Leah O’Neil's Blog Posts

05.20.16

Hello again friends! Leah here, keeping it real by showing you what my planner looks like during a very busy month. I get questions all the time about how I use my planner functionally. I am ALWAYS going to have some decoration in my planner, because decorating my planner is a conscious choice I make to prioritize creative time, which helps keep me sane AND makes me excited to open my planner and actually use it. Because I have been insanely busy this month though, I have not had time to decorate as much as I normally would. I thought this would be a good time to show you how I am using my planner functionally, but also show you how I am still finding ways to get creative and dress things up!

This month, I used the Bloom and Grow scrapbook collection to decorate because I am so in love with the garden theme and the sweet little gnomes!

I can’t help but add some décor to the front pockets. The Bits and Pieces pack for the Bloom and Grow collection is so full of adorable ephemera! That is mostly what I filled the pockets with this month because I just HAD to use those die-cut gnomes. They make me so happy to look at! The little square pieces are from the Bloom and Grow SN@P! Pack.  I use a repositionable adhesive to make the pieces stay in place in the pockets, which also allows me to easily remove them later.

After decorating my front pockets, I usually like to create a matching dashboard so everything coordinates. As you can see, I have kept my dashboard very simple this month. I picked one of my favorite 12x12 papers from the collection and cut it down to fit my planner. Because of the words on the paper, I had to make the decision to either cut through one of the words, or try to cut in between them. I chose to cut in between the words but that made the paper about a half an inch too short. I thought about leaving it as is, but then I remembered I had this pretty scalloped ribbon that I could glue to the bottom to extend the length a bit. I actually ended up adding two rows of the ribbon and I love how it turned out!

Whenever I am super busy, I need my planner to be everything I need on-the-go. This means it has to store important papers/information I need to reference and have ample space for making to-do lists. Even though I decorate nearly all my front pockets, I do save the bigger secretarial pocket for holding larger papers or information I need to access easily. For example, right now this pocket is holding tickets I printed to an upcoming concert, a couple of receipts, a bill, a wedding invitation and a blank birthday card. I could fit even more into this roomey pocket if wanted to!

When I know I am going to be running around a lot, I will load up my planner with extra craft supplies in case I get a little free time to decorate while I am away from home. Simple Stories makes pocket pages that are made to fit the 6x8 SN@P! binders, but they fit perfectly in my Carpe Diem planner. They are a little larger than the calendar inserts, so I do prefer to keep them in the very back. I use these inserts to hold stickers and washi paper tape, as well as various sized journal cards from the SN@P! Pack, which I like to use to write lists on or to journal special moments I want to remember.

I use this plastic storage pouch to hold my favorite die cuts. The zipper keeps all the little pieces from falling out of my planner. I use die cuts on pretty much every single project I create, so I had to find an easy way to store them in my planner.

I haven’t really had time to sit down and plan out a whole week at a time during the first half of May. Instead I have been making daily to-do lists. Simple Stories sells a lined paper pad that slides into the back pocket of your planner. This pad is SO useful because you can easily tear a sheet off and put it wherever you want in your planner since the paper has pre-punched holes for the rings! Lately, I have been writing my to-do lists on this pad and then putting the list at the front of my planner to keep me extra focused on the tasks I need to complete.

As much as I LOVE decorating weekly, there are times where that’s just not possible, and that’s okay! One compromise I always make time for, no matter how little time I have, is to decorate at least my monthly spread. So I did just that!

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE the gnomes in the Bloom and Grow collection?! Well here is another one, with an accompanying word strip from this sticker pack that says “chillin with my gnomies!” That gave me a good chuckle and still does every time I see it on this page. The same sticker pack includes several more sheets of various styles of stickers that all match the collection; I used many of them in this layout. 

The box stickers are not exactly a perfect fit for the monthly squares, but they are very close. I love how they look, so I used several of them to fill some of the boxes throughout the month.

I added some extra layers to the layout with washi tape and die cuts from the Bits and Pieces pack.

The letters that spell out May and the cloud and sun sticker behind them are both from the 12x12 cardstock sticker sheets. It has been raining SO much in Virginia for the past month, which is another reason why I felt this collection was perfect for decorating May. Since it is garden-themed, there are a lot of weather-related references. I used a few in this spread.

If your month has been as crazy as mine, I hope I have given you a couple of ideas on how to add some creative details to your planner without spending too much time decorating. Of course, it’s always an option to not decorate at all, as the Carpe Diem inserts have quite a lot of pretty details already. I am feeling so thankful for the fact that the inserts are undated because otherwise I would have wasted a couple of weeks of inserts this month. What are some ways you have made your planner more functional for your needs? Tag me on Instagram @sunny.leah, I would love to see your ideas!

