(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!)
At first glance, the Off Lines Zettelwirt Notepad appears to be just another cardstock memo pad. But don't be deceived. I fell for it, too, but then within minutes of using it, I was smitten. And I'm not alone. Off Lines was the European Product Design and German Design Award winner in 2017. That's a lot of hype for a notepad, and it didn't make sense to me until I held it.
For starters, this isn't normal cardstock. It's denim tag, which is extra sturdy and waterproof. The brand even claims the cover will survive a turn in the washing machine, though I love it too much to test this theory for you. Sorry. It has a great texture to it, too, and will take on the characteristics of its use as it ages.
The cover is refillable and the loose-leaf pages are held in place by an elastic band that circles the top of the paper. An indent helps to keep them from moving around too much. When the cover is closed, they stay firmly put. I do find them a bit loose when I'm writing, making this better suited to a desk memo pad than an on-the-go pad, but ultimately I really like this filling system. It's not one I've seen anywhere else. To remove a page, you just lift the elastic and the page slides free. Using both sides of the page is easy--just slip it back under the elastic.
The cover closes with a cloth-covered elastic band to keep your papers safe. It is very slim, and doesn't hold a lot of sheets, but the refill packages come with a generous 100 sheets, so more pages are always at hand.
The paper itself is 90 gsm, chlorine-free, cream-colored, sustainable, and best of all, fountain pen friendly. It has some tooth to it, but doesn't bleed or feather. Even my BB Kaweco worked well on it. I even tried the brush paint pens from last week's review, just to see what would happen. I didn't expect good results, but this paper handles paint like a champ. The only thing that bled at all was the Sharpie--and even that only dotted where the pen paused. There is a little bit of show-through with darker inks, but it's not enough to be distracting.
The Off Lines company is located in Bavaria, and emphasizes writing free from the distractions of tech. That's a philosophy I can get behind. The back copy of this notepad mentions an app, but I can't find one in my app store, or on their website, so that may not be available at this time. I prefer not to mix my paper with apps, anyway.
I've really enjoyed using this notepad. They have several varieties available, and the most expensive of them is only around $35 including shipping (which is 1/3 of that cost) from Germany. That's not bad, considering the quality. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them.
(This item was purchased at Mostwanted-pens at full retail.)
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