PLANNER DECISIONS 2018: My Hobonichi Store 2018 Wishlist

It is that season once again, brought on by the opening of the Hobonichi store on September 01, 2017 for the 2018 line up of planners and accessories.  Planner girls and boys from all over the world start making their decisions, posting orders and waiting for their orders to come home.

I, of course, am no different.  As I start lurking on the site as the Hobonichi 2018 store went live, decisions are made amidst the desire to just buy everything that strikes my fancy.  But, before choosing the cover to go with what planner, some firm decisions should be made first lest I end up maxing my credit card.

My 2018 Planner Decisions

For 2018 my planner line up will be:

1. The Hobonichi Weeks as my on the go planner.  I was quite successful in utilizing the Weeks this year.  I was not really that consistent in how I used it as sometimes I used it as a bullet journal, sometimes as a creative space, sometimes for project planning.  I did not pressure myself into using it a particular way but it has proven to be indispensable in my day-to-day life, even proving to be very helpful even when shopping and doing the groceries.   You can check out the Hobonichi 2018 line up by clicking on this link.

2. The Hobonichi Cousin again will be utilized as my desk planner for next year.  At the start I made some experiments on how I use the Cousin not pressuring myself to stick to any one way to use it since it is my first year to use the Cousin.  I really find its features helpful and efficient since I have all four views in one planner (yearly, monthly, weekly and daily view).  However, I already made the decision not to purchase a cover for this year from the Hobonichi site for the Cousin and instead purchase from the Snow Journal site.  

3. The Hobonichi Techo Planner (English).  Last year, I decided not not purchase the Techo.  I felt that it was too small for my purpose and since I opted to have the Weeks for my on-the-go planning, and the Cousin for desk purposes, purchasing the Techo would be a redundancy considering that the primary reason I got the Cousin was to stick to one planner only for this year.  (I used to have 4-5 working planners pre-2017).  For next year however, I plan to use the Techo for journaling and documenting the life of my new baby daughter Rhys.  And since I won’t be using the Techo until 2018, I also bought the Hobonichi papers notebook so I could start journaling already and just attach the papers in the new Techo 2018.  I will let you know how that works.

My 2018 Cover Decisions

1. Hobonichi Weeks.  I decided to purchase the Coral Pink Weeks.  I was so tempted to purchase the Sunset Red but felt it was to fiery.  I wanted to be a little subdued in 2018.  For the cover-on-cover, I initially thought of not buying a cover-on-cover and scrimp by using the Float cover that I have this year.  But I noticed that it was already showing wear and tear having been with me everywhere I went.  So, for 2018 I decided to go for Circling Stars, although I doubt if it will be nice with a very light background such as the coral pink color.  We will see.

2. Hobonichi Cousin.  For now, I decided not to purchase a cover as my Caribbean cover is still good and I will be archiving my 2017 Cousin.  However, I will be purchasing from the Snow Journal Cover easy site.  I will order the Starry Night by Van Gogh for my Hobonichi Cousin.  I have not purchased this yet.  You can find the journal cover on this link .

3. Hobonichi Techo.  I have been lusting over several covers for the Techo cousin in the Hobonichi site, but for now I am settling for the Hydrangea while I haven’t really decided which to purchase.  I am really tempted to just purchase all that I fancy, but I have to discipline myself in choosing just one cover lest I max my credit card again.  I will also be purchasing a fancier cover for the Techo planner from the Snow Journal cover site with the Still Life by Van Gogh.

Purchased

As of this writing, I have already posted my order from the Hobonichi site.  The order includes the Weeks and the Cousin and some accessories.  This will be my first batch of orders because I decided to purchase the Techo at a much later date because I would like to order the Steiff which does not ship until November and the same with the Hydrangea.  I will post again once the package arrives.

PS:  My blog is not affiliated with any of the links featured on this post.  All links are posted to facilitate your curiosity if interested.  

