How to Set Up a Personal Size Planner
Hey friends! I am so excited for our new for 2019 personal and half letter inserts for your planner. Today I have a quick look at how to set up a personal size planner. You can also see how to set up an A5 size planner, here. I get a lot of questions about where to start, what you need to set up a planner, where to find supplies, etc.. so I thought that these posts might be helpful for some.
This post contains affiliate links. I do earn a small commission if you purchase through these links, but this comes at no extra cost to you.
How to Set Up a Personal Size Planner
Personal Size Planner Binders
The first thing you will need is your binder. There are ring-bound planners that range from $20 to $150, just depending on what you are looking to spend. For $20 you can get a binder like the ones shown in this post. They are not leather, and they are cheaper made than the higher priced binders. However, they do get the job done and I use them frequently. These are the Creative Year Planner by Recollections. You can get them at Michaels stores, and on their website.
For a mid-range priced binder, you can pick up a Filofax. Filofax binders vary in price, some are less expensive, and some, that are made of leather, are more expensive. For a mid-range planner, I have used the Filofax Saffiano. When shopping with Filofax for a personal size planner, you’ll use the Personal Organizer with Personal size planner inserts. For a luxurious planner (made with leather), the Filofax Malden is very popular. Finally, Foxy Fix has some really beautiful, handmade leather planners.
There are a few perks to setting up a ring-bound planner, and for me, the biggest is the ability to completely customize your planner. You can create different sections, keep just what you need in your planner at one time, and have a variety of inserts to help you stay organized. Some categories that I typically go with in my planner are weekly inserts, monthly inserts, budgeting, meal planning, household things (including cleaning), etc… I’ve even recently incorporated a section for my son’s health and keeping track of him and his doctors and medical bills, too.
Personal Size Inserts
Once you have your binder, you’ll need some inserts. The main sections in your planner will definitely be the weekly and monthly inserts. However, you can save space by not storing them all in your planner at once. I typically keep 6 months of monthly inserts and 3 months of weekly inserts in my planner, at a time, that way I have space for other things. There are even daily inserts if you want to get detailed with planning each day. If you want to try the two page sizes- personal versus the half size for A5 planners, you can download these free habit tracking printables.
Some ring-bound planners come with inserts already in them for weekly and monthly planning, however, the paper quality is usually not the greatest. I definitely recommend purchasing separate inserts or printing your own. I share my favorite paper for printing planner inserts in this post.
Planner Dividers
Once you have your inserts, you’ll need some dividers to create your planner sections. I love my new clear dividers that I DIY’d. We might be listing these in the shop soon, but in case you want to make your own, I do have a video tutorial for that, here. All you need is a laminator, laminating sleeves, and a silhouette machine to cut them. I even included the templates for you, which you can grab here. There are also a lot of sellers on Etsy who have beautiful dividers you can purchase. I recommend getting some that are laminated, just so that they’ll last longer.
Other Supplies
Now, once you have inserts and dividers, your planner is pretty much set up. However, there are a lot of fun accessories you can get for your planner, too. You can dress it up with planner charms, fun embroidered paper clips, like those shown on my planner, and more. For clips, I highly recommend Lady Bug on a Pug on Etsy. You can see other planner clips on Etsy, here, too.
Planner Stickers
Another common question is- what size planner stickers do I use with a personal planner. One thing to look for when you are purchasing inserts for your planner, is if they are compatible with Erin Condren sized planner stickers. We have lots of cute options in our shop to decorate your planner and plan creatively.
I love my personal size planner, and because it is smaller, it is great for taking on the go. You’ll have to keep that in mind if you are someone who needs more space to write, you might prefer an A5 size planner . I do have a comparison of A5 planners vs personal size planners, too!
That is basically all that you will need to set up a personal size planner. Any personal planner users who are reading this, what supplies do you consider to be must-have? Let us know in the comments!
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