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Hi, so I've recently started using fountain pens and want to take notes for school. I've decided to buy clairefontaine or Rhodia for my notes, but I can't seem to find it anywhere. Does anyone know where to buy it anymore without importing it? All the threads I've seen aren't updated and thus may be inaccurate. I've checked most stationary stores, department stores but none of them have the notebooks I'm looking for. I've found Rhodia paper in Chung Nam but not the notebooks. One place I know of is called Parentheses which is a French bookstore They stock clairefontaine and Rhodia but they aren't quite 'right' as the Rhodias are in A4 and I prefer the Webnotebooks. The Clairefontaines aren't also quite nice as I've seen the lines seem to too overpowering (as shown below) and I prefer the ones for taking notes that are either dotted grids or single lines. w Does anyone know of places that stock the notebooks of the mentioned brands that aren't wayyy too expensive? Thanks! http://reviews.shopwritersbloc.com//wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Clairefontaine-Side-Staple-French-Ruled-Notebooks.jpg

My first try at a notebook cover (I'm more used to bigger pieces, or knife sheaths). I have done a number of errors, and the leather I used to make the border was not thin enough, but still, I'm quite happy with it ! You can see more pictures in this gallery. I've added a steel bar in the discs to rigidify the notebook's spine, and replaced the paper by Clairefontaine's Clairing.

Hello people from FPN! Recently (December 29th to be exact) I was browsing aimlessly online and ended up buying a Lamy Safari in Petrol. And that got me back into fountain pens. I was put off from fountain pens after my Sheaffer Agio was stolen at an Archaeology meeting, at that time I was writing on cheap paper that feathered and bled a lot. Because of that I didn't really enjoy the experience. After I impulsively bought the Safari I started to look for good paper here in Brazil (We can't get the normal fancy papers that everyone talks about) to fix the problem I had with the Agio. So, after the Safari got here I got all of my paper around the house and started to try it. I Tried copy paper that I had taken from the lab that I work on, a heavy off-set paper that I made a sketchbook out of and still had some, the paper from a very old and very cheap blank notebook that I had around, lay-out paper from a Canson pad and, finally, the lay-out paper by a brand called Spiral that I saw fp people talk about here in Brazil. Here is a picture of my results. So, overall I really liked the Spiral paper. It's quite smooth and pretty ink resistant, the lines are really crisp there’s some light shading with this ink and the colors looks really good on it, not too dark and not too light. But there are downsides. It's fairly thin and because of that there's some ghosting, if I really saturate the page with ink it will blead and it is only available in pads (no notebooks). With the paper thing done I started to think about making a notebook since I couldn't find one with the paper I wanted. I've bound a good amount of books before and since I study 19th century logbooks of whaling ships I kindda know what lasts and what doesn't. My favorite size for notebook is A5 and since I plan on using this one as a journal I wanted it to be pretty and sturdy. To accomplish that I decided on a case bound with a fabric line cover. The book has 240 pages (like the official bullet journal, although I won't be using the bullet journal system because of philosophical reasons) and they are all blank because I like to use guide sheets. So I'll take you guys through my processes of book binding. The first step was to take 30 A3 sheets of the Spiral paper and cut them into 60 A4 sheets. I also cut 2 A4 sheets of red heavy paper to use as the end papers of the book. Because of my record of people stealing my stationary I made a contact sheet on Illustrator and printed it to one of the sheets. The next thing to do was fold all the sheets in half and with the smoother of the two sides facing out. With all the pages folded I stacked them into signatures of five sheets. With all of the 12 signatures ready I stacked them and marked all of them at once for punching the sewing holes. The holes were spaced an inch apart from each other starting on the center. I kept the signatures in the same order as I marked it when I was punching the holes and make the aligned when the sewing was finished. With the holes punched it was time to kettle stich the signatures with red thread. Then I glued the spine with two good layers of PVA while the book was held on a book press. After that I glued the end papers on and lined the spine with a sturdy paper. I let the book block dry and trimmed the edge. With the edge trimmed I could add some optional stuff like headbands to match the covering material and a red ribbon. The next thing I wanted to do is put a pocket on the front end paper to hold my guide sheets and other loose paper. I made a paper pattern and set that aside until I was ready to cut the covering material. Then I made the case (hard cover) for the book. I cut two pieces of 1.3mm binder's board that is the width of the text block minus 1/4 of an inch plus 1/8 of an inch by the height of the text block plus 1/4 of an inch. I also cut a strip of board the spine that it was the thickness of the book block plus two times the thickness of the boards. With the boards covered I got two types of book cloth that I had prepared earlier. One made out of a thick cotton cloth died black and a thin one that is white and has a black pattern printed on. The boards were glued to the book cloth and the spine strip was spaced from the cover boards by 1/4 of an inch plus the thickness of the board. After it dried the case was ready to receive the book block. The next step was to glue the pocket to the side of the end paper that would be glued to the cover and then glue the end papers to the case. Let it dry and the book is done. And then I had to that some pretty pictures with the Petrol Safari and the Pelikan Blue-Black. So, I don't know how useful this post is to the forum folk in general because all of the paper I used isn't available out of Brazil and the ink isn't available in the US. I hope the sharing my process gives people an insight on book binding and kindda bring people more to the handmade side instead of the compulsive shopping side. Best regards, Matheus Mota

Does anyone own or has anyone owned these hole punchers. I just bought the Staples Arc punch. I have heard that the Levenger Circa punch punches a bigger hole, so it is easier to turn the pages when installed. Is it true that it punches a bigger hole than the Staples brand Arc puncher, or is the hole the same size? Price is not an issue. I will get whichever one functions better. Will the Levenger last a long time, or is it just an expensive piece of junk? With the Levenger Circa Leverage punch, I estimate I can fit about 10 pages to punch at once (I will use 32 lb bond / 120 gsm). With the Staples Arc punch, I can only fit about 7 pages to punch at once, and most of the pages have come out slanted. I may have gotten a defective one. The slanted-ness may have been affecting the ease of page-turning and making it tougher, maybe even more so than the small holes. Should I be exchanging or returning?

Henlo!!!! I'm new here. I was wondering if any could point me towards some affordable pocket notebooks to write in that work well with fountain pen. I've heard of feild notes but I heard some of ya'll don't really like them.. also, bare with me, I don't really know how a forum works... Thanks!

Hey all, we all love fountain pens and we all want to write with them. So at one point we need to find ourselves some nice paper. In my case I also wanted a nice notebook which contains the paper. Eventually I discovered the Midori Notebooks and loved them. Simple design but a very thought through, cool looking little system. The problem that I had was the price. I just did not want to (and shouldn't at the time) spend 50$ for a notebook. So I had the idea to google a little bit and see, if there were people who made their own versions of that Traveler's Notebook. And I was lucky. I found , which explains in detail how to cut the leather and this website, which teaches you how to make your own refills and provides printable templates (if that's something you want to do). I could tell you myself how I did it, but I think these two sources are doing a pretty good job explaining everything. I just would repeating it here. I liked the passport-size, but I did not wanted to be dependent on Midori refills. So I changed the format in the way that now I can refill with small Moleskine or FieldNotes notebooks. After that, I bought some nice leather on ebay together with a cheap leatherpunch and was ready to go. Here are the first four I made. http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r799/manoart/PhotoGrid_1381243254004_zps0c384e16.png I must say, I'm pretty pleased with the end result and I hope you try it yourself if you have the time and the passion. It's also great as a gift if you can't or do not want to spent the 50$ or more and it comes with this special self-made charm. Enough rambling. Have a good day, Manuel

