Grit Mercantile Leather A6 Travelers Journal Cover Review

It’s not often that I feel a stationery product is designed specifically for me, but in the case of this Grit Mercantile Leather A6 Travelers Journal Cover, sent to me by Austin, Texas based Letterpress PLAY, it suits what I’m looking for in a simple pocket notebook cover perfectly.

Simple is the key to this design. It’s a cover - that’s it. There are no pockets, no pen loops, no accessories or ephemera. Just an internal elastic band to slide a small notebook through, and an external band to keep it closed. That meets all of my needs for how I intend to use it.

That specific intention is as a cover for a Field Notes pocket notebook when I travel. A small notebook like this is my preference to log trip details, day-to-day notes, tracking events, remembering food and drink, and anything else that I’m compelled to jot down. I’ve used this type of setup many times in the past, but none with an added cover like this one.

As I’ve learned more and more about my tastes over the years, I’ve learned that smaller is better when it comes to notebooks. I’ve tried countless options on the market, and the ones that stick in the rotation the most are the thinner ones. Think PLOTTER, as opposed to Traveler’s Notebooks. I don’t do well with bulk, especially when on the go.

A quick note on sizing: I believe the cover itself is A6 sized, not necessarily what you can fit into it. Thin A6 notebooks likely stick out the sides, and thicker A6 notebooks with square bindings are a no-go. It is perfect for this 3-1/2” x 5-1/2” Field Notes.

That makes this Grit Mercantile cover perfect. It spent a long weekend in by back pocket on a recent trip to New Orleans, and proved to be my second favorite travel companion - my wife was first, of course! The cover handled wet bar tops, dinner tables, hotel desks, and the random knee while sitting on a bench, and came out unscathed. It handled everything with ease.

Action shot from the bar! Note: they do offer free embossing on notebooks and covers when ordering.

Most importantly, I didn’t notice it was there when pocketed. I carry a front pocket wallet, so the notebook cover slid into the back. It’s thin enough you could carry a pen tucked inside and barely notice it, but I preferred carrying a pen - in this case a uniball Zento Signature - clipped to my shirt, or next to my wallet in my front pocket.

The Grit Mercantile Leather A6 Notebook Cover did its job perfectly - protect my notebook, and stay out of the way. And at just $22, it is a great deal for an item that will be seeing a lot of use. I’m already trying to find other ways to use it around the house so it doesn’t have to wait for another trip to see its next action.

(Letterpress PLAY provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Helen’s Creations NJ A5 Japanese Fabric Notebook Cover Review

In addition to being a pen addict and an inkophile, I am also an avid notebook lover/hoarder. I rarely use notebooks without a cover - even hardbound notebooks are often covered. Just before the DC Pen Show, Helen of Helen’s Creations NJ released A5 notebook covers using some of the same Japanese fabrics that she uses for her pen cases. So, I asked/begged the Bossman to pick up an A5 notebook cover from Helen when he was at the DC show. I also bought one from her at the Empire State Pen Show. Brad got me a green/orange/brown one (which is really difficult to get the colors right in photos) and I bought a blue/white/black/gold one.

Helen and her son Dominic at the Empire State Pen Show.

A one-of-a-kind A5 notebook cover made from green/orange/brown fabric that Helen bought when she visited Japan and a blue/black/white cover that I bought last month.

The flap on the right isn’t sewn shut to accommodate thicker notebooks as well as notebook growth (from stickers, ink, washi, etc.). The strip holds the right side of the notebook in place.

The notebook cover is meant to fit A5 soft cover notebooks like Midori, Leuchtturm, LIFE, etc. It does not fit the hardbound Passepied Paper Notebook that I tested recently or other hardcover A5 notebooks as its hard cover is too tall to fit in the fabric cover.

These are the notebooks I used to test the covers. Left to right: FreeField Vertical from Luddite (more of an insert as opposed to notebook), LIFE Noble, Midori A5, Leuchtturm A5 softcover.

When I first put the cover of the notebook next to the cover pocket, it looks like it won’t fit, but all it takes is a bit of gentle bending to get the cover inside and then you can gently slide/push the cover all the way. It is a snug fit heightwise. Widthwise, it can fit slim inserts to thicker notebooks because the right cover flap isn’t sewn shut. This allows the cover to fit thicker notebooks, or multiple notebooks.

