I have a few notebooks stashed in my desk drawer. These have traveled with me through 3 job changes, but I’ve only used any of them actively for brief periods.

The first one is this 4″ x 5 3/4″ Cahier de Toilex made in Japan by Maruman. It’s not my ideal size, but I love the tight double wire binding, and the cover has a simulated canvas texture. The brand info is actually a stuck-on label, not just printed on the cover. The paper inside is lined and quite smooth. I bought this beauty in San Francisco, I think, in the mid-1990s. I used about 1/4 of the pages for work-related jottings.

The next one is a bit of a mystery. This chunky, flexible notebook measures about 4 1/8″ x 5 3/4″. It’s similar to some Miquelrius notebooks I’ve seen, but there is no brand or country of origin marked anywhere on the notebook itself. The paper inside is unlined. I used about 12 pages of it for some sketches during a beach trip about 10 years ago, but never used it for work notes. I have no memory of where I bought it.

Here’s a notebook that could have some future re-use potential. The leather cover is actually a Coach passport holder– I love the feel of the leather and I’m thinking I may just convert it back to its original purpose. (When I bought this, I didn’t even have a passport.) Inside is a Clairfontaine notebook, a small staple-bound one with lined paper. I had to cut the covers slightly to make them slide into the passport holder, but the pages were a perfect fit! It’s actually a great little notebook– a few pages were torn out, and a few others have notes on them, but otherwise I don’t seem to have used this much at all. I don’t know why!

Finally, I have a very basic little looseleaf notebook, probably bought in an office supply store in mid-town Manhattan near where I used to work. I tried to use it as a sort of budget Filofax, adding a clear plastic pocket and some post-it notes mounted on the inside back pocket. I guess I gave up on using it and moved any paper in it to some other Filofax– all that’s left is a couple small notes, a few old business cards from 3 jobs ago, and a stamp.

I’m not sure what I’ll do with these– probably stick them back in my desk drawer for another few years!