Shantelle Marie Photography

2015-2016 Erin Condren Life Planner Unboxing + Overview!

erin condren life planner 2015-2016

After many trials and tribulations, my 2015-2016 Erin Condren Life Planner is finally here! I’m super excited about this for two reasons: HORIZONTAL LAYOUT and it means a fresh start! Now, I’m not just here to talk about why I’m excited about the new planners, I’m also here (as always) to give y’all an unboxing and overview of the new launch…as well as do a giveaway again! That’s right – once you finish psyching yourself up about the prettiness of the planners, you can enter to win a Vertical Layout Rose Gold Life Planner! So without further adieu, let’s take a look at both the Vertical and Horizontal Erin Condren Life Planners…along with a quick comparison of last year’s! Check out the video to see the planners in more detail and read on for some photos and descriptive terms. 😉

As a refresher, you can check out my previous unboxing of the 2014-2015 Erin Condren Life Planners and then my 6 month update! Now, let’s start with the Horizontal layout, shall we?

Not going to lie, I reeeeeally like the horizontal layout except for one thing: it lacks some of the cute touches that the vertical has. However it’s not lacking in it’s own special touches and I’m head over heels for the coloring!

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Hello, gorgeous.

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A goals page!

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The month colorings are coordinated (sorry about the contrast in these two photos) and cute. Just like the new notebooks there is a note page prior to the start of the month with a quote on the opposite page. I love the extra room for notes and have started using it for budget items I know we’ll need that month and some other general things! The “Goals” section on the monthly view used to be “Notes” – which I honestly preferred.

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I LOVE YOU HORIZONTAL LAYOUT.

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Here are the sadly uninteresting graph and unlined horizontal note pages. Prior to these, the note pages are pretty cute (themed like the monthly designs) but nowhere near as fancy as the vertical planner design that you’ll see later 🙁 They also reduced the number of pages in the back. It saves space but it makes me much more hesitant to use the pages!

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The Keep It Together folder is somewhat plain in the horizontal, but still contains the (ever unused) Perpetual Calendar! Plus hello cute (but also ever unused) stickers. There are a total of 4 pages of stickers: 2 already printed and 2 without any printing.

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I adore the new pocket! Previously, it just had a red line across the top under the seal; the dots are a vast improvement! These are the items that came in the Ready to Ship planner: some compliment cards, do it all dots, referral cards (you can add your referral link on the back), and a coil clip!

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Vertical time! Just like in the horizontal planner, there’s now a note page prior to the month with the quote on the page before the full month.

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I LOVE the changes they’ve made in the vertical. No more things telling you what to do along the bottom area, a cute flag area on the sidebar, and I like/don’t like that they’ve removed the calendar! When I used the vertical last year I would put a peppy sticker in the morning section of every Monday – this little square will be perfect for saving space but keeping the cute! I do miss the cute dots that used to line the sidebar though. RIP dots 🙁

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Adorable patterns in the note pages for vertical!

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Again, I adore the more subdued color palette of the horizontal but I really miss some of these cute touches that are only in the vertical. The chevron pattern and brightness of the Keep It Together folder are so happy!

erin condren life planner comparison 2015 2014

In case you don’t want to compare photos in this post to the other posts, you can see some comparisons here between the 2014 vertical and the new 2015 vertical and horizontal.

Erin Condren Life Planner 2014 2015 Monthly Weekly Comparison

More comparisons!

erin condren coil comparison

So the coil situation is a little less than spectacular. You can see in the photo above how much bigger the new coil is compared to last year. I miss the smallness! I would attempt recoiling but a) I’m terrified and b) rose gold 🙁

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I bought the Classic Sticker Book and the stickers are SO cute! The only downside is that there are quite a number of “tag” stickers (like Happy Birthday and For You) and I’d rather there just be stickers for the planner!

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The updated Party Pop Markers are so great! I’ve had an issue with the paint on the pens smudging though, which is a little odd.

Overall I am SO excited to be using the horizontal planner and I really like the updates that have been made to the vertical planner. I’m excited to see what’s in store going forward, but honestly, after the issues from this launch and ones I’ve had previously I may not be ordering again. Check out the video (way up at the top) for more information on some of the troubles I’ve had with Customer Service at Erin Condren (because it’s too long to type).