Hi all, I've been sneakily reading the posts on this site for a while, but it's the first time I actually write a post (except for the FB page). I've been looking for the best notebook for journaling and such for some years now, and I figured I would share my experiences and disappointments, and hear about others' thoughts on this. I started using Moleskines (classic, large notebook, hardcover, black) way before I was using fountain pens. I had to switch to something else when I started using FPs due to heavy feathering and bleeding. (And in the case of MB toffee brown, discoloration.) But in terms of design and binding, my favorite ever will be the softcover large notebooks. I also like how they are a little thinner than A5. I then switched to Leuchtturm1917. I like that their pages are numbered, and they hold the ink well and the paper is not excessively smooth (like Rhodias or Clairefontaines). I prefer soft covers, so I'm a little disappointed that they are way thinner than Moleskines. They need to be at least 1.5x thicker. Also, I've found that the paper is not that consistent. Leuchtturm1917 notebooks that I've purchased at different times had papers that react differently to the same pen/ink combination. I've had one that feathers more than it should, and another that had the ink kind of spread on it evenly without feathering -- in addition to a few perfect ones, of course. I tried a bunch of A5 Clairefontaines, too. For me, their paper is superior to both Leuchtturm1917 and Rhodia -- that is if you don't particularly dislike smooth paper. But their binding is just horrible. Forget about laying a staple-bound notebook flat on your desk. I tried "my essential" which has sewn-binding, which does a lot better than the others, but still falls short of both Moleskine and Leuchtturm1917. Their covers are a lot more modest too. I would have loved to see that paper in leather or Moleskine-style cover instead of just craft paper. And then there's Goulet's new Tomoe river notebooks. Everytime I write on Tomoe river paper, I'm amazed by how much ink a paper so thin can hold. I like my pens really really wet, so it'll always be my favorite paper. Goulet's notebooks are staple-bound, and very thin, so I'm not a huge fan of their binding either. I'm also a little disappointed that they only come with the white TR paper and not cream. They are also a bit on the expensive side, with $9 for 48 sheets (96 pages), which is fair I guess, considering 100 sheets come for ~$14. With all these notebooks considered, I think I'll continue using a combination of Leuchtturm1917 and Goulet notebooks. My dream would be TR (or similar quality paper) in Moleskine binding. Perhaps I should learn bookbinding and make my own notebooks using TR paper... What are your thoughts? Have you had similar experiences?

I bought the beautiful montblanc notebook (#146). The cover is so luxurious that it'd be a waste to discard it once the notes are done .. Is there a way to repurpose the notebook with Tomoe river paper? I.e. purchase blank/lined TRP and bind the montblanc notebook with it?

Hello, this is my first review of any kind here, I hope it's alright. Redbubble is a website where independent artists can upload their work and have it sold on t-shirts, bags, prints, phone cases, and various other things. You can find both fan-art and original art there. Of interest to me was their spiral notebooks. I wasn't expecting much since this is not a company that specializes in paper and writing products, but a couple of my friends sell art there, so I decided to check them out. The only info given about the notebook's paper was that it's 90gsm and came in a choice of ruled or graph paper. The notebooks are 6" x 8" and have a page with a pocket in the back. This particular cover happens to be fan-art from my favorite manga series. The cover was a slight disappointment. I assumed it would be printed on glossy paper (though in retrospect, I'm not sure why I assumed this), but it's matte. Still, the image is bright, crisp, and clear, so it's not a big disappointment. On to the paper. It is...I'm not sure the technical term. Very thirsty paper. There's some feathering, and the line is consistently dark, no shading to speak of. The paper has a noticeable tooth but does not feel too rough when writing. I actually really like the feel of writing on it, I'm just not fond of the result. And, showthrough/bleedthrough. Lots. You could write on both sides and I think it would still be legible, but I wouldn't want to. Redbubble's notebooks may be of interest to people for the novelty of the cover artwork, but they are not fountain-pen friendly. If you like a piece of artwork that's sold there, probably better to go with a print or one of their other products instead.

