The Agendio planner was my first twin-ring planner and my first customize-to-order planner. So there are a lot of firsts for me and I will be making a lot of comparisons to ring-bound planners like Filofax or bound planners like a Moleskine or Leuchtturm1917 rather than other twin-ring planner systems, so bear with me.
I ordered the smallest size which is the Journal size (5.5×8″). The paper size is pretty comparable to A5 sheets in a Filofax planner or a medium Moleskine/Leuchtturm 1917 planner and the overall Agendio Journal book is just a little taller and a little thinner than my personal-sized Filofax. So, size-wise I didn’t make a big change in my planner size form what I’m generally comfortable with using. It makes this book quite portable, easy to fit in my bag or purse as needed and doesn’t require its own desk. Because of the hardcover, leatherette cover, the exterior feels good and looks understated and professional. In a very out-of-character move, I ordered the black cover with a dark green elastic closure. With a couple of weeks usage though, I’m finding I’m not using the elastic nearly as often as I thought I would. It probably wasn’t totally necessary to add the elastic but I like knowing I can secure it closed and I like the aesthetic accent.
Inside, I ordered the combination of monthly calendar (Model 32060) with weekly calendar (Model 32057) and then spent an inordinate amount of time customizing the details. There are so many elements that can be tweaked to your personal taste from fonts and colors to the placement of the numbers on the monthly calendar. Then I was able to add personal events to the calendar like important dates or repeating activities. I added family birthdays and my weekly Knit Night. Agendio allows you to choose holidays to add to your calendar as well by country and/or religious preferences. You can even add specific US State holidays.
On the weekly page layouts, I have a simple layout with the days of the week on the left and a space for notes on the right but the notes section is divided up into Divisibles to help organize my activities. I have a section for Work, Home, Blog and Misc. At the top is a Top 3 Goals and the inside left column is for general notes. Sunday is listed at the bottom of the right hand page but gets equal space as the other six days which I appreciate.
I also had some extra notes pages added to the back of the planner, just in case. And this is the perfect place to test some pens. For the most part, since my planner is on the small side, I tend to use fine gel pens in 0.38mm or thereabouts but I thought I’d test a bunch of pens to verify if there might be any issues with pens bleeding. I tested an array of fountain pens, some gel and rollerballs and even a couple of the brush pens I carry with me for drawing and lettering. There was no feathering with any of them. Ink dried quite quickly and when I turned the page over…
Very little show through at all! There were a couple tiny dots from the Retro 51 stock rollerball refill which I always find to be a gusher. I always swap it out for a finer refill or hack in a gel pen refill anyway but I thought I’d test it for your benefit. I think heavy fountain pens with dense black ink might cause some show through but overall the performance was very good. Grab that rainbow assortment of gel pens, Frixion pens, or your favorite multi-pen and keep it close to your Agendio and you’ll have a match made in heaven.
There were a couple more extras that I added to the planner as well. I got the pocket in the back so I could pack rat some goodies and I got the Agendio page markers which are simple laser-etched steel clips to mark your week or month page. The clips are low profile and good looking. Etched on the back of each clip is the message “Follow your own agenda” which I think is charming. Its a lovely addition to the planner.
Overall, I couldn’t be happier with the whole experience and the incredible level of customization. It took about 10 days from placing my order for the planner to arrive and it was totally worth the wait. And again, the prices on the Agendio planners, even with all the extras like the extra pages, page markers and folder pocket is quite competitive with the Erin Condren, Day Designer, Inkwell Press and other wire-ring planners with or without customization. Agendio is also offering customizable inserts for Filofax and Franklin Covey planners in both A5 and Personal sizes now too. The best part of the Agendio system is that the planner can start on any month. Mine started with December 2015. I didn’t even have to wait for January 1 to start a brand new planner. How awesome is that!?! So many great options!
Due to a slight printing variation the folks at Agendio actually sent me two planners. My husband saw the extra one laying on the table and asked “Are you going to use this? Can I have it?” From him, that’s high praise! So, he now has his own Agendio with all my Knit Nights already marked as a reminder for him. I’m pretty excited to see how he’ll use his first planner. Aren’t you?
DISCLAIMER: This item was sent to me free of charge by Agendio for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
Pens: 
, which just happen to be local (Go, Kansas City!) They are available with a linen fabric cover in black, red, blue and green with a soft ivory paper inside.
