Picking a planner is my favorite purchase of the year. Every year, hands down. I have been ordering the same planner for the last couple of years (same brand), but selecting the leather type and color can take me several days of agonizing back-and-forth in my head. I’m never quite sure of my decision until it arrives at my doorstep and I open the box — then I get giddy and immediately start adding my family’s birthdays. This last year has been full of huge changes and transitions for me, so I’m thinking that I might want to switch up my planner selection for 2016 — keep the changes going, and hopefully my days will continue to be filled with wonderful things for my 27th year.
Qualifications for the new planner:
- I’m a gal that’s on the go, so my planner MUST fit in the majority of my bags. I have no time for a XL planner that I have to carry outside of my purse, or even worse, carry an additional bag just accommodate the planner. Needy planners are the worst.
- 12 month maximum. I get bored easily, and 17 months of the same exterior color and design sounds awful — thus why 99% of Kate Spade’s planners don’t make the cut. Too much commitment for me.
- Clean. Too much design on the exterior is tiresome, as mentioned above. While I’m a huge fan of Lilly Pulitzer, her calendars have way too much going on for anyone over the age of 16, so you won’t find me carrying one of those bad boys anytime soon.
After days of sifting through online reviews, the following two planners are making it extremely difficult for me to make a decision for 2016:
2016 Kate Spade New York Linen Stripe Planner
- I love the size of this compact beauty: 7″ x 9″
- I also love the price, $40.00 on PaperSource.
- It has tabs for each month + an interior pocket ( I always stick grocery lists, little love notes, and wallet size pictures in the front of my planners so this pocket would be fantastically functional )
- The gold foil on the front, mixed with the linen stripes, keeps the planner from looking seasonal ( The popular Kate Spade planner with gold polka-dots looks like a New Year’s card — EVERY DAY FOR SEVENTEEN MONTHS )
- 12 months of beauty… keeps you loving it just long enough, and then you get to order your 2017 planner.
Graphic Image 2016 Daily Journal in Brown Tejus Leather
- This is my baby. This has been my reorder for the last 3 years. Different leather, and different color, but this gorgeous little planner is a stunner. — Stunners are going to cost a pretty penny, but so worth it.
- $98 gets you 416 pages of beautifully sewn in pages. Within these pages you get maps, major U.S & international holidays, “common phrases” in 5 different languages, lots of pages for notes, and so much more.
- Truley a classic, this planner has received so many compliments when I whip it out. The color choices are rich, and the leather is soft and built to last.
- The monogramming option gives it the extra personalization that I love.
- …the Brown Tejus leather kind of already stole my ♡
Writing my reviews on each of these planners just made my heart hurt a little bit, how am I supposed to choose? I want to give Kate a chance, but how can I resist the classic look and feel of Graphic Image’s butter-like leather?
I’m giving myself two hours, and one (maybe two) glass of pinot noir to decide.
Hoping ya’lls decision comes much easier. Shop both beauties below: