Notebooks With Available Leather Covers

[cannon]

As the title says, I am looking for a notebook that I can buy, place in a leather cover, fill up, replace, and repeat for many years by putting my current active unfilled notebooks in the leather cover to travel with. I also want the notebooks to be fairly durable so I can pass them on or store them for a very long time, meaning I think Moleskine is ruled out.

 

I know Rhodia Webnotebook covers can be found here: Inkleaf Leather Co.

 

Are there any alternatives with leather cover offerings, too? I just want a leather cover that fits a decently durable notebook. I am okay with it not working well with Fountain Pens, but it must work with Ball point and pencils.

 

Thanks for the help.

[matt385]

For leather covers I just bought a refillable notebook from renaissance art. I also got their notebook which is very heavy course paper. It works best with a fine point nib or a ball point/roller ball. I am looking to replace it with a clairfontaine refill which I prefer.

[hedera]

Well, there is the Midori Traveler's Notebook of course: gorgeous leather covers in black or brown, comes in two sizes, and with all kinds of refills.

The refills themselves have a simple cardboard cover that I find to be quite durable, the paper is acid free (not mentioned by Midori, but someone tested it - can't remember where though) and, although that is not one of your requirements, it is heaven to write on with a fountain pen.

 

Midori also has two storage thingies for the refills;

http://www.thejournalshop.com/cgi-bin/sh000001.pl?REFPAGE=http%3a%2f%2fwww.thejournalshop.com%2f&WD=traveler%27s%20midori&PN=Midori_Traveler_s_Notebook_Filing_and_Storage_Items.html%23a1_2134346#a1_2134346

and

http://www.thejournalshop.com/cgi-bin/sh000001.pl?REFPAGE=http%3a%2f%2fwww.thejournalshop.com%2f&WD=traveler%27s%20midori&PN=Midori_Traveler_s_Notebook_Filing_and_Storage_Items.html%23a1_2114305#a1_2114305

 

(links are to the Journalshop because I don't know off the top of my head a store in the US that sells them; no affiliation, happy customer, etc etc)

 

I keep meaning to check at Ikea though, I suspect they have a box or two that would be perfect for the refills.

 

The Midori leather covers are delicous, and age incredibly well.

[ObserveClosely]

Well, there is the Midori Traveler's Notebook of course . .

+++1 on the Midori. You can also very easily make your own refills, using the paper of your choice. Which I have done, using my favorite sketchbook paper. The "Kraft" refill is also pretty nice for sketching.

 

US suppliers of Midori Traveler's Notebooks and all their refills and accessories are Maido Stationery and Resor Shop. I have ordered from both and both are courteous, but Maido is faster.

[macaddicted]

Since it hasn't been mentioned: Gfeller Casemakers

 

I have one for my Rhodia webbies. They're light weight and well made.

[cannon]

I do like the plain black notebook looks that Moleskine, Quo Vadis Habana, and Rhodia Webbies have. I don't like the big logo on the Rhodia, but I like the size because it is not so large like the Large Habana. I know Moleskine is very popular, but I just don't want to deal with early deterioration since they are known to be on the cheaper side for notebook quality (clever marketing of them to claim famous inventors like Da Vinci used their notebooks brand even though it didn't start until the 1990s).

 

I may just go with the Rhodia and a suggested leather cover to tote around, unless some other great suggestion comes up. Thanks for the help guys.

[SCPaul]

You could also look at Pelle notebooks.

[KrazyIvan]

After losing contact with Mr. Duarte of Nicaragua, I can't recommend his covers anymore. I have an order from an Etsy shop that is taking way too long to get to me. It has been a month since I placed my order. My first Etsy order and still no sign of my cover. So maybe not such a good idea either.

[Octo]

If you can find refills you like, you (or a friend) can easily make a cover for them. An inexpensive source of leather is used jackets from Goodwill or other consignment shops.

[Joe in Seattle]

Sully Leather journals, also Levenger refillables

[cannon]

I like the looks of the black notebooks like Moleskine, Habana, etc. I want durable and as little logo as possible. The Moleskines come in great sizes and look about right, but I want better quality.

 

At this point, I might just sacrifice on the logo side and go for the Rhodia Webnotebooks and the Inkleaf case. Unless there is some similar alternative with no logos. Quo Vadis Habana seems good, though the large is just a bit too large. Leuchtturm 1917 looks decent but they have logos on the pages right? I want blank.

 

Anyone know where to get quality Habana leather cases? I don't want to make it myself, I'd like to order. Or if there is a company who does customs, that would be fine.

 

I am looking for a brand I can stick with forever through all my replacements.

 

Thanks for the help.

Edited February 8, 2012 by cannon

[JimB]

Thanks to this topic I found that Renaissance Art now has a composition book cover in leather! Yea! Now I can add some class to the Staples Sustainable Earth notebooks I carry around with me. I ordered one at once upon finding it. The rustic was good enough for me, but there are three options. There's even a link to a YouTube video showing how to distress your cover for a more interesting look. (no affiliation)

[CAG_1787]

Levenger sells a leather cover for Moleskine, which would presumably (but no guarantees) fit similar sized notebooks like the Luechtterm.

