The cover on this one is leatherette, and it’s got rounded corners, an elastic closure and two bookmarks. The outer edges of pages are printed black, as are the end pages and back pocket, but inside the paper is white/cream with gray dot grid. The paper itself is 80gsm and acid-free, Endless’ proprietary Regalia paper. The book has a table of contents, and 187 numbered pages (for a total of 192 pages). Finally, the sheets are perforated in case you need to remove them!

So what’s it like to write on? I’m going to go with mixed. I didn’t even get into too many pens, but I used a TWSBI Eco with a Fine Nib and if I added any extra ink I got a bit of feathering and bleedthrough. With regular writing, it was better with just slight show through because I was pushing harder than I ought to. (Gel pens are making me sloppy with the fountain pens!)

Overall this one is sleek and easy to carry but not my favorite paper given I tend to favor bigger nibs that put down more ink. Have you used one?

(It appears that Ana feels sort of meh about the paper too!)

DISCLAIMER: This notebook was provided to us free by Retro 51 for the purposes of review. Please see the About page for more details.

As a classic KWZ ink, MOBOT does have the slightly vanilla-y smell that all KWZ inks have. Some people love it, others don’t. Just be aware.

MOBOT is an acronym for the “Missouri Botanical Gardens”. The color is inspired by the iris which is the city flower because it is shaped like the Fleur de Lis featured on the city flag. And the color comes from the Tall Bearded Iris which is also called the “Missouri Rose”.

When compared with some of the colors in my library, there are some similar shades — some a little more saturated, some sheenier, and some that lean more pink or purple.

If you like the MODOT color but prefer sheen, Iroshizuku Yama-Budo is a good option. J. Herbin Larmes de Cassis is a close match, maybe a tiny bit brighter, more saturated and slightly more purple. Robert Oster Cherry Blossom is a little more pinky but quite close. Colorverse Miss Baker is  slightly more red. Miss Baker, and Larmes de Cassis are the closest in normal lighting, even Yama-Budo looks quite similar in non-photoshoot lighting.

I really appreciate that St. Louis Pen Show is branching out in the colors they offer but I already have so many colors similar to MODOT that I’m not sure I’m going to be compelled to purchase a whole bottle. Someone try to talk me into it.

There will be 200 (60ml) bottles and will be on sale at the show exclusively for $20 each (limit 2 per person), while supplies last. If there are any leftover bottles, they will be sold on site towards the end of the show. I’ve been advised that the limited edition ink often sells out before the show closes so if you are interested, be sure to try to acquire a bottle before the how ends.

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by St. Louis Pen Show for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

All six of the notebooks are A5-sized, all feature some variation on a soft cover and all are designed to be fountain pen friendly. (There are some details that I left out of this review for brevity, like if you want to know about the color and texture of the end papers, drop a comment below).

What I wanted to do is see what the differences are, what features might be a make-or-break for you, and what the cost breakdown was for each of them. I’ve seen other breakdown the cost per ml for fountain pen ink, today I’m going to give you the cost per sheet for these six notebooks.

To start, let’s run down what these notebooks are:

• Nouto Nombre Notebook (available in 8 different cover colors)
• Tsubame Fools Cream Notebook (available in A5 or B5, cover colors relate to ruling/grid)
• Teranishi Guitar Taisho Roman Haikara Notebook (cover colors align with ruling/grid)
• JetPens Kanso Noto Notebook (five different cover colors available)
• KOKUYO Century Edition THIN Paper Notebook (only one size/style available but offer ruling/grid options)
• Yamamoto Paper CANOPUS NOTE Notebook (only one size/style available)

(* formats used in this review are in BOLD)

This review is long so I’m putting in a break here….

Construction:

While there is a pretty big variety of page count between the various notebooks, from the cahier-style Tsubame Fools Cream to the chonky Kokuyo Century, there were some noticeable differences. Though all six notebooks feature  soft, flexible cardstock covers, some have more substantial cover than others. Noteably, the Teranishi featured a light, cellophane wrap cover over the paper cover that can be left on if you decide note to invest in a thicker plastic cover or other sort of notebook cover wrap. The Tsubame Fools Cream have the lightest weight cardstock cover but for the size of the notebooks, it makes sense to keep the covers light and flexible. The Nouto, Kanso and Canopus all had very stiff cardstock covers. All three appear to be very similar weight paper for the covers and are likely to be fairly durable, with or without an additional wrap or cover. The Kokuyo is the only notebook with a full wrap cover and has a flexible, yet durable feeling. It reminds me of some large, paperback novel covers that just feel good in the hand.