Hobonichi Weeks: How I Use the 72 Extra Note Pages

One of the best things about the Hobonichi Weeks is the 72 Extra Note Pages that is incorporated in the planner.  Considering that this is my first year with the Hobonichi, I didn't know what to do with the 72 pages.  All those lovely gridded Tomoe River Paper and I have no idea at all what to fill it up with.  Then, little by little it just came to me.

The Index Page of the Hobonichi Weeks Note Pages

But before that, let me talk about the extra note pages.  The pages are in the same Tomoe River Paper that is used in the main planner.  It has grids to make it easy to make any kind of list.  It also has the secret line that is featured in the note area in the weekly spread.  There is also an index on the first page that can serve as some sort of table of contents for what is in the note page area of the planner.  This is indeed very useful and flexible.


Now, let's go to what I did to the extra note pages:

1.  Pen and Ink Swatches

My Gel Pen Swatches

Now, being my first encounter with the Hobonichi and the Tomoe River Paper, I was wondering what pens I should use it with.  Of course the Uni pen that came with the planner would work well, but I had a collection of multi-colored gel pens I was so excited to use.  So, on the last page I started writing samples of the pen and ink.  It also served as an inventory of all the pens that I have, so that when I visit the stores I would know that I have a particular pen or set of pens in my inventory.  It saves me from buying the same item twice, saves me money and saves me space in my craft area.

Stamping Ink swatches and samples of my embossing powders.
Just to find out if it will work with the Tomoe River Paper.

From pen and ink swatches, I have also made samples of the ink pads that I have in my inventory including some embossing powders.  I even made samples on the pages just to see if I can emboss on Tomoe river paper.  I warped my Hobonichi pencil board in the process.  Although it is still usable, it bothers me so I made a new pencil board with old scrapbook papers.




2.  Packing List

One of the major feature of my meeting and project planning notebook is about six pages of packing

list that I go over every time I have to travel.  Last December, I would go back to that list several times and it was tedious as I have already archived that 2016 notebook towards the end of the year.  So I thought, why not write down the list on the Hobonichi Weeks.  It is my on-the-go planner and will always be with me.  This served me well, because if I am in the grocery or department store, I could just check on the list what things I have run out of and buy it.  This system also made me saved a lot of money.  I don't have to wonder if I still have shampoo in my toiletry bag because just a quick check on the list and I would know.  It prevents the "when-in-doubt-buy" syndrome.

My Packing List.
I have developed this list over the years
starting with a lift from the
onebag.com website.

3.  Grocery List

Now, this is pretty neat.  I thought of this when one time during the holidays, I had to make a grocery list and found it time consuming to go over the pantry and check one by one what was missing. Most of time also, I would go to the supermarket without a prepared list and just buy the usual stuff every single time, not aware that we still have a lot of that product.

With the grocery list in my Hobonichi Weeks, all I needed to do was to check what I have against what was on the list and using a simple check or "x" mark, I would know what I still have and what I don't have.  This saved me a lot of money and prevented food stuffs from expiration just because we had so much of the product we couldn't consume it before it goes bad.  I have also indicated the date when I checked the pantry to give me an idea how much time before a certain item runs out.  This continues to be such a time-saver for me.

My Grocery List

4.  Bill Tracker

One of the things I really need is to manage my finances.  Sometime a bill doesn't get paid for the month just because I forgot paying it on time.  Most of the time I have it on my weeklies, but even there, it gets ignored.  So, I devised a Bill Tracker system where I have all of my Bills and financial obligations on one page.  This way, I won't forget it and all the due dates can be indicated on the weeklies from the bill tracker.  I use a simple check and "x" mark for these also.

My Bill Tracker.  I had to cover the list itself as it is private.

5. Wish List

Have you ever experienced entering a store because you know you have to buy something from it and forgot what it was you were supposed to buy and ended up buying stuff you don't really need?  I always experience that.  So, I made a wish list of stuff that I need and want to have especially for my crafting hobby.  It also helps me in buying just what I need preventing me from making purchases of stuff that will just add to the clutter at home.  Again, this list saves me so much money and space in my craft area at home.

