see the two ribbon page markers for marking your month and your current week:

There is a forward planner for the following year:

At the back of the book there is a pocket with an address booklet.

 (Don't forget you can see more details of the pages and features in yesterday's post.)

Here is the Flutterbyes Mini weekly planner, wow the cover is so beautiful!!

Here is a detail of the shimmery cover:

And here it is open so you can see the front and back:

This planner is the same size as the Poe Mini with the same style of monthly calendars:

Horizontal weekly format:

It has a back pocket and address booklet which has several blank perforated pages in the back, and an elastic strap closure if you want to use it.

I have to admit this one is my favorite: the Laurel Birch Florescence Slim weekly planner:

Here is a detail of the beautiful art on the cover:

And here it is open so you can see the front and back:

The Slim planners measure 3 3/4 by 7 inches, so they are proportionally taller and narrower than the others, giving a nice large page size in a slim and portable book.

The monthly calendars are in the front of the book with plenty of space to write in each day:

Here's a view with the book oriented horizontally:

The weekly pages have a horizontal layout with space at the bottom right page for notes, and there are two ribbon placemarkers.

There is a forward planner at the back of the book as well as all the information pages I showed details of in yesterday's post.

At the back of the book there is a pocket and address booklet, the last few pages of which are blank and perforated to tear out if you need a free piece of paper.

There is also an elastic closure strap if you want to use it.

I grabbed the Flutterbyes and Florescence planners before anyone else in my family could claim them! I will use them as notebooks instead of planners, since I am now using a notebook for daily records and my extensive lists. These gorgeous little books will go everywhere with me in my bag, and their beautiful covers and wonderful paper will make them a joy to use!

Between today's post and yesterday's, you have seen a sampling of the gorgeous Paperblanks 2014 planners which offer a selection of daily and weekly layouts in sizes from Micro to Grande and everything in between!

Huge enormous thanks to Paperblanks for sending me these beautiful planners to review!

You can find Paperblanks online at Paperblanks.com where you can see their entire selection of products and find stores near you.

Paperblanks 2014 planners: New covers! (post 1 of 2)

When Paperblanks contacted me recently to ask if I would be interested in reviewing some of their 2014 planners with their new cover designs, I of course said yes! I have reviewed several of their products before (some supplied to me as samples, many purchased by myself because I love them!).

Paperblanks planners are a wonderful (and rare) combination of beauty and functionality. Their covers are exquisite, and the paper is a joy to write on. The books are archival quality, which is important to me. Their planners are a pleasure to use. So I enthusiastically replied that yes, I would love to see their new covers for 2014!

Imagine my delight when this gorgeous pile arrived soon after!

I was thrilled! Thank you Paperblanks for being so generous with your samples! I have to admit there was an immediate frenzy with my family members laying claim to the books they wanted immediately.

In order to do these books justice, I will do two separate posts so you can see the details, and there are many! These two posts will be very photo-heavy.

First of all, a disclaimer on the photos. It's nearly winter solstice here at 57 degrees north, so the light wasn't the best for these photos. Keep in mind that as beautiful as the books look here, they are WAY more beautiful in real life!!
  
Click on any of the photos for a larger view.

In a minute I'll show you this beautiful planner:

But first up, the Filigree Ivory Floral Grande weekly planner!

Paperblanks Filigree Ivory Floral Grande weekly planner

I had to fight my kids off for this one, because I'm saving it for my mom! Mommy, you used the same size one of these with the Lindau cover last year, would you like to have this one for work? (Yes I'm over 40 and I still call my mom Mommy!)

The Grande size is approximately A4, 8 1/4 by 11 3/4 inches and comes in a variety of covers besides this one, click here to see. This one has a magnetic closure.

Here is my attempt at a detailed shot of the cover. It is just beautiful!

Here is the cover with the label removed:

The Paperblanks planners don't sacrifice substance for style, they are extremely functional with loads of useful features. I love weekly planners with monthly grid calendars! The Grande size has two months per page, with plenty of room to write in the daily boxes.

The Grande planners have a week at a time with all seven days as vertical columns and a column for Notes:

Here is a closer look at the right page with the timed lines and monthly reference calendars. (Remember you can click the photo for a larger view if you want.)

There is a pocket in the back with an address booklet.

Here is the book with the magnetic closure flap open. It stays completely flat and out of the way while writing.

Here is the Grande again. Isn't it gorgeous!!

It has lots more features that are in all the Paperblanks planners, and since this post is already so photo-heavy I won't show them for each of the planners since they are the same in all of them. Details of all the features are shown below in...

The French Ornate Bleu Maxi weekly planner!

Paperblanks French Ornate Bleu Maxi weekly planner

My daughter nabbed this one immediately because she is learning French so she will use it for her French notes.

The cover looks like silk with jeweled details. Again my photos really don't do it justice. Here is a detailed shot:

The Maxi size planners measure 5 1/2 by 8 1/4 inches and come in a variety of cover styles and in vertical or horizontal interior formats. You can click here to see the entire selection of Paperblanks Maxi size planners. 

Now I will walk you through the book and show you the features. These are the same in all the Paperblanks planners.

There is a page at the beginning for emergency details:

There is a reference calendar and several pages of international holidays.

There are monthly grid calendars (hooray!). In this Maxi size they are oriented this way to maximize writing space.

This planner has a horizontal weekly format with a space at the bottom of the right page for Notes:

There are two ribbon placemarkers to mark your month and your current week:

At the back of the book there is a forward planner for the next year:

And there are several pages in the back for notes.

There are pages with international dialing codes and world time zones:

And there is a pocket in the back with an address booklet.

I forgot to get a photo before my daughter ran off with it, but there is an elastic closure to keep the book closed. If you don't want to use it, it can sit out of the way in the back.

In my next post I'll show you the other beautiful Paperblanks 2014 planners in that top photo!

Many huge thanks again to Paperblanks for sending me these planners as samples to review!

You can find Paperblanks online at Paperblanks.com where you can see their entire selection of products and find stores near you.