The Tsubame is the only single-signature design of all the notebooks tested. All the other notebooks feature multiple stitched signatures.

The Nuoto Nombre is the only notebook with an exposed, stitched spine. Visually, it has a very clean, elegant look.

The Nuoto, Canopus and Kanso have very minimal branding or decoration on the covers. If you like to decorate your notebooks yourself, than these will be your favorites. The Kokuyo Century has foil lettering and a textural cover that would not lend itself to stickers but maintains a fairly minimal look. The Teranishi and Tsubame both have decorated covers. The Tsubame even has the design in gold foil. You either love the designs or you can slip these into a cover.

The Teranishi and Tsubame both have square corners while the other notebooks do have rounded corners on the right edge. I prefer round corners on the right because they seem less prone to showing dings and getting rounded just from daily use.

• Winner for construction: Kokuyo Century
• Runner-Up: (TIE) Canopus and Kanso (same cover and construction)

Paper Texture & Color:

I was surprised to discover the array of shade of “white” that these notebooks offered. The Tsubame Fools Cream is a warm ivory, as expected. The Canopus is a BRIGHT white, more so than I usually see in Japanese notebooks. The other four notebooks have more of a natural white color that is all fairly similar.

Only one of the notebooks included in this review feature Tomoe River Sanzen and that’s the JetPens Kanso. The other notebooks feature paper that is unique to their brand. The Kokuyo Century uses the same paper found in their Jibun Techo and is described as “THIN PAPER” with a weight of 52 gsm which is probably the most similar to Tomoe River.

The Canopus paper is something Yamamoto Paper worked to create in an effort to fill the gap left when Cosmo Air Light was discontinued. The Teranishi paper is a mystery but is listed as being 95 gsm. The Nuoto Nombre is 58.1 gsm “Seibundo Paper”. I don’t know anything about Seibundo paper but having the manufacturer information is always nice.

And finally, the Tsubame Fools Cream is a Foolscap paper. What I like about the foolscap paper is that when you hold it up to the light you can see the lines from how the paper is made and dried, like a laid paper in the West. The laid lines are more noticeable on the plain paper than on the grid unless you hold it up to the light.

Texturally speaking, the Nuoto and Teranishi are the smoothest paper with the least texture. If you like your pens to glide, these may be your best option. The Kanso (Tomoe River), Kokuyo and Tsubame all perform similarly. There is a slight toothiness to these papers but not overly scratchy. Canopus is the most textural. If you do not like tooth, avoid the Canopus. I like toothy paper as it forces me to slow down a little, write with a light hand (not push too hard where my micro nibs might dig) and it just feels nice to touch — like velvet.

• Winner for paper: As paper texture and color are such a personal preference, its a tie among all six. I like the colors for different uses and the textures are all completely usable.

Ink & Pen Testing:

The first test I did was to do a swatch of Sailor Irori which sheens, but not a lot. I wanted to see, if dry, I could see the sheen on each of the papers. I was shocked to see that the Tsubame was the sheeniest of all the papers despite the cream color. Teranishi also showed a ton of sheen. Surprisingly, the Canopus and Kanso (Tomoe River) performed similarly regarding sheen and the Nuoto and Kokuyo showed some sheen in the swatch but not as much as the others.

In writing tests, all the fountain pens performed well. I used one fountain pen with shimmer, one with sheen and a variety of nib sizes. The sheening ink appears sheeny on all the papers. The shimmer ink was also visible on all the papers.

There was no feathering of the fountain pen inks. None of the writing samples bled through though the show through varied a bit depending on the paper. The Nuoto has the most showthrough (58 gsm), just slightly moreso than the Kanso (Tomoe River 52 gsm). The Kokuyo Century was next with some show through but not as much as the Tomoe River or Nuoto Seibundo paper. In the ink swatch, however, the Nuoto and Kokuyo Century tied for most bleed through.

• Winner for sheen: (TIE) Tsubame Fools Cream & Teranishi
• Winner for least show through: Tsubame Fools Cream
• Runner-up for least show through: (TIE) Canopus & Teranishi

Value:

This is a new category for me when it comes to notebooks. What is the “per page/per sheet” value of each of these notebooks? If performance is similar, which one is the better value?