My Wist List 2017.  Deliberately blurred for privacy.

6.  Gift List

Late last year, one of the tedious things I have to do is making my gift list.  It is easy for family and friends, but how about that nice postal worker who is so nice to you, or that bank manager who has been so accomodating to your requests?  I need a list to keep track of these.  And of course, it saves a lot of money if you buy gifts all throughout the year during mark-downs and clearance sales.  If you already have that list at the beginning of the year, you can already buy for birthday and Christmas gifts at any point of the year and avoid the Christmas rush and higher prices that comes with it.  Super organized and efficient.


Some More on The Extra Note Paper

I still have about 40 pages of blank note paper that is just waiting for other ideas.  Definitely I will continue with having this area as an inventory of my craft materials.  I might also write down a travel list.  Maybe write down my yearly and monthly goals here, although I already have it written down in another notebook.  We will see and I will update you how it goes through out the year.  For now, if you have any ideas, please do share it in the comment section.

Happy Planning,

Peachy :-)

WHY THE HOBONICHI IN 2017

One of the things my planner friends ask me is why I changed planners this year.  Why the Hobonichi all of a sudden?  My friends know that I am pretty loyal to my system.  If it works for me, I seldom do any changes.

Well, the main reason as I have mentioned in an earlier post is that I would really want to streamline my planning process.  With all the planners I have, planning sometimes could get really tedious until I get planner slump and stick to one at the middle of the year.

In my last post I mentioned about using the Stephen Covey worksheet and the Franklin Covey Sample Planner printables.  It worked so well for me that I was no longer planning in my Petit Planner and in my MB Planner especially towards the end of the year.  

The Petit Planner

I love the Petit Planner.  I still love it.  It just handy enough to fit in my handbag.  If I have to go to a meeting, I don't have bring my MB Planner along.  And it fits in my shoulder bag which is smaller than my handbag.  It is also very pretty with its colored pages.  The paper is thick enough so there is no bleeding of inks.  You can use your ballpoint, gel or fountain pens, it does not matter.  I also do not have to decorate the planner.  It is pretty enough as is.  There is also several pages at the end of the month for notes and a area for lists.  I used the note pages but I failed to use the list area.  But, that is alright as I used my Petit Planner pretty well during the year.

The thing is, the monthly pages are so small.  The main feature of this planner is the weekly layout.  The pages could also be confusing on what month I am on so I had to put small flags on the side.  However, even that didn't help.  I missed some appointments because I put it on the wrong month.  So, I would write the month on one side of the spread to remind me of the month that I am on.

Although the Petit Planner worked really well for me, I have to live without ample monthly planning space with this planner in my bag.

You can find the details on the BDJ Petit Planner on this link:

https://ilovebdj.com/shop/2017-bdj-petit-planner/

The MB Planner

The MB Planner is a free planner sent to institutions that support Manila Bulletin.  I always receive this during Christmas as a part of a gift pack that the newspaper sends.  It is relatively thinner than other planners and the cover is a nice navy blue leatherette that is sturdy and elegant to bring with you in a meeting with executives.  The paper is also of good quality glossy paper.  Being glossy, there is a limited range of pens that you can use.  If you insist on gel pens or fountain pens, you have to be prepared to wait for the ink to dry.  That is the only way for you not have ink transfer on the other page.  This is actually quite a bummer for me since I could not really use my gel pens.  If I have the time though, I do.

The thing is, the MB Planner is also a weekly planner.  There is a one year planner in a spread at the first few pages of the planner, but this will not do for monthly planning.  It is sorely lacking in that respect.  It does boast of its own section for addresses with lots and lots of pages, but I never use that section.  

In a nutshell, this planner is really functional and helpful, but without the monthly, it is as deficient as the Petit Planner.  It is also not available for purchase by the public.

