Posts filed under Notebook Reviews

12 Parsecs Designs Yggdrasil World Tree Leather Journal 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 Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)

This Yggdrasil World Tree Leather Journal from 12 Parsecs Designs is one of those items that falls into a special category I like to call "things I have to review before my teenager steals them for Dungeons and Dragons." If you're in the market for a book in which to record magical journeys, occult recipes, treasure maps, or any other flights of fancy, you should probably check out the Notebooks page over at 12 Parsecs Designs.

This thicc journal has a sturdy leather cover that's interfaced with canvas. Its back cover tucks into the front to conceal the fore-edge, and it closes with two brass buckles on the front. The cover of this particular one is embossed with an image of Yggdrasil, the Norse World Tree, with gorgeous Viking-inspired designs surrounding it. The leather is painted walnut brown with an almost woodgrain effect to the brushstrokes. Y'all, it's really pretty.

Inside this stunning cover are five signatures of 20 sheets of cushy watercolor paper, for a total of 100 sheets or 200 pages. The paper is very thick, soft, and pillowy. You could take a nap on this paper. I usually associate this fibrous paper with bleeding and feathering, but this is very well made sketchbook paper, and I did not have any issues. It is too soft, however, for sharp-pointed tools, so mechanical pencils, EF pen nibs, and ultra fine pen points are not going to be your friend here. And the paper is thirsty. While I was able to write with a medium point fountain pen just fine, it does drink the ink, and the pen's feed eventually struggled to keep up with the necessary flow. The best instrument I found for this paper was either a wood case pencil that's not sharpened too much, or a standard ballpoint pen. Of course, watercolors would be the specific ideal use for this paper, but I shan't disgrace it with my poor art.

The paper also has dried flowers scattered throughout its pages, which adds to the whimsical, fairytale effect. I know soft, flowery paper is going to send some of you running in the opposite direction, but that just leaves more fae paper for the rest of us, so bye.

This notebook is about as opposite as you can get from the streamlined, minimal, purely utilitarian notebooks that make up the bulk of my notebook stash. I love those, too. And I love this. This isn't a notebook that makes me think "perfect for meetings" or "I'll use this for class" or "so efficient and productive." No, this notebook says "time to play and dream" and I am so here for it.

12 Parsecs Designs suggests that this notebook is great for gamers, painters, scrapbookers, journalers, or even folks who want a cool photo album. I agree, and I'm impressed. For all this loveliness and versatility, they're only charging $31 (and they're actually on sale for less as I write this). That's much less than I expected after using the notebook. I can already tell I'll be back for more of these. Probably very soon, when my little Dungeon Master steals mine.

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

Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!

Posted on June 29, 2023 by Sarah Read and filed under 12 Parsecs, Journal, Notebook Reviews.

Nakabayashi Yu-sari A5 Grid Notebook Review

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

Every once in a while, you come across a tool or a product that you just instantly know is special and well-made. For me, this doesn't happen very often, but I recognize the feeling as soon as it happens. This happened recently when I picked up a new notebook.

The Nakabayashi Yu-sari notebook line is a recent addition to Nakabayashi's product offering, and it's hitting all the right spots. On the surface, it's easy to dismiss these notebooks as yet another iteration of the same old A5 and B5 books that are already widely available from almost every stationery retailer in business. But if you have a product that excels in certain ways, you have justification to add it to the pool. In this case, the Yu-sari notebooks are something you don't want to miss.

The version I have is the A5 size with 5mm grid paper. The different cover colors are indicators of the paper type inside, so my notebook is a cheery blue with black binding tape. The outside of the notebook looks very clean and crisp. You can tell a lot of care and attention went into the details when manufacturing these books. There's branding on the front of the cover, but nowhere else. This branding features the logo in the top right corner, and then some product information in the bottom right corner. There's also a sticker on the back that is easy to remove. Overall, the branding is subtle and adds to the overall aesthetic thanks to the gold debossing.

The look of high-quality manufacturing and materials on the outside instantly translates to immediate feel when you pick this notebook up with your hands. While a lot of notebooks feel rigid and somewhat compressed, this one feels warm and floppy like an heirloom journal passed down through the generations. At the same time, it feels new and incredibly well-made. It's a tough feeling to describe, but they nail the tactile feeling of "new but perfect worn in" to which many products strive.

