Wow! Is all that I can say! I have been on Instagram for a little under four weeks now and since then I have over 100 followers! That is absolutely amazing. The Filofax community on Instagram is marvelous!! It's fun to share ideas and see how others are decorating there Filofax. I mean who knew so many people out there was as crazy as me when it comes to decorating, collecting stickers and pens! I am so crazy with excitement that in honor of getting over 100 followers I have decided to do my own mini giveaway to show how much I adore my followers. 

Giveaway doesn't include a lot but.. It's the thought that counts right!? Who knows if my blog and instagram account grow even larger I will plan bigger and better giveaways and even an random RAK!! (Randon Act of Kindness) 

The Velvet Filo Giveaway includes 3 sets of the following:  

1. Lisa Frank sticker collection. Includes 400 stickers.
2. 1 sheet of "Rolly Polly Panda" which happens to be my favorite sticker out there!
3. 1 set of Self-Stick Flags
4. 1 roll of paper tape (Not all 3 sets the same)
5. 1 Studio G stamp set (Not all stamps are the same)

Rules are as followed: 

1. Must follow me on Instagram @ TheVelvetFilo.
2. Please leave a comment below stating that you Love Lisa Frank!! Also Include your instagram name so I can contact you. 

That's All!! 
 
Contest ends on August 1 at 10:00 p.m. Central Time. Open to everyone.
Three separate winners will be chosen by random.org.
Only one person may win a package giveaway and if I'm unable to get a hold of a winner I will select alternators for the drawing.  

I really love to bring joy and smiles to everyone faces so hope everyone enjoys my giveaway! Please keep in mind this is my first giveaway so give me a little time to get everything wrapped up on August 1st. I will announce the 3 winners on my blog and Instagram on August 2nd.. My birthday! Yippiee! What better present to myself than to give away goodies. If you have any question please feel free to email me. :)

Until next time, 

 

How to make a notepad for your filofax for only 33 cents!

I thought it would be neat to share a fun easy tip I created for my Filofax. I have a personal grey malden named Mrs. Peacock (I love the movie Clue and Yes a lot of us name our Filofax) that I adore. I've had her for four months and still trying to set everything up that works for me. When I first got my malden I realized it did not come with a notepad in the back section. I did a lot of research and found that not everyone puts a notepad in there. Some people place stickers, important papers, etc that they want to keep. For me since the section looked like it was meant for a notepad I set out on a journey to find one!

 

After I researching all the normal websites, filofaxusa, pensandleather, ebay, etc I noticed that It was going to cost almost $15.00 to buy a notepad and have it shipped. That seemed a bit much for a notepad but since I "thought" I needed it I decided I was going to buy it. 

One day while on a trip to Wal-Mart I was searching through the office supply isle like I normally do and came across a 3 pack scratch pad for $1.00 (Might have been $1.23). I took out my filofax out of my purse  ( I carry it everywhere) and placed it on top of the the back section and it appeared to fit. I was extremely happy to say the least because I was about to order the notepad I found online. 

 

As soon as I got home and put away my purchases I headed right to my office to "install" my new notepad. Immediately I noticed it was it was less than 1/4 inch too big! I started to get disappointed until a light bulb went off in my head! I took out my exacto knife and my small ruler and cut less than 1/4 inch off each side. 

Then I tried to see if it would fit or needed a little more cutting.....

Worked okay so far but I had to make sure it would go all the way down and not stick up at the top. 

Ta-Dah!! It fit! I was so proud of myself for finding such a great find. LoL. 

Here is the final photo of how I keep it today. I use my Martha Stewart large Avery post it notes over the top to write down my grocery list that way I can easily grab it off and go as I need. The white note pad in the back I use it to write down quick ideas or subtract out our bills during paydays. 

It goes to show you that even though it can cost a lot to get a FiloFax it doesn't mean you have to spend a lot to have the latest and greatest inserts. That's the joy of owning a Filofax. You can do whatever you want with it. You can personalize it to your needs not the needs of others. Thanks to all the great websites out there like Philofaxy you can go and print many great free inserts for your FiloFax and not have to spend a dime on shipping or step out of your house!

Until next time,

What is a FiloFax?

