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Why you need a Hobonichi Planner

Hobonichi has been my go-to planner for the past three years. It works so well for me, I just have to show you why I love it!

This planner holds all of my sales goals, open orders, editorial calendar, designs, personal and family plans, to-do lists, ideas, plans, research, personal goals, important information, passwords, and more.

A few years ago I was carrying around 4 different planners and books to hold both my personal and business life information.

Then I discovered Hobonichi.

It has so many pages and sections packed into one planner, I decided EVERYTHING would go in there. I no longer have multiple notebooks and planners, to-do lists, chicken-scratch notes, post-its, or forgotten meetings.

My Hobonichi gets a bit messy, but it's because I work in there. I don't use it to keep life pretty after the event has happened. It's a working planner and information center. I know that everything I need is in it's place.

I'll be showing you how I use my Hobonichi in an upcoming post. So let's talk more about this awesome planner...

What is a Hobonichi?

Hobonichi is a line of planners made in Japan and designed by Shigesato Itoi. It comes in several sizes/variations to suit your needs.

These beautifully made books are a bit pricey, but once you get one in your hands, you'll know you've got something special. The smooth paper is very fine allowing a lot more pages in a planner, without the added weight.

Features of a Hobonichi

Lots of covers to choose from
Thin and durable Tomoe River Paper
Planner flops open and lays flat
Lightly-printed graph paper
Generous page per day
Captivating daily quotes

Don't Skip the Covers

Hobonichi planners can be used as is, but why would you when there are beautiful covers to choose from? From leather to embroidery as well as limited edition designer covers, the gorgeous covers have lots of pockets, book marks, and a handy double-loop that holds your pen and keeps the planner closed.

Of course, a cover that nice needs protection...ala, the Cover on Cover. It's a clear vinyl cover that slips over the fabric cover so it doesn't get dirty. The cover on covers are available in plain and printed versions.

Hobonichi Planner Sizes

The Hobonichi Techo is available in 4 main sizes: Original, Planner, Cousin, and Weeks.

Original is an A6 size and written in Japanese.
Planner same A6 size as the Original but written in English. Larger grid squares on pages to accommodate Western writing.
Cousin is an A5 size. It is only available in Japanese. It has an Avec version splits the year over two books providing a lighter, easy to carry book.
Weeks is a narrower version, great for on the go planning. Written in Japanese, Weeks has monthly/weekly spreads in the front and the back half is gridded pages perfect for note taking. Note: this version does not have page/day.

Ways to Use a Hobonichi

Because of how wonderful it is to work in the Hobonichi, they aren't used just for planning. Here are some ways you could use a Hobonichi:

Planner
Travel journal
Diary
Sketchbook/doodling
Memory keeper
Journaling
Bullet jounal
Wedding planner
Art journal
Business notes
Study journal
Hobbies
Daily journal for children/teens

This Hobonichi daily page (shown, above) is being used as a travel planner. Here you'll see drawings of clothes to pack as well as lists of must-wear items.

Tools to Use with a Hobonichi

Pens (my favorite is the Uni-ball Power Tank Pen)
Markers
Brush Pens
Colored Pencils
Stickers
Washi Tape
Stencils
Watercolor paints
Page makers
Micron pens
Sticky notes

The pretty pages from Pepperconarts show memory keeping done with watercolor paints, letter stamps, and washi tape.

Tofarwayplaces took advantage of the well-thought-out Hobonichi calendar spread as a place to record a doodle/drawing challenge.

Ohaijoy used the weekly spread to have fun with doodles. There are so many cute and inspiring doodles on this page!

Kittyfilo makes use of Hobonichi Planner daily pages to record personal memories with washi tape, pens, and markers.

Edinwrites uses stickers, Micron pens, brush pens, and washi tape to embellish her weekly pages.

This daily page is used for tasks and to-dos accented with Mildliners! I also love that Hansie_Rose takes the opportunity to practice her hand lettering at the top of the page with a daily quote - lovely!

Just have fun with your Hobonichi! If you want a page just to create, sticker, or doodle - do it! Love this 80s inspired page from love.purin.

Hobonchi pages also work to record important information. Here, kwinireyes has created a mood wheel as well as journal pages to record her thoughts.

Use your Hobonichi to record big life events! Loveinkscribble used hers to memorialize her engagement. I love the use of Micron Pens and watercolor on this page.