Opening the notebook is always a pleasant experience thanks to the binding. It opens and lays flat with ease and requires zero breaking in to make it cooperate. It really does feel like this is a journal that has been heavily used and broken in, but while also feeling solid and reliable. Another way of saying this is that notebooks with lots of wear might eventually wear down to a point that the binding is unreliable and pages may get loose or fall out, or the notebook doesn't close as well after the binding has been loosened up over months of use. Have that mental picture of how a notebook like that feels in your hands? To me, that's how the Yu-sari feels, but it has the advantage of being new and fresh.

*This is the back side of the previous page. Nothing to see here.*

The paper inside the notebook is a pleasing eggshell color and performs really well with basically any kind of writing instrument. The 5mm grid pattern is an old standard, and it's done well in this notebook. The grid pattern is full-bleed across the pages, and I appreciate that the pages cuts are done in a way so that there aren't any awkward half or 3/4 grids around the boundaries of the page. Again, there's an obvious attention to detail here that pleases the part of my brain that craves order and structure. Another part of my brain that appreciates mistakes and messes is also happy because this paper can take anything you throw at it. I haven't seen any bleeding or feathering, and there's hardly any show through on the back of the page. You can easily use both the front and back of each page. Speaking of pages, this notebook packs 96 of them while still remaining fairly slender.

Writing with this notebook is fantastic. The pages lay flat on their own, so you're free to relax and write, doodle, or whatever. Pens and pencils feel great when writing on this paper, and the ink dries fairly quickly (varies a bit based on how wet/wide the nib is). Overall, it's a joy to write on, and it rivals some of my favorite notebooks to date.

On top of all that good news, the Yu-sari notebooks (the A5 size) retail for $12.50. That's a stupidly good price, and you should pick one up if/when you have the chance. The larger B5 books retail for $17, which is also a good deal considering the large size.

(Vanness Pens provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!

Posted on June 7, 2023 by Jeff Abbott and filed under Nakabayashi, Notebook Reviews.

Midori MD Letter Pad Review

Midori MD Letter Pads are designed with a purpose. As the name dictates, they are primarily letter writing pads, but, as someone who doesn’t write letters, I think they are useful for all types of creativity. There are a couple of things they aren’t for, too.

Midori makes some of the best paper products on the market. Not only that, but I would be hard pressed to find another brand with this much variety in their lineup. It’s astonishing, and borderline overwhelming. Even the letter writing focused pads have several different formats and layouts.

I chose a standard letter pad layout in the Midori MD Stationery Horizontal Ruled A, which includes 50 pages of Midori’s proprietary paper. Paper I know, and I love. The line format - soft grey lines 9.5 mm apart, with wide margins - is the unique factor here. This is paper with a purpose, and that is to create something fun, interesting, and beautiful, for someone other than yourself.

What it isn’t is a desk pad, or a journal. Technically, you could use a Midori Letter Pad in this manner, but why? If you love Midori, you have a dozen other choices to solve those problems. Same with the stack of unused notebooks sitting on your shelf right now. You know who you are.

So this notepad isn’t for everyone? Absolutely not. It has a reason to exist, which needs to match your reason to buy it. My reason is that I love Midori, and I love how my handwriting looks on these wide lines and wide margins. Why are the margins designed this way? To make the words in the center of the page stand out. I love the visual it provides.

It’s a large visual, too, with the paper size outside of the normal A5 boundaries. It sits at a similar 210 mm tall, but is 168 mm wide, 20 mm wider than standard. I have no idea why, but it will be wider than A5 envelopes for mailing.

Being a Midori product, my expectation is that will handle every pen, nib, ink type, and pencil I throw at it with ease. It did. It’s not the elite fountain pen ink shader or sheener that paper designed for those characteristics will show, but it shows plenty. All of my currently inked pens performed well on the page, with no feathering, bleed, or show through. Gel ink, rollerball, ballpoint, and pencil all worked great as well.

The only negative I ever list with Midori is its stock cream-colored paper for those preferring a stark white page. I like the cream, and don’t find that it takes away from my ink colors enough to take away from all of the other great features.

Another great feature? The price. This Midori Letter Pad is $8 for 50 sheets. That’s very fair, and in line with the full Midori lineup. That said, this is a specialty product, and if you write multi-page letters with one line per line, and one side of the page, you could work through one of these pads quickly. If you have smaller handwriting, you could fit two handwritten lines between the lines, which is something I may try.

Midori Letter Pads are something you may consider trying, if it fits your needs. Like I said, they have a few specific tasks where they will shine, and aren’t a big commitment. Plus, they are Midori. It doesn’t get much better than that in the world of paper.

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

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!