The great quest began sometime mid-2006 when I realized that the new Moleskine planners coming out didn’t include the one I loved so dearly, the “visual” weekly large. I love this format because it looks like iCal – everything mapped out at a week-to-view. I didn’t like the idea of the new softcover ones, though I considered selling out and settling.

Then I found a build-your-own planner kit from Papersource, and built this:

Which was a lovely little 4.5″ x 6″ paper-covered planner. I really liked the text block, though the whole thing was a bit small and too scratchable for my taste. I used it for a few weeks, then grew restless…

Then my good friend showed me in glee her new planner! It was an Exacompta weekly visual planner – just what I’d been looking for. She got hers at Barnes and Noble before the new year, and I was out of luck when I combed through their sale pile. None left.

Vickerey was my savior. Not only did they have my dream planner in stock, but it was on sale! I promptly ordered this beauty:

(outside)
(inside)

It arrived today and I couldn’t be happier. Black “ostrich-skin” cover, very flexible and soft. The paper is creamy, smooth, and slightly thicker than Moleskine paper – no bleed-through. It’s 8.25″ x 6″ – almost the same size as my old Moleskine.

I love it. The saga draws to a close for now – and I get (almost) a whole year of using my beautiful new planner. RIP, large weekly Moleskine. I miss you.

I made this card for my best friend Michele, who turns 21 on Wednesday! Waterproof black markers, watercolor pencil, diamond glaze – plus photo corners and wood veneer with white stamp pad ink. Took hours but worth it!

Armand sure has a quick eye for new stuff. Here is his post on the new product from Magnetic Poetry, Words and Crafts. It's a set of 70 (or 42, for the smaller set) stamps with handles. It's supposed to have "precision placement" which makes sense as the stamp backings (usually a contoured wood block of some kind – I don't know what it's called technically) are the exact shape of the letter, allowing one to see where the letter's being placed.

They come in three different fonts: Traditional (70 pieces, upper and lower case, $20, apparently Times New Roman Bold), Classic (42 pieces, upper case only, $15, similar or perhaps identical to Copperplate Regular) and Breezy (69 pieces, upper and lower case, $20, similar to… something unidentifiably funky). I'm leaning toward Traditional, myself. These would be great for not only craft projects, but to personalize things like the Moleskine Cahier, which would take well to ink.

Go check it out. Great deal for a quality product.