Gold Color Crush

Gold! You are gold! Sorry, I couldn't resist a little Spandau Ballet there; I've been humming it all morning!

My new planner has arrived just in time for Christmas and it couldn't be more beautiful. I've wanted one of these for ages, but every time I tried it was out of stock.

Now that it's here, I couldn't resist decorating it and adding a festive theme. I even decorated weeks that have already been just so I can make the most of it. 

I've even bought some Hema tapes with Christmas themes to match my next few weeks. I added Christmas stickers and paperclips from Paperchase. 

I love these little countdown stickers, aren't they sweet! I can't wait for the next two weeks, especially now I have this bad boy! 

What's in my Trip Bag

The trip is sadly over so I thought I'd give you a sneak peek of what's in my bag. For park trips I always use my trusty Jack Skellington bag, he heralded from the realms of Disneyland Paris a few years ago, now he comes back every time.

I've got everything I need in this bag and it's comfortable to carry too, so let's dive in. 

Firstly is my fold up mack. The weather can be unpredictable in Paris so I always carry a waterproof just in case. This Olaf one came from Primark and is summery and fun. It folds up small and is nice and light to make it practical for carrying around in the park. 

I have my polka dot planner, which came from Paperchase. It contains all of my trip information and has begun to feel a little like my right hand! I've also from Paperchase included a rainbow paper pad. You never know when you're going to need to write something down so carrying extra paper for me is a must.

Journaling cards to put in my planner or capture memories are from Simple Stories. This is the Say Cheese range. There is a huge selection available online, I bought mine through Amazon. 

My pen is a park souvenir, I couldn't resist the Minnie Mouse shaped pen and I hope to add to my collection on this trip. I've also got a small stash of washi tape, just in case of emergency.

Not so essentially but certainly, handy is my tape corrector. I love how he is shaped like a penguin to give a fun feel. He came from WH Smiths. The bunny from Paperchase is a hole punch, should I need to attach anything to my planner.

My Hogwarts pouch, also from Primark keeps everything stationery wise together. This protects my supplies from getting damaged and looks cute. It's a good size so holds a lot.

From a more practical point of view, I've also got sun cream and sunglasses in case it does turn out to be hot. I use kids factor 50 as I find anything strong enough difficult to get hold of. I need a high factor as I burn very easily and banana boat seems to cut it.

I also take my reading glasses with me, I'm hopeless without them. My purse was a gift from my parents at Christmas, I use it to keep a small amount of euros which are my planner money. I use these to buy knick knacks like sticky notes and pens so I can get these things without worrying about how it impacts on finances for the rest of the trip.

I also include a few vanities in my bag. I always have a bottle of hand gel, especially for somewhere like a park. Although we wash our hands regularly, bugs are easily spread in places like this so I don't like to take risks. 

I also have a small tube of hand cream. My hands get dry easily so I like to look after them. This particular cream is from Tesco, it's their own version of Soap and Glory. The smell is subtle but pleasant and the texture's nice.

I have a lip balm, I usually opt for Burt's Bees and nail polish. This week I'm wearing this red number from Bourjois. It's pretty hard wearing and doesn't chip easily, but I like to be prepared for any reapplications that may be necessary.

I also have a bottle of DKNY. I love the smell and it's nice to be able to have a spritz if I need it. I also love that the bottle is shaped like an apple, it just seems appropriate somehow.

So that's my trip bag, I hope you've enjoyed! 

Trip Tuesday - The Small Stuff

Well as the departure date for trip number one rapidly approaches, this week has been all about finishing off the small stuff in preparation. The maps are printed, as are the reservations and directions. I'm normally stuffing everything in my case as I go out the door and find I forget things, but I can honestly say I think this is the most organised I've ever been for a trip.

To start with, I've stuffed the pockets with some of the smaller cards I've downloaded or created. I was tempted to add a princess paperclip or two, but in honesty I'm a little worried about losing them.

I also made a little folder to keep journaling cards inside my folder. I opted for some of the paper from my Simple Stories Say Cheese paper pack. This was super easy as all I had to do was fold the paper and glue.

As such the design is simple but effective and gives me two pouches for storing cards or prehaps memorabilia from around the parks: tickets, postcards and the like.

The pockets are just the right size for postcard size journaling cards, which look really sweet tucked up inside there.

As you can never have enough paper, I've been decorating some of mine with Disney themed washi tape. I used coloured A5 paper plus standard issue Filofax paper and was happy with the effects on both.

This was a more cost effective way of ensuring I had Disney paper in my planner. I'd looked around and although pads were available, they were not cheap especially when you were looking in the region of 20 sheets per pack.

If you're planning a trip and haven't put together a binder or itenerary I would highly recommend it. I don't know how I would have managed this trip without one,

Week Thirty Six

I'm really excited about this week: this week I go back to my favourite place. That's right, it's Disneyland. I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, but it holds a special place in my heart as it's somewhere special to me and Mr S. We've been there every New Year since we met, and with the house hunt well underway it's likely to be the last one for a while.

This does of course mean there is a Disney theme to my planner this week, using Simple Stories and Queen &Co supplies to decorate my planners.

My personal size is a bit busy looking this week, but I think it works and I rather like the effect. I'm rather loving the stickers and the way they compliment the tape used.

My A5 in comparison is slightly less busy looking because the stickers are a better size for the page and the larger boxes. I enjoyed using the letters to create our departure day on the page. I even added a journal card to compliment the stickers.

I'm in love with that ticket tape which is by Queen & Co. 

I also enjoyed layering stickers to create a really funky effect. I'm all planned, so now all I have to go. I can't wait!

Wherever you are and whatever you're doing, I hope you have a good week! 

Trip Planning Tuesday -DLP

We'll, we've got little over a week left until we go to Disneyland Paris. This is a funny trip that has me feeling both sad and excited at the same time. Mr S and I have been going there every year since we met, but there are big things ahead which means holidays will be cut from the agenda. I'm excited for the future, but I feel a bit like I don't know when I'm going to see my best friend again.

Naturally this means I'm working on making every second count whilst we're there. I've even worked out which pictures to take to put onto canvases and in frames when we return.

I've made itinerary sheets for each day we're there. I used a photo from one of our previous trips as a watermark to make the background and I really love how it's turned out. We'll be sitting down to fill these in tonight as I'm trying to angle for one last trip to Buffalo Bills... Wish me luck!

I also created my own tracker for our spends whilst we're away so it's easier for us to keep track of our pennies. I always take a little extra for any nice stationery items too, you know a girl can never have enough washi tape, stickers or sticky notes!

I kept this one simple too, using the Waltograh font which is free to download. I kept the page plain then decorated with washi afterwards. Although these match the Say Cheese range by Simple Stories, they're made by Queenie and Co.

I'm now on a list minute bid to find a craft folio for my journaling cards, which are being split between my Paris and my Orlando planner (and probably my fluoro too!) I wish I'd ordered a Websters craft folio, but I've left it too late for one to arrive on time now. 

So, a few things left, then we're off. I can't wait to go!