Last Fall, I decided that I personally needed to take a trip at least quarterly. As a human who very much loves their alone time, I had forgotten how important it is for my mental and physical health to take a break. I've been basically finding ways to tack on a few extra days on either end of a work related trip. 

To kick off 2026, I had made plans to go to New York in January for a couple of trade shows as well as to judge a greeting card award competition (so fun!). As someone who does not like the cold, I had sworn I would NEVER go to New York in the winter but I suppose never say never because I did in fact go. And it was in fact one of the coldest winters they have had in years, possibly decades. 

Day 1: Arrival, A walk through the city, Dinner with friends

I arrived on a Thursday with no big flight drama and immediately went to my hotel to check in. I have always stayed in the midtown area/Koreatown area as it is close-ish to the Javits (where all the trade shows typically are) I did not have any firm plans until dinner with some friends so I ventured out to lunch and went to a lil sushi spot where I had some really delicious nigiri. I am a big fan of checking out places I just wander by and always make a mental note for spots with good seating options in case I ever come back with my family. On the way there, I smelled the most delicious coffee and knew I would stop back by post lunch. And that was how I discovered the coffee shop I would visit daily during this trip. 

The coffee is 10/10 and the cherry on top is that they are known for their cookies. And if you followed along on Instagram, you saw I legitimately had a cookie a day. They had their version of a black and white cookie but in a chocolate chip cookie form and y'all I cannot even start to explain how good it was. 

The remainder of the afternoon was me just dilly dallying down from midtown to soho while stopping at several local shops along the way before my dinner date with a few friends from the small business group coaching session I was a part of last year. 

New York Day 1 restaurants, cafes, shops: 

Watami Sushi, Culture Espresso, Fishs Eddy, ChaCha Matcha, Nico Necco, East Village Postal , Rin Tin Tin

Day 2: Louie Judging, My favorite noodles, More exploring

The morning started out with a stop at the bodega on the corner for a bodega bagel. IMO the best bagels are the ones from the local bodega. My go to is a toasted everything with sausage egg and cheese! Of course I made a pitstop. Then I went straight to the Javits to start the judging process - Did you know there is a greeting card award competition? I spent a few hours there and then went to get a late lunch. I have been craving these handpulled noodles since I was pregnant with the twins and it was very full circle getting to enjoy the noodles. And yes it was just as good as I remembered. 

I had some time to meander around before dinner plans so I popped into a few shops - had to visit the specialty cheese shop that I order my favorite butter from. A shop with lots of cute toys and blind boxes to get a gift for P. And popped into a new to me spot - a button/trimmings shop that had everything your hearts could desire when it comes to sewing! 

New York Day 2 restaurants, cafes, shops: 

Xian Famous Foods, Pacific Trimmings, An.Me, Murray's Cheese, Goods for the Study, Bedford Studio and Sugar Fish (not pictured)

Day 3: Self Care Day

Last year, I met a mom at P's school who had a great hair cut. So I asked her who did her hair and she said she goes back to her hair stylist in New York since she used to live there. And I was excited to make an appointment to coincide when I would be in New York. I didn't need anything major or drastic just wanted a cut to soften out my layers and get my bangs trimmed. 

I decided to head to the neighborhood the salon was at to grab coffee and breakfast. Ended up at this coffee shop, again scoped it out for great seating, good coffee and food. 

Post hair appointment I met up with Anna (she decided to take some PTO and come for fun in New York with me) to have lunch. It was SO cold the only thing that felt right was to go find the largest bowl of udon noodles. I think we succeeded since these bowls were HUGE. Look at my A5 Hobonichi Cousin for scale.

The rest of the day consisted of going to FAO Schwartz to find a gift for P and the twins. Did some co-working in a hotel lobby with a friend before going to Chinatown for a headspa + massage appointment and ended with dinner with a few shop owner friends! 

New York Day 3 restaurants, cafes, shops: 

Kobrick Coffee Co., TsuruTonTan Udon Noodle Brasserie, FAO Schwartz, Muji, Chelsea Market, Grand Central Station (not pictured)

Day 4: Brooklyn Dilly Dally Day

TBA on this post because I genuinely feel my day in Brooklyn deserves it's own post!

Day 5: Trade Show Day

The night before I spent some time while drinking tea to go through the directory of exhibitors and kind of spiraled and realized I may actually need more time to walk the show as there were SO many more vendors I wanted to see than I had anticipated. 

I decided to start at Shoppe Object and mid day switch to the Javits for NYNOW. 

Needless to say it was a blur and I was basically walking the show, chatting with exhibitors from 9am-6pm. I shared a lot more photos on Instagram but here are a few that are non-stationery! I actually find a lot of inspiration from non-stationery booths! 

Overall it was a very good trip, I was out and about all day every day that I didn't even manage a nap. Which if you know me, you know that is the most important part of any trip for me. 

I'm so glad I was able to take this trip and am happy that I have started the year off right with my first quarterly trip! Thanks for following along! 

It seems like a handmade holiday is trending right now and honestly I am here for it! I first made a paper chain for our home during the holidays 2 years ago and loved it so much it’s stayed up in our house every since. 

