Life Notebooks is one of those companies that does very little wrong in my book. Their aesthetic suits my style perfectly, and fortunately, they perform as well as they look.

This doesn’t mean the Mini-Ring Notebook is perfect across the board - more on that in a minute - but it is a fun and functional pocket notebook that works well with any writing instrument you throw at it.

Starting with the exterior, the bright orange front cover is made from what feels like 80# cardstock, with a thicker and stronger chipboard-style backing. The design and lettering of the front cover is striking, just like with every notebook Life creates. I love the looks.

The inside is filled with Life’s high-quality paper that made them a hit with stationery lovers everywhere. Like other Japanese paper brands, they focus on the writing experience for all types of pens and pencils. They deliver on that too.

Fountain pens glide across the page, from my finest needle points, to wider stubs. There is no feathering, bleed, or ghosting to be found. None. The dry time is even reasonable. Gel and ballpoint pens work great as well, as do all grades of pencil. The rollerball ink of the Schmidt P8127 was the only one I could even see on the back side of the page, and just barely at that.

As a binding method, I like twin ring both from a functional and aesthetic perspective, but I don’t like it on the side on a small notebook like this. I’d prefer it on the top in this approximately 3-1/4” x 5” format because side doesn’t work as well in pockets. It’s great on A5 and up formats where it is more of a desk pad.

Also, Life’s paper is too ivory for constant use. I’d like a whiter or yellower tone for every day writing. I use inks with color, and they don’t show up as well on this tone.

And finally, there is the price issue. It’s more expensive than it’s competitors. The Mini-Ring runs nearly $5 for 40 smaller than Field Notes sheets. It’s not egregious, and it may be as good or even better for many users, but you are paying for the privilege. Rhodia is more expensive than basic paper, but it is far cheaper than Life, and has many more options (although Life is gaining on that.)

But like Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, it is hard to stay away from the good stuff on occasion. Despite some preference changes I would make on a personal level, they is no denying the quality of Life Notebooks.

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

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Life Index Cards on a Ring with Leather Cover: A Review

(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)

When I decided to get the Life index cards, I honestly did not pay attention to the size or the word "index" on the JetPens website. In my head, I imagined them to be the same size as the now unavailable Mnemosyne Word Cards. I planned to use the Life cards to replace the Mnemosyne cards.

So, I was a bit surprised when I opened them up to find that these are 3x5 cards. I'm not disappointed in the least that they are larger. In fact, because of their size, they can be used for many more things.

The Life cards are unlined. I could not find the weight of the paper anywhere (and I tried), but the cards feel sturdy. The paper itself is creamy, and fountain pens simply glide across it. I much prefer the Life cards over Mnemosyne. The Mnemosyne cards have a texture to them that catches my fountain pen nibs. Plus their off-white color seems to affect ink color slightly. The pure white color of the Life cards offers a truer base for ink samples.

Although at first I thought maybe the Life cards were too big for ink samples (my primary use for the Mnemosyne cards), I found that the larger size allowed me to do more with my ink samples. Instead of just the name of the ink, some nib strokes, and a swab, I can include the ink name, an ink swab, a scribble, nib strokes, a water test, and a line at the bottom for color sorting.

The cards are also the perfect size for making a small photo album. I have a Fuji Instax printer, and I can print small photos straight from my iPhone and glue them on the cards. The Life cards provide enough space for the photo and a description.

Obviously the cards can be used for anything you like: to do lists, sketching, recipe cards, study notes, etc. They will handle most pens and inks well, but if you plan to do watercolor, the cards will warp a bit.

The leather cover is bare bones with the Life logo stamped on the front.

And the back has two grommets that hold the elastic closure. Two holes at the top provide a place for the ring.

Essentially, you're getting a piece of stained leather with no stitching or other design elements. The leather is not colorfast. There's a warning on JetPens saying that sweat or moisture can stain the cover or transfer the dye to other objects. While the leather is thick and smells nice, I'm not impressed with the quality, and it's pricey (the cards themselves are only $6.00, but with the cover and ring you pay $28.50–that's $22.50 for a piece of rectangular leather).

The cards, on the other hand, are high quality. They handled my fountain pens well. I had no problems with ink bleeding or nibs snagging because the paper is silky smooth. Some of my more saturated inks (like BungBox Sapphire) did show through, as did the ink swabs and water tests.

You can get the Life cards with the leather cover from JetPens for $28.50 in either reddish brown or dark brown leather. With this set you get 100 cards and you can purchase additional cards for $6.00.

Pros

Life paper is high quality and the cards are smooth and sturdy.
The large 5x3 size allows for multiple uses.
The leather cover and ring keep the cards together and somewhat protected (the sides of the cards are exposed).

Cons