A while back, a reader named Gil wrote to ask for help in finding an elusive notebook. I’m stumped, so I’m turning the question over to all you other notebook fans! Gil says: “i’ve been trying desperately to locate any surviving specimens of a spiral notebook i used as a junior high student in 1968-1970. … Continue reading Question from a Reader: Covered Spiral Notebook
Nrepose of Unposted tipped me off to this rather nice-looking variation on the classic moleskine-ish notebook: the Little Blue Book, from a website called The Forgetful Gentleman. (They also sell a few styles of cards, which will please all who advocate the preservation of handwritten correspondence.) This may be another case of over-the-top marketing for … Continue reading The Little Blue Book
This notebook has a lot of sentimental value for me, as it belonged to my father. I remember seeing it in his desk when I was a kid and wishing he’d give it to me– my notebook lust started at a very young age. But I wasn’t supposed to be poking around in Dad’s desk, … Continue reading Harvard Square Notebook, late 1960s-early 1970s
The story below is the kind of thing I wish would happen to me… it’s from a book called A History of Ghosts: The True Story of Seances, Mediums, Ghosts, and Ghostbusters, which, amusingly enough, turns out to be written by the father of Dan Ackroyd: Judy and I pried open the rusted metal clasp … Continue reading A Stash of Journals Discovered, from “A History of Ghosts”
Do you ever look at your notebooks and wish you had better handwriting to fill them with? And do you ever notice that notebooks from the past always seem to be full of beautiful script? If so, you might be interested in this book about the history of handwriting. In this electronic age, it just … Continue reading In Praise of Handwriting
There’s an interesting little neighborhood here in Brooklyn called Vinegar Hill– it’s a bit off the beaten path, but worth a short walk from nearby DUMBO to feel like you’re in a bit of a timewarp, and to have dinner at the Vinegar Hill House! The area was just featured on the “Forgotten New York” … Continue reading Notebook Trivia: Boorum & Pease Building
Here’s another neat-o EBay purchase, a promotional notepad from a typewriter company! Actually, I guess they must have started out as a typewriter company but expanded into general office supplies, given the motto on the cover “Everything for the Office.” Inside it’s pretty simple: just plain perforated pages. There aren’t many pages left in the … Continue reading EBay Find: Scottsbluff Typewriter Company Notepad from 1949
Here’s a nice way to use notebooks, from Gretchen Rubin at The Happiness Project: Studies show that thinking back on happy times elevates mood, and observing and preserving memories is one of the most satisfying ways of bringing order to life. My mother started a memory-keeping tradition a few years ago that has proved to … Continue reading Preserve Your Happy Memories in a Notebook
Here’s another neat little item purchased on EBay: This is a sub-category of notebooks that I could happily collect: small promotional diaries given out to the employees or business partners of various corporations. I have ones in my collection from Sandoz, GE, and the Harvard Coop, and this Westinghouse one was a great addition. First … Continue reading EBay Find: Westinghouse Diary, 1945
Notebooks made out of old record album covers! They’re even refillable. Find out more at Reware Vintage notebooks | Design Hole Online.