Silk + Sonder is a monthly planner subscription that makes planning, reflecting, and achieving easy and fun by delivering a new pen-to-paper experience every month. Each planner features new layouts that are "inspired by positive psychology, bullet journaling, and self-help books." For an annual plan, the cost is $15.75/month. There are also quarterly and monthly plans available.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
Silk + Sonder December 2023
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Life is extremely busy for me. I work 5 days a week, I have two elementary-aged boys that are currently in basketball, and I honestly haven't been able to sleep in for over 8 years. I have the best husband in the world, but when it comes to schedules, he doesn't have a sense of what is going on, so I need to make sure I have everything accounted for. That, coupled with the fact that I struggle with anxiety, is exactly why I need Silk + Sonder in my life.
While Silk + Sonder is a journal, it is also a planner, coloring book, mood tracker, habit tracker, sleep tracker, and more! Centering around a new theme each month, this book has it all, and aligns with my needs perfectly. With 60 pages of amazingness, I look forward to opening this journal each day, and have found it to help keep my anxiety under control.
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December is upon us, and it is my favorite time of the year! This month's theme of "Celebration" is incredibly fitting, and has helped me to organize through my son's 11th birthday, cookie baking, present buying, nativity planning, and the big ole holiday week itself! Focusing on celebrating, instead of trying to make sure everything is perfect, has been a mind shift, and I find myself being lot more intentional with how I'm spending my time.
Celebration: noun - the action of marking one's pleasure at an important event or occasion by engaging in enjoyable, typically social, activity.
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One of my favorite parts of Silk + Sonder is receiving a new planner each month. Starting "fresh" has been really helpful, as yearly planners start making me feel overwhelmed. While this does feature an entire year calendar, it is too small to start filling, but big enough to reference for the future. To start my month, I fill in my calendar with dates I already know, and watch the month fly by! Staying organized is a huge help in managing my anxiety, and being able to quickly pull this calendar at the front of this planner is exactly what I need.
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On page 6, we are greeted with a "Future Log." This includes two small calendars for the upcoming months. With just enough space to write small notes, my calendar generally stays pretty open. Because January is the start of a new year, I've added a few things to keep in the back of my head without causing overwhelm. On the opposite side, you find scratch paper, which is a great inclusion! It gives me space to write random lists, reminders, and other things I just can't lose or forget!
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The next page offers a space to reflect on your last month, with a spot to set your intentions for the upcoming one and one to even reflect on your challenges. This page is one of my favorites, as it shows all of the month's accomplishments. Going through the wins, challenges, and favorite moments is a great way to be intentional regarding time and opportunities. Looking back helps me realize just how much one can accomplish in 4-ish weeks! Going forward, I would like to pray more, and work on being more positive, stop complaining and worrying, and continue to live in the moment and enjoy each day God gives us! What did you list in this section?
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Setting intentions for December was a really helpful activity because of how busy this particular month tends to be. This isn't making a to-do list, but a list that asks something of yourself, and then gives you the strength to do it. With 6 boxes available to meditate on yourself in specific categories, it truly is helpful to write these down. Life is so much more than waking up and going to work, and being intentional really proves that.
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Like I mentioned above, this is more than just a planner, and these trackers are proof of that. Page 10 and 11 offer a mood tracker and habit tracker. We are given space to fill in what our typical moods are, and fill it out throughout the month. This is great for tracking patterns especially for me and my anxiety. If you don't like to do a ton of writing, these pages are definitely geared toward you. When I first started this planner, I felt the need to complete every page perfectly, but in finding myself, have realized I can do whatever I feel on each given day. This is YOUR planner, and you can fill it out as completely, or not completely, as you feel necessary. This same response goes for the habit tracker. Wonderful when you are starting a new habit, I write mine down and sometimes forget to fill them in. Is that okay? Yes! Do what works for you.
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Page 12 offers another tracker, this one being for sleep. Because I typically go to bed and wake up at the same times I don't generally fill this out, but it's here if you need it. The opposing page, however, is another one of my favorites in the entire book! Gratitude is one of the most important traits I think a person can have, and this 31 day log gives you space to remind you exactly what you have to be thankful for. This month I opted to list both large and small items, and it truly is a good reminder that each day is an opportunity and gift.
