An amazing article by Steve Lange, from Rochester Magazine: When my Nana died, a dozen years ago this month, she left me—or I was given—two items as mementos. Her notebook entries cover 73 years, from “June 10, 1933: Married†through Jan. 25, 2006, just a few months before she died. I can’t read the last … Continue reading A Grandmother’s Notebook
A nice collection of agricultural advertising notebooks, and some reminiscences on how they were used: These pads and pencils were basic record keeping tools for a generation of farmers. One book might contain all of a farmer’s purchases and sales for a year. It might hold entries on all of the cash advanced or credit … Continue reading Royster Fertilizer Notebooks
I recently came across a 2005 post from Orange Crate Art, where he recognizes a description of a familiar notebook in a New Yorker article: From a New Yorker piece on Larry David and Curb Your Enthusiasm: Like many comedians, Larry David carries a pocket notebook for writing down ideas. “You’re in a parking garage, and Larry’s wallet … Continue reading Larry David’s notebook
If you happen to be in New York in the next few days, you might want to check out the “Volez, Voguez, Voyagez” exhibition about the history of Louis Vuitton, especially since it’s free! Some of it is just advertising for the brand, but what makes it interesting is that it looks back at the … Continue reading Louis Vuitton Exhibition in NYC
I used a few of these little planners when I was in college in the late 1980s. In the photo below, which includes some of my other planners from that time, you can see a black and brown Uncalendar, and the red one in the top left with a post-it on top is also an … Continue reading 1980s Uncalendar Planner
I was not familiar with Japanese author Shunei Fujisawa, but the publication of some of his notebooks was a notable event in Japan. Shuhei Fujisawa (1927-1997) recorded the deep sorrow he felt over the loss of his wife, Etsuko, in a pocketbook, excerpts of which his sole daughter, Nobuko Endo, has published in a magazine … Continue reading Shunei Fujisawa’s Notebooks
You may remember Michael Bierut’s stack of composition books that he’s used for many years– one of my favorite notebook stories ever. Now, Aron Fay, a colleague of Bierut’s at Pentagram, has a Kickstarter project going for an upscale, redesigned version of the composition book, using higher end materials and construction. While part of me … Continue reading The Composition Book Reimagined: “comp”
Most of my notebooks are ones that I’ve bought new and filled with my own notes and sketches. But I also occasionally succumb to my weakness for collecting other people’s used notebooks when I see them at flea markets or on eBay. Here’s a few that I’ve picked up along the way. This Rice-Stix notebook … Continue reading Vintage Notebooks from My Collection
A very cool story about someone finding his grandmother’s old diaries… and what lovely diaries they were, with colorful patterned covers and red edges… “My parents recently found five journals in one of those listless cardboard boxes that leaves an attic only when somebody dies or the house is sold. (Don’t worry, everyone survived the … Continue reading Grandma’s Teenage Diaries
Here’s a really cool item I snagged on eBay: This is an early version of the Federal Supply Service notebooks I’ve reviewed here. I don’t know when they changed the information on the back, but from googling the Government Printing Office and the Federal Supply Service, my theory is that the US government used to … Continue reading U. S. Government Printing Office Memorandum Notebook