I’m going to say that really annoying, over-used, cliché sentence that everyone hates… When Ryman Stationery contacted me and asked if I’d like to work with them, I completely jumped at the chance! And although I’m internally cringing just writing that, I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t 100% true. I’m sure most bloggers can relate to my love of stationery; crisp, brand new notebooks with not a mark on them, trolling through pages after pages or shelf after shelf of pens of all different types and colours, random multi-coloured paperclips and nick-nacks that you’re never going to use… Sigh. A blogger’s heaven. That’s more or less how I felt as I scrolled through the Ryman’s website, picking my items for review.
Ryman very kindly allowed me to pick 3 items from their website. I considered the type of things I need but also things I don’t necessarily need but might want to try. As it was approaching the New Year, I know that I’m usually more organised and productive so I wanted to pick items which would help with that so let’s start with the Collins Scandi Metallic Polka Dot Diary, which I absolutely fell in love with at first glance!
First of all, totally my aesthetic. I love pink, I love gold, I love the font and it’s totally blogger photo worthy! You’ll certainly see this crop up in a few of my blog photos throughout the year. But of course, I didn’t just choose it because it looks pretty. This is a really high quality diary, the cover is sturdy and so are the pages inside. It’s split into 2 months at a time and you have an entire page for every day – which I don’t think I actually do enough to actually fill but it’s handy all the same, especially for notes. A new diary is always handy to have at the beginning of the year, whether you think you’re going to use it or not because you never know what the year ahead is going to bring!
Another thing which is always handy at any time of the year, is a plain, lined notebook. I am a huge collector of notebooks. Some of which just sit on my bookcase, looking pretty because I know I’m never going to use them but I don’t want to keep them in a drawer. I chose this Heritage Personalized Notebook which comes with a personalized copper foil front, which I had my name put on and I absolutely adore. I chose grey, simply because it’s a colour I wouldn’t often choose but I think the copper foil looks lovely on whichever colour you choose. Again, this is a really well made notebook and will keep in shape, especially if you’re always using it, taking it in and out of drawers and bags. I think this would also make a lovely gift for someone. I know we’ve already had Christmas but ya’no, for anyone who wants to get ahead on next year!
I wanted my last pick to be something a little different for me. I couldn’t choose another notebook – as much as I wanted to so I decided to opt for the Johanna Basford Enchanted Forest Colouring Book. Now hear me out. I’ve never been one for colouring and I’ve never really bought into the colouring for self-care trend although it’s clearly proven to be very effective in some people. I never wanted to splash out the money on these huge colouring books only to find it doesn’t actually work. I wrote a post in December about my self-care goals for 2018 and I think this is something I’d like to add to that list. The Enchanted Forest book is beautifully drawn – the pictures are so delicate and intricate and I’m certainly that once you get into one, it’ll almost be like the forest has captured you. I’m looking forward to giving colouring books another try and maybe incorporating it into my self-care routine. The Ryman website has a selection of these beautiful books.
I hope you liked my selection of products from Ryman Stationery! For high quality products of good value which would make both fantastic gifts for others and yourself – I’d highly recommend taking a nosy at their website!
Which product here is your favourite? Have you ever purchased from Ryman Stationery before? What are your opinions on colouring books – do you find them therapeutic?
* These products were sent to me in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All thoughts, opinions and photographs featured in this post are entirely my own.