Apart from the much hyped Simplified Planner, Emily Ley also has a another version without the rainbow colors in the form of the Dapperdesk daily planner.

Quick facts

• Size: Approx 5.75″ wide x 9″ high
• Softcover
• Sewn binding
• 2 page Monthly calendar (starts on Sunday)
• 1 page per day
• 1 ribbon bookmark
• Neutral inside pages
• 12 month duration
• Calendar and academic year
• US holidays pre-printed on the monthly and daily pages

Price: $62 USD + shipping. I purchased this planner as part of an Emily Ley haul (shipping was $47 USD for 3 planners to Australia). Free USA shipping when you spend a certain amount ($80 USD seems to be the minimum)

Let’s take a closer look!

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The Cover

There are a few cover options to choose from, I of course chose the prettiest cover with a pattern – the gold foil polka dots! You can also get a plain navy cover.

This is the thickest planner I’ve ever come across at 1.25″ thick!

Because it’s so fat it’s way too heavy to take with you. The page size is 5.75″ wide x 9″ high so I think this is a planner that would permanently stay on your desk at home. It would’ve been more practical if it was split into 2 x 6 monthly planners.

The pages don’t stay open on their own (at all) at any location in the book. It was very difficult to photograph and do a video review of this planner because the pages just kept wanting to close on their own.

Dates at a glance calendar & holidays list

At the front of the planner is a USA holidays list plus an annual calendar.

Monthly Calendar

All of the monthly calendars are clustered together at the front of planner and start the week on a Sunday.

The line spacing of the notes sidebar is 9mm.

USA holidays are pre-printed.

Split boxes 🙁

Daily Planning

After the monthly calendars are all of the day to a page planners. There are no divider pages to signify the end / start of each month. Even a page with full color black printing would help find your place easier, especially since there is only 1 ribbon bookmark.

The line spacing is slightly smaller than the monthly calendar’s side at 7mm.

Each day of the week including Saturday and Sunday have their own page. The schedule starts at 6am and runs hourly through to 9pm.

Despite the impractical weight / size of the planner the daily spread is very functional. If you don’t like planning to a schedule (like me) you could easily use that column for more list space.

The open-ended notes box is  just under 7.5cm high.

There are 8 lined notes pages at the back of the planner (7mm line spacing).

Pen Testing

I didn’t do a pen test as I won’t be keeping this planner. I can see there is ghosting of the ink on the backside of the pages so I suspect there will be some pen and highlighter ghosting as well.

Pros of the Planner

• Functional daily planning page
• Weekends are not combined, each day of the week gets its own page
• International shipping was quick (arrived in Australia just under 3 weeks after ordering)
• Months are clustered together at the front of the planner not interspersed between daily planners
• Comes in a sturdy keepsake box (although I like to use planner boxes for storing pens)

Cons of the Planner

• Expensive
• Expensive international shipping
• Heavy
• Split boxes on the monthly calendar
• No tabs
• Only 1 ribbon bookmark
• No divider pages dispersed between the daily planning to signify the start / end of each month
• No weekly spread or weekly review pages
• No monthly planning page

Would I use this planner?

No. For $62 USD + shipping this planner is overpriced. It’s too bulky and impractical to carry around in your handbag. The pages don’t lay flat no matter where you open the planner (in other sewn bound planners usually the middle pages lay flat but these just close on their own). I was expecting thicker paper that didn’t have show through of the design underneath. The daily planning page is very functional but also very simple so you could easily make your own printable with the same or a similar layout.

I’m disappointed in this planner and do not recommend it. It would be better if this was sold as inserts people can add to their own discbound notebook, or if it was split into 2 x 6 monthly planners.

More planner reviews:

• Emily Ley Simpified Planner collaboration with At A Glance
• Panda Planner Review
• Zelo Journal Review (Daily planner without pre-printed times / scheduling section)

Planning Tips:

• Pen Comparison – is there actually a difference in ink color between brands?
• Planner Newbies: The 7 Planner Stickers you need to stock up on
• 12 Solutions for when you run out of space in your planner

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