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Hello Everyone! After some research, I can see that there aren't many reviews online on Smythson products, esp. when looking for something in particular, as I am right now. I guess it's because the prices are prohibitive, but anyway... I like refillable notebooks and have purchased some. What I like even more is standardization: Exact sizes across the board. Smythson has their own system, basically, so you have to learn the names of their sizes and then look up online the measurements of A5 etc. to know where you're at. I really like their refillable notebooks, but the sizing given online implies that it's just (but just about a smidge) short of actually fitting an A5 refill. Has anyone by chance tried their Evergreen leather and been able to fit an A5 notebook of their choice in it? The sizes given are: Leather: 14.5 x 19.5 cm Notebook: 13.1 cm x 18.6 cm A5: 14.8 x 21.0 cm Quite certain no A5 fits, deliberately, to make you buy their refill, but if anyone's tried it I'd like to know and maybe someone else will search for this info at some point like me, then this might serve as helpful point of reference. I can't check it out in person and don't want to order and then return or not be able to part with it and have it lying around without use, just to look at....

Tonight a friend came back from London. With her she had a bottle of Diamine ink and a small little teeny-weeny notebook from a brand I recognized; Smythson. Being a materialist, I squealed with glee and decided to try out the book, especially since I remembered hearing that the paper should be notebook-friendly. So far, it is definitely not. The paper is very thin, and I expected show-through, but not bleed-through. Even with my one of finest nibs (Lamy 2K EF) and one of my most well behaved inks (Lamy black) there was some bleed-through on the pages. I have looked at reviews online and they all seem positive, which I find strange. Have any of you had similar experiences with Smythson paper? Apparently they all use the same paper in all of their notebooks, so I am sure there's quite a few of you who has used them at very least. And ah, yes, I'm sorry if it seems like I'm simply ranting. I will admit that I am very disappointed with the notebook, but I am seriously curious what your experiences with the paper is like. Thank you for reading