I finally got my hands on one of the most talked about, affordable planners on the market right now which is MAMBI's new create 365 Happy Planner. The planner I received begins on July 2015 and ends on December 2016. The one I will be reviewing for you today is the most recent update of the planner. There has been some minor changes made to the happy planner from the first batch that was released earlier this year. One being the monthly tabs that were not always laminated to begin with, which was a concern for many who purchased the first generation of the planners that were released in the beginning of this year. The version that I received, which is an updated version, the monthly tabs are now laminated and adds an extra protection to the tabs for those who bring their planners around with them everywhere. Since I did not own a first generation happy planner for myself, it's difficult for me to compare the two. I instead will just review the one I currently have, which I received in August 2015.
The specs straight from the meandmybigideas.com website:
Create 365™ - The Happy Planner™ is an expandable, disc-bound planner system that combines your love for creativity with your need for organization.
Each 18 month planner features a unique layout with monthly and weekly views.
This planner is dated from July 2015 - December 2016 and is filled with creative and inspirational artwork to help make YOU a happy planner!
Planner dimensions:
Covers - 7.75” x 9.75”
Pages - 7” x 9.25”
Covers - 7.75” x 9.75”
Pages - 7” x 9.25”
Front and Back cover is thick and also laminated to protect the inside of the planner. Downside to this specific design with the black front and back cover is that it shows fingerprints on the covers which can be annoying to some.
The Happy Planner is filled with cute colors, prints and motivational quotes.
Monthly side tabs are laminated for added protection against the "harsh world"
Each Monthly tab has a different design and color scheme. In addition, There is a page for specific monthly goals, events, important dates, monthly birthdays as well as a "don't forget" section. I appreciate this section, that most planners don't offer because it sums up each months events and goals, if any.
The monthly view comes in varies color schemes, but nothing too dramatic. For example, for the month of October, the month and year are in a red/orange color and the weekend (Saturday and Sunday boxes are in a light pink, making it a simple laying with a touch of color. The layout of the monthly views give much leeway to creativity with stickers and washi tape's just to name a few.
Compared to the Erin Condren Life Planner, the happy planner's paper thickness is much better quality than that of the ECLP. I currently use Pilot G2 pens as well as the Flair med. pens and I do not have trouble with them bleeding through the paper. I would choose the happy planner paper quality over the ECLP (Erin Condren), in my opinion. Just like the monthly view, the color scheme from the month carries on to the weekly view. Below is the color scheme for January 2016 and as you can see the "quotes" also show up on SOME weekly views. Just like the Erin Condren there is a left side notes portion along with the monthly view on the upper left hand corner for "easy viewing access."
The Cons:
- It uses an ARC system with discs instead of a spiral bound system which can come off as a concern to some because of the actual durability and stability of the planner itself. I have not yet had any problems with the ARC system since I have started using it in the beginning of September 2015. It has been sturdy and has not fallen apart and the pages have stayed in its place.
- It does not come with a plastic storage case or folder in the back of the planner like some other planners I have seen, for example the ECLP has a plastic storage and this is great for keeping stickers, project life cards or bookmarks especially for a person who is constantly "on-the-go."
- There is inconsistencies with the monthly and weekly view. The monthly is a Sunday-Saturday format and the weekly is a Monday-Sunday format. This doesn't bother me very much and in fact I like it this way, but some people may not, so I added it to the "cons" list.
- The pre-set boxes for the weekly view labeled as "morning, afternoon & evening" may work for some people but not everyone uses a "timeline" to plan out their days. The headers can easily be covered with washi tape, or planner stickers that you can buy specifically for your happy planner (Etsy.com offers a wide variety of stickers), and even MAMBI has happy planner stickers. It would be easier if they were left blank in order to accommodate for a wider range of people's preferences.
The Pros:
- The easy removable pages make it a breeze to customize and decorate the monthly and weekly pages. Just like a binder system, the happy planner pages are easy to take out and put right on back to the ARC discs, which is effortless. Also if you plan on using the Happy Planner as inserts for a binder planner, for example a large A5 Filofax or large Kikki K, it is easy to take out the pages, cut off the edge where it inserts into the disc bound system and punch new holes. Unlike uncoiling a spiral bound planner system (ECLP, Day designer or Ban.do), it's as easy as 1-2-3!
- The laminated front and back cover are changeable. MAMBI offers interchangeable front and back covers for your Happy Planner at your local Hobby Lobby or even Michaels craft store. There are also many beautiful designs on etsy.com
- Since the planner is on an ARC disc system, the planner can fold back on itself, just like a spiral planner/notebook, making it easy to write in your plans on each day.
- The monthly/weekly color schemes are easier to work with, are simple and can easily be decorated, as I have stated above.
My overall thoughts on this planner is that it is a great planner for the price and it indeed outshines many planners currently on the market for a much better price. The MAMBI Happy planner currently retails for $24.99 on the meandmybigideas.com website. If online buying isn't for you (probably because shipping sucks), you can find the Happy Planner at your local Hobby Lobby store and select Michaels craft stores for the same retail price. The upside to buying the planner at Hobby Lobby or Michael's is that there is always a coupon you can use for it. Hobby Lobby offers a 40% off coupon on any one reg. priced item all the time and Michael's has a coupon as well. Check their websites to print out a coupon now. Until next time!
XOXO,
Melissa May
