My flexible friend

As 2013 is the year of the organised, and the bargain hunter, I've made an addition to my collection.

Guess who...

I purchased an A5 flex for my younger brother this Christmas; as he as a dissertation to fight with this year, I knew that anything that would help him focus his energies (you know what musicians are like) and was easily portable would be an advantage.

After seeing the versatility of the flex I couldn't help but want one of my own, and they come in pink! Filofax can label it how they like, it is not quite magenta. Though calling it 'magenta' may help it to appeal to the print industry (everyone loves a touch of CMYK) and the feminine shade prevents women from being alienated from the First Edition range.

I'm really starting to get a liking for the non-leather products; combine this with Jeremy and you've got a regular ray of stationery sunshine! 

I've haven't written in it yet, but I know exactly what I'm going to use it for: CVs! In the past I've always written tailored covering letters to accompany my CV, which I also go over every few months depending on my priorities. I believe that hand writing them first instead of going straight to the computer, gives you two stages of thought between the document you're going to send out into the world. Pretty similar to my thoughts on the design process really.

As you can see, I've been influenced by Filofancy in using the flex as a Kindle case. My brother has decided against this for some reason, but each to their own. I also appropriated a metal bookmark from a cracker to hold any lose leaves I may have to carry, though I've only had bad experiences with these destroying the tops of pages, so this won't be holding anything more important than printing receipts.

I've hidden the tare and share jot pad, or the pizza sheet as I like to call it, underneath the ruled notebook and moved the pen holder to the right exterior pocket. Being right handed, I like to have everything on that side. I'm really going to have to force myself to write on the reverse of pages to prevent paper waste.

Huge phone is huge.

On the interior is another lovely pocket perfect for a mobile phone, thought it's probably not designed for one as large as mine.

Using this pocket does make it fatter than it's intended to be, and may compromise the condition of any cards you're carrying.

I have to say that I'm more than happy with this purchase, and finding it for less that £14 really sweetens the deal. The only down side is that the refills are expensive; £10 for a blank notebook seems extortionate. Luckily at a standardised size, you can use any sketch or note book you like. I'm looking at you recycled Paperchase stationery.