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Erin Condren Life Planner | Review

This post may contain affiliate links; all opinions are my own. See Disclosures here

I’m so excited to do this first impression/review for the 2014 Erin Condren Life Planner!!

I use my phone’s calendar and reminders to help me keep track of everything, but I find that I’m more organized when I’m writing things down. It helps me remember things and it’s nice to be able to see everything all mapped out.

I’d been looking for a cute planner that I could be excited about writing in and considered getting one of the Kate Spade agendas like my sister has. KateSpade.com was only selling the filofax-style refills and not the actual agenda to use with them. I was a little bummed and checked around on amazon and ebay with nothing I was looking for.

But in my search, I started hearing more about the Erin Condren Life Planners and I thought I’d give it a try. I went to the website and clicked the Life Planner section (there’s all sorts of stationary, wedding planners, and teacher planners too!). There was a choice of “Classic Edition” or the “Gold Edition” and I chose Classic. There are so many fun, bright covers to choose from and you can even customize and add pictures, change colors, or fonts.

Planners are usually $50, but since it’s later in the year, they’re only $30 now! If that still seems like a lot for a planner, you can get an extra $10 off by creating an account through my referral. This is a great way to try out the Life Planners and see if it’ll work for you!

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I chose the Charcoal Party Pops Life Planner and customized it to say MuffinChanel. I selected to have my Planner start in April since I knew I wouldn’t be using the months past. I ordered the planner on March 17 and it arrived on March 25. The waiting was the hardest part because I was very excited to start using it!

*UPDATE: The new 2014/2015 Life Planners are out. Check out my review & comparison.

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erin condren life planner review coupon code muffinchanel 6The planner arrived bubble wrapped in this cute box with bright pink tissue paper and some fun sample stickers. I also ordered the three pack of elastic bands to keep the planner closed + they look extra fun.

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erin condren life planner review coupon code muffinchanelI love the way the customization turned out. The cover is laminated and it feels pretty thick which is great. The spiral binding feels super strong and won’t bend like normal notebook binding. The planner measures 7.25″ x 9.25″ and can fit nicely in my purse.

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The inside of the Life Planner is standard for any style cover you choose. There is a ruler/bookmark that you can pop in and out of the spiral binding to mark your place. erin condren life planner review coupon code muffinchanel 2

I really like the way the planner is laid out. You can look at the month view at the start of each new month and then a weekly view after that. The week view starts on a Monday and each day is mapped out vertically into “morning”, “day”, and “night” sections. There is space on the side for notes and goals and space on the bottom for anything from lists to meal plans, to exercise, thoughts/inspiration, or whatever you want.

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There are laminated tabs for each month and section,

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and a cute folder pocket in the back as well as a thick, large zip lock pouch.

There are twenty pages in the back for notes and colorful stickers (blank and labeled with things like “date night”, “doctor’s appt”, and “birthday”) to help you stay organized. It’s just a super fun planner that encourages you to use it with its intuitive layout and beautiful design.

I absolutely love mine! The only thing I would like to see improve in the planner is the paper thickness. Since you’re using both sides of the paper, you will be able to see the writing through to the next page. I usually use the fine point Sharpie felt tipped pens, and I don’t have any bleed through, but I would prefer not to see through to the other side. ❤

Definitely check out erincondren.com if you’re looking for a new planner. And don’t forget to use this link to make your account for $10 off 🙂

**UPDATE** May 4, 2014: Planners are only $20 now! And with the link, ^ you’ll get $10 off! So awesome!! Check it out!

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Categories
Blog Lifestyle

Top 10 – September Favorites

This post may contain affiliate links; all opinions are my own. See Disclosures here

  • Skillful Means by Tarthang Tulku

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This book is all about improving your life by being mindful of what is happening right now. I first read this book a couple of years ago and it’s great. How many times are you walking to class or your car or at the mall and you’re on your cell phone? Or how often are you thinking about the XYZ you have to do tomorrow or next week instead of paying attention to what you are doing right now? All we have is the present — this moment. Skillful Means is all about living in the moment you are in; being mindful about what is going on around you. No distractions — just really being self aware and clearing your mind. It’s a great book that will help you focus and appreciate what’s happening all around you.

  • Starbucks Star Dash

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From now until October 1, Starbucks is doing their Star Dash. Basically, it’s another incentive for you to go to Starbucks during certain times of the year in order to accumulate stars to earn a gift card. This “Star Dash” is different from the stars you earn with the Rewards Card, although, you do need a rewards card to participate. Separate from the regular stars you earn with the Rewards Card, these “Star Dash” stars will give you $5 or $10 gift cards depending on how many you get before the deadline. Each transaction will ear you one star. I’m on my way to earning the $10 gift card!

  • Mediterranean Veggie sandwich (Panera)

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New favorite sandwich for sure. I was looking for some meatless options at different restaurants and a friend suggested I try this sandwich from Panera. It’s amazing —  lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red onion, red peppers, cilantro/jalepeño hummus, and feta swiss cheese (I prefer swiss) on tomato basil bread. I bought ingredients today to make my own version at home! YAY!

  • iOS7

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I love the clean look and feel of the iOS7 update. I have the iPhone 4S and my camera app is faster and I really like having the “live filters”. Command Center is great and I really like all the new ringtones/sounds. It’s neat to have the option to block contacts and to be able to multi-task between apps.

  • Clear

Clear is a simple task management/list application. It’s clean and easy to navigate with lots of color schemes to choose from.

  • iTunes Radio

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iTunes radio is basically like Pandora. I prefer it because it’s already integrated into iTunes and it remembers the songs I’ve listened to and makes it easy for me to purchase them if I choose. You can create your own “stations” and mark that you like certain songs. There’s even a Top 100 iTunes radio and you can listen to a shuffle of all the Top 100 songs on iTunes. I think this is awesome for getting high quality audio for more than just a preview of a song you might be interested in buying.

  • The Killers – Shot At The Night

It was actually through iTunes Radio that I first heard “Shot At The Night”. ^^^

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The Killers songs are always a little vague, but this one seems to be about taking this once in a lifetime opportunity to get out of a situation that is stale and move on to a life that is exciting and full of happiness. I love this. Plus who doesn’t love a nice 80’s synth ballad! Yay for new music from The Killers! I’m excited for Direct Hits to come out in November.

  • Lighted Makeup Mirror

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This mirror is great for applying makeup or tweezing your brows. With 8xs magnification and 360 degree rotation, you’ll be sure to see exactly what you are doing!

  • SEPHORA COLLECTION – Pro Stippling Brush #44

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I’m surprised this brush doesn’t have better reviews online. A lot of people are saying the brush sheds, but I’ve never experienced any shedding. I really like this brush. I use it to apply my Marc Jacobs Genius Gel Foundation. The brush gives my skin an even, airbrushed yet natural look. The natural and synthetic fibers work together to give a streak-free application that looks great all day.

This dress is super cute. I bought it for a friend’s wedding next month but I can see myself getting a lot of use out of it. The lace design is really pretty, but durable — this isn’t some dainty-be-careful-or-it’ll-rip lace. The A-line makes it flattering for all body shapes and it’s very comfortable on.