A5 Red Finchley

I have finally finished organizing my A5 Red Finchley. I received this second-hand from a reader (thanks!), but really it’s in such good condition and it still smells lovely, it could almost be new. Either way, it’s still new to me and my first A5. I am loving it.

Since an A5 is too big for me to use for myself and carry it around, it is staying home as the family Filo. It gives me plenty of room to write down everything that needs to be recorded. My husband may actually use it too (though that remains to be seen). Here’s the general set up:

In the front pockets I have general papers and cards that need to be reviewed as some point. I have a couple of articles on how to keep rabbits out of the plants, a jot pad for scribbling notes, two iTunes gift cards and paint chips for when we decide to paint the house. The first section of inserts is a pile of dated business pages which I would love to use but don’t really have a need for. Maybe I can come up with one. But they are there to provide a little heft to the binder, at least until I put in enough inserts of my own to make it full.

My tabs are as follows:

1. Notes – I have random notes here, about anything really. I have a list of Filo stores, my Filo timeline, a list of coffee houses I’d like to visit, and notes on a medical condition. At the back of the section I have blank note paper. 
2. Recreation – I will add anything regarding any kind of recreational activity here. Currently I have a list of day trips I’d like to do and bike trails in the area. I’d also like to add lists of things I want to do in other states – this way, when we get to visit them we can make a plan as to what to do. 
3. Projects – Obviously, project details will go here. Right now the only thing I have here is a list of things to do in order to organize the A5, most of which is completed. The only thing left on the list is to buy more colored note paper. I’m hoping to make my own sheets for financial information and the like. Most of what I have in here I typed up on the computer using Word. I also have a list of household things we’d like to accomplish, whether it’s items to buy or things to do. 
4. Financial – Household finances go here. This is mainly where we keep a tally of what we spend our money on so that we know where it’s going and how much we’re spending. I also have a few sheets that tell me how much I’ve spent using credit cards in one month. It helps me to keep tabs on how much I spend each month. Financials for certain projects will go here as well. 
5. Information – Random information about household items. 
6. Addresses – A full address book lives here. I’ve also added directions to certain places, filed under the letter to which it corresponds. 

At the back of the binder, I have the ruled note paper. It is pre-punch so that it can be filed within the binder, but it’s a pad too, so the cardboard backing slips into a slot at the top of the binder. I love this feature – none of my personal binders have this.

After organizing the A5, I ended up tweaking my personal Guildford a bit too – reorganized and relabeled the tabs. I’m prepping my binder inserts to make it as perfect as possible for when the Malden arrives in the US and I can finally buy it. I’m waiting very impatiently for this. I also labeled the binders I use for storage since I could never remember what was where and inevitably would take out the wrong binder when I needed something.

My next project is to work on my Pocket Kendal. I received inserts for this from a reader as well and would like to use the binder for something. I’m thinking of using it as a health binder. I have it all set up in that the inserts are in the binder, filed under the corresponding tabs. I just need to fill in the pages.

More to come on that topic.