I love opting for slightly less traditional colors and adding ribbons/bows to jazz it up! 

This year, I wanted to go all out with the decorations at the shop and 100% spent way too much time that I really don’t have on making probably close to 70+ ft of paper chains in varying color combinations. 

An Easy Colorful Handmade Christmas

Please pause a moment to take it all in - she’s a beaut!While I certainly did not invent making paper chains, I have learned quite a bit in the past 2 years and wanted to share some fun tips and tricks with y’all! 

Supplies and Materials for Paper Chains

To start, here are some supplies you will need: construction paper (about 60lb weight seems to be the right weight, any heavier and the chain will be really heavy plus the paper not as malleable to round out), a good stapler (and staples!), a paper cutter and optional, a good tv show to have on in the background. 

Next decide what kind of paper chain you want - the thicker the pieces of paper will give you the “chunky” effect of the chain, thinner but shorter pieces will give you a mini version of the “chunky” chain, and longer pieces will give you the traditional appearance of a paper chain. You can also decide on the color palette as well as combination of colors. 

Color Palettes and Patterns For A Paper Chain

My advice is to make several different types of paper chains for texture and layers in your decor. I also think sticking to 3-5 colors that can be used in different combinations looks the best. 

Some color patterns for your chain include: 

If you are using 3 colors - 1 (is color one), 2 (is color two), 3 (is color three)

1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3…. 

1, 1, 1 ,1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 1, 1….

For a thicker chain, you are going to want to wrap each piece of the chain around each other tightly. And just keep going, at first it won't look like much but as the chain gets longer you'll get the effect!

Other Tips and Tricks

Some other tips with hanging is using 3M hooks as well as ribbon to loop through and hang your finished chains. Since the paper is fragile and will tear, I find that hanging with ribbon enables you to loop through the chain loop and evenly distribute the weight of the chain. You can then use the same ribbon and add some texture by tying pieces to embellish your chain (this can also help hide and distract from the 3M hook!) 

Paper chains can be hung from the ceiling, on the walls, and even on your tree!Happy paper chain making friends! 

Happy October friends! It's my favorite month of the year (maybe I am biased because it's my birthday month!) But I do think it's by far the best solely because it's the start of Fall and Autumn. It also coincidentally worked out that I started a brand new journal this month as I finished off my 2nd notebook of the year. 

STARTING A NEW JOURNAL

It's become one of the things I look forward to the most when starting a new notebook or journal - adding stickers and personalizing the front! It's a great excuse to use all the cute vinyl stickers I have collected throughout the years and kind of pick the ones that feel like they resonate in this season of life! 

I don't feel the need to fill the whole space (front or back) immediately because this gives me time to slowly add stickers as I use this current journal! 

If you are wondering what journal I am using, I am using a soft cover A5 size journal similar to this one.

MY OCTOBER JOURNAL SPREAD

As mentioned in our last blog post, I more or less base my first pages of the month the same way. I like using it as a frame work and of course decorating with fun stickers and washi tape. My favorite thing to do is picking out a color palette that aligns with the season or just how I happen to be feeling. 

I added my horoscope for the month after I had filled out the rest of the spread and was pleasantly surprised that it is very similar to what I had written on my own.

I hid my recap of last month because it's a little personal - September felt really hard for no other reason that I'm still a human being who is learning and growing and still trying to figure out how I can show up in the world. (I know that sounds like a spiraling statement I swear I am fine lol)

OCTOBER COLOR PALETTE + JOURNALING FAVES

While I am GUILTY for wanting to bring all my supplies with me everywhere, it's been more functional practicing being more intentional with supplies. I try to dedicate time to pick out a variety of types of writing utensils in a color palette that works for the season and of course never go anywhere with my favorite pair of scissors. 

I also make it a point to swatch the supplies I use just for reference in my monthly spread!

A WORTHY ADD TO YOUR JOURNALING SUPPLIES

We somewhat recently got these magazines meant for you to cut up and use inside your journals. The illustrations are beautiful, the printing is high quality, and each issue is themed. I have a few issues and have used them enough to be able to endorse how great they are to have on hand!  If you come by the shop make it a point to flip through them and maybe take one home.

FINDING A JOURNALING + STATIONERY COMMUNITY

It makes me so happy seeing journaling becoming "trendy" because it's so nice seeing people get back to the analog. Slowing down to use their hands putting pen to paper, spending time with friends at a cafe while journaling... it just feels good! 

I started Austin Stationery Club this Summer with that goal in mind. A community around stationery and journaling where everyone is welcome! We have had 2 meet ups so far and are of course continuing to learn how we can provide not only a space but inspiration.

Our next meet up is themed for Fall/Halloween! 

Here are a few other clubs around town and in neighboring cities in case you are looking for one to join or check out! 

Austin: enchanted.journal.club

DFW: dfwjunkjournalclub

San Antonio: satxjunkjournalclub

Chicago: cozystationeryclub

LA: junkjournalclub

I highly recommend looking online to see if there is one in your city! It's such a lovely way to connect with other humans who love stationery, crafty things and journaling!

