Filo-Fail? Filo-Frenzy!

I've been on an odyssee filo-wise these last couple of weeks.

First I didn't really warm up with the Baroque, but after it did a great job in Iceland he and I have become good friends.
Then I decided to join in on the Malden-hype. The Malden in Vintage Pink was on sale in the UK, so I didn't have to think about it long, I ordered it and eagerly awaited the package. I had always thought I didn't like the color, but I saw it (behind glass) a couple of weeks back and thought it wasn't so bad.

So when the Malden finally arrived I was quite disappointed that there was a scratch on the latch.
I contacted Filofax UK and they answered right away, telling me to send the Malden back. I just had to make the choice of whether I wanted a replacement or refund. I decided I wanted the refund. Why? Well, I had seen the Malden before, but the first time I touched it was when I opened the package from the UK. Now, from what I'd read on forums, blogs, etc. I expected a really, really soft leather. So I was disappointed when I found out that my Holborn Zip knocked the spots of the Malden's leather. Mr Holborn's leather is so much softer. And prettier. And smells better*. And ... everything! I guess Mr Holborn, for me, is Mr Right!

So after I sent the Malden back, I found out that Filofax Germany is having a sale on Finchleys (and other models, for that matter). The Finchley is my favorite model (except for Mr Right of course) and I do know this for sure because I am the proud owner of a Personal Imperial Purple Finch, which I use as my Postcrossing filo. I had been looking for A5 Finchleys in Mustard, Jade Green/Soft Jade and Teal for a while**, so finding out that Filofax Germany still had the A5 in Mustard available and it was 50% off... well, you can imagine what happened.

A day or two later I learned about the Great Philofaxy Adspot Sale (by the very friendly Erin) and was able to score two Cuban A5s, one in Ink and the other one in Chili. I already own a Cuban Zip, so I am aware of the fact that the leather is not even close to being as soft as Mr Right's leather, but I do like the clean, adult look (and feel!) of the Cubans.

I think I really need to cut back on spending money on Filos. I mean, really, how many can you use at a time (yes, I'm begging you to enable me here!). ;-)

*The Malden did smell very unpleasant. Somewhere between leather and lots and lots of dye. 


**I'm still looking for the Teal and/or Jade Finchleys. A5 is my preferred size, but I will consider Personal. Just in case you have one that you don't need, please don't hesitate to contact me!

My First: A Love Story / Mein Erster: Eine Liebesgeschichte

My first Filofax was/is an A5 Domino in Ultra Violet. I ultimately opted for this model and size out of a number of reasons:
1. affordability. It was my first and I wasn't so sure whether I'd be infected by the Filo-fever, so I looked for a Filofax on the lower prize-range.
2. I knew what it looked like as my colleague also owns a (quite battered) A5 Domino. So I knew beforehand that I'd like it.
3. Size does matter. I needed an A5 model because most of the loose paper I carry around with me is A4 size. Which, as we all know, folds nicely into A5. I was also sure that I needed the extra space the A5 paper gave me to write down all my every-day-stuff like lesson planning, appointments, lists (I seriously wouldn't be able to survive without my lists), etc. I actually took an A5 paper and drew a Personal sized paper onto it for comparison.

Altogether I must say I'm quite happy with my decision. I ordered online and I couldn't wait for the package to arrive. When I first opened it I was a tad disappointed by the fact that the Domino didn't come in one of those beautiful black Filofax-boxes, but I figured it wasn't worth is from Filofax' point of view as it was a rather cheap filo.
I was also kind of surprised by the smell of the Domino. I didn't expect it to smell like leather (as it isn't leather), but I did also not expect it to smell this artificial. So I left it lying around openly for a night or two and the smell disappeared (thank goodness!).

Talking of lying: It lay flat from the very beginning. Like right out of that box it didn't come in. I did not appreciate that quality until I started using (and writing in!) my Finchley recently.

I love my Domino so much I even made my own set of dividers to match it, but I'm going to tell you about that some other time!