I recently discovered "Filofax's'" about six months ago when I saw a post on A Bowl Full of Lemons. Her post and the way she detailed out her Filofax was so amazing. I have been a lover of all office supplies, pens, stationary, etc ever since I could remember. Every year I try a different planner but always end up being disappointed because something is missing. As soon as I saw the post I went right to FiloFaxUsa to order a Filofax but was so disappointed on the price tags! I couldn't see myself spending almost $100 for a planner so sadly I decided not to. 

A month went by and I still found myself thinking about ordering a Filofax but couldn't bring my self to buy one because our budget was so tight. I continued to do more research and watched many you tube videos to try to find a way to purchase one. After a month of selling items on Ebay I saved enough to buy a FiloFax. Let me tell you as soon as I got my Grey Malden in the mail it was like The Angels were singing from Heaven. I've had my Malden "Ms Peacock is her name (I love the movie Clue) for about four months now and I couldn't be happier. 

Since FiloFax are widely becoming popular in America I thought I would do a quick post explaining, What exactly is a Filofax? 

Filofax is a company based out of the UK that was first started in 1921 but became widely popular in the 1980s. Even to this day I've read that some fellow FiloFaxers still have there Filofax from the 80's. Cool Huh!

The reason that a lot of people love Filofax's is because you are able to personalize them in so many different ways. They come in many sizes: A5, Personal (most popular size), Pocket, Mini and Compact. They come in a variety of colors and designs as well. You can buy inserts, you can print them off the internet, or design your own. The options are endless of what you can do. 

With planner's you buy in an office store you are only allowed to use it for one full year normally. After that year is over you throw it away or you save it for viewing another day. With a Filofax you take out your current year inserts and add next years inserts. The investment in a Filofax is well worth the price compared to how many calendars you purchase every year. With the new designs of washi tapes you can now transfer your inserts into an artistic journal that not only helps you keep track of your life but it also lets you archive and view your daily life for looking at later. 

If you are a lover of all things planners, notebooks, binders, etc I cannot explain in enough words how useful and fulfilling it is to have one. If you don't believe me go do the research you're self! :) 

First Filofax Blog Post - LePen Review

Hello everyone in cyber world! This is my very first blog post ever. I decided to share my addiction love of my Filofax and all the goodies that go a long with it! I plan on posting all the neat fun photos, and items I find to go along with my Filofax! Thank you so much for joining me :)

I thought for my first review I would review the LePens I just purchased. I've been wanting the Pilot Frixion erasable roller ball pens off Jetpens.com for a while now but due to budget I've been unable to purchase them.. (Wish List) This weekend while shopping at Hobby Lobby to my surprise I found the LePens. I heard several filofaxers speak about the pens and I was so shocked I found them there. At first I only saw a 10 pack for $19.99! Woah that is a lot for pens but then I looked down and saw they carried them in a singles so I had to pick one up to try! 

As soon as I got home I had to try the pen out and boy was I impressed! They write so smoothly without any pressure at all. I was immanently hooked and knew I couldn't wait till next week to get the 10 pack set so.... I remembered I had a 40% coupon and hurried back across town to pick up the 10 pack. I got it for $11.99!

Currently in my Filofax I have the standard 1 week on two pages that came with my Filofax (A post about my Filofax to come soon) and I knew there was going to be a bet of a bleed through the paper but I love the pens so much that I didn't care. Welll... I forgot I had just ordered the cotton cream 1 week on two pages and it just arrived in the mail a few days ago! I much prefer the cotton cream paper. It's a little bit thicker and the marker type pens write much better without as much bleed through the paper. 

I had to take photos on my cell phone so it's hard to get a good look at the bleed through but I believe you sort of get an idea. 

The photos to the left and right are on the standard white paper that comes with your Filofax. 

 The second set of photos is the cotton cream paper. It's hard to tell on my photo but there isn't as much bleed through as the standard white paper.

I was holding up the paper because of my lack of light in my office so hopefully by my next review I will have better lighting so you can get a better sense of the bleed through. We don't like bleed through I know :)
 
Bottom line is these pens are a great set to add to any ones collection who enjoys pens. I plan on purchasing the bigger pack in the variety of colors on amazon very soon. 





Thanks again for stopping by and feel free to email me any time!! This is my first post so my website will be slightly under construction until I figure out how to work everything! LOL   :) 
~ Juli