Alternative to Moleskine Notebooks

[Josh Teeters]

Hi all,

I was considering buying a Moleskine notebook, but came to the
conclusion that while they're ultra-cool and quite aesthetically
pleasing, I couldn't afford to pay 10 bucks for.. a notebook. Despite
how nifty keen they are, they're still just notebooks. (I know, I know
- please, don't stone me.)

At any rate, I put together something similar to a Moleskine last night
while at Walmart. Total cost came to about 5 bucks, and I can refill
the 'notebook' part of it for a book (instead of buying a new Moleskine
each time, for 10 bucks).

I'm guessing most of you can afford Moleskines, since a lot of you use
Macs, but I can't. So I had to come up with something similar that was
cheapo to replace. :)

Details of my 'hack' (I suppose) can be found here:

http://www.joshteeters.org/weblog/2005/03/23/moleskine/

[Luis Reynaldo]

I really like the Clairefontaine/Rhodia brand. They are the mainstay
of european schoolkids who often write with a fountain/ink pen. They
have a variety of sizes, paper styles, and bindings and they tend to
be cheaper by 40-60%. What I really like about them is that thier
paper is a great surface for writing.

[Rob Donoghue]

Blueline composition notebooks are also an excellent alternative, and
can be gotten for about 5-6 bucks via froogle. (look for the
'Leather-Look' cover ones).

-Rob D.

[chader...@gmail.com]

Three words for you: Mead Memo Book. Small (fit nicely in hip pocket),
flexible (won't hurt butt), and extremely cheap.

[Josh Teeters]

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone.

I took some pictures of my little creation and tossed them on flickr,
if anyone is interested.

http://tinyurl.com/6j96v

[GoogleNerd]

I agree. Moleskines are lovely to write on, but I'm not impressed. I
bought a 3 pack several weeks ago, and they are already showing the
wear of moderate field use. As a consulting engineer I'm always at a
job site digging and poking at mechanical systems and the MS just can't
handle the use and seemingly the weather. The covers are made of what
seems to be a nice, durable material with a paper backing that almost
instantly started seperating and peeling.

I prefer the "composition books" that you can get at the dollar store,
as I find them much more sturdy and utilitarian than the 'Skins, but
definitly less fashionable. Heck, I've always been a jeans and Tee
kinda guy anyway. Be sure, the MS's sure are a pleasure to write on,
but I'll probably retire them to the office for meetings. After that,
I'm not sure if I'll buy more, or stick with the tried and true.

[Josh Teeters]

GoogleNerd: I LOVE the plain composition books. I actually have a stash
of about 20 in one of my cabinets. I enjoy writing in them a great
deal; I like them 100X more than spiral notebooks.

That being said, they don't make 'tiny' composition books that I can
slip into my pocket (at least none that I've seen regularly). So my
little creation will have to suffice.

[Tom Hoover]

Wal-Mart carries a 4.5 x 3.25 inch composition book. UPC: 0 52238
31809 9. BTW- if I remember correctly, they were a whole 79 cents
each. :-)

[Joy]

Google Nerd:

The 3-pack you bought are quite different from the hardcover
traditional Moleskines. Those can take a tremendous beating.

For the kind of work you're doing, "Rite in the Rain" notebooks sounds
like just the thing.

-Joy

[Norm]

I am another fan of the Clairefontaine line - nice paper. Really nice paper.

I usually carry a 75mm x 105mm grid pad I get for 2.25 USD at a local
mom and pop stationer's.

--
Norm
==============

[Relly Annett-Baker]

also paperchase do a really similar line to the small moleskine lined
notebooks, same rounded corners, same concertina folder, just lots of
different colours and finishes for about 2/3rds of the price.

relly x
--
http://stupidgorgeous.blogs.com/the_personal_mba

[crinoidgirl]

You can get 'em at Walgreens and CVS drug stores, too.

When they come on sale, they can be as cheap as 50 cents. I use both
the min-composition books and the Moleskine Cahiers, because I can't
decide between them. :)

V

[Andrew Thomas]

I did something similar to this with a memo book binder-clipped to an
old snap-enclosure PDA case I wasn't using. I clipped both back and
front covers of the memo book together so that the case opens up
directly to a blank page.

This can also be adapted for left- or right-handed notetaking - I'm a
lefty, so I've clipped it with the spiral binding to the right. The
left-handed configuration leaves just enough space between the notebook
and the fold of the PDA case to clip a pen inside the case.

Of course, yours looks much nicer...

[Rob Donoghue]

So, I just got back from Target, and they seem to have gotten into the
luxury notebook market with a few contenders that folks looking for
moleskine advantages at reduced cost might find interesting. Most
notably, they have some notebook in their house brand "Kraft" line
which seem sturdy, elastic-closed, and most importantly, have a flat
(rather than spiral) binding. The 4x6 seems solid with a sewn and
glued binding, and for a buck I picked up an excellent little 3x5 flip
top notebook with a suprisingly solid tape bind and an elastic
closure.

Additionally, they were carrying a "Mikaso" line of notebooks and
products, which included a colorful 3x5 book with mediocre paper, but
a suprrisingly solid binding. They also had index card boxes which
were not as solid as the staples ones, but were certainly more
festive.

-Rob D.

[lolindrath]

I use the small composition note books (Walmart for under a dollar) and
once the binding starts showing wear I duct tape up the whole cover.
Not very elegant but really functional. With Moleskines I'm too worried
about sitting on them because they cost so much money. Heck, I'm
hesitant to write in them because the cost so much.

--Lolindrath

www.lolindrath.com