This is just a quick assessment based on only having the notebook a few days. I purchased a Tul leather notebook from Office Depot after being disappointed with a low-end Levenger (Sliver) notebook that was more expensive (too flimsy). I checked ahead of time and the spacing on the discs was the same so I can use my Levenger punch when needed. The paper feels, to the touch, like it would be cheap and rough and tend to bleed but it is not and it does not. In the picture you can see a few inks and their nibs. If you look closely you can see some ghosting from the other side. That is the Emeraude de Chivor from that very wet Binder .9mm Oblique. None of the other nibs-ink combos did that, including the Violet Vote which is usually a wet ink on most of my papers. The paper isn’t Exaclair smooth but it is quite comfortable to write on and suits my needs for speed writing (just enough tooth to give me control, not so much as to feel scratchy). Definitely worth trying if you want to look into a Levenger Circa alternative. And, if you just must have Circa (Circa Rhodia) paper, and already have a punch, then at least you know their disc system matches at the 8.5 x 11 size. (No. I’m not really back.)

Big thanks for everyone in this forum for their suggestions and ideas regarding my Mega Monster Pocket Notebook review. I've now published the first review for the Story Supply Co. Edition 407 Pocket Notebook. I've also built out a main Mega Monster review page to aggregate basic data from all the reviews in this series, and I've put together a spreadsheet that will contain all the specs and performance findings for all notebooks in this series. Of course, there's only one in there right now...I'll be fleshing that out as I publish the other reviews. Here's the review for the Edition 407 Pocket Notebook along with a few pictures. At the bottom are links to the full review, the main Mega Monster page, and the spreadsheet. As this is a work in progress that will likely take me a couple months to complete, I'd love any feedback you have. I want to make this whole thing as useful as possible, so your feedback is really important. Thanks & Enjoy! Story Supply Co – Edition 407 Pocket Notebook Story Supply Co. is a small stationery manufacturer in York, Pennsylvania, founded by Vito Grippi and Gabriel Dunmire. Initially they set out to develop a line of pocket notebooks that were fountain pen friendly and filled some gaps in the larger notebook market. But knowing that there were a million companies already making pocket notebooks, they knew that they needed to do something to really stand out. As their name implies, Story Supply Co. is centered around providing high-quality analog tools that inspire people to tell their stories. In addition to their desire to make great products, they actively seek to support sustainable manufacturing in the U.S. and building better communities through their Story Supply Kit program, where they partner with several non-profit organizations to distribute notebooks and writing instruments to kids in underserved communities with the goal of helping them improve their writing skills and find their voice. Every time you purchase a Story Supply Co. notebook, they provide a writing kit to these organizations. Pretty awesome. There are a few different versions of the Pocket Staple notebook. In this review, I'm taking a look at the Edition 407, which is an homage to the 407 backers that funded the Kickstarter campaign that essentially launched the company. Description: The Edition 407 is a standard "American Pocket" size (3.5" by 5.5") notebook, bound by a pair of staples, and sporting nicely rounded corners.The first thing you notice about the Edition 407 is the beautiful cover. It's a deep, dark cranberry color made from pretty stiff (100#) linen stock. It has that crosshatched pattern found on high-end linen papers that really lends a fair bit of class to the overall look. Beautifully embossed logos adorn both the front and back. Even before I open it, I get the feeling that I'm holding something of great quality. The paper, though, that's where this notebook really shines. It's filled with 48 pages (24 sheets) of smooth, 70# Cougar Natural (cream) paper. And when they say it's smooth, they mean it. Through a completely unscientific "drawing circles with my finger" exercise, the paper feels noticeably smoother than both Rhodia and Fabriano paper. It's downright silky. I thought this might be an indicator of slow dry times, but that's not the case. All of my fountain pens, including a super wet Platinum medium and a juicy 1.1 stub, passed the 10-second dry test with absolutely no smudging. A great feature I really like is that with a slight bit of bending backward, the notebook will lie mostly flat on a table. Thankfully, you don't have to wreck the spine or cover to do this. The Edition 407 only comes in 5mm Dot Grid ruling, although they do use the same paper in their regular edition, which comes in graph, lined, and blank. The dots are printed in a light gray that's perfectly visible, yet completely unobtrusive. Just looking at the page with the naked eye, the dots look like single dots. But if you look at them under a loupe, you'll see that each dot is actually a pattern of 12 microdots. I imagine this saves them a little bit in ink costs, but it also allows the dots to be really light on the page. Pencil Results: I've heard tell that really smooth paper isn't great for pencil. I always assumed those people smoked shrooms. This paper is wicked smooth, and both my test pencils performed quite well. So this notebook really didn't do anything to change my negative views of these vicious, shroom-smoking rumor-mongers.Palomino Blackwing: I'm not a woodcase pencil person because: sharpening. But damn, the Blackwing writes beautifully on this paper! The graphite goes down nice and dark, and the tip of the pencil feels silky smooth riding along the paper. It feels creamy. Seriously. Creamy. Pencil, by nature, is often toothy and sometimes downright