If you're interested in seeing some more journaling prompts and pages be sure to join our channel on Instagram. I'm planning on sharing more on there throughout the month! 

Happy September and welcome to the "ber" months! I'm 10000% biased since I am an October baby but I do feel like these last 3 months of the year are the best! I've been journaling on and off for most of my life but this is truly the first time I have been doing it daily even though it is quite possibly the busiest season of my life! 

How to take the pressure off journaling

Something that takes a lot of pressure off is to have no rules and also to replicate frameworks/spreads monthly so I have less decision fatigue or paralysis. 

Another thing that helps me is picking the right size of journal or notebook to use. For me it's something that is A5 or maybe even a little smaller! 

Easy monthly journal spread idea

I use this spread over and over again just in slightly different ways but it always has the same-ish information. I start by designating space to review and be grateful for the previous month as well as a space for hopes, dreams and goals for the new month. 

It's a wonderful reason to use any new washi tapes or dig through your stash to find something that fits your mood or season. I then will go through my writing utensils, pens and markers to create a simple color palette so everything feels visually happy. 

Here's just an up close look at my September work-related goals plus a little brain dump. I'm also currently obsessed with my Pilot Kakuno pen and it's been my everyday fountain pen. 

I love adding in cute sticky notes and of course lots of lil stickers to decorate. And as a stationery shop owner and life long stationery aficionado I have no shortage of stickers, tapes and so much more. *A big goal of mine this year was to start using my supplies and I've found so much joy in not only using them but sharing them with Penny and the girls at the shop! 

While I know junk journaling is all the rage right now, idk why I personally don't like referring to my journals as a junk journal. I prefer calling it archive journaling because I see it as me archiving my life! And I like the idea that an archive is literally a collection of anything that serves to document the past.

I hope you found this interesting and maybe even inspiring! Happy journaling!

Why does the Hobonichi Techo have a cult following?

The Hobonichi Techo brand debuted in 2001 and now has users in over 100 countries and regions and all-time sales surpassing 10 million copies. They consider themselves a Life book that is meant to cater to your life and style by providing users with the freedom to use their pages as they wish! 

From their original version to the Cousin, HON, Weeks and Weeks Mega, they've developed different sizes and styles to adapt to their user's needs. 

As someone who has lived and loved an analog lifestyle for their whole life, I can confidently say I have tried and tested dozens and dozens of different planners before discovering the Hobonichi Weeks that I now call my planner soulmate. 

The Secret Is In the Paper, Tomoe River Paper

The pages of all the Hobonichis feature Tomoe River Paper (pronounced as "toe-moh-eh") that is a thin and durable paper specially designed for planners. It's known for its ability to hold ink well and provide a smooth writing experience. By far one of the selling points of this planner was how much I enjoy writing on the pages!

The size of the Hobonichi Weeks feels more portable for every day use for me and of course the huge selection of cover designs add a lot of fun to choosing one annually. This planner is a January start version but provides you with a December monthly and weekly spreads for the month to get started which I find very generous! 

It features a weekly horizontal layout with the weekly pages on the left and grid memo pages on the right. The back of the planner also provides you with  graph memo pages for note-taking at the end of the book. 

For my personal monthly spreads, I chose to use it more for fun as a doodle-a-day and photo-a-day. There is a lot of extra room on the margins and bottom for notes or important dates and events too.

A Look Inside The Hobonichi Techo Weeks and Weekly Spreads Ideas

The weekly spreads have the perfect amount of space for me to customize each week. I use the left side as a place to keep track of anything time sensitive + general daily actionable items. I use the right side as a combo of mini gratitude list, weekly to do dump, habit tracking and end each week with a weekly recap. 

I've been finding so much joy in mapping each week out with a fun color palette or color scheme and I love having an excuse to use my enormous stash of washi tapes, stickers and other stationery supplies! 

*A disclaimer that not every single week looks as fun as these! Some spreads have been more minimal if it's a busy week or if one or more of my little girl gang are feeling under the weather etc. The two weeks we were in Singapore do not have any to dos so I used the left page to jot down a quick summary of each day and will use the right side to fill with small photos of that week! 

There Is No Limit To Your Hobonichi Techo - Ideas For Your Note Pages

The back of the Hobonichi Weeks features even more Tomoe River paper in graph form (my favorite type and style of paper is graph paper!) I've used it as a place to do a personal goal list, shop goal list, birthday tracker and even swatched fountain pen inks which held up really well (the creases in the sheets are just from me tossing this planner around not from the inks!) 

Other ideas include: 

Wish lists

Current writing utensil swatch pages

Annual best of lists

Current daily routine

Notable social current events 

Accessories For Your Hobonichi Techo

While not a necessity, there are 3 additional items I would recommend if you get a Hobonichi Weeks for 2026. A pencil board is a must to give myself a flat surface to write on as well as use the straight edge to draw crisp lines! 

I also added a clear cover which helped preserve the integrity of cutie Paddington. 

Last but not least, to keep my planner close I tied an elastic band around it as a loop and added a few cute charms! 

I hope you found this blog post helpful and a little more in-depth to why I cannot recommend this planner enough. As a small business owner, a mom, creative person who has very limited time, this planner really does it all!