As noted recently, I’ve been revisiting some of my old Filofaxes, which feel like time capsules from the late 1990s. One of my favorites from that time was the Filofax Pocket Chelsea. I liked it so much, I bought two! They are actually slightly different, though no distinction was made in the model name. Both … Continue reading Filofax Pocket Chelsea, Two Ways
I forget how I came across this very poignant notebook. It is a diary belonging to Peter Feigl, a 13-year old Austrian Jewish refugee in Vichy France. …Peter wrote about the traumatic events he had just experienced in his diary. His parents were first taken to an internment camp at Le Vernet, and the diary that … Continue reading Peter Feigl’s Diary
This book sounds fascinating! It was just reviewed in the New York Times: Rome, 1950: The diary begins innocently enough, with the name of its owner, Valeria Cossati, written in a neat script. Valeria is buying cigarettes for her husband when she is entranced by the stacks of gleaming black notebooks at the tobacco shop. … Continue reading The Forbidden Notebook
If you’re not familiar with the term “mudlark,” it means someone who digs around in a riverbed at low tide to see what sorts of treasures they might find. I felt like I’d found some treasure when I discovered Johnny Mudlark’s diary! I first saw some of these images on Pinterest, and was led to … Continue reading A Thames Mudlarker’s Notebook
My most recent Netflix viewing was The Glass Onion, which includes an incredible number of cameo appearances by celebrities. It also happens to include a fun cameo appearance by one of my favorite notebooks! I won’t talk about how the notebook is involved in the plot, but here’s a few photos I grabbed. The notebook … Continue reading Notebook in “The Glass Onion”
Shocking news from a publishing industry newsletter: Sen. Ted Cruz Slams Blank Book Sales for ‘Potentially Offensive Content’ Sen. Ted Cruz (R.-Tex.) took his crusade against books he deems objectionable to a new level this week when he warned against the dangers of selling diaries, journals and other blank books to minors. Just days after … Continue reading Banned Blank Books!
I’m a fan of Paperblanks notebooks. I own several of them but I had never actually used one until quite recently, when I decided to bite the bullet and try using a Paperblanks Flexis notebook as a daily journal. I’ve been coveting these notebooks for a while– there are some very cool cover designs, and … Continue reading Paperblanks Flexis Notebook Review
A nice little piece in the New York Times about keeping a commonplace book, by Charley Locke: I’ve never been a journal person, though not for lack of trying. A monogrammed duffel bag in my parents’ basement holds many old diaries — a furry leopard-print one from elementary school, Moleskines with unbroken spines from college … Continue reading On Keeping a Commonplace Book
These Harvard Coop diaries mark the beginnings of my serious obsession with little black notebooks. I started using them at around the age of 9. Before that, I’d had some 3 x 5″ spiral notebooks, and I liked to get the little Hallmark month-to-a-page planners that drugstores would give out for free, but I barely … Continue reading Harvard Coop Diaries
A post by Stuart at Nero’s Notes got me thinking about notebook routines. Not just which notebooks are used, but habits of how and when you use them. Stuart talks about his daily journaling routine: each morning, he gets up early, meditates, then writes in his Hobonichi Techo. I love the idea of this kind … Continue reading Notebook Routines