Mein erster Filo war/ist ein A5 Domino in Ultra Violet. Ich habe mich damals aus verschiedenen Gründen für diese Größe und dieses Modell entschieden:
1. Er musste erschwinglich sein. Ich wusste ja nicht, ob ich ihn wirklich auf Dauer nutzen würde und ich wollte keinen 150€ teuren Regalhüter haben. 
2. Ich wusste, wie er aussieht. Eine Kollegin hat einen Domino (der in seinem Leben schon viel gelitten hat) und er gefiel mir.
3. Die Größe spielt eben doch eine Rolle. Ich brauchte mindestens eine A5-Größe, weil alles Papier, was ich so lose mit mir rumtrage A4 groß ist und sich daher gut in A5 falten lässt. Außerdem war ich mir sicher, dass ich den Extraplatz, den A5 über Personal bietet, gut gebrauchen konnte mit meinen ganzen Unterrichtsplanungen, Listen (ohne die ich nicht leben könnte), Terminen, etc. Ich hab mir sogar die Umrisse eines Personalblattes auf ein A5 gemalt, um vergleichen zu können.


Insgesamt bin ich mit meiner Entscheidung sehr glücklich. Der Domino brauchte ein paar Tage, bis er bei mir war (Online-Bestellung) und ich war nur ein bisschen enttäuscht, dass er nicht in einer dieser hübschen schwarzen Filofax-Boxen geliefert wurde. Naja, ist halt das Einsteigermodell. Allerdings hat mich der Geruch des Filo (sehr künstlich!) doch am Anfang etwas irritiert, bis er nach ein oder zwei Nächten des Auslüftens verflogen war.


Übrigens lag der Domino von Beginn an flach wie eine Flunder. Dass das eine wirklich gute Eigenschaft des Filo ist wurde mir aber erst klar, als ich anfing, meinen Finchley zu benutzen! 


Vor kurzem habe ich meinem Domino sogar selbstgemachte Divider spendiert, aber davon erzähle ich euch ein anderes Mal!

How it all started... / Wie alles begann...

It all began with me looking for the perfect calendar (once again). I embark on this journey at least twice a year: somewhen at the end of the year and at the end of the academic year. I was also looking for a better time-management-system as I am prone to procrastinating. Big time! (Isn't writing a blog another way of procrastination?)

Anyways, I did some research and found out about GTD (Getting Things Done). I decided to download the book to my Kindle and had a look at some pretty cool calendar templates. And from there I found a couple of blogs about Filofax and then I went to have a look at the filofax.de website. Big mistake.

I spent the next 3-5 days (I don't remember exactly, it all seems so far away already) searching for an affordable Filofax that I thought I'd actually use longer than just a couple of days. I found the Domino A5. I bought it. I used it. I bought a couple of great additions to it. I fell in love.

By now, about 8 weeks after my initial purchase, I am the proud owner of 9 filofaxes. And yes, this pretty much defines me. I go after stuff I like and sometimes I go a little crazy over it.



Es begann damit, dass ich (mal wieder) nach einem neuen Kalender gesucht habe. Das passiert mir mindestens zweimal im Jahr: So gegen Ende November, Anfang Dezember und ungefähr im Juli, wenn das Schuljahr sich dem Ende zuneigt. 
Außer einem neuen Kalender musste ein neues Zeitmanagement-System her. Ich neige zur Prokrastination. Big time! 
Jedenfalls surfte ich durch das Netz und fand "Getting Things Done" (GTD), ein Buch, welches ich mir sofort auf mein Kindle lud. Passenderweise fand ich GTD-Kalendervorlagen zum Selberdrucken. Und ein Blog über Filofax. Das wollte recherchiert werden und so fand ich mich die nächsten 3-5 Tage in einem Filo-Nebel, aus dem ich herausfand, als ich mich für einen erschwinglichen Filo (den Domino A5) entschieden hatte. Ich kaufte ihn. Und ein paar zusätzliche Einlagen. Es war Liebe auf den ersten Blick.

Seit ca. 8 Wochen nutze ich also täglich einen meiner inzwischen 9 Filos. Ja, das ist etwas verrückt. Aber so bin ich nunmal.