hobonichi release day

September the 1st. 11:00 (a.m.) Japan Time.

For hobonichi fans, that means the day to be wait for every year. It's the day when the upcoming (year of) hobonichi is released. There will be new design for covers worth to be fight for. Everyone seems eager to be the first of having the newest hobonichi on their hands. And sometimes, several covers are sold out within hours. 

This year, there are new improvement on their official website. There are different release days for the products, so the traffic was not so intense. 

We still have to wait for 3-4 months to be able to use the planner. I wonder why people are rushing to get what they want. I think it's passion. It really amaze me how a product (and a brand) can be successful like that. In this case, it's also a matter of excellent product quality.

japan stamp

In Japan, people collect many different things according to their interests. Believe it or not, there are stamp collectors. Not the postage stamps, though.. the stamps I refer in this article are rubber stamps.

In many tourist attractions, such as temples, museums, train stations, and airports across Japan, you can find a corner to stamp your book (or paper, whatever stationery you have) with the unique stamp for commemoration. You can specifically collect themed-related stamps, such as towers all over Japan or JR lines around Tokyo, or just stamp your book with any stamps you can find, just for fun. However, the temples usually need special stamp book called goshuin and you need to follow certain rules.

Anyway, I went to Japan last July and I had my hobonichi techo planner in my bag everywhere I go. Everytime I spotted a stamp corner, I happily got my techo stamped. My sis was also happy to stamp her moleskine. When we went out to seperate locations, we showed all stamps we could get that day after we see each other. My dad also noticed our thing and once he gave me a sheet of paper with a stamp from a train station. 

I really love the idea of stamping the book / planner / travel diary as souvenir. I think a stamp is also mean as a proof of visit. These days we can just snaps some pics to show that we were in such places. But I think, stamp is also quite authentic and unique. Besides, it's more fun to have beautiful stamp when the place is not so instagrammable. 

The above picture is the stamp of Sannomiya Hankyu-line Train Station. Here goes the story behind the stamp. It started when my sis and I needed to go back to our hotel in Kobe from Kyoto. It was already late at night, heavy rain, and we didn't know how bad the weather was. We couldn't get the shinkansen so we took the regular train, got stranded for a while in Osaka train station, followed by late night run to the other side of the station (from JR line to Hankyu line), hurrying to catch the last Hankyu train to Sannomiya station in Kobe. We managed to arrive in Kobe safe and sound. All of those rush and worries were all paid off when we got this stamp.

kamo sensei

I am a huge fan of Kamo sensei. 

She's an illustrator from Japan and I love how kawaii (cute) her illustrations can be. You'll be amazed that total cuteness can be created from simple strokes of ballpoint pens.

If you wan't to learn how to draw / doodle / illustrate your planner, you can buy her books like I did. I learn so much from those books. The only drawback for me was... it's in Japanese. And I don't speak the language. However, the book showed a step-by-step technique, that we can follow easily.

The basic technique, explained in Bahasa Indonesia, is also available on this zebra pen website, as she teamed up with zebra pen (using Sarasa and Penciltic) for illustration workshop. I have once sat on one of the workshops in 2017 and I was sooo happy.

pink moleskine

Hello,

I saw this beauty in one of Tokyu Hands store in Tokyo, Japan. At first, I was thinking hard whether to buy it or not. I have plenty of planners for this year and I don't think they're all well filled in. Anyway.. as you may already guessed, I finally did. 

First of all, the colour. Pastel pink is one of my favorite colour and as far as I can remember, I haven't seen any in my country. Second of all, it's the pocket weekly like I used to have every year. The third and final reason is, it's an 18-months planner. The price is more less the same with the usual 12-months, so I think it's quite a bargain. Besides, I can use it right away because it starts from July 2018.

So far I kinda like it. Yeaah.. I guess because I am already familiar with the size and layout. To write on this moleskine, I am using the zebra hana 3-colour ballpoint pen. 

More pics available on instagram.

blank hobonichi weeks

This year, I tried to swapped my pocket weekly moleskine with hobonichi weeks. The reason I did this was based on those left untouched blank pages on my moleskines. The planner seemed to be abandoned after the first couple of months. So I thought I might be more  motivated when using the weeks since it would be kinda new experience. Apparently, that's not what happened.

As you can see here (above), it's also blank. And it's March. It means, I only filled the pages until February. I just don't get it. I actually like the layout, which is similar to weekly moleskine, dated page on the left, blank page on the right. It's even better, it comes in grids while moleskine is ruled (lined) pages. The paper is Tomoe River, just like the techo, very friendly to fountain pens. But whyyyyy... ??!! Perhaps it's about the size. The dimension was a bit intimidating for me to write something on it. Or perhaps I couldn't find the right pen to fill those pages. I just don't know.

So I guess I will not buy this weeks again. Sorry. I will just keep buying the A6 english planner every year. So far it's the right one for me. And I might go back to the pocket size weekly moleskine again.

hobonichi ukrainian flower

I have this Ukrainian Flower cover for my hobonichi planner A6 since 2017. At first, I bought it with lots of pain (I mean, much higher price) from ebay since it was sold out within 24 hours after its initial release in September 2016. Then, I bought one more from hobonichi official website when it finally restocked. So yeah, I got a couple of this thing. One on duty and one to keep. 

So far, I love it. I put cover-on-cover plastic sleeve to protect it in 2017, then I use the cover as is in 2018. Apparently, the embroidery is good enough to withstands wear and tear. 

Ladies and gentlemen, this is how it looks. The Ukrainian Flower in mid August 2018. 

hobonichi weeks with muji passport wallet

Just after a month passed by this year, I realized that I'm not a fan of the Tembea cover for my hobonichi weeks. It's just like a plain canvas without any cuteness whatsoever. And I felt so damn fool for buying it for JPY 8640 (about USD 77). What was I thinking?! So I started to search for a replacement. Guess what, a Muji passport wallet is the answer.

Priced around IDR 300K (about USD 20), the passport wallet offers more features tho. I bought one without ring binder inside, so the weeks can sit neatly.

Inside, it has everything I need. Pen holder (I put a 3-colour uni-ball jetstream 0.38), yes. Card slots (accomodate 5 cards), yup. Zippered pocket for bank notes (I put my money and stuff), yeah.  It even has a key holder but I removed the clip ring because it would be too bulky. Sleeve slots for those hobonichi stencils, checked. And I put more cards on the sleeve (on the left) using hobonichi card case.

For me, I like how it looks on the exterior. I like the dark blue colour. I like the slot on one side which wide enough to slip on few sheets of papers or postcards. And finally, I like the sleek handle on its spine.

In conclusion, I better think wisely before I spend lotsa money on my stationery obsession.

back again

Hey people,

Sorry for missing in action for a long time. Had a messy life and some things to handle for a while. Now I'm back and will share you some of my story with stationery.

Some of them will include some reviews on hobonichi thingy, my trip to Japan which not so crazy about stationery as the first time, and my thoughts about quitting this stationery addiction.

Talk soon.