Pocket filofax-a-long series Ep01

My YouTube series has started and I'm so excited!
Way more excited than seems to be coming across on camera!

Let me fill in any gaps in the details. So basically I started my YT channel at the beginning of January and it really took off! I don't really know quite what I expected to happen but I'm pretty sure it's far exceeded any expectation I could have had!

I made an appearance at the Philofaxy London Meet up!

This past weekend was the latest and my first Filofax meetup organised by the very lovely Steve of Philofaxy in London.

It was a fabulous day.

My friend Anna (aka Mrs Brimbles) and I caught the early train (because it was cheaper!) and we started the day with a spot of shopping!

First stop, Fortnum & Mason.
If you're not familar, check out their website. It's just divine.
I absolutely adore their selection of teas.
We ambled around the entire store almost, and made an important stop at the stationary department to touch some planners!

We found a stunning collection of teapots too.

 

I couldn't not share the mouthwatering delights in their confectionery department.

 And here's a little bonus video of some more!

Pocket Filofax-a-long series |Ep3| How to print free diary inserts

Finally, episode 3 is live!

Now, I haven't taken any pictures for the reasons stated in my last post so I will post the link to the video below.
I printed some pages from the Philofaxy page and hopefully you'll find it really useful if the Filofax own brand aren't working out for you.

You can find free inserts in the following places;
Steve Morton's Philofaxy.com
Ray Blake's mylifeallinoneplace.com
DIYplanner.com

I also mentioned DIYfish inserts but they are not free and can be found in her shop on Etsy.

Make yourself a cuppa, here's the video.

Back soon xx

Writing off March.

Sometimes, it doesn't matter how much planning you've done (or thought about!) some things just happen and turn your life upside down.
The beginning of this month we saw the loss of my mother-in-law, Valerie. She had been very ill in hospital for a while but it was still quite sudden. We dropped everything and rushed to the other side of the country for her last 24 hours. She fought so hard and will be dearly missed. We said our final goodbyes this past Monday 31st.

The previous week I had a visit to hospital for minor surgery on my leg to remove a mole. The procedure was quick, less than 20 minutes (my hubby watched!) but the stitches meant that the healing time is long.

Pocket filofax-a-long series Ep02

If I had a tagline it should probably be 'technology failed me again' (TFMA) after all that's why I have a paper planner, right?!
So I log in here on the blog to see that lasts weeks scheduled post didn't work so they will go up together! Ugh, TFMA!
That adds to the fact that yesterday I posted up the latest episode of the series on my channel and later realised that I hadn't had any emails with comments as usual and I couldn't figure out why until I saw that it was set to private, TFMA!
Not to mention the drama of actually filming it AND the bonkers intro!

Anywho, I survived it all!
As I write, I realise that I haven't taken enough photos so will be another text heavy post. We love reading, right?!

In this weeks episode I've shown how to make pocket sized dividers with top and side tabs from scratch and how to laminate them.

I made another video.....and my husbands diagnosis

My latest video is up. It's a little update about moving in to my new A5 Malden, getting settled and making some tweaks.

Kudos if you noticed I'm wearing the same jumper from my previous videos. Total coincidence!

 

So, I was just watching a planner video from Nadine's Mixed Plate on YouTube and she jokes about having something called CRS - Cant Remember S**t

Brilliant stuff, now I can't wait for my husband to get home from work to give him his diagnosis!!

Back soon xx

Jack of all trades, master of Procrastination! - A note on goals...

This was a scheduled post but the scheduling hasn't worked so here it is, over a week late!!
Ironic! #whenforwardplanningbackfires


It's that time of year when the hot topic is making resolutions or in my case goals.
It got me to thinking about how we get things done and take those steps to reach our goals.
I know I am terrible for a dose of procrastination.
I don't know why when it is just so satisfying to tick things off a to do list.
I start off well then get half way through said list and I'm flapping and flailing, I don't know what happens. It's as if I'm scared of finishing the list? Then what happens? That is an unknown territory!

So one day, probably when I had more pressing tasks in hand, I googled it.
I could have chosen wiki or anywhere but I settled on the University of Cambridge, It's closer to home after all!  They have a great self-help guide:
http://www.counselling.cam.ac.uk/selfhelp/leaflets/procrastination

I found it particularly helpful because it includes what it is, why people do it and how to overcome it.
Needless to say I have bookmarked it to refer to later (most likely when I shouldn't be!).

The funny bit part is, that I have a plate on my wall...

Anyway, I shouldn't be too hard on myself, I've already managed to check off 5 out of 21 goals so far this year and I'm on target to have another 5 ticked by the end of the month.

Back soon xx

My first Filofax swap.

 One day last week, I can't remember which, my swap arrived and some washi with a story.
I was so excited, I've never been in a swap before.

           

I had to wait for what felt like an eternity to finish my toast while it was still warm because I didn't want it to get cold while I opened it up!
The bits were packed in a grey plastic envelope, which will come in very handy.
I thought I might store any spare bits for my filo in it.

 The goodies are so cute. I was amazed because I'd been asking my husband for weeks to bring me home a single treasury tag from his work because I only need one and didn't want to buy a whole box, only to find out that his company doesn't even use them! Anyway now I have one. She could have put only that in and I'd have been chuffed to bits!

I love everything! It all looks so pretty.

These pockets are great. I thought I might punch holes in them for the project life section in my filo to collect keepsakes and mementos for my albums but they are a teeny tiny bit too wide so would need to be trimmed a little first.

There were these 4 sheets of A5 paper, perfect for valentines day so I will keep them safe for then.

 This is a beautiful Paperchase notebook. Ironic because I was on the Paperchase website that morning, browsing the sale for a journal for a lists project. So now I definatley need to start that project!

  Then there were the dividers, the essence of the swap! I desperately need these for my contacts section. And finally a cute pocket sized notebook. I love the 'thinky thoughts' on the cover, it's so me!
I'm really pleased with everything I was sent so a big thank you to Rita if your reading.

Another envelope arrived that day too.

The previous week I had ordered myself some sticky notes from eBay.  They arrived so fast as always but they weren't sticking well and kept ripping off the pad so I mentioned it to the seller and they immediately offered a refund. I thought I'd ask if I could be substituted in washi instead and the seller obliged.

So I am so excited to finally have some gold glitter fabric tape that I've been eyeing up on Instagram and some striped washi. I'm going into a pink and grey phase.

Back soon xx

Better late than never (jump right in)

I am back - for good.
That's a song too, right?

So it's now 2014 and way back when I started this draft post I was going to say I'd realised that in life some things don't happen as you want them too and things don't always turn out how you plan.
You just gotta jump right in.
I've held back in so many aspects of my life in the last few years, purely because I wanted to catch up from the start and do things in chronological order.
It ain't gonna happen.
Life goes on.
Just jump right in.

I am.

When I say jumping in, I actually mean, stepping out.
Putting myself out there, in the open, public, for all to see.
It's scary.
I feel like I've been waiting for the moment that everything is perfect to let people in.
Nothing is perfect, and actually, if I waited for everything to be perfect, I'd have nothing to share!
I want an audience for my journey, to challenge me and to cheer me on.

So for now I'm just going to list the things I plan to cover over the coming year...

• Filofax/planners
• Gift ideas
• Meal planning & recipes
• Cleaning & Home organising
• Sewing and papercrafts
• Project life (scrapbooking)
• Thrifting, upcycling & re-purposing
• DIY home decor

 I'm so excited to finally share with you.

Back soon xx
(tomorrow actually!)