To this end, I calculated the price per sheet based on the sheet count and MSRP. The least expensive were the JetPens Kanso (Tomoe River) and the Kokuyo Century Edition coming in at about $0.13 per sheet (0.07 per page). The most expensive is the Caonpus at $0.28 per sheet (0.14 per sheet).  The Nuoto Nombre, Tsubame and Teranishi fell closer to the Canopus but slightly cheaper at $0.26 and $0.25 per sheet (approx. 0.13 per sheet). This was kind of an interesting experiment to see how each notebook fared regardless of page count as we often look at notebooks and see an “inexpensive cahier” at $7 and an “expensive chonky notebook” at a price over $20. I had to stop and ponder, is one really a better value?

Knowing this type of information, are you more inclined to buy a notebook with a lower per sheet/per page cost?

Winner: (TIE) JetPens Kanso (Tomoe River) and the Kokuyo Century Edition

Final Impressions:

These are all good notebooks. They all have fountain pen friendly paper, they should sheen and shading. Some have super thin paper, some is smooth, some is textural. Some is bright white and some is cream so a lot of your purchasing decisions will come down to personal preference. Do you need dozens of pages or hundreds? Do you need grid, dot, blank or lined? Only one of the notebooks listed in this review are available in other sizes other than A5 so while A5 is quite a popular and favored size, if A5 is not for you, this might make these a no-go for you.

Initially, when I purchased these notebooks, I wasn’t sure how they would perform or which would end up being my favorite. For sheer feel-in-the-hand and value, I really like the Kokuyo Century. While it might not be great to use both sides with some tools, sometimes how the notebook feels and its general performance are enough to make it a favorite. I wish the dot grid was slightly lighter but I might buy the blank as a back-up.

The surprise for me was the Tsubame Fools Cream. I am not usually a fan of cahier-style notebooks but that paper is lovely and the soft color is pleasant for everyday use. Even though the per sheet price is higher, the $7 price tag per booklet is reasonable to try it out. I like the toothiness of the Canopus Note but I know that won’t be everyone’s choice. And I surprised myself by still really liking the Tomoe River 52gsm in the Kanso. It’s still a great paper despite all the ups and downs over the past few years.

In the end, I wouldn’t kick any of these notebooks out of bed. I know that’s not a huge help but is does suggest that JetPens is working really hard to curate a great assortment of notebooks. Is there a feature you wish was available that isn’t here? Which one of these notebooks have you tried or might try next?

DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided free of charge by JetPens for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

Thanks to an eagle-eyed Patron for tipping us off to these events. If you know of an event in your area, drop info in the comments. We will continue to keep the Pen Show Schedule updated.

In other news, the World Cup (for better or worse) is coming to America and I live in one of the host cities (Kansas City, if you’re curious) and I’ve been seeing the Fan Festival areas being set up on the lawn of the WWI Museum and World Cup merch in every shop imaginable. I don’t do well with crowds so I think friends will gather at various homes to watch a few games. Besides, tickets and venue food stalls are crazy expensive this year! Are you going to watch any of the games?

Pens:

• Workhorse Pens: Pilot Custom Heritage 92 Fountain Pen (via The Gentleman Stationer)
• Check it out, a weird little pen that looks like a coffee pot (via Extra Fine Writing)
• Review: Asvine V126 Fountain Pen (via Inky Imaginings)
• Happy Pride 2026! (via The Pen Addict)

Ink:

• Brown waterproof inks compared: Diamine Forever Ink, De Atramentis Document, SketchInk (via Parka Blogs)
• Ink Review #2906: Inkebara Caramel (via Mountain of Ink)
• Why Blue? A Rumination on Inks, Pens, and the People Who Love the World’s Favorite Color (via Pen Boutique Blog)
• Wearingeul The Autumn Night After a Thousand Years Ink Review (via The Pen Addict)

Pencils:

• Pentel Multi 8 Lead Holder Review (via The Pen Addict)
• Review: Pentel Multi 8 Lead Holder / Clutch Pencil (via Parka Blogs)
• Every Pencil in the New Blackwing LOTR Set! (via dwrdnet on YouTube)

Notebooks & Paper:

• My Solution to the “I’m Dead, What Happens to My Journals?” Question (via From the Pen Cup)
• Halfway Through the Year with a Sterling Ink Common Planner (via Dime Novel Raven)
• Historic Inserts (via Philofaxy)
• 2027 Planner Notification Sign-Ups (via JetPens)

