UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed.
Congrats to: Jenny (jpage84@…) and Lyss (lyss.rose@…)
Over the last 3 years, I’ve talked A LOT about planners here on my blog. I LOVE paper planners and calendars!
Although there are a few things Dave and I do digitally via Apple’s iCalendar, we both definitely prefer paper planners so we can see many days and weeks at one time, quickly scratch a couple notes down on a specific day, and vigorously cross off our finished items each day.
For the past 3 years, I’ve used the same planner — and I loved how the inside of the planner was set up. Vertical columns for each day of the week, a full week at a glance, and plenty of blank space at the bottom of each day to jot my notes, make my to-do list, etc.
It was the best planner (for my needs) I had ever found — however, last year the company changed management, their customer service plummeted, and their 2013 planners were not available until well into 2013 (crazy I know). Luckily, I had an extra one from the year before (and the dates aren’t written in so I could make the 2012 version work for 2013) and a friend gave me one as a gift — so I am actually set for planners for a few months yet.
But since I like to be prepared (and since I know the “normal” time to shop for a planner is right about now) I decided to start looking for other planners that had the same set-up as mine. I kept coming up short with many of the different companies and brands I looked into.
And then, a few weeks ago, The Personal Planner company (here is their Facebook page) contacted me about reviewing their planners and doing a giveaway on my blog. They told me I would be able to customize my planner for my personal needs — but I’ll be honest, I was not super optimistic I would be able to implement all my “planner essentials”.
However, after spending 3 or 4 minutes quickly looking through some of the customizable options, I felt fairly confident I could make a planner EXACTLY how I wanted and needed. Plus, I got a little creative and designed my own cover and back (more on this below).
After about 15 minutes (seriously, it didn’t take long at all) I had a planner that looked and functioned almost exactly like my previous planner, and it had several extra bonuses the old planner didn’t have — like extra pages in the back, customizable tabs at the bottoms of each page, and really fun colors and designs to pick from.
I was sold and immediately told the folks at Personal Planner that I would love to promote their planners on my blog!
Here are just a FEW of the customizable options:
- Size / style of the planner
- Color, design, font style of the inside pages
- Front and back cover (you can even create and upload your own custom design like I did)
- Page layout and page design
- Owner information page
- 3 tabbed sections on the bottom of every page (there are so many different options to choose from)
- Various choices for extra pages in the back of the planner
- Optional addition of your our own personal dates (birthdays, anniversaries, school days off, vacations, etc)
- Optional addition of your own addresses so you can have a complete address book included in your planner
- and so much more!
The process is super quick and easy. With just a few clicks here and there, you can totally change the look and design of your planner.
Here’s a TINY sampling of the various sizes, styles, colors, and designs:
One of the things that most attracted me to the Personal Planner is that although there are TONS of awesome pre-designed covers you can choose from (and then customize as desired), you can also upload your own pictures or your own complete design for the front and the back cover.
So you literally can personalize this planner to look exactly like you want. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never been able to do this with any other planner company I’ve worked with — and I’ve tried my fair share of planners over the years 🙂
When I set out to create my planner, I wanted something really unique, and since we have a new baby coming in March, I didn’t want to use a picture that would then be out-dated in just a couple months. So I opted for a quote instead — and I just LOVE how the design turned out 🙂
Here are digital pictures of the actual front and back designs.
Simple, but definitely not something I’ll mind looking at for the next year or so 🙂
The Giveaway:
Today, 2 lucky readers will win a Personal Planner. Winners can completely design their own planner.
How to Enter:
{required} Leave a comment on this post. What do you look for in a planner?
If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please visit the actual blog post to enter. Email entries, Facebook comments, and Twitter messages will NOT be counted.
Prizes:
(2) Personal Planners as described above.
This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm on Thursday, 11/21/2013 and is open to ANYONE, 18 years or older. I will use And the Winner Is to select the winning comments at random. Winners will be notified by email and noted at the top of this post. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize or I will choose a new winner. Please see my full disclosure policy and contact me with any questions you have. Good luck!
Ligia says
My ideal planner must have a wide interval between lines and the lines must be in a light color, i can’t function otherwise :))
amanda s. says
Lots of room for my daily to do lists.
Lana says
I love the options with this planner! I have a hard time finding the PERFECT planner every year, I believe this one would work for me! I like that it has ample room for to-do lists, etc.
Heather G. says
I love a planner that has plenty of room to write. I also like extra pages for lists/notes
Sylvia Wilson says
Perfect way to keep track of my busy life and have it reflect my personal style in the process!
Renee Spindle says
I love the layout of this planner. My favorite type of planner is a week at a glance. Love this customizable option!!
