Black n' Red Notebook Review

The Black n’ Red notebook line from Hamelin, which is a part of Oxford, is a simple, no-frills book that delivers decent quality at an outstanding price.

I’ve had a Black n’ Red notebook in my possession since 2009. I think I bought the first one at Target. This was a time before I was a Registered Pen Addict (RPA) and didn’t know or care about paper quality. I thought it looked unique, so I bought it. I still think the notebook look unique, and I’m attracted to the simple black and red design. It’s the composition notebook of the Moleskine class, if you will.

Specs

The Black n’ Red notebook I have is pretty average. It’s an A5 sized notebook with 96 pages (192 sheets) of white, lined paper. The lines are gray, which is awesome, and they’re about 7.5mm apart. This is perfect for my handwriting, which is on the medium to large side. In American terms, this spacing size is very similar to college ruled paper.

A nice feature of the paper is the 24 lb weight, which contributes to the nice feel and accommodating behavior toward all sorts of pen inks.

The front cover contains a calendar and dates table, and a table of contents on the first page. The back cover has a US map and a few of the more popular public transit maps. I’ll be honest, I’ve never referred to the maps, but they’re interesting to look at.

According to the Black n’ Red site, the notebook is “casebound.” This is my first time to stumble across this term, and I wasn’t really sure what it meant. A little research led me to this definition: “bound by gluing sewn sheets into a separately made cover.” So, very similar to lots of other hardcover notebooks.

The hard cover is very unique because of the color scheme. The front and back are black with a heavy texture, and the spine is red. There’s also a small red ribbon for holding a place in the notebook, naturally.

Feel and Performance

The paper is smooth and quiet. Every pen I’ve tried with this notebook glides with ease and hardly makes a noise. It took me a while to notice, but some papers are noisier than others. I like the quiet nature of this paper.

Bleeding and show-through are almost non-existent. Of course, the ink will vary. You can see in my samples that the paper does a great job of preserving the lines.

A major downside for this paper is the dry time. Since the paper is thick and not super absorbant, it takes a while to dry. For me, this means I have to wait a few minutes before closing the book if I want to avoid getting ink spots on the opposite page. For left-handed writers, I’m sure this is a much larger issue. I would expect lots of smearing and smudges.

Another general comment I have repeatedly had about this notebook is it is very stubborn about laying flat. It requires a heavy hand to keep the pages down and the notebook flat. It won’t entirely close on itself, but it tries. The good news is that even though I have to apply some “tough love” to the binding, it doesn’t really show any signs of wear. It’s resilient, and that’s great.

Overall, this is a great general notebook. It’s not the best out there, and it can hardly shake a stick at a Rhodia book, but I can also buy 3 of these for the same price. They also offer a larger A4 version as well as spiral bound versions.

(You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution, Twitter, and App.net.)

Pro Art Hard Bound Sketch Book Review

There was a brief period where I was trying to find a cheap notebook that would perform admirably with all kinds of fountain pens. I've since given up on this endeavor. I'm convinced that buying notebooks that use high-quality paper is much more beneficial than buying notebooks that I hope will perform. The Pro Art sketchbook is one of the many notebooks I bought on this ill-fated journey.

For around $7, the Pro Art sketchbook is a pretty solid little notebook. It's 8"x5.5" inches in size, has 110 pages (220 sheets) of 65# white, acid-free paper, and a hard cover. Sounds like a great contender on paper, and I firmly believe that this is a solid notebook. There are just a couple of downsides to this notebook that keep me from carrying it with me and using it daily.

The first, and most crucial, downside is the paper feel. This paper has a tooth on it that's noticeable with every pen I've tried on it. For me, this makes it difficult for long writing sessions or quick bursts. There's too much friction between the nibs and the paper. The finer the nib, the more accentuated the feeling. I'm sad to say it, but this isn't the perfect paper for fountain or gel pens.

Another downside is the cover. I don't expect much from a notebook that costs this little, but the sharp corners are a point of concern for me. They tend to get hung in different parts of my bag when trying to tuck it away or pull it out. Not a big deal really, but I thought I'd mention it. It's one of the small quibbles that adds up in the grand scheme.

It's also a bit thick for just 110 pages. That's due to the thick paper, so I won't complain about that. It's about half an inch thicker than other similar notebooks.

Top to Bottom: Clairefontaine 1951, Moleskine, Leuchtturm softcover, Ecosystem Journal, Pro Art sketchbook.

There are still plenty of positives for this paper. For one, it's thick. I've only noticed minimal show-through with even my wettest pens. Only a couple of my nib/ink combinations resulted in bleeding on the page. Not perfect, but much better than other notebooks in the same price range or even a Moleskine.

Overall, I think this notebook is meant for other dry art instruments, such as graphite and charcoal. At some point I'll give it a shot, but I've misplaced my art supplies from college somewhere in the attic.

It's hard to tell people this is a bad notebook when it costs so little. The paper is scratchy, the corners are sharp, and it's a bit thick. It's also a heavy paper that takes well to wet inks and wide nibs. Keep these things in mind and give it a try if it sounds like your sort of thing.

(You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution, Twitter, and App.net.)

Clairefontaine 1951 Collection Notebook Review

Like any healthy pen addict, I have quite a collection of notebooks. You never know how you'll like a particular notebook until you buy one and try it out for a while. For me, one of my favorite notebooks to carry around and use is the Clairefontaine 1951 Collection books.

There are several things about these notebooks that I love, so let's start there. Paper quality is one of the highest priorities when selecting a notebook, and the paper used in these notebooks is exceptional. It's bright, silky smooth, and well-behaved with every ink I've used. I have not seen feathering or bleed-through. Show-through is very faint on the back of the pages. The paper is described as 90 g/m^2 weight with acid-free properties. Overall, the paper has never disappointed me.

Another part of the paper that I enjoy is the ruling color and spacing. The line color is a light purplish-gray that really stays in the background when writing. I've used some light-colored inks on this paper, and the lines do not overpower the ink. For me, the line spacing is perfect, but this is one of those details that will vary for each person.

For some, the fact that these notebooks are only available with lined paper is an automatic deal breaker. I completely understand and wish that Clairefontaine offered more options. I happen to like using lined paper for some things and find that the spacing in these notebooks is perfect for my journaling or long-form writing style. There's no index or page numbers - just the lined pages.

The book has been very durable for my usage, which is limited to being carried in a bag every day with other objects. The cover reminds me of a composition notebook, which is a plus for me. The diamond pattern is subtle but distinct. There's a Clairefontaine logo and a cream rectangle for labeling the book. The rectangle is about 2x4 inches. The book measures in at 5.75x8.25 inches, which is very similar to many of the “medium” journal options out there.

I'm not in love with the soft cover. I prefer hard covers on my notebooks so I can write in my lap or on uneven surfaces without worrying about my paper not being flat or stable. With that said, this cover is durable and wears very well. Bound by two staples, the notebook has a little trouble staying flat on its own, but a little breaking in will fix that quickly.

The last thing I'll mention about these notebooks is the price. They're very affordable for the paper quality. You can get them at a better deal from JetPens if you buy 2 at a time, and they offer a nice range of pastel colors (black, blue, green, pink, coral, and turquoise).