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Now for what you’ve all been waiting for: the giveaway! The winner will receive:

• 2015-2016 18 month Erin Condren Life Planner in Rose Gold Vertical
• A set of the Elastic Bands
• A code for a free personalized cover
• The sticker, postcard, and fancy box (plus, sealed with Hello Kitty tape)

This giveaway will only be open to US entries. Enter below using the Rafflecopter form!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Have you received your new planner yet? Let me know how you like it in the comments!

Wishing you all the entries,

Shantelle

PS – You can save $10 off your first order if you sign up for Erin Condren using my referral link! Yay savings!

In Opposition of Minimalism

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All facts from Becoming Minimalist & respective sources. Photo from me 🙂

Recently I came across a blog post from Becoming Minimalism (who I love, so no harm is intended with this post!) that contained some very surprising numbers on clutter statistics. While some of these blew me away, some freaked me out (seriously, if we have kids there might be a strict no/few toys rule for presents), some of these facts and the way they were presented just kind of irked me. So today I’m here to do something that Andrew knows I can do very well: rant. I’m greatly interested in minimalism and we’ve been working on applying the principle to our life. I’ve come across some wonderful posts and talks on the subject while researching but there is sometimes a common thread of negativity towards those who will not start downsizing. Honestly, that thinking really jams my scantron. I don’t see the value in calling people who don’t follow this vein of thinking wrong or saying that they have to start downsizing or they’re contributing to “the problem”.

It’s kind of like one piece of the “feminism problem”. I am a feminist and so is Andrew. If you believe in equal rights, you’re also a feminist (sorry to be the one to break the news to you). But many people, feminists and otherwise, seem to have an issue with women who choose to stay at home (whether or not there are children involved). It’s total crap. Feminism is about being able to make the choice to stay at home, work, or do any other combination. That concept also applies to minimalism. Doing one or the other does not make you better in anyway – it simply means you’ve made a choice that works best for you in that time. To insult or insinuate that the other party is creating a problem is to say that you’re better for having made a different choice – and that’s not true. We all have different needs, wants, and privilege in our life.

There are plenty of people that live in the 2,000 sq ft + and have over 300,000 items in their home and feel great about what they own and how they live. They don’t look at their belongings and feel tied down or unhappy about what they have. Something that I’ve found in researching within the journey that is minimalism is from the KonMari Method (from the book “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up“): when you go through your belongings, each thing you keep should make you feel joy when you touch it. Obviously I’m not talking about taxes in this case (because we’d all be in trouble then) but the idea behind it works. Why should we fault people for keeping things that cause them joy?

Minimalism also shouldn’t be going through and getting rid of everything and anything that is extraneous and you don’t use everyday. More than likely in the long run that will not make you happy and that’s really what following a new path (in this case minimalism) should do. Sure, I don’t read the same book every single day of my life but there’s no way in you-know-where that getting rid of a hand-illustrated copy of Grimm’s Fairy Tales that I found in my grandmother’s basement will make me happy. There are things we all keep in our life that really make no sense to. They’re little more than sentimental ornament (which I have many of, come Christmas time) that does nothing more than take up space. But to get rid of these items would surely cause me and all the plans that I have for them sadness. I’ve started going by this rule of thumb: would I be upset if it went up in a fire or would I not care? A bit of a depressing way to look at it but hey, it certainly weeds out the clutter! However it also makes me want to get a bigger fire safe and shove all my mementos in there, so it’s kind of a double-edged sword 😉

As usual my point is this: why can’t we just be happy for those that are happy (as long as it’s not hurting someone else)? We’re talking about keeping a record collection vs. not. Why would you penalize someone for doing that unless you’re the British, in which case you should give people back their artifacts. While I’m not really in opposition to minimalism as the post title would have you to believe (sorry for the clickbait), I’m not really opposed to the other side of it either. Whether you keep the collection or throw it out, doing so should make you happier in the long run. And if we’re making choices that support our overall wellbeing, we shouldn’t be insulting those that make different choices. At least in this semi-minimalist’s view. 🙂

Have you come across this mentality from others (or even yourself *coughshantellecough*)?