The Search

With my decision to streamline this year, I wanted to do away with the worksheets. Although it was working really well for me and I did not want to lose that functionality 

but still it was clutter.  I had to use a clipboard to keep it together so I couldn't take it out during meetings.  I didn't want to put it in a binder because I like to just put it on my lap while I am making calls in the car or on top of my desk so I can just scribble notes on the dailies.  Previously, I would write notes on notepads or post-its and stick it to my planner but I would sometimes lose important information doing that.  So, the note-taking on the dailies was really practical. Remember, all my planners featured weeklies and no dailies.  So the planner I was looking for needed to have the same elements as my worksheets.  A daily, a monthly and a yearly planner all in one notebook.

My search on the net led me to the Hobonichi.  I have been reading blogs and watching videos of the Hobonichi as planners would use it also as travel or art journals for years.  I haven't really thought of it as a functional planner that I could use everyday.  Besides, it was really expensive and difficult to procure.  I am so glad they have a new website now in english.

Purchasing the Hobonichi

So, on the second week of December I decided to place an order with the Hobonichi Store Website.  December 12 to be exact.  On December 13, I decided to add the Hobonichi Weeks to replace my Petit Planner 2017 as an on-the-go planner.  I liked the lay-out with the weeks on the left side and a place for notes on the right side.  I also liked the idea that if I decide to decorate my planner, I can try out the technique or lay-out first in the Hobonichi Weeks without ruining the Hobonichi Cousin.  I also love that there is about 72 pages of note paper included in the planner. I have so many ideas on how to use it and I will discuss that in a future blog post.

On the 14th, I received an email that my package was now being shipped.  I received the package on the 12th.  I had to pay P135.00 to the post office though to receive the package.  No problem.  For the efficiency I was willing to pay extra.  I have to commend Hobonichi and EMS for the prompt service.

The emails were all in English although I received an email in Japanese after my additional purchase.  This was stressful as I do not know how I would be able to understand the email.  But, a follow-up email made me ignore the Japanese email.

Generally, it was a good experience and yes, I will purchase again from the Hobonichi website.

You can find more about the Hobonichi from there website here:  http://www.1101.com/store/techo/en/

The Hobonichi It Is

Now, I am on the 3rd Week on my Hobonichis.  I am loving it.  I am using my Weeks more than the Cousin though, which is understandable, as I use the Weeks more than the Cousin.  I will be posting more about this in the coming weeks as I share how I use my Hobonichi.

That's all for now.  Happy Planning!

Peachy :-)

Planning in 2017

Keeping track of my schedules and tasks is an event in itself.  Between my family, work, civic organizations and crafting, it will be chaotic if I don't find myself a system to be able to get a hold of all of the things and people that needs my time and attention.

A Little Background


I have been keeping journals and notebooks since I was seven.  The simple notebook I had when I was seven, later became two.  One was an assignment notebook for school to keep track of homework and projects and another I kept as my journal.

Then, in High School I discovered Filofax and kept my days in order in it until College.  Then, in College I read the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and made myself planning worksheets patterned after the Stephen Covey's weekly planning template.  I punched holes in it so that it would go into my Filofax. It was in Law School that I decided to buy myself a very expensive Franklin Covey Planner and this I used every year, until I discovered the Belle Du Jour Planner in 2006 and I had one every year ever since.

During this entire period of going from one planner to the next, I always kept a notebook as a journal. That is only one notebook for all my journaling, whether it be for travel, book review, movie reviews or just rambling on about my day.  Sometimes I would faithfully do this everyday, but most of the time, my journal was left untouched.  So when Starbucks started to come out with a planner I got myself one every year too for my daily journalling.

When I started working 10 years ago in my present job now, I receive a free planner from Manila Bulletin (a broad sheet newspaper) every year.  I would usually just give it away, but three years ago, I started using it because it became very handy to bring with me during meetings.  It was not very thick unlike the BDJ Planner and had a serious look to it rather than my whimsical looking BDJ.  It became my workhorse.

My 2016 Planning Workhorses: (L-R) The Manila Bulletin Planner,
The BDJ Petit Planner and a notebook I use as my Daily Log Bullet Journal.