gritty. Not this pencil on this paper, though. Seriously: it's creamy. The only problem with the Blackwing was that it didn't fully erase from the paper. Uni Kuru Toga Mechanical Pencil (0.5): Geez, the Blackwing puts the Kuru Toga to shame. The Kuru Toga isn't as dark and nowhere near as smooth as the Blackwing. It works perfectly fine, though. It put down a nice, fine line that's plenty dark enough to read. And the Kuru Toga almost completely erases off the Edition 407 paper. Ballpoint Results: Ballpoints are dirty things. I really find the ballpoint writing experience to be rather gross. You have to apply pressure for the pen to write, and the ink smells awful once it's on the page. I hope you appreciate the torture I'm putting myself through to bring you this information. The good thing about ballpoints, though, is that they pretty much write on any kind of paper.Uniball Jetstream (0.7): I actually don't hate this pen. It's the smoothest ballpoint I've used, and it puts down a nice, dark line. It works exceptionally well with this notebook. Fisher Space Pen (0.7): This pressurized ballpoint pen is designed to write on any kind of paper, in any gravity, even under water. So I can't say that I'm surprised it worked well on this paper. It's not as smooth as the Jetstream. It feels like the paper grabs the tip of the pen a bit. But the line is fairly consistent and trouble-free. Gel Results: I chose three gel pens for these tests because I wanted to include a super-fine point (0.38 in this instance) and the super wet Sarasa.Uniball Signo 207 Ultra Micro (0.38): This is my go-to pen at work when I'm not using a fountain pen. It's not the smoothest experience on this paper...it seems to have a little of the "grab" that I mentioned with the Fisher Space Pen. But the line is absolutely perfect. Pilot G2 (0.5): Probably the second most popular pen in the word after the Bic Crystal. On the Edition 407 paper, the line is perfectly dark, perfectly crisp, and perfectly consistent. Zebra Sarasa (0.7): These pens are gushers, and really put paper to the test. Extremely smooth to write with and only gives minimal ghosting. In fact, not counting the fountain pens, the Sarasa is easily the wettest pen I used...and the ghosting was less than either rollerball. It did did produce some of the blobby-style feathering (vs. the thin tendrils usually seen), but you've got to look at is under a loupe to see it. Liquid Ink Rollerball Results: Whenever I look at a rollerball pen, I can't help but wonder why they hell they even exist. I know some people love them, but I seriously can't understand why. I've never had a good experience with one. Not on any kind of paper. The best I can say about these pens on the Edition 407 paper is that they're "serviceable." They work.Pilot Precise V5 RT (0.5): Far and away the better of the two rollerballs. The line it puts down is mostly clean, although it did spread a tiny bit for me. Very light ghosting, although not enough to prevent me from using the back side of the page. The Precise V5 also experienced some of the resistance/grabbiness that the Fisher Space Pen did. If you're a fan of this pen, it definitely works well with this paper. Uniball Vision Elite (0.8): Big mushy mess, this one is. I'm biased though...I freaking hate this pen. It did spread a little, and it did feather a little. And this ink is NOT coming out black: it's gray. Still very dark, but not what I'd want from a black pen. Little bit of ghosting, but nothing obtrusive. I will say that the Vision Elite does give a glassy-smooth writing experience. It's a little weird feeling...almost a little greasy...but super smooth. Fountain Pen Results: Okay, here's what you've all been waiting for. We all know that ballpoints and gel inks will be fine. But what about our beloved fountain pens? Read on!(EF) Platinum Preppy with Noodlers Midnight Blue ink: Absolutely perfect performance. No skipping or weird behavior, and the EF nib just glides over the paper. It takes about 3 or 4 seconds for the ink to completely dry. (F) Lamy Safari with Lamy Petrol ink: Another outstanding performer on this paper. Very smooth writing experience with perfect ink flow. Takes about 5 seconds for the ink to completely dry. (M) Platinum Cool with Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo ink: The Cool is a really wet medium. I noticed a little bit of spread and feathering on the Edition 407 paper, but it's pretty minor and is really only noticeable through a loupe. Dry time is about 6 or 7 seconds. (0.6) Nemosine Singularity with KWZ Standard Turquoise ink: Tiny bit of feathering, but again, you have to look under a loupe to see it. There's no ghosting at all from this pen, which surprised me. (1.1) Conklin Duragraph with Robert Oster Midnight Sapphire ink: The good news is that the paper shows off the ink's lovely shading quite well. Unfortunately, the broad, wet nib did produce some noticeable spread and feathering. It's not terrible, though. You can still use the back side of the page, as only a few small spots of bleed made it through. Conclusion This is one phenomenal little notebook. It looks great, feels great, and handles pretty much everything. Fountain pen performance is outstanding, although I'd recommend not using extra wet pens if you want to comfortably use both sides of the paper (or if things like minor smudging and spread give you nightmares). I love how smooth the paper is and how fast ink dries on it. You don't find both of those things together very often.And in addition to the Pocket Staple Edition 407 being a great notebook, I really like what the company stands for. I like knowing that by buying these notebooks, I'm supporting several small businesses and helping put writing supplies in the hands of kids that might not otherwise get the opportunity. Links Full ReviewMega Monster Review - Pocket NotebooksSpreadsheet of specs & results Again, keep in mind the main page and spreadsheet are pretty empty now, and will be fleshed out over the next several weeks.