Wishing you to have your artifacts restored,

Shantelle

P.S. Long post being typed, I’m in full support of helping those in need when you can. Should you choose to declutter, try to find a local donation or charity center that accepts whatever you’re getting rid of. You’ll feel better for having less and someone will feel better for having more. 🙂

Head Over Heels for the Erin Condren Take Note Notebooks

erin condren take note notebook deluxe simple unboxing review

They are here!!! My Deluxe and Simple Erin Condren Take Note Notebooks (whew, mouthful) have finally arrived and they are adorable. So of course what else would I do but film an unboxing and review of the two beauties for y’all? I’m super pumped about this one too because I actually used a real camera to film it all. That’s right – no more creepy vibrating background. Just pure, HD up in my faceness. You’re all so lucky! As usual you can either click play below and/or read through the post which will feature pretty pictures and comparisons of the deluxe and simple Erin Condren Take Note Notebooks!

erin condren notebook unboxing review

The new EC notebooks are (thankfully) lower priced than I remember and this year they offered different sizes as well: 8.5×11 and the standard 7×9. However, not wanting to tote around something huge, I went with the 7×9 for both of my notebooks. You have the option of adding a calendar to the deluxe for an additional $15 (ouuuuch) which I went ahead and splurged on because I plan to use it as a blog/content/business notebook and figured the calendar will help with my editorial calendar organization. I plan to use the simple to use as a family notebook, hence the Clementines cover because we’re a band duh, however I’m having a massive block in how to get it set up. Any helpful hints are appreciated!

erin condren notebook unboxing review

So far the notebooks are just great. They have the same paper/quality that the Erin Condren Life Planners do and I love the note paper, just as I do in my planner! Any designs printed on the paper are gorgeous and bright so it’s a real treat to look at. The paper is thick enough to handle some heavier pens without bleed such as the PaperMate Flair, Staedtler Triplus Fineliner, or Pilot G2 0.7mm, but not too bumpy that you can’t use something as thin as the ever-amazing Pilot Coleto. Most of the paper in the deluxe and simple is lined but there is some unlined paper in the back, and of course if you get a calendar in the deluxe that starts it all off!

erin condren notebook unboxing review

The months in the Deluxe are very cute but it’s a bit annoying to have to hand place all of the Colorful Dots that are included for dates. I understand why it’s not dated but it’s still a pain in the arthritis! I half considered using tweezers to place them before I gave up and just placed the first and last day of the month. I do love the little saying on the front of each month – it’s quite similar to the sayings at the top of the months in the planner.

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Above you can see a thickness comparison between the simple and deluxe notebooks to the 18 month Life Planner (that does not have the last 6 month’s weeks in it). While the deluxe comes close to the planner, it falls just a bit short. The deluxe does come with the “keep it together folder” and a clear pocket in the back which had been removed before I took this photo though, so that probably helps a bit with the overall bigness 🙂 On the other hand the simple is about half the thickness of the planner – I just love how it feels in my hands!

I reeeeally love these notebooks. The quality is amazing and so much nicer than the spiral notebooks that you can pick up at the store. Which they should be of course! The great thing about how many pages these have is that they should last you for quite a while. Erin Condren does offer dividers now to separate the sections like a multi-subject notebook, however when I placed my order I didn’t think about getting any and I’m very happy I didn’t. At the time I didn’t realize that the dividers are basically the same size as the 7×9 interchangeable covers with slight tweaks to the design on the back. So basically you can just use your extra covers as dividers! It’s also kind of a deal since if you purchase one interchangeable cover you get a front and back cover, basically giving you two “dividers” for $10.95! You can see what it looks like in the video above 🙂

I’m super excited to dive in and start using these beauties! Have y’all gotten any of the new Erin Condren Take Note Notebooks yet? Any tips on using them family style or even for blog content?

Wishing you DIY divider hacks to help save your pennies,

Shantelle

PS – You can save $10 off your first order if you sign up for the site using my referral link! Yay savings!

How to Procrastinate…Productively

container store procrastination

The alternative name for this post was Perfectly Productive Procrastination (because y’all know I love a good alliteration) but once Andrew suggested the name I couldn’t refuse. This post has been my week…and life. I have a tendency of getting everything done very quickly, but it’s usually after quite a bit of time spent doing other things than what I need to be working on. I’ve perfected this technique so much that the dude is quite assured in my abilities to complete tasks, while I frantically do everything but what needs to get done. But hey, at least I get something done, right? So since I’m actively procrastinating on quite a few tasks this week, I thought I’d give you some options that will help you procrastinate while staying productive. 🙂

