june; can't live withouts

With such mixed weather from this month, I have had many essentials but here were the ones that I used the most.

1) A colour block pleated skirt from Cos

Due to the hot weather, I had to keep my modesty but also keep cool at the same time. This skirt did the trick. It comes to just above my knee but the lightweight material helps keep me cool at the same time.

2) Welch's Grape Boost juice

Don't know why, but this juice is so addictive! I've gone through one of these a week at the moment. Slow going, but that's always the best way!

3) Hayfever tablets

Hay fever is the bane of my life in the summer and these tablets are a god-send!

4) And of course, my Filofax.

My Filofax proved invaluable when it came to my dissertation. That is because I set myself deadlines to hand things in, and deadlines for when I wanted to get a section finished by. I didn't really use it for planning the dissertation in though.

What couldn't you live without in June? How did your Filofax/diary help?

my current filofax set up

*** WARNING: VERY, VERY IMAGE HEAVY POST ***

So, as some of you will probably have guaged by now, I've resorted to using my new aqua Chameleon. In all honesty, I was a Finchley girl before I got this one but now that I have the aqua in my hands, somehow, it feels right. I like how sturdy the leather is; how dull but interesting the colour and pattern is and finally how it seems a bit more youthful than the Finchley is. (Not that I'm saying the Finchley is for an older market because I do still love my Finchleys!)

Anyway, having fully moved into it, I have tweaked and tampered with the layout countless of times and have finally rested on this current set up. It seems to work at the moment but that may be due to the fact that I am not as busy as I was earlier in the year but also, because of various changes in my life, my Filofax needs have changed slightly.

I have also, apparently, gone back to my old ways of stuffing my Filofax to the brim! Even though I have posted about downsizing to a Compact, it seems the only way to make my Chameleon lie flat was to stuff it.

Without further ado... I reveal to you, my new set up!

This is the beauty in all its glory...

And from the side...

From the top...

And finally, opened!

There is a Frixion there to the left as it's currently my pen of choice (along with my Muji Erasables but I want to use up this one first as I don't like it as much!). I don't really keep cards in the card slots. I have extra sheets of mini-notepaper for various lists or notes, then three fully stamped Caffe Nero coffee cards, plasters and vouchers for cheap eye tests. Housed under the flap thing are my NHS card and driving licence paper.

As you can see on the left; although I had to send the Affair back, I was able to keep the inserts and have carried on using them as they are beautiful! 

And a closer look to the right: a clear pocket of all the vouchers I accumulate from my participation in surveys as well as some important receipts and other momentos.

And the first tab is called 'Temperley'. I bet you're all wondering what's inside it? Well, I hope you won't be too disappointed because it really isn't that interesting...!

It's just to-do lists! It might have been more fitting to put the 'Projects' tab here but there is a reason as to why I didn't. You may have seen this list before; it's my list of restaurants that I would like to visit for whatever reason.

And overleaf, a to-do list for food! And a to-do list waiting to be used.

And this is what is under the 'Projects' tab! On the left and overleaf of that is a list of food that should be avoided for those with gluten intolerance and on the right of the picture below is my own 30 for 30 remix where you only take 30 items of clothing and shoes for 30 days.

Next is a clear tab where I've stuck on random things. At the top is my weekly ritual and at the bottom is my typical order from Gourmet Burger Kitchen.

Then some month to-do lists...

Now onto the diary! My personal page of personal details - with most sensitive information pixelated.

Two random post it notes; one detailing what needs to be done to the house we are buying (provided it doesn't fall through!) and the one at the bottom with all the dates of my jabs I've had. 

Then a blank divider to bring me to where the actual diary starts as there are sheets of notepaper in between the personal details sheet and the diary.

And another blank divider for when my summer starts (but also to show when my degree ends...!).

Directly under the second blank divider...

And then the third blank divider: to show the potential start date of the medicine degree I may be embarking on in the autumn (though, I am thinking of deferring at the moment...).

And under that third divider...

Finally, the fourth blank divider - to show the beginning of 2013...

And also to show where some more notepaper is too.

