Posts filed under Notebook Reviews

Clairefontaine Neo Deco A5 Notebook Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Pretty sure it has something to do with the on/off nature of this past winter, but I'm definitely ready for some warmer weather (or maybe just some consistency?). At any rate, a new notebook is always a good method to add some excitement to the dull weather. This week, I've been enjoying a new notebook from Clairefontaine that rocks an exquisite cover that has a lot of summer vibes.

The Neo Deco line of notebooks from Clairefontaine all feature a unique and bold art deco cover design that can fit any occasion. I couldn't pass up the Turquoise option because of the bright colors and contrast.

The specs of the notebook are very familiar if you've ever used Clairefontaine before. It features 48 pages of 90 gsm paper that provides an excellent writing experience with virtually all writing instruments. All of Clairefontaine’s paper is lined, so that normally turns a portion of people away who prefer other options. It's really a shame and something that I wish the company would change. I happen to enjoy lined paper on some occasions, and Clairefontaine is probably my favorite lined notebook maker. But, I'd buy a lot more of their products if they offered other options like blank, grid, and even dot.

Still, if you dislike lined paper, you still need to at least try Clairefontaine's excellent paper. It really is fantastic, and their notebooks are fairly accessible and affordable.

The Neo Deco line uses a soft cardboard material for the covers and a stitched binding that holds up well. At just 48 pages, the notebook easily stays open when writing, but the front cover will always stand up when the notebook is closed. That's easy to fix with an elastic band, though.

The 48 pages inside are all the same lined pages — no tables of contents or information pages in these notebooks. Branding is also small with this notebook. There are Clairefontaine logos on the front and back, and some information about the company and materials used on the inside of the back cover. Still, the branding is minimal.

Besides the silky paper, the real star of this show is the cover design. In the Turquoise option I picked, the main cover is a bright turquoise blue with gold leaf accents in the shape of tropical leaves. There's also light-blue tropical leaves on top of the blue cover that provide another layer to the design that gives it more dimension. The bright blue and reflective gold are a knockout combination that I love having on my desk.

Sticking with the art deco theme, there are several other cover options if the bright tropical cover isn't your thing. These A5 notebooks come in at $11, which is a great value for the fun covers and excellent paper. I always have at least one Clairefontaine notebook in my active rotation, and the paper quality and writing experience is the main reason. With this new notebook, it stays on top of the stack longer because the bright cover just makes me smile.

(This product was purchased from Goldspot at a discount.)

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Posted on February 22, 2023 by Jeff Abbott and filed under Clairefontaine, Notebook Reviews.

Traveler's Company Traveler's Notebook Unboxing and Setup

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)

When you're planning a trip and writing your packing list, do you create a whole category for stationery? Of course you do; you're here. I love thinking about what pens and journals I'll need (or want) on my trips. One of the things I've wanted to do for a while is road-test a Traveler's Notebook from Traveler's Company. I mean, it's right there in the name! And this year seemed like the year to do it, as I have a lot of traveling planned. Mostly short business trips, but there will be planes, trains, boats, and buses, cars, and hotels, and couch surfing. And the Chicago Pen Show, of course. I did some research and planned a TN setup that I think will work for my adventures.

I got everything I needed from JetPens (some sent for review, some I bought to add a few accessories), and I'll be reviewing the components individually, but this post focuses on how I decided to set things up.

First, I opted for the Passport size, since I like to one-bag travel, and space is a premium. I want to use this notebook according to their old "all in one place" motto, so I intend to use it as my planner, wallet, and commonplace book. So, I got a Monthly Planner insert (which is all I'll need once school is over in May!), the zipper pouch/wallet, the kraft folder, a lightweight paper insert, a writing board, a pen holder, the adhesive pockets, and the brass notebook clip. I also got the sheet of double-sided adhesive so I can use it to put bits of travel memorabilia in the notebook.

