A new year brings with it a chance to start over with a clean slate, and best of all – new planners! I get a lot of questions about what planners I use and how I use them, so I wanted to show you all of my 2018 planners and notebooks.
I am a minimalist and I try not to add planners to my rotation unless they are useful to me. I’ve been in pursuit of the elusive “planner peace” for a long time, but I have finally accepted the fact that sometimes I like to switch things up. And that’s ok! If you aren’t a planner person you might think it’s crazy to use more than one planner, but all of them that I use are productivity tools. Once they become just another thing to do, I know it’s time to make changes.
My 2018 Planners and Notebooks
Erin Condren Hourly Life Planner
Erin Condren planners are my ride or die. This will probably always be my main planner, and I will always have at least one in my rotation. This year I am in a 12 month, academic year (July-July) hourly life planner with a llama cover. I don’t actually use the times in the hourly format, but I love that this gives me a long, vertical column to write in. This works great for my daily to-do lists!
I do some decorating in this planner, but as I am fond of saying, I need to leave room to write! The main tools I use are washi, a few planner stickers, and Zebra Mildliners. I track my husband’s work schedule, my blog and YouTube to-do’s, appointments, and keep some running to-do lists. This planner almost always stays at home.
Erin Condren Monthly Planner
This year I am using an Erin Condren Monthly planner for our family financial planner. Last year I used a Deluxe Monthly planner, which I liked but I wanted to try a more affordable and simple option. So far I am really liking this setup. I am curious to see how the binding holds up after a whole year of use, but so far so good. I did a YouTube video with a flip through of the entire planner if you’d like to see it in detail:
Webster’s Pages Personal Ring Planner
Remember that elusive planner peace that I mentioned earlier? I thought I might have found it when I stumbled upon traveler’s notebooks. While I loved being able to customize my inserts and keep everything in one planner, something about my TN wasn’t quite right. I kept seeing these beautiful planners in my Instagram feed and all of them were in rings.
I’ll be the first to admit this one was an impulse buy and NOT a necessity, but I found a good deal on a personal ring binder from last year’s Webster’s Pages collection and I couldn’t pass it up. Once I added inserts from JeePapeterie Shop on Etsy and, I had a very functional household planner. I wanted to make this even more functional since it was adding yet ANOTHER planner to my rotation, so I decided to make it my wallet as well. Then I added some clear card pockets from Limelife Planners, and then tucked my cash in the front pocket. I did need to add a cute little coin purse to hold my change.
B6 Traveler’s Notebook
This year I dipped my toe into the world of traveler’s notebooks. TN’s are basically covers with elastic strings that you can secure inserts with. I wanted a cruelty-free cover, so I got this cute buffalo plaid one from PinkPineapplePlanners on Etsy. I added some inserts and discovered that my hands-down favorite place to get them is Yellow Paper House on Etsy.
I’m not using this as my main planner right now, but I am still using the dot grid inserts for collections like books I have read this year, and taking notes. I love how flexible this system is! Here is a video flip-through I did when I first got it:
Leuchtturm1917
Leuchtturm1917 dot grid notebooks are typically used for bullet journals, but I am using it for my regular daily journal. The size is perfect and the paper is really nice to write on. I found it to be a little thin for actual bullet journaling, but it’s perfect for just writing. It has become a habit to write in my journal every day. I use my favorite pen (a Lamy Safari extra fine) so I really look forward to this time every day. Sometimes I just write a paragraph about what I did that day, and sometimes I work something really emotional out on paper. I put zero expectations on my journaling because I wanted it to be a tool, not just another thing I have to do.
Other Notebooks
I still use an Erin Condren Address Book, an Erin Condren Hardbound Notebook, and a dot grid insert pad for random notes, letters, and brain dumps, too. I am trying a new addition this year, which is the Erin Condren Inspirational Quote Calendar. This hangs on the door for my pantry so the whole family can see any upcoming appointments, or even add notes of their own. So far I’m not convinced that anyone besides me is actually looking at it. If I don’t find it useful, I won’t replace it next year.
My daughter is using Inkwell Press inserts in an A5 binder, and she snagged my Freedom Mastery planner before I could decide what to do with it.
So, those are the planners and notebooks I plan on using this year! What are you using? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below.
