Maintaining Your Organiser(s)

Caring for your organiser or organisers if you have few isn't something you need to do that often.

However, it doesn't harm to put a reminder in your diary to go through your collection once a year and check them over and give them a clean and inspection.

I'm about to do my annual check of my 'collection', which will involve emptying each shelf of my cupboard. Then go through each box in turn and carry out the following actions.

1. Empty the contents out of the pockets and remove anything from the rings. Although I tend to store most of mine empty. 
2. Visually inspect the exterior and interior and note any loose stitching and any damage. 
3. Check the rings for any gaps or mis-alignment. 
4. Open and close the rings a few times using the tabs of course and then recheck the rings. 
5. Dust the interior and wipe the exterior with a clean microfibre cloth. 
6. Treat with leather balm if required.

For the visual checks you only need the Mark 1 Eye Ball! Or a magnifier, if like me you can hardly focus close these days!

If you spot any loose stitching a little spot of clear nail varnish or glue, the smallest spot possible will stop it getting any worse.

When checking the rings also use your fingers to feel for any rough transitions as these will catch on the paper as you turn the pages. Refer to our guide on fixing ring problems if required.

To dust the interior you can use my sticky tape trick to remove any paper dust from the textile interior or the raw leather backing. Here is a video on this technique.

If you need to treat the leather use a recognised leather care product, I use the products shown below, but other brands are just as acceptable, see what is available locally to you. Check the type of leather you have first.

Apply with a soft clean micro fibre cloth and use soft circular motions to get the balm in to the pours of the leather.

Beware not all leathers need or accept leather treatments, check with the manufacturer or test on a small not visible area first.

There is an excellent page on leather care here.

Of course when you have finished pop your pages back in again and you are ready to go for another year or so.

Filofax Tip No 13

So today's tip.

I'm sure we all like to take care of our organisers and cherish them. I often see questions from people looking for advice as to what products to use to clean and care for their organisers.

Filofax give the following advice:

Leather is a natural material and there may sometimes be textural or shading variations within the surface. These are natural characteristics and representative of the leather’s unique, individual beauty and proof of its genuine origin. It is recommended, however, that you avoid exposing your leather organiser to harsh elements such as moisture, bright light or direct heat.

In the event that your organiser becomes soiled or dirty the following care guidelines may be helpful:

• Light scratches to waxy leather can be removed by rubbing softly with a clean finger
• Smooth, porous leather can be treated with good quality, neutral coloured leather cream (subject to manufacturer’s instructions)
• Textured or coated leathers can be wiped clean using a lightly damp cloth
• Suede is treated with a dirt resistant finish and a dry brush or cloth should be used to remove dirt or stains
• Fabrics can generally be cleaned by using a damp cloth
• Smudges on badges, metal edges or poppers can be gently buffed with
• a soft dry cloth

Expanding on the advice above. For fabrics I have found foam cleaners recommended for cleaning carpets without using water are very good for removing dirt and grime from fabric covers. 

Here are some products that come recommended for leather care:

Wheelers Natural Beeswax Leather Balm - I've been using this myself for the last 18 months or so. That is my bottle of it pictured above, as you can see you don't use a lot of it in that amount of time, so  a bottle will last some considerable time. 

Collonil Leather Gel for waterproofing leather as recommended by Mulberry

Saphir Universal Creme - highly recommended by Janet Carr for caring for leather hand bags and organisers.

There is an excellent page on Leather and Leather Care here.

Until the next tip happy organising.  Check out other tips here.