Hey everyone! I recently recieved a sample of the ink mentioned in the topic title. As a leftie, I have high hopes for this ink, but as soon as I started writing with it in my pen(a fine nibbed Pilot Metropolitan), I noticed it bled through the paper of the notebook I was using! Has anyone else experienced this? My other question is should I give up in wanting to use this ink? Thanks for any help you can provide, Rosendust!

Hi all, new member here. Trying to play by the forum etiquette. I've read through some of the sticky topics but didn't really see my question answered so figured I'd give it a try. If I missed something I'm sorry, please let me know. Now for my question. For work, I currently use Moleskine Cahier XL notebooks. They're perfect in practically every way: soft, kraftlike cover; side bound; lays flat; not too expensive; their size. But, of course, the paper is not very fountain pen friendly. My issue with some alternatives are mainly that they tend to be thicker and hard covered, which writes a bit less easy. They usually don't lie completely flat. Also, they're a bit expensive. The Moleskines cost about €5 a piece and that's about as much as I'd like to spend. So, what could some alternatives be? And what is the English word for a "cahier"? As you might've guessed, English is not my first language. In Dutch, we'd call a notebook like this a schrift. Side bound with a single... bind? not like a regular book which consists of several bundles of bound pages. Hope I'm making sense here. End of ramble. Thanks in advance!

I recently purchased a "traveler's notebook" (in quotes and not capitalized because it's not Traveler's brand... is there an accepted way to refer to these when they're not made by Midori or Traveler's Company?) that takes 3.5 x 5.5 inch notebooks. I have a Clairefontaine in there (which is spectacular) but I'd REALLY love some dot grid paper. Does anyone have any recommendations for a fountain pen friendly, dot grid, 3.5 x 5.5 inch notebook with a soft cover? Staples vs stitched binding doesn't matter to me but I don't want glue and I'd like it to be relatively small - the Clairefontaine has 48 pages. Thanks in advance paper gurus!

