Kawaii Mini Planner

'You can never have too much Happy + Stationery'. Having subscribed to the Happie Scrappie sub box each month and gathering up a collection of planner inserts I put them together to make a mini planner.

My previous Bullet Journal/Planner, made from a Not Another Bill (NAB) notebook by Le Typographe, had fallen apart. Searching for a personal planner-sized binder I choose a translucent plastic cover from an Etsy shop, Lisandre Crafts, that arrived with three differently coloured elastics - black, brown and orange. Inserts and cards gathered from the Happie Scrappie (HS) boxes were inserted, cut or punched to fit.

The title page is a testament to Kawaii! The happy-faced wooden stickers have been adhered to the inspirational card and I attached a duck-shaped paperclip. Next is a card insert holding samples of washi tape, I save strong acetate packaging and for this I cut four pieces, rounded the corners, and wound differently patterned and sized tapes to them. Two camera shaped paperclips from HS hold them in place.

 Continuing with the bullet planning set-up the first page is a 'Future Log' where I can park long-tern goals/plans/tasks for future scheduling. Left hand page is decorated with some left-over Wizard of Oz stickers from a 'Plan With Jade' kit in the spirit of Kawaii. An inspirational card, slightly longer than the planner pages, is used as a bookmark.

The weekly planner inserts are pre-printed, some with colour accents and others B&W with icons to tint. A second section of the planner contains lists - books I'm reading, movies to watch, meds, birthdays and a list of favourite Copic markers complete with colour reference.

Third section contains squared and lined paper with weekly challenge charts. A magnetic page marker from HS helps find the current challenge page easily. Although the code used to bullet journal/plan is embedded in my memory I've recorded a list of the symbols used.

 Each month Sam from HS includes decorative planning stickers, some with smiling faces, and these are either punched to insert in the planner or tucked into a pocket made from a couple of pages sealed on top and base with washi. Colour-in pages are included with the HS boxes and the final page has been well and truly tinted with Copics. As the card is not thick there is some leak-through but I don't mind this. A mini metal binder clip doubles as a pen holder, its wings folded back to secure any letters or loose notes. The HS pen is ultra-fine with black gel ink, perfect for a mini planner.

There'a always room for a little art - two drawings on sticker paper and one on the white reverse of a cactus die-shape glued to the inside of the back cover.

I'm delighted with the planner, it's fun to use, looks bright and Summery and can be changed or adapted easily. 

S.A.V.E.R.S. Challenge

not doing very well in Feb'16

It was through Boho Berry's channel on YT that I discovered about the S.A.V.E.R.S. method of greeting each new day. It's from Hal Elrod's book 'Miracle Morning' which I haven't read - I simply liked the simple way Boho Berry incorporated it into her Bullet Journal. I liked the grid she used and her method of ticking off each S.A.V.E.R.S. day, whether she completed  the daily challenge or not.

The Initial letters of S.A.V.E.R.S. each represent a task:

Silence - purposeful silence enables us to centre ourselves after waking

Affirmations - reading aloud from a list of affirmations re-commits us to our personal goals

Visualisation - a visual way of experiencing the feeling of achieving our goals

Exercise - rising and exercising loosens us up, stirs our bodies in preparation for the day ahead

Reading - self-help books are suggested to read from, focussing our minds

Scribe - writing in our journals, what we're grateful for or proud of

Each task is given 10 mins and makes up the first hour of each day after waking. The tasks could be reduced to 6 mins in total as outlined by their creator on his website - 'The (6-minute) Miracle Morning'

list of tasks and option for May 

I really like the idea of the daily challenge as a means to focus myself however I find the first thing I need to do is bolt to the loo, possibly because of my increasing age. But I remember that challenges are made to fit with our lives, to stretch us and are not inflexible rules. I adapt the Miracle Morning to suit me and my body. It's a shame that my spelling lets me down.

 sad difference in layouts 
(2nd image from Pinterest/Boho Berry Bullet Journal: one month update)

My grid of tick boxes are scruffy and hurried in comparison to the beauty of Boho Berry's crafted pages. And remembering to complete the challenge is often difficult - perhaps I should stick to the 6-minute version until I've got it well and truly under my belt. I really do want a method of focus before I start getting washed and dressed in the mornings and the range of tasks appeals to me. Perhaps I should embrace a little mindfulness first to help me pause and remember...but isn't that the same as 'zen'? Been there, got the tee-shirt in the 70s. Hopefully it's like riding a bike...

Tomorrow's blogpost: 'short review - Drawing Workshop' 

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