TGIF! It’s that time of year again and I am not referring to the colder weather, the time change and/or the holidays that are so quickly approaching. I am talking about the time of year where you face PLANNER STRUGGLES! That’s right ladies, tis’ the season to be scrolling through Instagram and watching everyone purchase new planners, share their struggles of what did and what didn’t work for them this year, what they plan on trying for the new year, etc. That’s all great until you ask yourself “but what planner am I going to use for the new year?”
If you have been following me since the beginning of my planner journey, then you already know that February will be my three year anniversary since I started using a paper planner. You also know just how many planners I have purchased, tried, sold, repurchased, hacked, reused and then some all up until now. The great thing about having multiple planners just laying around is that you can switch them out if something isn’t working for you or just swap out the insides if you’re using a ring bound binder (like we change handbags).
Here is a list of the 17 planners that I have used in the last three years: (that’s right 17!)
Erin Condren – (vertical Layout)
Coral Color Crush – (personal size)
Ocean Kikki-K (personal size)
Black Kikki-K – (personal size)
Kate Spade – (personal size)
Black Patent Filofax – (personal size)
Color Crush (A5 size)
Filofax Domino Turquoise (personal size)
Filofax Domino Fuchsia (personal size)
Recollections Planner (blue) – (personal size)
Recollections Spiral Bound planner
Happy Planner – (classic size)
Webster’s Pages Traveler’s Notebook
Happy Planner Mini
Recollections Paris theme (personal size)
Erin Condren AGAIN (horizontal layout)
Brit + Co Hourly (Check out my review here)
As you can see, I have tried everything except bullet journaling. Personally, I just don’t have the time or patience to draw everything every single month. I give major credit to the ladies who love this method of planning and I truly admire your dedication in seeing it through every month. I tried the Traveler’s Notebook too but that lasted about a week. I didn’t want to spend money buying inserts if I already had a feeling that I wasn’t going to like it.
Related reading: Check out my page dedicated to pics of my planner layouts
I tried using an Erin Condren AGAIN and that didn’t last long either. I loved the horizontal layout but when I am writing on the page on the left side, my handwriting gets messy once my hand starts hitting the coils and it drives me insane. Right about now, I know what you’re thinking… but have I tried the Happy Planner? Yeap, I tried that too (both the classic and the mini size) and I don’t even remember what the excuse was for not using either of those anymore either.
Tweet ThisThen there is Kate! Ahh Kate which don’t get me wrong I absolutely love that planner but the zipper closure drove me insane so I sold it to my aunt LOL and after learning that she only used it for a short time, I convinced her to give it back to me. Kate and I have been doing great since the end of July except I am back to the same dilemma of needing more writing space for certain tasks. If you can recall, there as a time that I was using two planners at once (one for personal use and the other for my blog) but then my handbag became too heavy so that was the end of that. If you read my post on Wednesday, you learned that I am finally trying an hourly planner for the first time ever but it’s for work to help me manage my boss’ calendar more effectively but it definitely doesn’t work for me personally.
Related reading: Kate Spade Planner Set Up | A Glimpse inside my Kate Spade Planner
The majority of you know that I have been on a No Spend (planner stuff) since last Christmas. I am super proud of myself overall because it takes a huge amount of willpower to pass by the stores and walk by the Dollar Spot at Target but I have to be honest when I say that as the months went by it got easier.
Ok, this is where sh*t gets real!
As we all know, sh*t happens and sometimes you break the no spend. Damn it! I caved in July when Kate came home as I needed inserts for her. Then came the moment where I realized that I needed to start thinking ahead for next year. After researching different planners online for the past two weeks in combination with receiving the darn emails from Michael’s and Hobby Lobby, I knew that I had to make a decision. In planner terms, if you wait too damn long to decide, you run the risk of not being able to find it once you make up your mind. So there’s my excuse, I had to act fast so I came home with…
Yes, another Happy Planner! But…on a positive note, With the purchase in July and last week’s, I have only spent $50 total this year. Yes that’s right! Compared to that list above and that’s not including stickers, etc. So damn it, I did awesome!
Before I purchased this one, I heard about the new line from MAMBI called “The Happy Planner Girl” which includes three collections of planners and coordinating sticker packs. The collections are labeled: Trendsetter, Daydreamer and Glam Girl but I believe that most of them are hourly planners which we already determined does not work for me. As flipping adorable as they are, the last thing I want to do is waste money just because they were cute. A selection of these planners will be sold at Hobby Lobby and Joann’s along with their accessories. You can find video reviews of all three on You Tube as that is how I found out about them.
Here is a sneak peek from their Instagram – @The_Happy_Planner
So there you have it! If you can relate, raise yo’ hand! I know, I am positive, that I am not the only one who was feeling this way. Now, I am not promising that I will stick to that Happy Planner for all of next year. Nope, I plead the 5th! But I damn sure will try because this girl is going to continue on with her No Spend until further notice.
If you would like to purchase the Happy Planner that I got at Michael’s, I have included the link below along with links to the sticker book and checklist stamp. The majority of the planners are on sale and this one was and still is $14.99 so you better hurry! You’re welcome! LOL // Planner | Productivity Sticker Book | Checklist Stamp
Well I hope that you enjoyed my super informal post about just one of the many struggles we deal with in the planner community. With everything going on in the news lately, I knew that I needed to share this funny post with you all. Let me know in the comments below if have decided which planner you are going to use for the new year. If you want to see pics of the inside of the Happy Planner, let me know in the comments and I will share them in a future post.
Before I go, I just wanted to remind you about my mini giveaway. You can win a Brit + Co Hourly planner and it’s undated so it’s perfect to start using it whenever you want! Details are listed on my Instagram! It ends on Sunday so don’t wait too long.
Until next time…