• Ya know those things that don’t have due dates? It’s time to get started. Have you been putting off doing your taxes? Jump right on it! (Author’s note: taxes do have deadlines and they are approaching. You should probably do them)
• Start researching capsule wardrobes for yourself, stray into men’s. Send links to a man you know (worthwhile information!).
• Speaking of clothing, it’s almost-spring. Start evaluating your style and closet!
• Do you wear heels? Find the best heel height for you! Believe me, this is not only productive but very, very good information to have. I’ve been burned in the past (as we all have, I’m sure).
• Clean! I’ve found I do my best cleaning when I’m avoiding something. It’s thorough, provides a wonderful end result, and we all know that a clean house is a clean mind!
• Meal prep to save time later (for more procrastination). Don’t worry, I found some recipes for ya too 😉
• Start a minimalism or fitness challenge because why not? You’ve got plenty of time!
• Catalog jewelry, electronics, and any other important/expensive items you own by taking photos and recording serial numbers and details about each item for insurance purposes.
• Visit your local Container Store and stock up on necessities like hanging toiletry organizers, packing cubes, and a very startled looking (“you’re going to plug what in me?”) Pickup Power doodad for your next trip.
• Organize your bathroom/makeup/office/desk/life using the other amazingness you ended up taking home from the Container Store.
• Lastly, take a nap. Seriously. You may be surprised what a nap can do for your morale when you’re feeling stressed! You can wake up 100x* more productive than you would have been otherwise.

There you have it, some of my fave ways of being productive while also procrastinating! Now go forth, be productive, and procrastinate.

Wishing you many hours to get things done (or not),

Shantelle

PS – Our house is SO clean right now 😉

*Amount of productively is estimated, not exact

It’s Been 84 Years…

I’m alive! Or at least, what my dude likes to refer to as “whatever your existential definition of being alive is”. I thought I’d do a mini recap post of what I’ve been up to in our time apart. And believe me, dear readers, I’ve missed looking at y’alls nonexistent faces 😉 It has been a crazy few weeks and so much has happened so let’s get to it!

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Biggest news: We’re going to Disneyland in October!! I am deep in the throes of planning our trip down to the minutest detail. We’re also planning on doing an anniversary shoot while we’re there so if anyone has a recommendation for Disneyland photogs let me know! I’ve got a few feelers out so I’m excited to see who we end up shooting with.

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2nd biggest news: I’m finally a ginger! I’ve wanted to be a redhead since basically forever (mainly fueled by the beauty that is Dana Scully) and I’m super duper happy to be one now. I may even go a little brighter at my next visit to the salon 🙂 My dude even took that photo on the left – he’s slowly working on getting better with a camera. You don’t want to see the other 50 shots he tried!

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• Master Manolo Gracey Panda XVI is getting huge! We’ve been taking him on walks more often which he loves and hates, poor dear.

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• I finally upgraded my laptop to the Pro with Retina and wowie. What a gorgeously detailed screen it is! It has twice the ram my old pro had and fifty times the pretty. As much as that level of detail isn’t always noticeable, I do find myself marveling a little over how crisp photos can look on it. I also adore how light it is in comparison! Andrew made the decision to keep my old pro and switch out the ram so he’s finally a full-on Apple user! Now I’ve got to live with the tech dork that keeps saying he has to go get his “Macbook Pro” though rather than laptop. Gear snob 😉 But hey, at least now we both have the cutest decals for our laptops ever.

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• We saw Cinderella. Like a lot. Look for a review on that Saturday!

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The dude and my phone. Because who doesn’t need to see a super tall guy with a Minnie Mouse case once in a while?

• The last month or so has been so stressful that I fell off the wagon a bit with my exercising and diet, but who doesn’t from time to time? I’ve made a commitment to really focus on this and start integrating exercise more into my daily routine. We’ve started walking Mani on the daily and I found the Blogilates beginner calendar which I’m going to start on Thursday! It looks very challenging but hey, I wanna feel better and I need to look extra cute for our shoot in October 😉

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• Our walks have been super fun, and really freaking pretty. So nice I had to mention them twice.

• I found some new amazing pens to use with my Erin Condren Life Planner. I was also so happy to receive a survey to complete on the 2015-2016 planners – I’m crossing my fingers for a smaller version! Not too much longer now!

That wraps up the first post back for me. Real talk: if you’ve stuck around to keep reading now that I’m back I really appreciate it. I was feeling burned out, creatively non-existent, and all around depressed and the time away really has helped me feel so much more refreshed. I was able to do some thinkin’ and I’ve really started to look in a new direction for the blog and my business. Blogging and photographing will continue but it will be changing…slowly. And as always, I invite y’all to contribute with what you like, what you don’t, and what you would!

I hope y’all have had a great few weeks! Did anyone else have awesomeness happen?

Wishing you gingers and Disneyland,

Shantelle

PS – I love Titanic.