Wednesday, June 26, 2013

planner love!

I know many people have moved to electronic methods of calendar- and list-keeping, but I think I will always be a paper/pencil kind of girl.  The act of writing something down helps me to remember it, and the act of crossing it off once it's accomplished brings a rush of satisfaction every time.  I don't care how "smart" my iphone might be...it just doesn't do it for me like a dayplanner.

My life has revolved around the school calendar since I entered kindergarten, so my "new year" really begins in August.  For that reason, I choose to use a July through June planner.  I've used the same eco-friendly one from greenroom (available at Target) for the past few years.  Needless to say, I start checking the shelves of my local Target around April in my excitement for the new line.  By May, they are usually available and I will snatch up a new one and begin plugging in important dates for the year ahead.  Here's the one I grabbed a few months ago:

 
The good: familiarity (since it's exactly like my old one), size (at about 6"x8", it fits into some of my larger purses and is easy to tote), sturdy cardboard composite cover, attractive, provides monthly and daily planning, plenty of room within each day's allotted space to write appointments, events, reminders, and to-dos
 
The bad: Though I love how much space is provided for each day, the lack of structure makes it a struggle to decide where to write what.  I try to separate to-do lists, events, and errands into separate parts of the box, but inevitably it becomes a big mess.  Here's a picture of what a typical week looks like. 
 
I highlight the list items I've actually accomplished and move those I haven't accomplished into the next day's box.  This system has been working for me, and my intention was to continue with it, UNTIL....
 
Ahhh.....I fell in love!  Check these babies out!!
 
I wasn't shopping for a planner since I'd already purchased mine, but I passed by this end cap and was immediately drawn to the color and design of these Blue Sky planners styled by designer Dabney Lee.  I picked one up, began to flip through it, and loved what I saw!  Though I'd already purchased one (and wrote in it, so it can't be returned), I decided it was worth it to replace the old version with this horizontal 8"x10" planner (see arrow above). 
 
Here's what I love about my new planner:
 
A large monthly calendar, flanked by a monthly Do/Call/Buy list for the month....love it!
 
Daily columns with bullets for listing to-dos and events...perfect for the way I used my planner! 
 
Here is how I plan to organize it:
 
The new planner does have some down sides ~it's larger and less durable seeming than the one I was using before.  Overall, though, I think this design is going to work so well for my needs. I can't wait until Monday, when I get to start using it!
 



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