Chalkboard Notebooks

A while back, I came across this post on how to make a notebook with a chalkboard cover: Chalkboard Notebooks – Honest To Nod. It reminded me that I’d made a similar one myself when I was a kid, back in the late 1970s. To make the notebook below, I asked my father to cut [...]

Handkerchief Notebook

The perfect notebook to tuck in a chest pocket!   Read more at Hankie Pocketbook – Mini Notebooks • Selectism.

How Did Your Notebook Collection Start?

A reader named Marjorie wrote to ask how my notebook collection started. It’s hard for me to remember exactly, because I’ve loved notebooks since before I can even remember! My parents have said that when I was about 3, I was already folding pieces of paper in to little booklets to scribble on. A few [...]

An Unusual 1980s Spiral Notebook

This notebook is one of the gems of my collection because I’ve never seen anything else quite like it. I must have bought this in the early 80s, at one of the various five-and-ten stores in my area. It’s just a generic mass-produced notebook. But this cover just fascinates me! There is something so weird [...]

Field Notes 50 States Boxed Set

I know I should probably show a little more love to Field Notes brand notebooks. Lots of notebook fans seem to adore them, and it’s very admirable that they’re designed and made here in the good old US of A. And it’s nice that their aesthetic celebrates a bygone era of promotional  memo books used [...]

Mid-1980s Vernon McMillan Notebook

Here’s an oldie but goodie, which I used during my freshman year of college: It was made by the Vernon McMillan company, based in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The “Memo Book” typography is pretty cool… and check out that snazzy, wave-like VM logo! I love the mottled orange cover– I don’t know if there’s a name [...]