The 5.5 x 8.2 inch hardcover protects your notes from spills, drops, & provides a firm, quality feel. I want to be very clear about this part before we dive into the reviews.

Choosing the right notebook might be a bit difficult. Innovative hole design allows the pages to be repositioned to suit personal needs. I have been searching for hours to find my mom the perfect journal/notebook for her birthday. This is a direct contributor to the feathering we see on the page. Apart from general dotted pages, these journals offer pre-made key and index and special pen test pages. Buke, Tekukor, and Eclectic Scribbles take the Silver Medal for the fountain pen ink test. If it’s the dimensions, have you checked our the B6 size journals? Nobody paid me to write nice things about them.

Interestingly, there wasn’t one brand that came in first place in all the categories. Along with a few supplies that I knew were going to likely fail. The ghosting in Buke is similar to what I’d see in a good quality 100gsm notebook with all the normal writing pens. I think I might have to try it.

This is why we have such a great price of around $10-12. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. You are not obligated to click on any link I include here, but if you do, thank you! Thanks! One notebook was far and away better than the others – I say that because the Sharpie Marker was barely visible, the fountain pen ink doesn’t show through, and the paper held up to Copic-style marker pretty well.

ARCHIVAL QUALITY: 192 pages/96 sheets of 60-lb/90 GSM 30% recycled paper that resists feathering, ghosting, and bleeding, without any extra bulk.

This journal is a solid choice if you’re looking to start fresh. Minimal ghosting may occur with very wet inks. Ha! That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. This test includes two different factors. The Scribbles That Matter paper is pretty smooth and does not show any feathering. The paper isn’t pure white so all the colors will be a bit less bright, and it’s just 80 GSM, so sometimes people mentioned they had slight ghosting or bleeding. Our paper is thick, smooth, and acid-free, and makes an elegant backdrop for whatever media you use. You should have seen me trying to finagle my camera to line up with that tiny eyepiece. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. These are good quality notebooks with an elegant design. Another special treat of these notebooks – the pages re perforated, so if needed it’s pretty simple to take a page out. If you want to learn more about the notebook, check out my Archer and Olive review, with a YouTube review and a grid spacing guide for A5 and B5 notebooks. With all the promotional videos I’ve seen from both of these companies, I would have expected watercolor (at the very least) to perform the best.

I’m back at STM. Be sure to check my complete review and see if this might be a good choice for you. It’s also pure white, which is pretty rare on the market. QiHeng Stationery’s Notebook wins this round, hands down. But the very fact that their current lineup of notebooks ONLY includes 160gsm paper is a testament to the fact that they aren’t making wise decisions. Leuchtturm 1917 journals are very popular in the Bullet Journal community and were the first notebook for many Bullet Journalists. Please know that QiHeng is NOT stealing intellectual property. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. It’s not unpleasant to write on, but you feel the paper gives you a bit of feedback more than the others. See, if I take out the 2 alcohol markers from the list then there’s nothing left to “compare” because all these notebooks did just fine with all these pens. QiHeng even has a squirrel design on a leather-like cover that is pretty close to the design of Dingbats notebooks. This notebook is well-constructed and extremely durable. Are they reliable?

6 comments. At first, I was going to just ignore those two markers because they’re covered in the next section with art supply testing.

If you want to learn more about a notebook from this line, make sure to check out my detailed review with a YouTube video review as well. If you take a look at the website where manufacturers list their “off the shelf” products for production at Alibaba – you’ll see a bit of how this industry works. Amazingly the dye ink barely soaked through the page – and this is why A&O got a medal. But here’s what I’ve tested. I chose the Pro version which means the PU leather cover does not have the all-over embossed doodle design of the other STM notebooks. Have you considered doing one about B5 journals. Mostly A&O, right?! Pam, I just love your style, and as a fellow stationery nerd I appreciate your honesty re the products. This is where things get real! A subreddit for people using or interested in starting a bullet journal. Head to “About Me” section to learn more.

If I were only looking at that one result, Buke would be in first place. – a thicker ink that is based on acrylic paint, I tried the alcohol art marker again on this page. Oh STM, you’re a hot mess! Perfect for bullet journaling, compiling recipes, creative writing, planning a holiday, keeping track of your workouts, or just doodling and drawing. The Archer & Olive notebook just barely made it to the Bronze Medal winner’s circle. Find the notebook that seems ok for you at the moment and get it.

There’s nothing wrong with the pocket, it’s just constructed differently than normal. I look at a lot of journals but haven’t found one I love. The linen-cover options are a bit creepy-crawly, right? Everything here is my honest personal opinion. I have the same concern as the Buke Notebooks brand above – will they get out of the consumer market in favor of focusing on their commercial customers. Tekukor – this notebook line has three cover options – blue, burgundy, olive green. The paper is ultra-smooth and the pen just glides across the page. They sell them on Amazon also, they’re the Exceed brand. I tested a hardcover Leuchtturm, though they do make journals in softcover as well. This review was a monster to complete and took me months longer than I first thought it would take. Archer & Olive – cover design is the strongest feature of Archer & Olive notebooks. – same as above, but this time I diluted it slightly with water to see if that made a difference. Here are a few more options for you if … Design thinking is part of my DNA and I notice the way things are created, decorated, and presented So I notice the way notebooks are designed and also the design options of covers. That’s just a guess because I don’t have any additional details on the paper outside what is on the packaging.

Well, technically I first get annoyed, then I move into seriously pissed off… but then it usually settles down into suspicion. So here we are. This notebook is a great option for your first Bullet Journal. I just think that when making the photos for compare the feathering it should be comparisons of the same pen or ink, and with the same or very similar zoom in the photo. If she decides not to produce another run of notebooks with new artwork, then the entire line of notebooks goes away after the current stock is sold out. – similar to the alcohol ink but there’s no alcohol in this version. – this is a safe choice, IMHO. The back pocket is constructed well with ribbon-like gussets and heavy paper body. Here is the list of some of the best available notebooks for Bullet Journaling which you might consider using. Our journals have a Pen Test page so you don’t ruin all your hard work, ✒️ START ORGANIZING RIGHT AWAY: Bullet journaling should be fun which is why we’ve made our journal an overwhelm-free zone. So add that heavy ink flow with an extra wet ink (Noodler’s has a reputation for being very wet) and you’ve got a combination set for disaster. Several months ago I jumped headfirst down a rabbit hole of fountain pens and ink. When this notebook popped up in my suggestions I snatched it up. Good performance in the Tekukor. What are people even thinking?

The elastic closure is firm and looks well secured to the back cover. The elastic on this notebook is not as strong others in the competition and is actually the narrowest of the bunch. I’ve chosen a variety of pens and markers in different categories. We’ll also go alphabetically, rather than order of performance. Silver Medal Winners – Buke Notebooks and Eclectic Scribbles did very well too. Needless to say, I’ve got a bunch of pens inked up and ready to go. Northbooks hardcover notebooks are as basic as you can get. I’ve never had this ink bleed through any of the notebooks I’ve used it in and the ink dries quickly. This review used to be based on five notebooks until I found this one at the very last minute while I was browsing AliExpress (like I do). No? I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again… Scribbles That Matter has jumped the shark. I know I can trust you! ended up with one art medium that bled through in addition to the two alcohol-based supplies. There are three color-coordinating grosgrain bookmarks that show no sign of frayed ends. 180 PAGES DOTTED BULLET JOURNAL - Thicker paper resistant to passionate artist.