♡ Out with the old, in with the new - My new Filofax!

Hellllloooooo!!! It's been a long, long time since my last post. I sincerely apologise from the bottom of my heart. Uni has been crazy and technically I'm still not done for the semester - I'm procrastinating at the moment :D But since something very special came in the mail today, I thought I'd make an exception. I've also made a whole list of blog post ideas so hopefully in the upcoming holidays, I'll be back on the blogging bandwagon. And hopefully this little beauty will keep me organised to balance uni and blogging next year!

You may or may not have already seen on Instagram but I have actually sold my Orange Metropol. Yes, you heard right, sold. I know I could have just kept it but it was just sitting in my drawer the whole time, not being used. One of the biggest reasons I haven't been posting is that I haven't actually been using my Filofax at all. To be honest, it was quite counter-productive. I felt organised, hauling a cute little Filofax around, but really, the decorating and the Instagramming and all that was so distracting that it didn't keep me organised at all. In fact, it was hindering my uni work and not helpful at all. That's why I bought this cheap Kikki K planner for $5 halfway through the year that I was 'allowed' to be messy in and I found that this really helped me stay organised.

And then I sort of just fell out of love with planners and Filofaxes. I still liked them and thought they were cute but I just wasn't so interested anymore. That was until I happened across the Nude Original. I had always wanted an Original. I actually bought a Fluoro Pink one when it first came out but unfortunately it didn't make it to me (I got my money back though). Initially I thought of it as a sign that I shouldn't have spent so much on a planner & I was quite glad I didn't end up getting it because when I saw it in person, it was a lot brighter than I imagined. But this one... Man, where do I get started?

I've been stalking every Instagram account and YouTube Channel that featured Nude Originals and I had such a heard time deciding if I wanted it because of the colour and texture of it. I had so many questions because it looked so different from one person's photo to another. Was it really shiny? Did it have sort of a 'matte-r' finish compared to other patents? Did it get dirty easily? Was it a lighter or darker nude?

As you can see, I was really obsessed with it. But then one day, I decided to bite the bullet and got it off eBay - funnily enough it was the same seller that had failed with my Fluoro pink one years ago - but I was so relieved when I got it. The seller was Quickdraw Stationery on eBay if you're interested. It came so well-packaged and even in a box so that it didn't get damaged in the process (perfect rings!). Not to mention it's so much cheaper and the shipping really isn't that bad.

Anyway, after all that rambling, I just wanted to give you an update that I got it and I love it and I'll definitely be doing a setup & review post in the near future. But my first impressions are that it is still shiny, of course being patent. I saw the purple and fuchsia ones in store and didn't like how overly shiny they were (sorry to anyone who owns them! It's all personal preference!). The nude definitely isn't as shiny but you can still sort of see your reflection in it and what not. I love the light beige colour, the simple interior, the quality of the leather and that it lays flat. Honestly, I am so back in love with ring-bound planners and I really think that this is the one. I'm sure we've all said that before but this is one that I've put a lot of time and thought into and my first real leather planner and think that I'll have and use this for a long time.

On that note, I want to add that I still want this to be a functional planner for me, rather than just a pretty & neat one that I spend hours on decorating & whatnot. Because of this,you may notice that it is not as colourful or neat as before so I hope you don't mind too much. I'll still decorate when & if I can, I just didn't want to get your hopes up or anything.

Wow, that was a really long post! I guess I had a lot to say after all this time!
Hope you enjoyed this & I hope to see you soon!

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