This particular sheet is how much each bit of a house renovation may cost - for my own future reference as my mum and I have had an interest in property development for a few years now and I'm thinking of pursuing it now!

Then a sheet for prizes I have won in the past (a bit egocentric, I know, but it's nice to know how *lucky* I may have been in the past).

And a balance sheet of my finances for the month. I think the expression of the monkey sticker says it all really...

Then another clear wallet after the notepaper. This contains stamps...

Spare passport sized photos and a cute drawing my sister drew for me some six years ago. Then, on the right, are the first few months of 2013!

And finally, one last clear plastic wallet. Another cute picture my sister drew; again from six years ago; and two pictures of myself as a baby and my dad.

And overleaf of that, another picture my sister drew and a picture of me as a baby and my mum.

And I lied; that wasn't final bit! This is the zipped compartment at the back and currently holds some sticky notes and proof of postage receipts.

So, after that marathon of a post, you can choose to reward yourself however! Be it some chocolate, a big steaming mug of tea or even a hard workout on the treadmill (just...why?!), you deserve it after reading all this way! (And I am very grateful for you having read this far!)

Overall, I'm very happy with the Chameleon. The more I use it, the more I have grown to love it and the more I just want to play with it! Hope you enjoyed a look at my layout but obviously, being a perfectionist, I will probably chop and change this layout in the near future; so look out for another post on that!

However, the big question is: will I move out of it into another Filofax again? If so, which one? And why? Will I ever return to the aqua Chameleon? So many questions and the only way to find out is to keep reading my blog hehe :)

Note: This post was written back at the beginning of June but was only scheduled to post now because I knew I would be busy with end of degree crap :)

my filofax week #10

So, this was my week.

The highlight? Definitely the Harry Potter studio tour on Friday. I stapled in my ticket just to make sure I don't lose it so that I can stick it into my memories scrapbook which doubles as a journal (have had it since I was 14!).

Notice another change? Yes, I have moved into my Osterley. It arrived earlier this week and I love it. The leather is so supple and sophisticated and the colour is dark enough to look professional, yet purple enough to add a bit of 'zing' to this model. I think I'm in love. (Pretty sure I said that with The Affair too - I think I fall in love with inanimate objects a bit too easily!)

Next week is mainly relaxing and doing some touristy things around London before I leave to go home (for maybe a month and a half before we move Southwards to a new house) so it probably won't be as interesting as previous weeks.

As a result of this, I'd be really grateful if one of you lovely readers could please send in your week instead? :) I love seeing other people's Filofaxes and I'm sure other people are the same.

Have a good week!

making filofax notepaper pretty

I have a soft spot for all things pretty and cute; including some tape known as washi tape. I have an extensive collection which I have added to last month and I have blogged about a previous use of them here; but now, I have another use for them. 

Having always preferred the cotton cream inserts for my Filofax and although they are lovely to look at, they are also just a little bit dull! I alternate the sheets of lined and plain so that when I write on the plain pieces, there is a bit of a guide showing through from the lined sheets on either side of it. Just another tip for those of you who are also perfectionists!

Anyway, I have made my sheets of notepaper a bit more interesting by using washi tape. Just take a look below:

I have taped the top with washi tape; but also the bottom (but with narrower tape). 

Here are another three pictures of my 'work':

It didn't take me that long to do and so for a few minutes work, you can also increase the aesthetic appeal of your notepaper too!

What other things have you used your washi tape for? And what other ways can you think of to make your Filofax prettier/more aesthetically appealing/productive?

review: artbox notebooks

{ WARNING: IMAGE HEAVY POST }

Now that I've been using this for a month now to get my new and updated Thriving On Less project going. I tried this last year but it didn't work for me so here I am again, trying it out but with more gusto as I actually like how minimalist my room is at university - so I want to make it just the same at home!

Anyway, here is the notebook in question. You may recall it from the Artbox haul from about a month ago:

As you can see, I've decorated it with stickers of a panda doing a roly-poly and also of a
rabbit and a carrot.