So, for three years my planning constants were my BDJ Planner, the MB Planner, and the Starbucks Planner.  This also includes a notebook, no specific preference, for my meeting notes and project planning.

Now, last year, BDJ came out with their Petit Planner.  I purchased this handy planner and it quickly turned out to become my primary planning tool.  It had monthly pages, but the squares are too small and it primarily featured weekly pages.  The paper is thick 85 gsm so the planner, although small is thick.  I loved writing on it it and used it for most of 2016.

The Stephen Covey Worksheet.  I used this from August to December.
It has the Roles area on the left and the weekly planning template.
I used the blank area below the weekly template area for
notes and reminders.  

Then, at around July last year, I just felt so unmotivated.  One day, I decided to read again Stephen Covey's 7 Habits and got motivated enough to print the weekly worksheet again and this time I also printed the sample daily pages from the Franklin-Covey website.  This is the link to the free printable planner: http://www.franklincovey.com/tc/mediaengine/public/files/31_sampleplanner.pdf

You can also download the printable Stephen Covey Weekly Planning Worksheet here: http://momssmallvictories.com/free-weekly-planner-printable-based-on-7-habits-of-highly-effective-people/.

Franklin Covey Daily Sample Planner Sheets

The system worked very well for me.  I wrote everything on the daily and weekly pages and I could attach receipts of my expenses.  I felt more motivated and this continued until the end of the year.  The sample I posted here does not show my daily entries as it is too personal.  I take note of my expenses and attach the receipts on the sheet.  After the end of the month, I archive it in a binder along with all the finished sheets for the year.

I still had my MB Planner and my Petit Planner but rarely used my BDJ and had little time to write on my Starbucks Planner.



Life Audit

Sometime 2007, my brother gifted me with the book Life Audit.  At that time, I thought it was a good idea.  I faithfully followed the activities in the book for a Life Audit and started a notebook where I would monitor where my time is going and whether I give time to all the things I feel is important.

Last year, at about the same time I started working on the covey planning worksheets I started a daily log notebook inspired by the bullet journals I saw on Pinterest and by my Life Audit Notebook.  I was not very faithful in doing this.  But around December I finished one month and I found it very useful in monitoring my productivity and making sure I do all my chores and routines.  I will continue doing this and will be discussing this in this blog in the future.

This Year

As the new year was drawing near, I decided on several changes in my life.  First on my list was to declutter.

My clutter was getting into my productivity, my relationship with my family and is a cause of a lot of my troubles.  I had to be very mindful now of what I keep and I truly have to start organizing my stuff.

This would have been my 2017 Planning Workhorses.
I changed my mind.  I still have it just in case I want to
switch planners mid-year.  Crazy planner addict!

So, early on I decided that I only need one major planner, then a small one that I could keep in my handbag.  I would keep my meeting and planning notebook as I need it for work.  Then I have to continue my Life Log notebook/bullet journal because it really helps me start my day.

However, yes, I bought the BDJ Planner along with the Petit Planner because I bought it before I made the decision to keep to my two planners.

I did not receive the MB Planner for 2017.

I also deliberately did not fill up my Starbucks sticker sheet last year so that I will no longer have any chance to get the Starbucks planner that I thought would just add to my clutter.  My husband said I should have just filled it up and gifted the planner to someone else.  Well, knowing me, I know if I got that planner I won't be giving it to anyone.

So, I started surfing the net around November to get ideas on what planner to get this year.  If I didn't find a planner that I liked, then I would have to go make do with the covey worksheets and find a way to put it in a binder.

The Hobonichi

Being the planner addict that I am, I learned about the Hobonichi years ago.  However, my desire to have one was never strong enough to motivate me to get one.  First, it was difficult to procure.  I don't really like purchasing online.  I only do so when there is absolutely no way for me to purchase the product myself physically.  But, this year, looking at the Cousin, I thought, I've got all I need in that one planner.

