Busy B Pretty Range: A Review

mindfulness, Nicki CawoodI’m a huge fan of stationery and have been since those first days at school when there was nothing more joyful than a new exercise book and a perfectly sharpened pencil. Being a Busy B ambassador means that I have the joy once again of receiving new stationery items to use. The only difference this time is that I get to share it with all of you.

If you know me offline aka in The Real World the chances are you will have already seen or heard about my latest review items. I was sent three items from the Pretty range and oh my, pretty doesn’t come close.

The Pretty Range: Address Book

As an avid pen pal and therefore letter writer this fabulous All My Favourite People Busy B Pretty address book has the most gorgeous feel to it. The paper quality is outstanding and it is indeed where I keep some of my favourite people’s contact details. Don’t get me wrong, I run my own business, largely online, and therefore understand the benefits of digital organisation. That said, not everything should be stored online. When celebrating the joy of snail mail or happy mail, you really should have your addresses stored in a book such as this.  I expect to be using this address book for years to come.

Busy B

The Pretty Range: To Do Notes List Book

If you aren’t someone who understands the love of lists and note-taking, I’m not sure if we can be friends anymore. I’m only joking. Mostly…..

There is something incredibly productive about list-making. Shopping lists, task lists, listography; you name it, one way or another either the making of the lists themselves or the act of ticking items off offers satisfaction. This Busy B Pretty To Do Notes List Book offers all you need for list-making and note-taking sessions (and is compact enough to fit in your bag).

Busy B, Lists

This gorgeous list book features two list books inside, one lined and one plain. Perfect for all of you list-lovers. For extra fabulousness, it lays flat, has an elastic pen loop and an elastic closure band.

The Pretty Range: Pretty Rollerball Pens

To finish this bundle of wonderfulness off I received two matching black ink  Pretty rollerballs which coordinate beautifully and write so smoothly. A must-have for fans of quality stationery such as myself.

I think it’s been made pretty clear that I heartily approve of the Pretty Range from Busy B. Not only is everything here great to look at, great to touch and great to use, they all boast a practical purpose which aids you in your organisation. Like what you see? See the rest of the Busy B Pretty Range on the website (including a thermal mug!!).

This range is a clear winner for me!

 

 

Busy B Family Diary Review

Busy B Family Diary

I have the pleasure of being a Busy B Ambassador (I’m known as a #BusyQueenB I’ll have you know). This means that myself and a few other fellow stationery tarts/fans/addicts users have the opportunity to receive some Busy B products every month. What do we have to do? We have to write honest and open reviews about the products we are sent. That means that if we love it, we say we love it. If we think something could be improved, we’re going to tell them that too.  You know me, if I write a review, I mean what I say. And on that note, let me introduce the Busy B 2018 Family Diary….


Now, I have made four videos to showcase this fab diary. Three were lost when I dropped my phone then stood on it (don’t ask) and the fourth was NEARLY complete when someone called me on my new phone and I managed to delete it. Rather than make you wait any longer, I figured a written review would do the job just as well.

First of all, I am going to struggle to describe to you the quality of this diary as you really need to feel it and see it to appreciate it. I’m really fussy when it comes to paper quality and insist on flawless printing and the Busy B Family Diary 2018 tickets all my QC boxes. If you are new to the brand I have to ask you to just trust me on this one.


The weekly layout of this diary is the real winner. You have a week to view which is split into two pages/two sections. On the lefthand side, you have Your Week. Here you have a section for each day of the week, Monday to Sunday and a handy reminder section that runs the length of the page. On the righthand page, you have Their Week. This page features a grid format for you to use for other members of the family. For me for example, I would have a section for Roy, Kieran and Taylor (for school dates, reminders, appointments etc) and the fourth column I would use as a home planner. Here you’d find home-related reminders for example, “Gas man 4pm” or “Asda shopping 10-11am”, and so on.

Busy B

The flexibility of this layout is what makes this planner the wonder that it is. You could fill the diary purely with these weekly spreads and it would still be popular. Busy B do however like to spoil us all so other features inside the diary include:

  • Spaces for your personal details and your partner’s details. Busy B
  • Children’s information.
  • Useful info (i.e. your dentist, hairdresser etc).
  • Contact pages (don’t rely on having all your numbers on your phone. I did and lost them all when I broke my phone).
  • Monthly birthday pages.
  • A 2018 and 2019 calendar.
  • Monthly calendar spreads.
  • To do list page 
  • A 2019 forward plan section
  • Notes
  • Don’t Forget tear-out sheets (one of my favourite features)
  • Pen loop
  • Elastic closure
  • Document page (for popping paperwork in to keep safe). 

Those clever cats at Busy B really have thought this planner through, making it as close to perfect as I’ve ever seen a planner get.

More Busy B Goodies

Busy B

I was sent two other Busy B products to compliment the diary and they do a fine job of it. 

The Busy B Black Rollerball set (two pens) co-ordinates brilliantly and more to the point writes really nicely too. I’m not known for my handwriting (an understatement) however even I manage a pretty decent chicken scratch with one of these in my hand.

The second accessory is these Contemporary Busy B Page marker. On their own, they are great however coupled with this planner they are fantastic. Busy B has left a little slot in the back of the planner so that you may slot these right in, having them safe and sound for whenever you need them.

My Busy B Family Diary 2018 Conclusion

I’m not easily pleased when it comes to planners and so on. I’ve been known to buy a planner, use it a month or two then move onto something else. The problems have always been that they don’t cater for everything in my life (my business, family and home) or/and offer flexibility in how I plan. This ticks both boxes AND it’s gorgeous. 
If I was giving this a star rating, this diary would get a 5/5 from me, with the accessories receiving the same.