my 2027 planner setup: six notebooks and what each one is for

I’m running six notebooks in 2027. Yes, six.

The question I get most is how I keep that many going without them turning into a guilty stack of half-used books. Each one gets one job. My daily journal is where I reflect and track goals. My weekly is where I plan. My memory book holds the small moments. When every book has a lane, I never stop to wonder where something goes, and I never skip a day because I can’t decide which book to open.

Here’s the full 2027 lineup, what each book does and why it made the cut. I’m carrying every one of these into January, and I plan to still be using them in December.

what changed from 2026

In 2026 my daily journal has been a Sterling Ink A5 in grid with Koji paper, and I’ve loved it. For 2027 I want more structure built into the pages, so I’m moving on.

The shared journal and the commonplace book both carry over. Everything else is new, and most of it came from the Hobonichi order I already wrote about.

the daily journal: Hemlock & Oak Signature Daily

I switched to the Hemlock & Oak Signature Daily for the bigger page, the guided goal setting and debriefs and the built-in habit tracking. I use my daily journal to learn about myself and get a little better over time, and sometimes I need help with that. I have OCD and ADHD, and without some gentle structure I lose focus fast. This book gives me the structure without turning my evenings into homework. Mine arrives in October, so this is a first look. The full review comes later.

weekly planning: Aura Estelle horizontal weekly

This is the only true planner in the stack. My weeks hold a lot: agency work, church work, personal plans, workouts and macros. I wanted a full A5 spread with room for all of it, and the Aura Estelle magnet planner gives me exactly that. I love the chronological layout, and the habit and goal tracking is there when I want it without taking over the page. I plan a lot. I don’t optimize.

memory keeping: Hobonichi Weeks, tanakadaisuke Starlight

I’ve never kept a dedicated memory book, so this one is new for me. I’m doing it in the tanakadaisuke Starlight Weeks, and it’s the most beautiful book I (almost) own.

The tall, slim Weeks layout is why I think I’ll stick with this one. Each day gets a small space, so there’s nothing big to fill and no pressure to write a lot. It fits in my bag. This is where the small stuff goes, the things I never write down and then can’t remember by March. I love that the book holding my year looks like the night sky.

the shared journal: Hobonichi Techo A6, with Dawn

This is the Former Roommate Journal, and I keep it with Dawn. Every month has a theme, and we track them all in an in-depth spreadsheet. August was junk journaling every day. September is a hex code a day that builds into a rainbow by the end of the month. December is a doodle a day. We each keep our own book, fill in the day’s entry and send each other pictures. The project keeps growing. A6 is small enough that a half-finished day never feels like failing.

social media planning: Hobonichi Techo HON A6, V&A Vine

Everything analog laura lives here: posting schedule, content ideas and the running list of inks I still owe the swatch book. I went with a standalone HON hardcover so it doesn’t compete with my other books for a cover. I picked the V&A Vine because I liked it, and yes, I have zero restraint around a collab.

the commonplace book: Nolty A5 grid

My commonplace book is a Nolty A5 grid log notebook, and it’s the one book here I’m not replacing. The same notebook carries straight into 2027. Anything worth keeping that doesn’t belong to a specific day goes in here: quotes, ideas, lists and anything I’ll want to find again. A commonplace book has a different job from a planner or a journal, so it gets its own book.

how i keep six going

I don’t do this perfectly, and I don’t do it every day. Giving myself that permission is what keeps me coming back. My favorite time with these books is the evening, when I finally get some downtime to decompress, let my thoughts out and map out tomorrow and the days after. Each book does one job. I write the date first and figure out the rest from there.

the setup at a glance

• daily journal: Hemlock & Oak Signature Daily
• weekly planning: Aura Estelle horizontal weekly
• memory keeping: Hobonichi Weeks, tanakadaisuke Starlight
• shared journal: Hobonichi Techo A6, kept with Dawn
• social media planning: Hobonichi Techo HON A6, V&A Vine
• commonplace book: Nolty A5 grid
• daily ink: Wearingeul, the Glass Bead Game
• daily pen: Esterbrook Estie Seaglass, fine nib