Will the notebook fit?

Gently bending the notebook in the middle will allow it to fit. Then you can close the notebook flat and slide the rest in place.

Same thing for the back - you can see the curve of the notebook’s cover for the initial fit.

Nice and flat with the flap tucked in under the strap.

There is also a ribbon bookmark that’s sewn into the top of the fabric cover. Depending on how thick/thin your notebook is, the bookmark might not be at the center of the spine. This is a minor nitpick for me as I don’t really use the ribbon bookmarks (from either the notebook itself or the cover).

The bookmark is on the backside of the notebook because this insert is very thin.

You can fit more than one notebook, if you like, by inserting one notebook in the front flap and one in the back.

An A5 Paper Source notebook (left) and a Midori A5 (right). You can also see that the green bookmark is in the middle of the two notebooks.

Both notebooks fit nicely when the cover is closed.

The fabric provides a little bit of structure to softbound notebooks, but it is not rigid. Both the fabric cover and the notebook cover can bend if you’re not careful, or if you cram it in a backpack hard enough. You don’t need to baby it, just something to be aware of.

The notebook cover has a double layer of fabric that is folded over itself on the front and the back, so you may notice the “bump” during writing. Placing an A5 pencil board a few sheets below your page could help even things out.

You can see the slight bump from the left/front cover fabric.

The back fabric bump is more pronounced because of the added strap in the back.

Overall, the covers are well made and I love the variety of fabrics that were offered (I wish I took a better closeup of her offerings). Since they are made from delicate fabrics, gentle handwashing is recommended if you need to clean the cover.

A cropped picture of Helen’s table at the Empire State Pen Show. The cover on the front right is the one that I couldn’t resist.

Helen plans to put the covers on her Etsy site in the coming weeks. The notebook covers are $44 for cotton and $70 for silk when purchased online (slight discount for in-person purchases). Helen also makes custom notebook covers (and pen cases) in varying sizes, shapes, and fabrics. For more information, you can reach out to her via DM on Instagram or by contacting her on Etsy.

(Disclaimer: The Bossman purchased the green cover at the DC show and I purchased the blue one at the Empire State Pen Show. All other products are my own.)

Midori MD Notebook Cover A6 Goat Leather Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

I just feel like my notebooks are happier with little coats on. It's cold where I live. And sure, maybe that's just an excuse for more cool notebook covers. But any excuse you can find to pick up the Midori MD Goat Leather Notebook Cover is a good excuse, because it's a good notebook cover.

This cover is made from natural, vegetable tanned goat leather. The natural leather ages and patinas with use, taking on the story of its journey with you. I've been excited to start to see some character develop in the weeks I've been using this one, but so far, it still looks brand new. Because it's also very durable. I'm happy to patiently await the development of character, though. The leather is very lightweight and flexible, but durable.

The design of the cover is very minimal and simple. It's plain on the outside, and the inside has two folder-style pockets for the notebook cover to slide into. Those two sleeve flaps have slits in them that serve as pockets for wee papers. And there is a slim pen loop built into the back cover's edge. The edges of the leather are neatly finished, and the surface is smoothly pebbled. Some variety will appear in the leather, since each piece is unique. That's all for features. There is no closure, or bookmark, or any other accessories. It isn't over-designed, but it does its job well.

The cover is designed to fit the Midori MD A6 notebook, but it fits a variety of A6 notebooks, including the Hobonichi Techo A6 and the Hobonichi A6 blank books. The cover also comes in six other sizes to fit the variety of Midori notebooks available. A6 books with wider spines will be a bit of a tighter fit, but I've been pleasantly surprised by how many notebooks are compatible with this cover.

I've been using the A6 Midori notebook in this cover as my craft project tracker, which has been getting a lot of use as my holiday gift crafting has amped up. It's been a pleasure to use, and the pen loop keeps my writing tool handy at all times.

That being said, these are not inexpensive notebook covers. The A6 one sells for $85 on JetPens, which is a little on the high side, especially since it doesn't come with a notebook insert. That will set you back another $12.50 or so. It will probably last forever, though, and using it is a pleasure.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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