Homage to the composition notebook

[pencils+pens]

I was in OfficeMax this morning and they had they Brazil composition books but they were not on sale.

[wpb]

I was in OfficeMax this morning and they had they Brazil composition books but they were not on sale.

 

If you didn't already, you might want to ask the sales person. The ones at my OfficeMax were in a separate area and also did not appear to be on sale. I purchased them anyway and was charged the sales price of 50 cents/per book. Also they had a limit of 3 books.

 

Bill

[finepaperpen]

I agree! Composition books are awesome. I had the Hermes Ulysse MM Notebook, and that was far and away the best notebook I have ever had... but it was like $300+ cover and $50 each refill. I really like quality things, but it Hermes was a little excessive.

 

I would go with the composition notebooks (those are inexpensive, but very high quality paper) and then a leather cover as the perfect replacement. I'm super picky so I found that the paper from Mead is the best and smoothest, and the covers from Bespoke Goods are like as good as Hermes (yes that good!). First on the paper, Hermes paper only fits into the Ulysse notebook and the Ulysse notebook will ONLY take Hermes paper. The Hermes paper is super smooth, writes very nicely, and holds ink from a Mont Blanc fountain pen well. The only misgiving I would have is that price its not a good deal =P

 

Now to the composition notebook cover. Hermes Ulysses is made from 1 piece of calfskin, only uses vegetable dyes, and the leather itself is very high grade (both full grain and very thick). Bespoke Goods in California and Geneve makes it just like Hermes Ulysses, but for composition notebooks that you can find at any store, and the covers are very reasonable in price. So these two leather workshops share these things 1) 1 piece cover - Leather is tough, and threads are weak so if you get a leather cover that is like three pieces it will probable fall apart. 2) Vegetable dyes are a must both for safety, and patina. Most places use Chrome tanning which uses heavy metals that is harmful to the environment and to people. Vegetable dyes are safe for the environment (which is important if I'm holding it all day long), and over time the patina will get better and better (not so with the Chrome dye). With vegetable tanning, its a hand applied process so the person applying it can see the grains and put more or less dye there to bring out the leather's best quality. I found some covers that don't even tan their covers which I don't really get because if its just a raw piece of hide it will get stained and dirty so easily (tanning protects the cover, raw hide is a no no). 3) leather quality should be full grain, thick and supple. Full grain hide is very expensive, but lasts forever and is a solid investment. I got the Bespoke Goods covers in both their calfskin and bison. I have to say the bison leather is pretty cool (the grain looks just like Hermes, but its bison leather is way tougher than calf skin). Their calfskin cover has an incredible pumpkin orange glow to it.

 

I think those are the main points you need to look for when finding the perfect paring between composition book paper and composition book cover. Happy writing!

[wpb]

Wow. Great post. I'll have to check out those covers.

 

Thanks,

Bill

 

Edited to add: Just visited the site. Those covers from Bespoke Goods are beautiful.

Edited August 9, 2012 by wpb

[AfterMyNap]

I bought some Brazilian Norcom books last year and thought I would stock up again, went to three different Walmarts and only saw the USA and Vietnamese ones.

 

Will have to check out OfficeMax on the way home tonight.

 

Keep looking at Walmart - They seem to appear and vanish periodically, and will be mixed in the same boxes with the others.

 

Dan

 

True dat, I also discovered that looking in Walmart's regular office supply department yielded a whole bunch of Brazilians so, naturally, I wiped them out.

Edited August 11, 2012 by AfterMyNap

[Sailor Kenshin]

Comp notebooks with paper from India. They love fountain pen ink. Dollar stores have them, in varying colors and styles. I've started to prefer them to Brazilian, though I still like Brazilian.

[wpb]

Comp notebooks with paper from India. They love fountain pen ink. Dollar stores have them, in varying colors and styles. I've started to prefer them to Brazilian, though I still like Brazilian.

 

Thanks! That's good news. I was a little concerned that the Brazilian were the only ones that worked for me and although my Walmart seems to have many, it's always nice to know there's another option.

 

Bill

[ribbit]

Haven't seen any Brazilians this year but I have been able to cherry-pick a few Vietnamese that have the good paper. Good paper is a brighter white and much slicker and smoother.

[DanF]

India comp books apparently are hit and miss, I tried a bad one last year form Wal-mart, so test before you stock up.

 

Dan

[mwpannell]

India comp books apparently are hit and miss, I tried a bad one last year form Wal-mart, so test before you stock up.