Art & Creativity:

• Review: Ohuhu Cotton-top Watercolour Pad (via Parka Blogs)
• Color meditation: Painting the same shape over and over again (via Flow Magazine)
• BOOK REVIEW: Watercolor Made Simple Workbook by Nicki Traikos – Doodlewash®
• Don’t Call it Art is out now! – Austin Kleon
• Stencil Art Is Everywhere, and Here’s How To Do It Yourself (via My Modern Met)
• Blick Botanical and Earth Tones Palette (Tina Edition) (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
• Summer Watercolor Supplies (via An Inkophile’s Blog)

Other Interesting Things:

• New Exhibit in Mexico City Brings Together Historic Soccer Items (via My Modern Met)
• French Trio Reimagines Daft Punk as Medieval Bardcore (via My Modern Met)
• Sergio García Sánchez and Lola Moral’s “The Secret Life of Books” (via The Casual Optimist)
• This Artist Turns Birdwatching Into Fantasy Illustration With Real Ornithological Soul (via Design You Trust)
• USPS Reissues Popular Mister Rogers Stamps (via Kottke.org)
• Sixth Anniversary (via Inkcredible Colours)
• Barbie Stamps Set for Release At Collectors Convention This Summer (via USPS Newsroom)
• Travelogue Part 1: Choosing the Tools (via Line Variation)
• Calling it quits (via The Typewriter Revolution blog)
• Exploring LA’s 100 Year Old Central Library (via Atomic Redhead)

Check out our Patreon where you can get inspiration, gossip and free printables plus our exclusive biweekly podcast and more. Your patronage supports this site. Without our Patrons, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!

What colors would be in your rainbow?

• Robert Oster Astorquiza Rot
• Robert Oster Peach
• Robert Oster Aussie Gold
• Papier de Plume Ivy Green
• Diamine Florida Blue
• Waterman Tender Purple

Also I guess I need a yellow fountain pen?

I grabbed some gradient colored embroidery floss in a contrasting color so that the repair is recognized and acknowledged — part of its journey through life. I started calling it my “FrankenSoolla” because I stitched the repair on the lavender lilac pouch with green thread, like Frankenstien’s monster.

Surprisingly, this repair made me love the pouch even more so this weekend, I decided that the pouch needed even more customization. I’ve been wanting to get better at embroidery — I’ve only ever really done a couple stitch samplers in my life — so I thought I’d take a chance and stitch my astrological sign onto the pocket. Stitching on an already-assembled object is tricky and definitely challenging.

I used a free embroidery pattern from DMC (available on Lovecrafts) and plain black floss. The design was a little quirky and imperfect to begin with so the fact that my skills are just so-so aren’t as noticeable. The design is supposed to look a little wonky.

Now, I’m wondering if I should do more embroidery or sew some patches on as well? What would you do?

Do you like to customize or personalize your stationery items too? Do you stick stickers on notebooks, recover the outside or add other embellishments to make your stuff “yours”? Let me know in the comments!

Our winner is:

I love the idea of venomous animals for inks! And a little octopus in the bottle? Yes, please!

I have reached out to the winner via email. If this is you, check your spam filter. If I have not heard back from the winner within 7 days, a new winner will be selected.

Thanks to everyone who read the blog and enter our giveaways. Stay tuned for more!

No. 1 Notebook: Mark’s EDiT Notebooks

I absolutely love the Mark’s EDiT notebooks and the B7 Semi Size has been my little side kick all year for random notes, to-do lists, thoughts and ideas on-the-go and even a few. silly little doodles. The paper is thin and great for fountain pens but I like it just as much with gel, felt tip, markers and rollerballs. The plastic cover keeps the book safe and durable without making it feel precious. This is a work notebook, not an heirloom. If you haven’t tried one yet, the paper is called NEO AGENDA and was created for Mark’s to be all the things we love about lightweight, fountain pen friendly paper. Not to promote my own shop but I have new order of these notebooks scheduled to arrive on June 13 so stayed tuned.

No. 2 Planner: Aura Estelle B6 Classic Daily Magnet Planner

I have been using the Aura Estelle B6 Classic Daily Magnet Planner and it is a great system. It combines all the things I loved about the Hobonichi (fountain pen friendly paper, page-a-day layout, etc) and added in the weekly layout like the Hobonichi Weeks at the beginning of each week. The layouts are simple, there’s no space occupied by quotes I didn’t choose myself and the gird lines are light and unassuming. 100% would buy again. My only issue is that I would love to see an Aura Estelle “Avec” with two smaller books for each half of the year as my Aura Estelle has already doubled in size with all the thing I’ve glued into it that I’m worried how impractically large it will be by the time November and December roll around.

