Storyboard 02: The Farm
"The Dreams you sow, the reality you reap"
Okay, slightly odd quote from the back of the latest limited edition from Storyboard, but what else can I tell you about it?
The pocket notebook world is a fairly crowded place. It's not really enough to just have a notebook out there, it needs to stand out. So, what marks out this latest from Storyboard?
The cover is fun and quirky. Perhaps not terribly professional for work, if that kind of thing bothers you, but I like it. The cover is also pretty robust so will cope with being tossed in a bag, without instantly falling apart. Scrib said more about it in his post last week.
Inside, there are 64 pages, sewn together so lying flat isn't an issue. Removing any of the pages is an issue though. I tried to tear out the centre pages for a pen test and some of the stitching came away. These books are not designed to be dismantled, which is a bonus. Notebook size is 3.5" x 5.9" or 9 cm x 15 cm.
The paper is 90 gsm, with a 5 mm dot-grid in a light grey. The dot-grid is dark enough to act as a guide, but faint enough that you could ignore it if you wanted. The front page has space for you to write your name and details, plus space for the date range the book covers, which is a nice touch.
The paper is described as ink-loving. Is it?
I have a tendency to write with stub nibs or calligraphy nibs, more than anything else. I found the paper a little bit 'dry' for the speed at which I write (fast) - the ink didn't quite keep up with my hand. But, there was no feathering apart from with one of the 'big guns' (a Rosetta Mosaic with a 1.1 mm stub nib. Most papers find this a bit of a challenge as it's a wet nib). The others were all fine. I had no bleed-through and almost zero show-through to be honest. Far less than most other papers.
Overall, I would say that these are a great little notebook, especially if you want to write with fountain pen. There aren't many pocket notebooks out there which can withstand a wet nib, but this one stood up to it beautifully.