 

Link

[rackom]

If you are a bit DIY oriented, you could try make your own. I am in progress with mine. You can buy leather on eBay (I had one from friend of mine). Other materials cost about 3€/$4 and 4hours of work. Photos included:

 

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/5253/img0975l.th.jpg

http://img808.imageshack.us/img808/7999/img0976af.th.jpg

http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/4997/img0977e.th.jpg

http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/1705/img0978m.th.jpg

http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/4153/img0979ky.th.jpg

 

Papers are removable and could be stitched together in 1hour, usable without leather cover too.

[SCPaul]

I forgot Doane Paper also makes a leather cover.

[NeelsK]

I posted my current solution in this thread. Dont know if this is the sort of thing you meant or if you are only looking for covers.

[KrazyIvan]

Here is my collection so far.

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7168/6843996955_de3a19c0dc_z.jpg

Leather Notebook Covers by IvanRomero, on Flickr

 

From left to right:

 

1. Renaissance Art Pocket Moleskine Cahier cover with a doane paper notebook inside. It holds in a notebook similar to how a Midori does.

2. Beastly Leather (Etsy) Moleskine Cahier Cover with a generic notebook inside. It only works with Cahier sized notebooks. Field Notes and doane paper will work. Rhodia small Webnotebook is too big as well as the Pocket Moleskine.

3. VadeMecum Leather Pocket Molekine Notebook Cover. Works with Pocket Moleskine, Rhodia Small Webnotetebooks and similar sized notebooks. Too bad Jduarte is not responding to emails.

4. Lands End Passport Wallet repurposed as Notebook Cover. Has a doane paper notebook inside.

Edited February 10, 2012 by KrazyIvan

[penocd]

This might be sacrilege in this crowd, but I had a custom cover made through a leather shop for composition books.

 

Comp books?

 

The comp books are a standard sizes and readily available. The system works well for me. Some comp books are more fp friendly than others--my best luck has been with the Office Depot brand, which I buy on sale during the Back-to-School season. I know the quality obviously is not the same as Rhodia, but allows for a standardized notebook which can easily be archived once completed and has been my system for the last 3 years.

 

To get an idea of how much to expect to pay, I bought my cover for $55 from Texas Shoemaker in southern California.

[bogiesan]

I like the looks of the black notebooks like Moleskine, Habana, etc. I want durable and as little logo as possible. The Moleskines come in great sizes and look about right, but I want better quality.

At this point, I might just sacrifice on the logo side and go for the Rhodia Webnotebooks and the Inkleaf case. Unless there is some similar alternative with no logos. Quo Vadis Habana seems good, though the large is just a bit too large. Leuchtturm 1917 looks decent but they have logos on the pages right? I want blank.

 

I thought the Rhodia Webbie had been un-logoed due to customer squealing.

The Leuchhturm has a light gray name on every page, true, but they're also numbered.

 

Barnes and Noble once had an in-house line of journal refills that fit into leather wraps. They came in various designs and standard notebook sizes. You can still find the refills on the shelves but the leather covers seem to have gone out of production. I bought many for friends back in the 90s and they can still get refills. They are not hardcover but the paper is actually pretty good.

 

I'll give another nod to Gfellers Casemakers in Meridian, Idaho. Full dicsclosure: the owner and chief craftsman is a client of mine. I produced their Moleskine cover video and we're working on more. Steve's leather and work are as good as tey get and, with his level of craftsmanship, you will get EXACTLY what you pay for.

[cannon]

I like the looks of the black notebooks like Moleskine, Habana, etc. I want durable and as little logo as possible. The Moleskines come in great sizes and look about right, but I want better quality.

At this point, I might just sacrifice on the logo side and go for the Rhodia Webnotebooks and the Inkleaf case. Unless there is some similar alternative with no logos. Quo Vadis Habana seems good, though the large is just a bit too large. Leuchtturm 1917 looks decent but they have logos on the pages right? I want blank.

 

I thought the Rhodia Webbie had been un-logoed due to customer squealing.

The Leuchhturm has a light gray name on every page, true, but they're also numbered.

 

Barnes and Noble once had an in-house line of journal refills that fit into leather wraps. They came in various designs and standard notebook sizes. You can still find the refills on the shelves but the leather covers seem to have gone out of production. I bought many for friends back in the 90s and they can still get refills. They are not hardcover but the paper is actually pretty good.

 

I'll give another nod to Gfellers Casemakers in Meridian, Idaho. Full dicsclosure: the owner and chief craftsman is a client of mine. I produced their Moleskine cover video and we're working on more. Steve's leather and work are as good as tey get and, with his level of craftsmanship, you will get EXACTLY what you pay for.

 

 

I believe the paper is no longer logo filled, but the cover still has the logo embossed large, front and center. It seems like a great pick, but I would prefer a low-key logo instead.