Here is the first page. It gives you a brief overview of the what the inside looks like. It is of an A5 size for those wondering and it fitted perfectly into the Flex notebook slot in my ex-Affair (sob sob). You can vaguely see that there is writing on the other side of the page but it's not quite visible enough to see what I've written.

A close up actually shows that you can see what I wrote on the other side!

And this is the other side...

Another sample. I've found that if you fill the pages up, what is written on the other side is less obvious and noticeable...

The purple pen I used: a Uniball Signo Gelstick 0.7mm.

The blue pen I used is a Muji gel pen 0.5mm.

Here, you can see how the Muji gel pen writes on the paper, but also how much of the Uniball shows through too...

And another random sample using a Pentel Energel 0.7mm...

And the other side...

Overall, these notebooks are far cheaper than the Filofax Flex ones but it's reflected slightly in the paper quality. I'm not saying that there is no show through in the Filofax ones, because there is. Either way, it's not going to stop me from using them because a) they're far cuter looking on the outside but also because b) they're just so much cheaper than the Filofax branded ones! In the future, I will probably use these as a project notebook or if another Flex/personal Filofax is released, I may end up using them for that reason.

*Note: this post and the pictures taken were before my Affair had to be sent back.

your filofax week! (week #9)

This week, I'm featuring diary pages from.... Doris! Here is what she had to say about her Filofax use:

"I've been using a Dodopad as a Diary in my Filofax since April, and I'm liking it so far.  It's very similar to the Filofax Week on One page with Notes, which is my preferred format, but more fun and colorful, and needs very little embellishment to make it look interesting.  I have tiny handwriting so the grids work fine for me, but I'm still eagerly awaiting the 2013 version with bigger grids.

The one thing I've been doing differently lately is to write out a menu for the week.  I now just refer to this during the week to make it easier for me to plan out what meals to prepare. There's enough room on the left side of the weekly view for a to-do list as well."

And I have to say, I love how she uses her Filofax to plan her week; not to mention the adorable handwriting! Love the meal planning - I tried and failed for two weeks so I will definitely try again now and I just love the DodoPad inserts. This diary definitely looks more organised than mine!

What do you guys think of Doris' diary? Do you use the DodoPad inserts too?

review: filofax amazona almond personal

As most of you know, I've been looking for an Amazona almond in the personal size for quite some time now. My search heightened when it came to the hand-in date of my dissertation (procrastination at its finest, in my opinion!) and I bit the bullet once I handed it in. After enduring no such luck on trawling the internet in search of this proverbial needle in a haystack, I decided to contact Filofax to see if they had any stock in their stores.

Alas, they did! I quickly phoned up their Filofax Centre and this baby was shipped out to me the day after (as I phoned quite late in the day). My only gripe was having to pay more than the sale price it on for on the website last year; but it wasn't full price and because I really wanted this Filofax, I shelled out for it. And, I had just handed in my dissertation, so why not?

Anyway, two days later (well, around 40 hours later), I received this baby. I've shown the envelope after I ripped it open as I couldn't contain my excitement!

And encased within it was a familiar black box...

Upon opening, I was greeted with this site... (can you see it yet?)

And after unravelling the tissue paper, I came face to face with this beaut.

Honestly, it was love at first sight. I thought I loved my Affair; well, how wrong was I. It was because I didn't have this in my life! The colour, the feel, the shininess... I loved it. And, two pen loops! Love love LOVE!

Opening it up, this was what was on the left: four card slots and a flap (plus, a pen loop):

And on the left, a zipped compartment and another pen loop (yay!):

And this was the Filofax once open:

Now, my only gripe is that it doesn't lie flat out of the box. I have, however, been training it since I received it and it has improved a lot. I've not fully moved into it yet due to this minor issue but I'm hoping to after training it for a bit just to ensure it does continue to lie flat. However, after a day of training (with the inserts spread equally in two and a phone on one side with a tube of handcream on the other!), it did lie flat... but three of the rings ended up with 1mm gaps. Now, I'm not sure if that was there before, but surely these two items couldn't possibly have done this?!

Either way, it will be on its way back to Filofax on Monday and they have promised me a replacement in the form of an Osterley in plum. Maybe it was just meant to be with the Osterley?