Order in! Hobonichi time is kind of magical. I've been so busy with other stuff, I kind of forgot that little hopeful feeling I get for the new year when I order my Hobonichi. This will be my third year using one, and my first two both went with my everywhere. I get a little charge out of thinking I am looking forward to another year filling my planner with memories and artwork and gorgeous new inks.
My Hobonichi history is Cousin (2015) -> Techo (2016) -> Cousin Avec (2017)
I enjoyed having the English-language Techo this year, and I think the price and form factor makes that the place to start for first-timers. It's easy to fill one page a day, which is great for making a journal/planner/both part of your routine. The sense of accomplishment is really nice, and I know people get discouraged when they don't feel like they are making use of enough pages.
Having started with the Cousin and being a prolific writer, I found the Techo was just too small for my needs. Not having much space influenced what I wrote - there wasn't really space to let my writing wander off into the little bit of reflection and self-revelation I got with the Cousin. The Cousin is, however, a solid chunk of paper. I carry around a decent amount of stuff in my work bag (I'm always trying to limit it, but as soon as I do, I find myself with time to work on something, but without the tools I want). The Avec edition seems like the ideal choice for me. I'm holding off on a new cover for now. I'll cave at some point, but I decided to save the money for now.
I wonder what the breakdown is between Original and Cousin users. I'm hoping we'll see an English Cousin some day, but I guess I don't know how popular the larger edition is. They put a ton of work into the English Techo - every aspect of the planner seems purposeful and designed. I love that - so the demand just may not be there to justify the time and expense. That's a theory, anyway!
I want to get a new thread up ASAP, as it's prime buying time! I'll see if I can work on something this weekend.
I love maintaining my Bagels Stationery Media Empire (TM), as I have so much fun writing up new OPs and fielding questions. However, I've been in the position before where I wanted to make a topic about something or head up a club, etc., and there was already a person who had a monopoly on whatever topic it was. That was no fun, especially if I did not care for the way they did things or wanted to try something new. So please let me know if you want in on the fun and want to try making the new topic. I asked my favorite pen/paper/pencil expert if he wanted to give it a go, and I'd still love to do it, but I don't want to have all these topics locked down, ya dig? Please let me know if you want to help out or head up the new thread!