While perusing Badger and Blade yesterday (as it seems a number of us do), I found a running thread with this title and wondered if it could be adapted to FPs. So to break the ice, here's my starter for 10: Pen - Conway Stewart 58 - UK Ink - Pilot - Japan Paper - HP 32lb Letter - US (Yes, I did carry a ream back in hand luggage !) Notebook - Clairefontaine A5 - France Diary - W H Smiths mini leather A6 6-hole refillable - UK Is it a goer?

I posted a couple of weeks ago about the Robert Oster ink exclusive that will be a part of the Hippo Noto Kickstarter campaign, because I was lucky enough to get a sample of it to test out. But I'm impatient because I'd really (really) like to try out the notebooks. I go through journals at a fast clip because mine are a way to capture what's going on in my life, the things occupying my brain, any data points I want to take note of, etc. etc. Anyway, I go through paper. Also because I love playing with inks (oh, those colors) and that takes paper. None shows off inks better than Tomoe River, and that's the real beauty of these. Not only will they come in your choice of plain, lined and dot grid, but there are an abundance of pages. I have several projects I would like to start using these for today, but I have to wait until the orders get mailed out during the summer. I would rather not have to be patient... Anyway, I did post the earlier pictures of the ink in action, and have not seen these notebooks, but there are still eight days left to jump in before the campaign closes. I'm not sure if we'll have a chance to order more of these later (i do hope so) but the best way to get your hands on one is to back this campaign at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2016143253/hippo-noto-a-hippo-size-tomoe-paper-notebook?ref=project_share

Is this notebook a real Moleskine? I found it in a newsagent and was able to get it for AU$2.90 (about US$2.20). It is a sewn 20 sheet, 40 leaf, 80 page Kraft-covered cahier. There is a simple pocket in the back cover. The paper is cream/beige, and after trying it with a number of pens and inks, it seems to be quite well behaved with inks. The pages are a narrow A5, being A5 in length, but almost 1 1/2 centimetres narrower. The notebook I got was plain, unlined, but I was able to print a guide sheet to A5 and then trim the long sides to fit. So far, the inks I have tried it on are — Platinum Pigment Blue, Noodler’s Black, Diamine Sapphire, Diamine Majestic Blue, PR DC SS Blue, Noodler’s Kung Te-Cheng and Noodler’s Heart of Darkness. All seemed to dry reasonably quickly, with almost no bleed-through except for the tiniest bit of spotting. Most inks show a small degree of spreading. At first I thought that it was a fake Moleskine, as all that said it was Moleskine was an indented stamp on the back cover saying ‘Moleskine ®’, and how easy would it be to fake that. However, what made me think it might be genuine was the quality of sewing holding it all together. But, when I checked in my local Officeworks, they had the same chairs, in packs of 3, but at 2 1/2 times the price. Overall, I am very impressed, with both the quality and the price. I will certainly be going back to get some more.

Hi All, First time posting on here. I have recently become fascinated with the fountain pen and paper realm. Curious if anyone has seen my dream notebook? !!WANTED!! B5 Threadbound Hardcover 90+ sheets FP Friendly paper (obvious no?) Dot Grid Multiple ribbons Numbered pages 81 - 100 gsm 10-20 perforated pages If not? How do I find a manufacturer to create this unicorn notebook? I appreciate all your advice in advance. Best, Oscar

Ok, it seems I double-posted this.

Has anyone tried the new MB146 notebooks at all? Are they any good? I just noticed that the paper is 85 gsm - where I can get 100gsm for a fifth of the price. Is the paper any different than other stuff?