My Ultimate 2017 Planning Workhorses:
The Hobonichi Cousin, The Hobonichi Weeks and
My Daily Log/Bullet Journal

The Hobonichi Cousin was of a size I was really comfortable with.  It also had montly, weekly and daily pages, the formats that made me keep all the planners that I was keeping.  The Monday start didn't bother me as I start my week on Mondays anyway.  The Japanese quotations was fine too as I could just washi over it.  So, I purchased it online from the Hobonichi website.

The Hobonichi Weeks came as an afterthought.  I needed an on-the-go planner.  Last December, I was already using the Petit Planner, but I figured, why not purchase the Hobonichi Weeks as well and make it as an experimental notebook before doing anything artsy on my Hobonichi Cousin?  So, I went on to add the Hobonichi Weeks to my purchase.

Now

We are now on the 3rd Week of the year and I am loving the Hobonichi Weeks and Hobonichi Cousin.  I will blog about how it is going as I go from week to week to week.

Happy Planning.

Peachy :-)

Project Life: Week 3 and 4

I am so glad that I am still on Project Life.  I can't believe I can still sustain this project.  I thought at first I could not commit even a month -- now I'm on Week 7.  How about that? :-)

I will be posting however my Weeks 3 and 4.  

This is Week 3.

The Corona Impeachment Trial started this week so I decided to make it the week's title card.  I made a small layout on a 6x6 Prima Paper (The Printery) using pictures of CJ Corona and Ret. Justice Cuevas I got from the net.  Here is a detail shot.

Below that picture, I slipped in some notes and thoughts I have on the Impeachment on an 5x7 index card that I cut to 4x6 to fit the page protector. I followed the trial everyday through the news.  I love doing these mini layouts on 4x6 using wallet size or cute size pics.  I want the kids to know what I follow on the news and some current events is always good in documenting everyday life.

There was just so much that happened that week so notice the major journalling happening here... lolz.  I had a movie date with my cousin and my brother.  I saved the movie ticket and the receipt of the food we ate... I also have a picture here of my son playing in the office and a picture of my son playing with tech gadgets.

Speaking of so many things happening... My week spilled over into an extra page.

Here... I told the story of something that happened to me in a restaurant... of Nico on Kiddie rides during another movie date with my brother to watch "Alvin and the Chipmunks"... and the circumstances surrounding why I had to buy a new set of contact lenses when I actually would rather wear eyeglasses.

Week 4 was also another busy week but I only had a page to do the whole week because the previous week spilled over the left side page of the week 4 spread.  The week started with a holiday being a Chinese New Year which coincidentally is also my cousin Ate Tshombee's birthday.  Here is the page about that.

It took me some time to finalize my title card for this week.  I knew I wanted to put a dragon there considering that this is the start of the "Year of the Black Water Dragon" and I am a Dragon myself under the Chinese Zodiac.  I also knew that I would want to have a polka dot theme on this particular page being new year and all... they said it signified more money -- prosperity.  lolz.  Here is a detail shot of the title card.

I got the dimensional sticker of the Dragon at Fully Booked at Bonifacio High Street.  Although the Dragon is cross-eyed -- I decided to buy it... Dragon stickers for scrapbooking are hard to come by.  I mounted the stickers on an old origami paper I bought at Saizen in Robinson's Galleria in Ortigas.

This being the second week of the Corona Impeachment Trial, I included some journalling about it again using index card which I cut to size.  Also notice the stamp which I stamped on a grid journal card that I made into the week's title card.

Since it was my cousin's birthday I just had so many pictures to scrap so I decided to do an insert.

The insert is a collage I made using an ordinary A4 size page protector as guide.  I cut the printed cardstock to size and just mounted the photos and added some journalling.  At the back, I told the story about the food, the cake and the people who helped the party  become a success.

I used some old paper from my stash and added some stamping and journalling.  This is how I used to scrap in high school... lolz... brings back memories.

Will post weeks 5 and 6 late this week. 

Peachy Moraleda

Project Life Clementine: Unpacked

As I have previously mentioned, I received my Project Life kit on Dec. 22, 2011.  It was a wonderful gift to myself and my family.