Trish says
Anything that can keep me organized is good to me!
trish says
ample space to write, portability, neatness and strudy so it can last 52 weeks.
Lynne says
I always use a paper planner and must be able to see each month on one spread. I also need plenty of room for my “to do” list.
Martha says
I like a planner that gives enough room to write, to be able to see a year at a glance, have different tabs for kids schedules.
Rachel Berghorst says
What a great idea! I struggle trying to find a good system to keep track of homeschooling lessons and daily events. Maybe this is the ticket to success!
Kristin Revere says
I like to write notes in my daily calendar and also like to see a year at a glance. I like to do lists and addresses as well.
Steph Smith says
These look really interesting, I always have a hard time finding a planner and the e-options never quite work right. I like the weekly view, but have to have places for notes for to-do lists and notes of things that happened, I keep them as a kind of diary from the year too.
Sarah Adams says
This is one of the coolest ideas I’ve seen. I spend way too much time at the end of each year picking out my new planner and had no idea that time could be better spent creating my own, with everything exactly as I like it.
Jen Ewing says
Flexibility is the most important criteria I look for in a planner. After a lay off, I am taking a new career path and will need a planner to keep track of my business appointments as well as my family’s activities. The customization options with this planner are exceptional!
Sharon Ames says
I like this idea!
Melissa hartman says
I love these planners so cute. Love that you can customize them to your own specific needs.
Paula Holmes says
Awesome planners.
I like to see my week at a glance with enough space to write in lots of daily details.
Aisha Simmons says
Great custom options and fabulous gift for some teachers I know!
Anita Treacy says
Love the look of this planner! I always seem to struggle to find just the right planner! I like to make lots of notes, and need the extra space for that.
Cheryl says
I like a planner that is compact so I can carry it in my purse. I also prefer a planner that has all 7 days as well as times from 6am to 10 pm.
Tina says
The thing I look for most in a planner is that it has lines. I know that sounds crazy, but I can’t write in a straight line and some days, my planner looks jumbled.
Even if I don’t win this contest, I think I will order one anyway.
bridget says
I need an area for notes! And a small year overview. Been on the search for a new planner this whole year…
Jennifer says
I love planners. I have to have vertical columns. I like some sort of time notation on each day and plenty of space for notes and to-dos. Currently, I alter a basic planner from Staples to include hourly time slots and a meal planning section.
Anthea P says
I love seeing a week at a time, but I must also see the month. Space for to-do lists is a must.
Angie says
As a teacher, ladies bible study leader, wife, and mother I like a planner that can keep all my life’s activities easy to access and separate. I like color coding for easy use.
Marlene says
I’m looking for a planner that has monthly calendars along with a 2 pg spread for a week. So excited to look into these planners!
Staci Herrell says
I like planners that are easy to use, doesn’t have a lot of stuff that most people wouldn’t use and can be adapted to fit the changes that naturally occur in a year. Something that looks great and has plenty of space to jot things down
Denise says
I look for lots of different spaces to write in, plus my writing isn’t small. Have such a variety of different types of things/areas that need to be done every day, that it makes it sometimes difficult to keep track of. The to do lists, projects list, notes, etc. It would be wonderful to be able to stay both organized and productive! I use way too many post its. This planner looks to be well thought out.
Sarah Pelletier says
I like to see a week at a time.
Kristen says
I like to have both a monthly calendar to view things for an entire month, as well as more detailed weekly pages.
Thanks for this giveaway 🙂
Amber says
I need a planner that shows the full month with lots of space to write in all of our crazy schedules!
Christa says
I can never find exactly what I need in a planner. This product is amazing!
Virginia Gal says
Definitely has to have space to jot notes, phone numbers
And to do lists…
stephanie smith says
i like planners that have monthly, weekly and daily view options with to do lists. im huge on lists. we have 5 in our family with 3 of them being 3 and under and my son has special needs so we have alot of appointments. i need space tow rite it all!
Megan says
I like planners that have both a month view and also a weekly view option. I like having lots of space on each day for notes and appointments.
Amy says
I love a planner that has room for contacts and notes in the back of it. A few additional pages is key to help organize things that come up throughout the whole year. Also, I once had a planner that had a page of post-it notes so that you could tear them off and use them anytime you needed one. Loved that!!
Mandi says
Something that works with my needs. I don’t like a bunch of things on my planet that don’t relate to me or this season of my life.
Susan Kelly says
I need something to see the whole month at a glance but then a place to see just today. Also a place for todos. I write big so I want to be able to write in it but not to bulky I leave it home
Amy says
I’m never able to find a planner that meets ALL of my needs… Who ever thought up this customizable planner idea is a genius! 🙂