No. 3 Pen: Kaweco Sport DIY Glow-In-The-Dark

I haven’t purchased a ton of fountain pens this year but I was able to acquire one the Kaweco Sport DIY Glow-In-The-Dark models and I love the color of the body whether its glowing or not. I appreciate Kaweco pushing the boundaries of what materials to use when making their flagship pen. My suggestion for the next model would be to do something translucent day-glo with sparkles — in green it could be Alien Invasion, in pink it could be a real Barbie Princess vibe, blue could feel like crystal caribbean waters and day-glo sprkly yellow could feel like a solar supernova.

No. 4 Ink: Diamine Deadly Nightshade

I know its not fair to most US pen fans to choose this one but I am absolutely loving Diamine x Cult Pens Deadly Nightshade ink. A delicious purply ink that sheens, has shimmer and floaty skulls in the the bottle. Be still my little goth heart. But don’t dispair, there’s still time to enter to win a bottle. May the floating skulls be yours!

No.5 Tool TIE: Soola Studio Pouch and Hobonichi Drawer Pouch

Darnnit. I was really hoping not to break the Top 5 rule but when it comes to tools in my stationery collection, the bags I use to hold all my pens, markers, stickers and ephemera, its hard to pick just one.

The Soola Studio Pouch is great for doing a bag-in-a-bag scenario and having “all the things”. All the pockets on the outside make it a great way to grab various pens and then the interior compartment with its various pockets can hold stamps, ink pads, stickers, washi, glue and more. I like that it sits flat on my desk or table when I use it as well.

But I still love using my Ukranian Flowers Hobonichi Drawer Pouch for the more diminutive carry. This case is used when I just need a few things or I’m trying not to look like a pack mule when I go somewhere. It has enough space for the pens I’ve selected for my monthly planning, a pair of scissors, washi tape on cards, a glue stick and maybe a few other bits. Slim and trim and can then be unzipped on my desk to create a landing spot for all the tools that it easy to see and easy to access.

Soola for ALL THE THINGS and Drawer Pouch for on-the-go.

Bonus Humble Brag: The Retro Rainbow Sticker collection

My new Retro Rainbow Sticker collection are my new favorite stickers. I can grab a color to match my theme of the month and have a great variety of vintage ephemera like tickets, stamps, typewriters, flora and fauna and more. But even I have been “these are too pretty to use” even though I have a drawer full of more of them. So, don’t worry and if you have any of these, use them. I’ll keep making them. And I may be convinced to add more colors to the rainbow in the future.

Links included in this post are for previous reviews and places where you might find the products. None of the links are affiliate (I don’t get any money, products or special deals for these link placements) EXCEPT links to The Well-Appointed Desk. That’s my shop. So, I do make money when you shop there. And I do genuinely appreciate it when you buy from my shop.

Have you signed up for any of the workshops or classes yet? I am teaching four unique workshops (including a NEW workshop!) at the show including some of my most popular options like Gamify Your Life and Sigils: Make Magic with Pens & Ink and Carve Your Own Rubber Stamps. I’m super excited to offer all these workshops. It’s some of the most fun I have at pen shows now.

For the Make Your Own Junk Journal class, each student will get materials to make their own Field Notes sized journal and the option to learn simple, traditional bookbinding techniques. You will leave class with a notebook and even have some time to start “junking it up”.

Attendees in the Carve Your Own Rubber Stamps will learn how to use simple materials to carve their own stamps AND leave with a kit including a carving tool to make more stamps after class. Students also love to bring a notebook for swapping stamps with other students in the class which is also one of my favorite ways to make new friends!

If you think you want to attend one of my workshops, or those hosted by anyone else, it helps HUGELY to know a few weeks in advance. It helps teachers know how many kits, packets, and other supplies will be needed and provides the funds to purchase them.

Finally, if you are new to fountain pens AND left-handed (or lefty-curious), you might want to consider attending my free seminar “Fountain Pens for Lefties” on Saturday, June 27  at 3pm.

Thanks! I can’t wait to see everyone in St. Louis. If you have any questions about these workshops or seminar, please drop me a note in the comments.