I ordered Belle de Jour as early as October last year.  The front design was really catchy with a caricature of a French woman.  The inside pages are so colorful… no other planner was confident enough to be as vivacious as this.  Since I was an early buyer, I got a 10% discount when I claimed my BDJ planner at the Lifestyle Rockwell Bazaar 2007.  I should have gotten more for friends because it’s really a pretty neat gift item.  I especially like the Cycle Tracker, My Budget/Finances, and the articles inside.  I heard from Yssah that Belle de Jour planners are now available at the local bookstore.

I’ve received three planners this year –from CNBC, Phoenix and Manila Hotel.  Although all three are quirky-pretty and useful in their own way and I want to simultaneously use all… I have to refrain myself from doing so since it takes so much time to maintain even one diary.  CNBC planner stood out among the three since the inside leaves were really higher quality of paper and it was of an executive size.  I guess I’m pretty biased too because it has my name embedded in the black leather cover.  I’ve been meaning to use the CNBC planner but I haven’t yet.  It’s really only the Belle de Jour one that I’m able to always update.

The different channels gave calendars, but let me mention HBO and AETN calendars because they have this cute sticker page at the back that are labeled differently.  Labels include “girl’s night out,” “boy’s night out,” “day off,” “birthday” and “date night” and you can put the stickers on the actual dates that you intend to remember.  It’s really such a swell idea.  Maybe they can also design planners that way.  In the meantime, I’m using the stickers on my planner as well.