I would have wanted to unpack it at a better time, but the delivery guy from DHL requested that we open it in front of them to make sure nothings missing.  (standard procedure -- I was told.)

So, I got this box from Scraplicious.

the picture would not rotate... (lolz)

Inside were these goodies.

Scraplicious offered a package that had the basic core kit, the album, scrapbook dividers, and a choice of big pack of page protectors (either A or B or Big Variety).  I chose Big Variety because I wanted the freedom to choose my page layouts.  Scraplicious also threw in a box of 3x4 grid journalling cards for free.  How great is that!

Below is the Clementine Binder.

It was such a delight to see this as a cover protector with the Project Life/Becky Higgins Motto.

Then of course, the star of the show... The Clementine Core Kit.

Inside are these wonderful goodies.

The designed journalling cards.

The 3x4 grid journalling cards (which I'm founding out is a delight to use), and the first and last page cards.

The designed 3x4 filler cards.

The designed 4x6 first and last page cards.

The 4x6 Title Cards.

The 4x6 Bifold Journalling Cards.

The numbers, days of the week stickers in colored and transparent (white) versions.

The Scrapbook Dividers which came with label stickers with numbers, months, grade school levels, and blank labels for your own words.

The Page Protectors which are of very good quality.

I got a box of 3x4 grid journalling cards (100 pcs), for free.

I also ordered as additional the 12x12 patterned paper pack in Clementine and Amber Editions.  (So, I still had my Amber Edition fix satisfied. :-))

When I got these I could not wait for 2012 to start.  So, I decided to do my 2012 Title Page already inspired by other Project Lifers pages.

Peachy :-)

Project Life: The 1st 2 weeks

Let me start by saying that I am a Project Life newbie.  I discovered PL around June last year while surfing the net about scrapbooking.  This is the first time I will be embarking on this project.  Although I have been writing diaries and journals since I was 7 years old, this experience is a totally new experience for me so bear with me.

At first, I was hesitant to blog about this project, only because I felt that those who do Project Life and post it on their blogs have such beautiful pages.  However, as I started seeing other Project Lifers' pages on the net, I realized that PL is really what you want it to be.  It is as unique as the individual doing it and each album is different in the same manner that no two person are exactly the same.  If there is one thing I know -- it is that there is no wrong and right way to do Project Life.

The Title Page

It was difficult to decide on how my title page will look.  But, taking some inspiration from other Project Lifers, I decided to compose this page.

Yes, this is not yet done.  I need to print a pic of me, monching and rocky to fill in the 3x4, but until that time the 3x4 filler cards will be fine.  I also feel that monching and rocky's picture (below left) still needs some embellishments and so with my 2012 card (below right).

The First Spread (Week 1)

This is the left page of my first spread for the year covering Week 1 (Jan. 1-8).

The top left 4x6 is the week's title card.  It features the hotel keycard case in the hotel I stayed in during the seminar I attended that week and my Sound of Music ticket which was sponsored by Trinitas Publishing, the company which organized and sponsored the seminar.  I think the card needs some titling though (lolz) coz it does not seem like it is a page title.  I also matted one of the pics on a patterned cardstock from All About Scrapbooking (a local Philippine scrapbooking brand).  That is because I had cut the picture to 3x4 size only to realize that it doesn't look good horizontal.

This is Page 2 of Spread 1.

Yup, I am also beginning to love Design F Page Protector.  What's nice about this page is that I used a bi-fold journalling card (middle slot-first row) to tell the story behind the cancellation of our flight home to Camarines Sur on the day we were supposed to leave and how we were able to come home after that.  I also decided to use numbers on the pictures (using the stickers provided in the kit) and on the top rightmost 3x4 card the numbers correspond to some explanation about the picture.

Spread No. 2 (Week 2)

By the second week I was totally getting the hang of it and honestly, find myself looking forward to working on my album at the end of every single day.  Here is the left page of my 2nd spread.

