In my never-ending quest to buy fewer notebooks, I did exactly what I was not supposed to do: Buy more! I couldn’t help it though. The Write Notepads Winter 2016 release, titled “In The Pines”, was too nice to pass up. I had some experience with Write before, but buying and using these sealed the deal for me. Write Notepads are amazing.

In The Pines spoke to me on several different levels. First off, the design is stunning. The deep forest green cover with the silver stamping is clean, and not overdone. I appreciate the minimal look. The packaging the notebooks come in is a knockout, as with all of Write Notepads limited releases. The design makes you pick them up. The quality found on the inside keeps you coming back.

In my previous experiences with Write Notepads, pencil has been the name of the game. They are wonderful for graphite, and In The Pines is no exception. There is something about the feel of a pencil on their page that is different than other brands. It’s a match made in writing heaven.

I convinced myself I would only be using pencil in this notebook, specifically the Caran d’Ache Swiss Pine I recently bought on sale at Anderson Pens. How perfect is that matchup? But, for this review, I needed to throw some ink at the page as well, and I was happy with the results.

Fountain pens are at the forefront of my usage, and this notebook handles them as well as expected for a non-fountain pen specific paper. My fine and dry nibs were fantastic, with no feathering or bleed. My wide and wet nibs didn’t feather, but there was some bleed. Not much though, as you can see on the back side of the page. All in all, In The Pines handles fountain pens better than many pocket-sized notebooks on the market. Gel, ballpoint, and rollerball pens all behaved nicely, too.

Shipping a paper product that is usable for the vast majority of people is no easy task, and Write Notepads has accomplished that.

We discussed Write Notepads subscription service on the podcast last week, and lo and behold, look what is now available. Memberships are now open, and with my wonderful experience with In The Pines, there was no doubt I was going to sign up. The newsletter announcement didn’t make it easy though. In fact, the newsletter was a full-on train wreck. I’m glad I’m paying them for notebooks, not marketing. Stick to the analog gang!

Of all the things I don’t need, I’m excited to have more notebooks coming my way from Write Notepads. The writing experience is excellent, and I find myself reaching for them constantly because they are enjoyable to use. Check them out if you are looking to add more high-quality notebooks into your life.

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