Hobonichi Techo 2015

I first heard about the Hobonichi book last summer - Pinterest will do that to you! I don't even remember what it was that brought me find it, but I'm so very glad it did. I knew I had to have one, it would be a perfect journal (at least that was my idea). I asked my mom for one for my birthday (and guess whose birthday was around the time the 2015 shop opened? This lady, right here!), and it arrived about half way through September.

The waiting to use it was horrendous. I had flipped through it a bit, and the paper is just so soft, the tiny dot grid is perfect, the color coding along the side of the pages for the months seemed perfect.

I just had to find a use for it.

My original plan was to use it as a journal. But then I sort of quit journaling like I ought to be. I had my planner, and it kept track of all the activities for the day, what did I need to journal?
Then November came along, and I did ABHNOVTHANKFUL.
And then I found (again on Pinterest) the idea of writing down three things that make you happy each day.
And then I found out about the 365/30 group on Facebook - which, you should totally join!
And, since I want to be focusing on doing some crafty things more often and doing "church lessons", I figured this would be an easy way to track that as well.
All of that mixed together, I thought, would be perfect for the Hobonichi. A catch up of the day, basically, something to make me think, and something to brighten my evening.

Done and done.

Some days have more writing than others. Some have more stickers or washi than others.
I'm alright with that. I would rather worry about getting my writing done in it than making sure it's pretty. So long as I'm doing each step for the day, I will be okay with it, even if it's just plain pen ink on every single page.

So far as the actual Hobonichi itself:
I have the Japanese A6 version, as it was the cheapest, and the shipping charges are a bit outrageous (for, basically, nice paper). The pen that came with it is fabulous. The ink is awesome, the grip is awesome, and the fine point is perfect. I did not order a cover, because, again, outrageous shipping charges, and the covers cost more than the book itself for the most part! I knew it wasn't going to be leaving the house, anyway, so needing to protect it was not an issue for me.
It lives on the half-shelf on my desk, so it's staring me in the face all day. I haven't missed one yet!

I haven't figured out what to do with the monthly pages yet. I added birthdays in for December, but that's about it. I'm not sure there is anything I really need them for, but if you were using the Hobonichi for a planner, they are of a decent size (considering the size of the page!). I've also seen some people use these boxes for a doodle-a-day sort of project.

The Japanese A6 included December 2014 on a two-day-per-page layout. The small space, I thought, would be perfect to get into the habit of using the book, and not have any worries about making it pretty or anything like that.
And, somehow, I tricked myself into thinking that I could get the most out of the Hobonichi pen by using each ink equally (so I'm in a habit of doing red, blue, black on a three-day rotation). I realize it's a little silly, but it works for me. It's a bit plain, with just the three colors, but I swear, the pen is worth it!

Some days get stickers and washi, some don't.
Some get more writing, some get less.
And I'm okay with that. It's my book, I can do with it what I will, right?

I am using the line down the center of the pages to separate my bits of stuff - the lists I made for myself on the left, the 365/30 list on the right, along with any other journaling I felt the need to include.

One thing that I do need to mention - there is shadowing on the pages from writing on the backs of them.

You can clearly see that I wrote "Mom's Birthday!" on the back. But, once you put writing there, you can't tell, so it's not an issue for me. It might be to someone else, though, so I thought I would include that.

I love how, even though I'm only a month in a half into the book, I can easily tell where I've "been" in the book. I had seen plenty of pictures all over the internets about how the Hobonichi would magically expand over the year, and now I'm understanding how! After writing on them, the pages are no longer flat, and you can run your hand over them and feel the bumps from your writing. I love it.

Do you use a Hobonichi? What are you including in it? I'd love to hear about it!

~Havok

P.S. I will admit, that writing something that I am thankful for each day is getting to be difficult! I know I'm thankful for a lot of things, but I try to pick something particular to that day. Some days, when not a lot goes on, it can be tough!

P.P.S. I don't know Japanese. At all. But I feel bad about covering up the quotes on the bottom! I like the way the Kanji looks, but I have no clue what it says!