My planning style has changed a lot since I first got started with a paper planner, specifically the Erin Condren Life Planner. Certain things that I used to love just don’t make sense anymore. Now that I’ve settled in to the perfect planning style for me, I thought I would share My Planning Essentials:
My Planner
My planner is obviously my number one essential. I use the 12-month Erin Condren Life Planner in the Horizontal and Colorful variety. I really love the bright colors and the customization you get with Erin Condren planners. I did a full review on my 2020 Life Planner here.
I prefer the horizontal layout because I have a lot more room to write things out and it just flows better to me.
Stickers
Throughout the years, I’ve used all kinds of stickers and washi tape. But honestly, I’ve never been a fan of a “no white space” look in my planner and I could never understand why anyone would want to cover up all the color and detail printed in the Erin Condren Life Planner.
I like to buy sticker kits from PeachyChicCo on Etsy, but sprinkle the stickers throughout my entire month or more. I think of it as a nice decorative way to accentuate the color theme for that month, not cover it up. You get a variety of stickers in her kits and they fit perfectly in my horizontal planner.
This is a look at the stickers I’ll lay down for my weekly spread. I think they look super cute but also functional with the vertical bars and the list tracker heart strips.
Another store I really love on Etsy is StickWithMeShop. Her stickers are super cute and kawaii and she has a variety from decorative to icon/functional to handwritten/text. I love using her signature Tofu The Panda to highlight certain tasks or to represent a certain chore.
I love an elevated, simple look and I feel like these stickers give me that look but still keep things fun and functional.
Sticky Notes
I used to use white out in my planner, and then cover it up with a sticker if I had to change my plans. Now, I use my sticky notes for pre-planning and to just keep my plans flexible before writing something in ink. It’s just a lot easier and it keeps my planner more clean looking.
I especially like these Erin Condren ones because they have the snap-in clip on the side so I can keep everything with my planner. I mentioned these before in my post about planning blog content; they really help me to organize my thoughts.
Pens
I love pens. I used to obsess over the best pens with the cutest colors and the best ink/dry time/writing tip. I would try to color code and be super organized, but I’ve realized that that doesn’t really work for me anymore.
I only like writing in my planner with black ink. And not just any black — I only use my Sharpie pens. I’ve been using these for years and don’t think I will ever stop. I love how they write and how smooth they are. I used to have the different colors, but I only like black and I’m okay with that.
The only “pen” color in my planner is from my highlighters which I use sparingly. These highlighters a super soft and “pastel” so it doesn’t bleed all through the page.
Photos
I have had a photo printer for a while, but this year I’ve been using it a lot more and I love it. I love printing a cute picture from something fun in the week and sticking it in my planner. It just gives me scrap book vibes and makes it a lot more fun to flip back through.
Since we’ve been going to Disneyland a lot more, I always have a fun picture that I will print out and stick on that day. The photo printers don’t have any ink; they use zink paper so it’s great to travel with too.
These are all my planning essentials; I use all of these things every week. I’m really happy with my planning style and how I use my planner. What are your planning essentials? Let me know!