 

Dan

 

Have you ever had a good one?

[Sailor Kenshin]

I would say that about 75% of my current comp notebook stock has indian paper. You wouldn't think of it as fp- friendly because it is not slick, thick and shiny the way Rhodia or Clairefontaine is. It is in fact thin, soft, and a little 'chalky' in feel.

 

But it does take ink beautifully. There might be show- through in some books but they're so inexpensive it hardly matters. I don't write on both sides of the paper even with Claires.

 

Several years ago I reviewed an India comp book here but it was lost in the ' move,' most likely. I should dredge up the pics and post it to my blog.

[New_Falcon]

I bought some Brazilian Norcom books last year and thought I would stock up again, went to three different Walmarts and only saw the USA and Vietnamese ones.

 

Will have to check out OfficeMax on the way home tonight.

 

Keep looking at Walmart - They seem to appear and vanish periodically, and will be mixed in the same boxes with the others.

 

Dan

 

Followed your advice and went to Walmart again. Amoung the twenty or so boxes of USA Norcom, was a single box of Brazilian Norcom.

 

Thanks for the prompting.

[Moynihan]

My Walmart is full of the U.S. Norcom also. How is that type?

[wpb]

My Walmart is full of the U.S. Norcom also. How is that type?

 

Not very good, based on my very limited test (one book). Really bad feathering vs. no feathering on a Brazilian Norcom, with the same pen/nib. I would check your Walmart periodically for the Brazil version. Apparently they re-stock regularly from a variety of sources and Brazil appears to be a regular re-stock. My Walmart is about 50% Brazil.

 

Bill

Edited August 14, 2012 by wpb

[DanF]

India comp books apparently are hit and miss, I tried a bad one last year form Wal-mart, so test before you stock up.

 

Dan

 

Have you ever had a good one?

 

Well no, but I only tried the one.

 

Dan

 

 

 

[Wolverine1]

Do what I do- when I go to Walmart or to Staples, I take my very wet-writing Lamy 2000 fp with me. Then I pick up a comp book, turn to the back page, and write on the page- maybe just make a small line. I get to see how the paper behaves, and if there is any feathering, or bleed-through. I have found this test helpful.

[BlankChaz]

I've been reading through this thread since Monday morning; there's plenty of time while waiting in the jury room. I found that all four of the composition books I picked up for fifty cents per at Office Max are the Vietnamese. I went through the Mechanicsburg Staples; all are from Vietnam. On return to Office Max, one end cap was all from Brasil. Bonus- they hung up a couple of Shaeffer italic cartridge pens. 0.5 came home first. The Books were no longer at fifty cents, but I did pick up four of them. I can easily see the noted the differences between the two lots. Thank you, previous posters on this thread.

[brh]

I'm going to choose my words carefully here, but in case I slip up, apologies in advance! I'm a little bit surprised at the interest on this thread, because I'm really curious how people actually use these things. My memories of dreading these books in school don't come from how they handled (or didn't) ink, but rather how I was constantly fighting that binding! They just always felt like they were designed specifically to frustrate the writer. Always shutting, and the margin all curving inward... So is there some trick to it, or is this just something people have more patience with than I do?

[New_Falcon]

One thing that I did notice in Walmart when looking for the Brazil Norcom, was that the binding for that one felt different to the others. The others felt square when feeling the spine and the Brazil felt more rounded. My Brazil notebooks lie fairly flat after a little 'stretch' of the binding when turning the page. I've done this on all the books I've used so far and the binding still holds well beyond the time the book is full.

[BeachBum]

I'm going to choose my words carefully here, but in case I slip up, apologies in advance! I'm a little bit surprised at the interest on this thread, because I'm really curious how people actually use these things. My memories of dreading these books in school don't come from how they handled (or didn't) ink, but rather how I was constantly fighting that binding! They just always felt like they were designed specifically to frustrate the writer. Always shutting, and the margin all curving inward... So is there some trick to it, or is this just something people have more patience with than I do?

Personally, I use (and will be using) composition notebooks for a couple of different areas. I use one for a journal at work to kind of capture thoughts during lunch (I eat at my desk most days). I also use them to record Bible study notes, topical notes (i.e., we are house hunting right now), etc. So, I guess the best way to put it is that I use them for things that I don't believe require a $20+ journal to capture (I am very cheap, FYI). As far as the binding, it really doesn't bother me much except on the first few pages.