Review: Italian Mood Notebook....Molto Bene!

[biffybeans]

Click here for full review with photos

 

I've got to be honest. I had no expectations of this little notebook being anything other than a pretty fashion accessory. Boy, was I wrong.

 

Large Moleskine, Small Mood Notebook and a Kunst & Papier Pocket Sketch Book. Sailor 1911 Rhodium and Lamy Safari Fountain pens.

 

Groovy Mood logo. (Mood is designed by the same folks as Ciak in Florence, Italy) Cover is made of recycled leather. (I'm still not sure what that means.) The leather smells fantastic. Secure snap closure.

 

From the Journal Shop website: "Mood notebooks come in 8 colours: yellow, orange, forest green, red, english red, pink, blue-black, and black. They are available in two sizes: small and medium."

 

A wee little ballpoint pen comes with the book. As a fountain pen user, I really prefer not to comment on the quality of a ballpoint. ) Replacements of these are available at the The Journal Shop, if you need to replace a lost pen, or if you want to buy one that better matches the cover. Pencils are also available.

 

Molto Bene!

 

Open the cover and there is a sturdy plastic pocket for holding receipts, phone numbers, etc.

 

From The Journal Shop website: "Mood notebooks feature a unique insert system. Once your pages are full, simply insert a fresh set of note pages in seconds. This is a great idea, as it means you can use the same notebook for different projects simply by keeping separate inserts."

 

Great idea- keeping different refill books for different projects. I've got a slew of Moleskine Cahiers all over the house, and it would be nice to be able to pop them into a protective cover like this when I leave the house.

 

Another plastic pocket at the end of the book.

 

Bend the insert slightly in the middle, and unhook it at the top and bottom of the cover. The cover is sturdy, and so are the hooks. The inserts stay put.

 

This shows the insert fully removed from the cover.

 

Give the cover a slight nudge and the whole thing lies flat.

 

Perforations on the corners act as a bookmark if you remove the corner once you've completed a page.

 

Faint ruling (I love that!) on the standard insert. Seems to be a hair larger than 5mm ruling.

 

Inside the cover (of the insert) allows space for personal information.

 

So here goes - no expectations, right? This paper is uber-thin and very smooth. I take a fountain pen to it expecting to chuckle to myself when it bleeds through like tissue paper but no........

 

.05 and a .07 cursive italic fountain pens are filled with heavily saturated inks, trying to push the paper into bleeding.

 

So here's the deal. The paper is thin. There is going to be some level of see-through, but bleeding? Only a small amount of occasional blood dots.

 

I'm guessing that the paper is about the same weight that's in the small US/UK Habanas. 64gm. It's not as shiny as the Habana paper, but it's still quite smooth & pleasant to write on.

 

Test with all available inked pens.

 

Judge for yourself.

 

All in all? Recommended. Two thumbs up. For the fountain pen user that wants a nice refillable notebook, (That just happens to be fashionable) inserts available in four types: plain paper (as comes pre-packed with Mood notebooks), lightly lined paper, lightly lined paper with customizable subject tabs (very handy!) and weekly diary inserts. (From The Journal Shop website)

 

NOTE: My Mood came with the lightly lined paper, not the plain paper as noted above.

 

Now of course, there's a rub. Like the Cartesio, I can't really find anyone in the US selling the Mood Notebooks. ( I do know that Kate's Paperie has a pretty decent line of Ciak's, so maybe if enough people contact them, perhaps they can place a special order or consider carrying them on a regular basis. (Bug them for the Cartesio as well!!!)

[biffybeans]

I am curious why there were no comments on this one. Does this Mood product interest anyone?

[Ondina]

I read your review as soon as it was published, but found the metallic innards...I don't know, it just did not appeal me, it was too agenda like. Thanks for reviewing it anyhow.

[OboeJuan]

I agree. Very nice review, and I like the look of the outside of the notebook, but I am clumsy and blood would be shed if I owned that.

[biffybeans]

Oh no doubt, it is very agenda like. I thought maybe that the FP friendly paper would appeal to those who liked that sort of thing...

 

 

I read your review as soon as it was published, but found the metallic innards...I don't know, it just did not appeal me, it was too agenda like. Thanks for reviewing it anyhow.

 

[biffybeans]

LOL... fair enough.

 

 

I agree. Very nice review, and I like the look of the outside of the notebook, but I am clumsy and blood would be shed if I owned that.

 

[adamselene]

BiffyB., excellent review as usual. May I ask how you find these gems, especially as you write that they are unavailable in US?

 

 

[biffybeans]

Just because they aren't available in the US, doesn't mean that they are unavailable from other sources. My Ciaks, Cartesio & Mood all came from Italy, the C. Overs from the UK and the Canteo from Switzerland.

 

Ciaks, Cartesio, Mood & C. Over are all available from The Journal Shop in the UK, and they typically have a buy 2 get one free special running that might help to cut the postage from overseas. For people willing to spend $$ on pens & inks, I would think they would be willing to spend a bit more for better quality paper products even if they have to spend a bit more to get them from abroad. I could be wrong...

 

Glad that you liked the review.

 

 

BiffyB., excellent review as usual. May I ask how you find these gems, especially as you write that they are unavailable in US?

 

[GreenVelvet]

YES!! It interests me! This is one of the most intriguing notebooks, to me, I've seen in your reviews. Let us know when it's available stateside!