I want the zipper part in the front of the book (so that I'm not writing on the lump of the zip), and the card slots in the back (to keep them extra safe). I want the monthly planner in front of the commonplace book, since they'll work together (events in the planner, task lists in the notebook). I connected the planner to the notebook with the extra elastic that came in the starter kit and put that pair through the notebook band, then put the zip-wallet behind them, and the folder in the middle. I put the writing board in the folder (along with some essential stickers), the adhesive pockets on the outside of the folder (for business cards), and I'm using the brass clip to hold the folder closed. I started with the pen clip on the back of the notebook, but it was annoying me, so I moved it to the folder as well, so that it holds the pen in a more central spot. I also swapped the black elastic out for the striking red one, and put the adhesive card slot on the inside of the front cover (for my ID). I still need to find a charm or bead for the elastic closure, but I figure that's something I'll find on my travels.

This is the setup I'm thinking and hoping will work for me! I haven't truly started testing it yet. I'm still using my main Midori planner for at least a few more weeks, while school is at its most intense. But using the Traveler's Notebook as a wallet setup for the past few weeks has been very successful. It's not too big or fiddly, it keeps everything safely contained, and I feel like I have everything I need right in my hand.

This notebook kit has so much personality. Maybe it's the act of constructing its layout and combining all the components, but I feel a bit like I've assembled a travel buddy, or like a bit of my own character got caught up in the elastics. You can't assemble a system so personal and not put a bit of yourself into it, I guess. Like Victor Frankenstein, but less messy. Or just as messy, you do you.

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

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Posted on February 16, 2023 by Sarah Read and filed under Traveler's Notebook, Notebook Reviews.

Bindewerk Linen Flex-Cover Notebook Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

If there's one thing I can never have enough of, it's A5 notebooks. Lucky for me, that particular size is easy to find in just about any paper quality, cover style, and binding style I could ever want. The A5 size just feels right in most situations, and I think it's great to always have one nearby.

The Bindewerk Linen Flex-Cover Notebook is the latest A5 notebook I've tried, and I'm really impressed with the quality that this hand-bound notebook packs inside.

Bindewerk is a small German company that produces stationery goods. This particular notebook features a soft linen cover that flexes easily like a poly cover on a spiral notebook. The linen is soft to the touch but still has a really great texture that makes it easy to handle. The notebook has rounded corners and zero branding on the exterior. The only branding is at the bottom of the inside back cover, which features a simple Bindewerk logo and "Handmade in Germany" in gray ink.

The notebook is perfect bound, and the stitching/binding feels tight and well-done. It can take some time to break in the binding so that the notebook lays flat without something to weigh it down, but once you've written a few pages of notes, it feels like an old worn notebook that goes with you everywhere. Unlike a lot of other A5 notebooks, this one does not have an elastic closure band or any bookmark tassels. It's minimal, and I love it.

The notebook I have features the grey linen fabric, but there are over a dozen other color options available. Regardless of the color you choose, you get the same linen fabric that I've really come to appreciate in this notebook.

The interior of the notebook is as simple and sparse as the exterior. There are no extra pages for titles and content lists — just 192 pages (96 sheets) of premium paper for you to work with. The pages aren't numbered, and there isn't any additional legends outside of the lines or grids (as in, there aren't any special date or title fields at the top). In my case, I have lined paper in this notebook, but you can also find this with blank or dot grid pages.

The paper is a light cream color and is 90gsm. I've had a lot of notebooks that claimed to be 90gsm that couldn't compete with 80gsm paper, so I've learned to take that number with a grain of salt. In the case of this Bindewerk notebook, the paper is absolutely fantastic. Bindewerk imports the paper from Italy to make their notebooks, and their paper choice is stellar. This paper is smooth, supple, and has a nice amount of feedback when writing. It handles fountain pen inks with aplomb and has almost zero show through on the back side of the page — even with dark, wet inks! I was really impressed by how well this paper behaved.

I've really enjoyed having this notebook on my desk over the past weeks. You can never judge a notebook by its unassuming A5 cover, but in the case of this Bindewerk Linen Flex notebook, it's something I highly recommend trying. At about $25, it's a good price. It's a few bucks more than some of the other large brands, but the price tag is worth the exceptional quality in my mind.

(Orange Art, the US distributor for Bindewerk, provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on February 8, 2023 by Jeff Abbott and filed under Bindewerk, Notebook Reviews.