2027 setup: knowing what I like and what I don't like

So it's planner season - the time where every planner and/or journal company comes out with their lineup of products for the next year. Notable brands like Nolty, Hobonichi, and Moleskine have come out with notebooks, covers, accessories for this coming year. Other brands, such as Sterling Ink and Aura Estelle have specifically come out with planners such as the Common and Magnet planners, respectively. For someone such as myself, it's a little bit overwhelming navigating all the different systems and figuring out what to buy. Thankfully, I took this year of 2026 to figure out what I like and don't like.

As noted in the section below titled, "journal setup and process", I have been using the Sterling Ink Horizontal Compact Full Year in the size Standard, or N1, which fits snugly into a Traveler's Notebook cover. To break down the title of this product, the horizontal refers to the layout of which the weeks are in while compact full year means that the whole year is included in the notebook, but the amount of blank grid pages in the back of the planner are much smaller than the regular full year product.

What I discovered throughout using this product this year is that I very much like the horizontal weekly layouts. I enjoyed the way I could briefly summarize my day in a small box while having the option in the back of the planner to write some more. An added bonus of this product is that all the pages in the back are dated, so if I wanted to extrapolate further on my day, I could reference the page number(s) in the back if needed for the day that I may read back on my entries. I also discovered that I like to write in general. I write quite a lot! I finished one commonplace journal and started a new one a little bit past the middle of the year, and by the time that I am writing this, I have used up more than half of the blank pages in the back of the planner that I have.

A few issues did arise throughout the year as I had this book as an every day carry in my bags. The first issue is that it is not as portable as I needed it to be. The traveler's notebook cover is a great general size, but it's not exactly something I can pack quickly for on-the-go. It did not fit in my smaller bags, so I had to be aware of which bags were okay to use while I wanted to bring out my planner. The second issue is that I did not use the monthly layout pages. They are unfortunately useless to me. I did try to layout my schedules and appointments using the monthly layouts, but I found myself going back to the weekly layout instead to find out what I was going to be doing for that day or week. One last thing I didn't like is that I'm not exactly a habit tracker, and found those pages to be largely empty.

I thought that maybe I was just bad at planning, that I needed to ultimate fit the mold of what the planner was trying to offer. But I thought that might not be it. I found that I got a lot of tasks done by having a smaller, much more compact notebook at hand with to-do lists and important information quickly jotted down. I found that I just crave to have a space where I can note something quickly without having the whole fanfare of setting up my traveler's notebook to be splayed out on a table, tacked down with a clip, and so on. The efficiency of my planning and me getting things done seemed to be correlated with my ease of access to my book.

With all of these things in mind, I have decided to settle on the Cloth and Paper Pocket Plus, a traveler's notebook style vinyl cover with smaller notebooks inside. I did the measurements and this little thing can fit into my smaller travel bags with ease. I don't lose the aspect of having a traveler's notebook, which is very much a plus. The setup itself is modular, meaning that I can buy more books if needed or rearrange the books with different inserts depending on what my need is for the day.

For a few moments I considered Hobonichi and Sterling Ink, as they both have smaller book sizes in the Weeks and N2 planners, but I wanted something that I can modify and add as my needs change and develop. Also that Hobonichi site is scary! I heard some people had issues getting everythig they wanted, and I don't want that sort of headache.

journal setup and process Left is Fig.1, right is Fig.2 My leather journal cover is from Traveler's Company and it is specifically from the Love and Trip collection. The cover is a beautiful deep red, and it now has a slight shiny sheen with a few cuts here and there from being my every-day carry book. I have had this cover for about more than a year now, and I am very attached to the patina that I have so far achieved.

For the main book inside the cover, I use a Sterling Ink Compact Full Year N1 2026 planner. It is both my journal and my planner due to its sections.

The way I approach my journaling is that I summarize things that happened during my day in the left side of my journal, which is separated into horizontal sections with the days of the week along with their respective dates (as shown in Fig.2). I try to keep it short, and if I need to talk about things more, I reference where I'll discuss those topics - I have a personal vault in Obsidian for daily notes and an extended journal - in the boxes. On the right side of the page, I include personal notes and reminders, such as "remember to take your meds!" or dates for appointments or meetings throughout the week.

I keep sticker tabs for the months of the year, my habit tracker, and pages with sensitive information that I need to transfer somewhere else like my Obsidian vault or pocket journal.
Fig.3 - my pocket journal This pocket journal in Fig.3 is what I use for my every day needs, and I also got it from Traveler's Company - it is an A6 Slim Blank MD Paper White. No It contains reminders or things that have happened throughout the day that may need to be added to my main book later on. For stuff that needs to be archived for later, I put a sticker tab on the page. The colors are not at all special or coordinated in a certain way.

When I'm out and about, I find myself itching to write crucial things down. Before, I used to keep my little notes in my iPhone's Notes application, but quickly found that not useful because I would forget about writing that note. Having something physical that I can reach for, touch, and feel honestly makes a difference. If I forget my pocket journal, I notice right away. When I go out, I make sure I take it with me even if it may be a short trip or errand.
Fig.4 - another page in my journal Journaling is also another creative outlet for me, apart from DJing, singing, and making digital art. I really like putting stickers in the pages of my journals, or using different colored highlighters, to add some contrast to the cream colored pages. I like to draw random doodles when I have space, or write down DJ sets that I've listened to recently or events that I have attended either IRL or in VRChat. I love being able to archive my thoughts and the comings and goings of my life on my website, but I like how personal my journal is to me. It's my safe space, my comfort zone, my little buddy on the go.