The left most 3x4 on top is a card from hallmark with a poem about God's faithfulness.  I chose this as my week's page title card because it goes with our family's celebration of my late Uncle Awel's birthday.  I also used Marks washi tape to embellish one of the journal cards (right most card on the middle row).

On the left most card (bottom row) I got a Sticker sentiment from AAS to compliment my sons' pictures.  This is my first picture of them for the year.  On the right most card, I stamped on the journalling frame (Teresa Collins).

The secret on this page is that I actually used the back of the 3x4 grid journalling cards that I slipped on the other side of this page.  This is why I stamped on the journalling frame because this particular 3x4 (the patterned card stock on the other side) is not ruled like the grid cards.  The washi on the 3x4 is an attempt at putting some design on the grid cards although I love the look without any embellishment on it.  So clean to see.

This is the right page of the spread.

This is not yet finished also.  I just need to put in some journalling on the 2nd 3x4 (from the top) about the REBAP meeting I attended to correspond to the REBAP officers list that I slipped on the top rightmost portion. I will be also writing in some journalling on the bottom 3x4, about our family's celebration of the Feast of Sto. Nino.  I will be putting in a picture of my son holding the image of the Sto. Nino.  I have not printed that yet.

Lessons Learned/Rules to Follow/Personal Guidelines

1.  There is no right or wrong way to do Project Life.  Anything goes. Don't be shy.  This is MY project and I can do it any which way I choose to do it.

2.  I will do a two-page per week project but do daily journalling.  Some days it might even be just one page per week but generally I am pretty sure I will be doing daily journalling which I found to be such a delight to do on PL. (I used to do this on a notebook/journal)

3.  I have also decided that I will do a title card for each week.

4.  Doing a our Tagaytay Family Vacation in PL made me realize that the Design E page protector is a GREAT way to do a Title Page.  I did the title page for this project in Design E and decided I will do all my title pages this way. (I will blog about this in the coming days.)

5.  I realized that although I love to take pictures, I am a more conscientious journaller.  I journalled everyday of the two weeks and had been doing so until today.  I feel that jounalling about my day on PL made me more excited in doing this.  This is why I have more journalling than pictures.  Sometimes, I journal one day per 3x4, and sometimes 2 days in a card.  So, you can say, rather than photo-a-day, I have a journal-a-day Project Life album.  I do my daily journalling on 3x4 grid journal cards.  But on special days that I would like to highlight, I use the designed journalling cards.

6.  I use the all the cards back-to-back.  This is not only to scrimp on kit supplies (because I just have so many), but to have thin pages.  So far I don't have any problems with this.  What's crucial though is that I have to commit on the lay-out I have decided so that the placement of the cards in front will guide the layout for the page at the back. I do not use the back of the pictures though, just the cards.

7.  Do not be afraid to use other products.  At first, I was hesitant to use other products on Project Life.  I thought it might not go together or destroy the integrity of the project.  But, there are days when I want to play. (lolz)  And prohibiting myself from using other products will curtail my creativity.  So I took out all my 6x6 cardstock pads from other manufacturers and it just adds to the excitement and delight in doing this project.

8.  Finally, surf the net for inspiration but don't get tied up in knots trying to copy other's work.  For days I was stuck as I stared in awe at the beauty of the work that is out there.  Even the simple ones are so pretty.  But, I realized, if I don't start and just do it, I will just make my PL album gather dust.  

Finally

In the first two weeks of the year, doing Project Life has already inspired me to be more productive and responsible as an individual.  It might sound weird, but yes, doing PL motivates me to be a better person everyday.  It drives me to make my day count so I could write something truly worthwhile in my PL.  My album is a work in progress.  I know that in the days to come, I might add some more embellishments to pages I already decided as finished.  I am even contemplating of making a Design E Title page for the album and have each family member's individual stats on each 6x6 at the back page (as inspired from a PLifer I found on Becky's Blog).  I am not sure of so many things as I do this project, but what I am sure of is that Project Life so far, has made me a better mom, wife, and friend.  

Thank you Becky Higgins for coming up with this wonderful system of keeping memories alive.

Peachy :-)