Hobonichi Cousin and Thank you all cover

I used to use a Hobonichi Techo (A6) but have never used a Hobonichi Cousin (A5), because rings have always been my thing.

My planning system is generally very simple. I have bookings on one week on two page calendar, to do lists on another week on two page calendar, and brief notes on lined paper. Once everything is done I throw those pages away. I never plan my free time, just booking for work. That is why I like rings.

For the past few months however, my organisational needs for part of my life have changed. I have been renovating my apartment as well as selling things at a local auction house, on local online bulletin boards and online auction sites, at various vintage shops, and via my blog. For this I need to keep records of who is coming to do/collect things when, who I need to email, auction dates, what to list and post on each day, when I post things, where to meet people, and various running totals.

One of the swaps I did recently was with Susie D, who swapped her new Hobonichi Cousin for some of my writing mats, Oliclips and a latté!

What I like about the Hobonichi Cousin not only the lovely thin and light Tomoe River paper, but also that it has so many sections. There is a

yearly overview (where I write the days of upcoming auctions),
a monthly overview (where I list my total income from sales and expenditure for renovations)
a weekly schedule (where I have been writing times workmen are coming, appointments with buyers, due dates for valuation certificates to be ready, and blocking off times for listing items and dealing with emails.)
a daily schedule (here I write my to dos for each day as well as a record of what I list for sale and where).

Because it contains Tomoe River paper, it fits all this in a regular A5 sized book. If that is too big and heavy for you, there is also an Avec version that has two books of 6 months each.

I have been using the Hobonichi Cousin in my red lizard Filofax Flex Cover – it fits perfectly and the layout is amazing, but I am hampered by the lack of a clasp. I could buy a second pen holder card and loop a pen through both (like the Hobonichi cover, see below), but the postage for that pen holder is horrendously high.

So, I bought this from Hobonichi. It is a Thank you all cover by Sebastian Masuda. There is a huge frenzy twice a year when there are new cover releases, but I seldom get involved in those kinds of things (too stressful) so neither of the covers I have are the in-demand ones.

This cover was created in collaboration with legendary art director and artist Sebastian Masuda. Masuda is the producer of the 6%DOKIDOKI shop that spurred the “Kawaii Culture” in Harajuku. In recent years, Masuda has become a prominent artist around the world with his distinct works bursting with color.

Thank You All is a cover with an all-over print, featuring the photograph of a piece Masuda created based on the Hobonichi Techo slogan, “This is my LIFE.” The thrilling piece is jam-packed with cute items such as a little house, a baby bottle lid, a starfish, ribbon, bicycles, toy blocks, waffles, flowers, the number 2… The list goes on! It’s fascinating to look through all the things in this piece.

The cover interior is a bright yellow, and the bookmarks are a neon yellow and neon green. The bookmark charms contain a circle and a square to evoke the feel of Masuda’s work.

There are also other things in the same range, which I really liked. I am usually not into patterns but something about this really tickled me. Something to pass the time when there are problems with my train!