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Because this month's theme was celebration, we received three prompts regarding the topics of appreciation and embracing our authentic selves. These prompts were very thoughtful and had us look back on our current year to see what we learned and ways we can celebrate ourselves. Page 15 offered another list style prompt, and had us come up with ways that we can celebrate ourselves this month. We need to remember that we are worth celebrating each day, and being intentional with these items really has boosted my mood throughout the month!
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The next activity was to take an ordinary day and make it extraordinary. It asked us to describe a date we would take ourselves on. As I reflected, this was an easy one, though more suited for the summer months. Have I done it? No, because we just plain haven't had time, but I sure would love to! This really was a powerful activity, and one I just might slip in an envelope to my husband as a Christmas gift idea. On the opposing side was a beautiful poem regarding the New Year. I love the idea of not dwelling on the past, but looking forward to the future.
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Page 18 and 19 offer two more fun activities: a peacock coloring page, and a "Year End Highlights" page that you fill ornaments with the best parts of your year. Both activities were calming and fun, though I enjoyed filling in the ornaments better. Reflecting on 2023, we had some struggles, but overall we had a lot of fun!
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Each month we are gifted a recipe, and this month's recipe was for "Peppermint Meltaway Cookies". Though we had most of the ingredients, our family ended up with Covid, so baking wasn't exactly on our agenda. We did earmark it for later in the month though! On the opposing page, we received a "Celebration Jar" to list the things we have to celebrate. This was easy to fill in, and really fun to reflect on!
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Onto some more fun stuff, page 24 debuts a "Winter Math" activity. Using winter symbols, this was a great brain warm-up for the morning! Also containing a riddle, I never know these answers, and look forward to finding out the answer in next month's journal. Any guesses?
Another nice feature is the Monthly Expense Tracker on page 25. I don't typically fill this out because I have my tracker on a google doc, but could see how this might be useful to others.
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The most helpful part is the weekly planner. This area shows a calendar, weekly to-dos, habit and activity trackers, goals, and meal plans. Adding notes to each day, this is where I spend most of my time. I love that it condenses some of the other pages into a summary here, and it really helps me stay organized. I especially like being reminded how I want to feel, and what I am loving, because sometimes looking at everything going on gets me a little anxious!
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Tidying up with one last quote, the dictionary definition of "Sonder", and the back cover, that's all there is to it. I have come to find that a key part of my day is the morning in which I sit and fill out my planner with my cup of coffee. This quiet time happens before the kids are awake, and I can snuggle Scout and Buxton all to myself! Now that we are in the 2nd quarter of our school routine and things have settled down a teeny tiny bit, I am able to carve out time to stay intentional with this journal. With that, my mindset has shifted, and I am leading a more positive life.
The Verdict
With basketball in the air, you could see just how busy we are by looking at the calendar I filled out in this journal. Pair that with the holiday season, and I tend to get a bit frazzled without some organization. Because of this, I definitely call on my Silk + Sonder planner to stay organized and sane. Without this thing, I'd definitely be lost! This month's planner was especially beautiful, and the theme of "celebration" was perfectly chosen. I continue to be impressed with this subscription, and can't wait to see what's in store for the New Year!
I tend to allocate about 15-20 minutes a day to this journal and flip from front to back reflecting, adding to, and processing what I have previously written. By the end of the month, my brain feels much more organized and stable. The beauty of this planner is remarkable, and the packable size means I can tote it around in my purse. Being extremely impressed with all aspects, I am really looking forward to discovering more about myself, all while staying organized and offering myself a little daily quiet time and important self-care.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Your subscription will start with January as your first month but there is an option to add on December for 50% off at $10.99. A note from Silk + Sonder on shipping:
You can expect your SILK + SONDER issue to arrive 2-5 days before the 1st of every month.
Check out our list of the best women's subscription boxes for 2023 to see which boxes were recommended by MSA readers like you!
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