Papyrus Notebook

Passing through Grand Central Terminal a few weeks back I stopped by Papyrus, which has several locations in NYC that I've been to but not the tiny postage-stamp of a store in GCT. I was really taken with the large, brightly-colored wire-bound notebook with a black elastic band.

The striped notebook, called Festive Stripe, is a standard 8.5 by 11 inch size with 120 sheets of paper and sells for $8.95. It's part of the Papyrus store's own line of stationery products, which are numerous and include some very nice leather journals as well as cloth-bound notebooks of all sizes. The Papyrus and Carlton Cards retail stores, with 450 locations in the US and Canada, are owned by Schurman Retail Group.

Schurman, founded in 1950, offers premier stationery and "social expression" items, including the notebook pictured above, stationery, cards, journals, and lots of other interesting things that are great impulse buys when you're killing time in a train station. I like the bold striped colors, as well as the way the black elastic band fades into the cover. But how good is it as a notebook is a better question.

There were two sizes offered, one more of an A5 similar to a Rhodia large Webbie and this letter size notebook. The paper is better than printer or copy paper, definitely smoother and more substantial. But definitely not in the same 80gsm to 90gsm as Rhodia or Clairefontaine. Meaning this isn't fountain pen friendly, no matter how fantastic unlined bright white paper may be for different fountain pen ink colors.

One point to note is the black elastic band. The bank is held in place by brass-colored metal grommets attached to the back cover. A small paper tab is glued over the elastic to keep it in place and to make sure it doesn't show through on the inside of the cover.

Both are very nice details that do add a touch of thoughtfulness to this notebook (not that it was slapped together in some mass-market factory, but actually designed and manufactured with care).

If there's a Papyrus in your area, do stop by and check out their line of notebooks and journals. The price is not too high, and they're definitely fashionable and pretty well-made.