Hi all: My job is often filled with details I can't remember so I want to get a notebook I can write things down in and hopefully, remember them. I have read good things about the Leuchtturm 1917 in the that is about 5 x 8. I saw them in a store tonight but they are in plastic so I was unable to feel the paper. Any thoughts on this brand of notebook? I tend to write with broad nibs and use Noodlers ink. I do not mind a touch of bleed through but I am hoping it is held to a minimum. Any opinions on this for a notebook to use to jot down ideas and things to get done? If you do not like this one, I would love to hear what you do like in a similar size. Only other things I want in this grail notebook is that it folds flat when I write and it is a soft cover type. Also, as aside, it seem a bit strange to me to write on both sides of the paper. Do most people use both sides? Any help really appreciated. Best to all!

Alright, I've got a search challenge related to several practical limitations. I'm a hook handed lefty that has been using ef to med nib fountain pens for everything, but I've recently run into a problem where I can't find notebooks that fit my needs. The following preferences for the notebook are in order of relative necessity. The notebook has to be bound, glued, or otherwise spiral free (because spirals are murder). It has to be either grid or dot graph. Preferably 3 mm-4 mm I'm not opposed to it being a nonstandard graph such as isometric graph, because, why not. I have to be able to fit a regular set of lectures in it. e.g. it needs to hold approx 100 pages of notes and have fp friendly paper. I want it to be somewhere between B5 and A5 although a little bigger or smaller isn't a deal breaker. I prefer it to be a simple cover... nothing too fancy: simple softback or hardback are fine.I usually can find something that meets 2 of these specifications at once, but rarely can I find something that meets 3-4 of them, and I have yet to have found something that meets all 5. I would be deeply impressed if someone found something that met all of these things. May your bandwidth be wide, Alexander O.

Hi everyone, I am new to the forum and was hoping you guys could help me out with a new found hobby. I've recently retaken up writing with fountain pens and now I want to jump into the world of binding my own notebooks, it's fun and I get something really nice at the end. I've done a test run of all of the paper I could get my hands on so far and my favorite is the 85 gsm bioprima paper found in the Fabriano EcoQua notebooks, the problem I am having is I dont' know where to get just the paper. The EcoQua notebooks seem to be everywhere online and in local art stores but I can't for the life of me find a US source for the paper itself. The closest I have found was a bookbinding store in the UK known as Shepards but I would really like to avoid paying $30 in shipping to get paper. Does anyone know where I can get my hands on the paper?

Hi, I am currently a student in college. I would like to share this notebook that I recently bought. This is the MUJI Notebook B5 with 6mm ruling. http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x187/sofia819/IMG_0765.jpg http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x187/sofia819/Front.jpg http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x187/sofia819/Back.jpg http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x187/sofia819/IMG_0766.jpg http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x187/sofia819/IMG_0767.jpg http://i186.photobucket.com/albums/x187/sofia819/IMG_0769.jpg Pros: Relatively cheap, about $11-$12 for five notebooks right now. However, I bought it with a cheaper price. Reasonable size for note taking (B5), similar to a composition notebook. No bleed-through, at least I don't see any. Minimal show-through, writing on both sides is possible. Simple design, no logos or markings on the notebook cover. Cons: Some feathering with certain inks. In my case, the Nemosine Singularity with Noodler's La Couleur Royale. The corners of the notebook may bend easily. Things to be aware of: The color and texture of the notebook feel like Fabriano EcoQua, cream colored and with some texture. It's a lined notebook. The drying time depends on the ink and pen. My Pilot Cavalier F dried more slowly than my Pilot 78G B did. This is a bound notebook. It will lay flat as the binding breaks in, or you can just exert some force to make it lay flat. The 6mm ruling could be too narrow for some people. There are only 30 sheets/60 pages in one notebook. I recommend using drier inks with a fine nib, although the Pilot 78G B with Noodler's Kiowa Pecan performed well, but I don't think a broad nib is suitable for such narrow ruling. Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I6XY068 I hope you find this useful! Sofia

Here is my review of the Galen Leather TN from two Istanbul makers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjiTXZ_ykac