Here’s a helpful tip from the National Association of Professional Organizers: If you find that little things—emails, calls, the minutiae associated with particular projects—are slipping through the cracks, think about scheduling at least one hour of uninterrupted time each day to tackle them.
Do you know what the planner of choice is for the 30 instructors at Surf Diva surfing school in La Jolla, California? Why, the Trinote, in blue Club covers, of course!
In 1996 twin sisters Izzy Tihanyi and Coco Tihanyi founded Surf Diva Surf School, the original all-girls surf school, where each year they teach thousands of women and girls to surf. Surf Diva has been featured on the Today show and in Time, the New York Times, and InStyle, among other publications. Izzy and Coco live in La Jolla, California.
“Surf Diva has given women a place where they can learn to surf and feel comfortable doing so. When we started, there were no programs that were geared toward helping
women learn to surf in a fun and encouraging environment. Learning to surf can be a daunting experience. More often than not, you would find yourself in a group of teenage boys throwing sand and seaweed at each other. Or even worse, many women were taught by less-than-patient husbands or male friends. Many women can be discouraged by trying to learn from friends or relatives. Instruction from a skilled pro will make all the difference. Our instructors are kind, patient, and love what they do.”
In 2005 Inc Magazine named Coco and Izzy Tihanyi to the “26 Most Fascinating Entrepreneurs” for “kicking sand in the face of conventional wisdom.”
“You can paint it any color, so long as it’s black,” said Henry Ford of the Model T automobile (actually, the quote may be apocryphal, though it’s certainly proven long-lived).
The most popular cover color at Quo Vadis is black, too. It makes a certain amount of sense: black is the businessperson’s color of choice, and many of us use our planners to keep track of work-related items. And, hey, black goes with everything.
On the other hand, there are so many lovely colors to choose from! I’ve recently converted to the new Robert le Héros series (I use the blue University #28 pocket agenda to keep track of my appointments), and I love its bright colors and whimsical pattern. And because—like most New Yorkers—I’ve already got way too much black in my wardrobe, I don’t have to worry about it clashing.
Today, April 23, marks the Saint’s Day of one of Christianity’s most celebrated saints, St. George, slayer of dragons and patron saint of countries as diverse as England and Ethiopia. According to the Golden Legend, the name of this 3rd century soldier was derived from geos, which means earth, and orge, which means to work; “hence, one who works on the earth.” April 23, 303 is the traditionally accepted date of his death according to the Roman Catholic calendar.
But why celebrate the anniversary of someone’s death rather than his or her birth? In George’s case, at least, the two are considered one and the same—for the date of a saint’s death is the same as the date of their “heavenly birth.”
We recently heard from Geralin Thomas of Metropolitan Organizing. Based in Cary, NC, Geralin works with individuals, families and small business owners. Want to be more efficient, organized and productive? Get in touch with her. Through coaching, consulting and workshops, Geralin offers simple solutions and nonjudgemental advice. The Quo Vadis planner she uses and recommends is the Minister.
Geralin emailed to say she was taped with one of her clients for a July appearance on the TV show, Fine Living. “I got the cutest note from the “TV” woman and she can’t get over what a difference her “minister” makes. She and her husband have 3 year old twins and own a cookie business (www.cookiesinbloom.com) and now, we refer to her calendar as, ‘The Minister.’ She loves it.”
Earth Day is April 22, and here in New York, the fifth annual “Earth Week” festival is already underway in Grand Central Station. Never before has it been clearer that we’ve got to do a better job of protecting our planet’s health.
At Quo Vadis, our respect for natural resources began long before public opinion made it law. Our planners are made exclusively with Clairefontaine paper, manufactured since 1858 in a mill that’s located in the Vosges region of France. The papermaking process requires enormous amounts of both water and energy, and Clairefontaine is always looking for new ways to minimize its environmental impact: Two gas turbines and a waste-heat boiler allow the company to generate fully 80% of its own electricity. Wastewater is sent through a high performance biological treatment station before it is returned to the river. In fact, the water is so clean when it leaves the facility local people can fish, swim and boat downstream within sight of the mill!
Clairefontaine paper itself is fully recyclable, and its fibers have a very high reuse quality.
Click here to read more about our paper and the environment. (The link to the video is currently broken—sorry. We’re working on it.)
Here’s a tip for tax time…
Psychologists often remind us that it’s important to take time out during the day to unwind, even if it’s just a minute-long break. If your day is so hectic that you can’t even remember to do that, why not pencil it into your agenda? Incorporating free time into your schedule will remind you to take a step back and reconnect—and make your day seem a little less daunting.
Apparently, April is national Stress Awareness Month. (Who knew? It’s also national Grilled Cheese Sandwich, Poetry, and Humor month.)
But never mind. Chances are that most of us have a little too much stress in our lives, and in that spirit, here’s some advice from a psychologist at the University of Texas whose research has shown that taking the time to write about the things that are bothering you can help improve your health.
Here’s another take on altered date books: Nicole Caravella, a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology who’s been working part-time at Quo Vadis since October of 2005, has been customizing her own QV planners with Decopatch materials.
We caught up with Nicole recently to ask her a couple of questions.
1. How long have you been doing decoupage?
I started making samples at Exaclair about a year ago with the Decopatch materials. Prior to that, I had not done any decoupaging since elementary school with tissue papers.
2. What attracted you to the art?
As I said, I pretty much only started decoupaging because of work, but now after doing several work related projects I am always thinking of things to spruce up in my house.
3. What are your design inspirations?
It depends on the project. With the planners, I was really just using some scraps we had left over, and that’s why I used several papers on each. But in the end, I think combining papers that have simpler designs gives it a nice touch.
4. What other kinds of things do you decoupage?
The possibilities really are endless, but because of my busy schedule I don’t always have the time to do all that I want. In the past, I’ve decoupaged pencils, journals, planners, folders, shelves and bowls. When I find the time, I’d like to decoupage the trim on my bathroom mirror, my window blinds, and some vases.
5. Do you have any special techniques?
Once again, it depends on the project, but I’d say a good tip is not to be stingy with the glue. You don’t want it dripping, but apply a decent amount on the object, lay the paper down, and then use a lot of glue on your brush to smooth out the paper so that it sticks to the object. While doing this you need to apply pressure—but not too much—and then use your brush to wipe away excess glue.
6. Do you use a QV planner?
I do! I use a Textagenda with the Wild Stripes cover and elastic closure. I jot down my daily events or things I need to do in the 8AM-7PM schedule section, and then I use the rest of the page to write about what I did that day. I began doing this when I started college, because going to school in NYC I would always see such interesting things and go to fabulous places. I didn’t want to forget what I did, so I turned my Textagenda into a combination planner/diary.
Click here to see closeups of Nicole’s Decopatched date books… Continue reading »
An “Altered Book” is any book, old or new, that is changed by creative means into a work of art. They can be rebound, painted, collaged in, rubber stamped, or otherwise adorned. The pages as well as the covers can be decorated. Decorating the cover of your refill is an option for people who are tired of using a regular cover, and want something more unique, personal and original.
An artist altered these date books and Rhodia pad covers with Decopatch paper. See all her artwork –http://artistapril.com.