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03.21.16

Hello there Carpe Diem Planner lovers! It is hard to believe that we are already nearing the end of March! It took me awhile, but I feel like I am finally getting settled into my planner. I have it set up in a way that is really working for all of my needs. I only carry 2-3 months at one time, but I still manage to keep my planner pretty chunky! Today I want to show you how I have created my own custom dividers and the dashboard you see below, using products from the Carpe Diem Collection.

I selected four of my favorite 12x12 Carpe Diem scrapbook papers and took the March insert out of my planner to trace the shape onto each piece of paper twice. I did not bother tracing the tab because I am making tabs later. Since I like my dividers to be thicker, I cut out the two traced shapes with my paper trimmer and then glued them together with a glue stick to make one divider. To make my dividers even sturdier, I placed them under a heavy book for a few minutes while the glue dried and then punched the holes for the rings that I had marked earlier.

I punched some tabs using a paper punch from We R Memory Keepers, and laminated them with clear tab stickers. I prefer not to laminate my dividers because I really love the feel of paper, but I do like to laminate my tabs. It makes them extremely durable which is important because the tabs get the most “wear and tear.” Also, the lamination allows me to re-label the tabs later if I want. If you use stickers or a label maker to title your tabs, the slick surface should allow you to peel off the sticker later. Personally, I use a black Sharpie to label my tabs. The writing does not smudge until I am ready to remove it. You can remove Sharpie from a laminated surface by scribbling over the writing completely with a dry erase marker and then simply wiping away with a cloth or paper towel. My dividers are currently labeled as “Calendar,” “To Do Lists” and “Budget.”

The Carpe Diem 12x12 scrapbook papers have such beautiful patterns that I did not do anything to decorate the front side of the dashboard or the three dividers. I just wanted to let the lovely designs shine!

However, the back sides were feeling a little plain, so I decided to add some decorative flair to each one. I love having the little something extra when I flip the dividers over in my planner!

I want to show you each one closer up, starting with the one on the top left. That one has no tab because it is a dashboard that is just being used to decorate the front of my planner.

I used a few different sized pieces from the Carpe Diem SN@P! Pack as well as some ephemera from the Bits and Pieces pack. I dressed things up a bit with a little washi tape and a floral chipboard sticker from the Carpe Diem 6x12 Chipboard Sticker set.

Here is what the divider looks like in my planner. On the right side, I have one of the Carpe Diem Pocket Inserts stuffed with the Carpe Diem Insta Quote Stickers. I embellished the pocket insert with one of the decorative pieces I made for my blog post last month.

The “Calendar” divider below is being used to mark the first section of my planner where I currently keep 3 months of calendar inserts.

For this one, I used more embellishments from the SN@P! Pack, some washi paper tape and enamel dots. The arrow and heart are from the same 6x12 Chipboard Sticker set mentioned before.

Below is the “To Do Lists” divider which marks the section of my planner where I keep plain lined paper for my excessive list-making and a few daily inserts for creating detailed lists on especially busy days.

More SN@P! Pack pieces were used here (there is a LOT in that pack!), with a chipboard frame and bow, and a decorative brad. Below is what the divider looks like inside my planner next to another Carpe Diem Pocket Insert holding some Word Label Stickers. I also decided to add one of these adorable Carpe Diem magnetic clips!

Lastly, I have a divider to mark the “Budget” section of my planner. This is an important section for me because my husband and I have a lot of financial goals this year, such as paying down our credit card debt and hopefully buying our first home! This section is where I keep our monthly household budget breakdown, our debt repayment plan, and a calendar insert to mark due dates for bills. Budget/finance information is not very exciting, so dressing up this divider really makes this section feel more welcoming!

This one is my favorite! I used different paper punches to cut out a bunch of shapes from the 6x6 Paper Pad that I layered behind this pretty 6x12 element from this piece of 12x12 paper. Additionally, I used several stickers from the Fundamental Cardstock Sticker sheet.

In my planner, this divider is sitting next to a third Carpe Diem Pocket Insert. These pocket inserts have been SO handy in housing supplies for on-the-go planning!

I had so much fun decorating these dividers! I just love how they make each important section of my planner feel like it has a “home.” If you would like to know more about my planner setup, please feel free to ask here in the comments or over on my Instagram! 

Thank you for stopping by the blog today! I hope you all are starting to feel more settled into your Carpe Diem planners as well and are using them to reach for your goals!

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