Rhodia Bloc R Series Pad

 by Tony Thomas

I recently purchased a Rhodia #12 Bloc R Pad. 

 It is a small top-stapled writing pad that is 8.5 x 12 mm. Unlike standard Rhodia pads, it contains 90 gsm (41 lb.) unlined ivory high grade vellum paper. Typical Rhodia pads contain 80 gsm paper.  Heavier paper means less show through.

It is a great little pad with typical Rhodia smoothness.  The  size is perfect for quick notes or for testing pens and inks.  The ivory paper definitely highlights the ink color. I look forward to purchasing more of the Bloc R pads in the future!

Hand Made Notebooks

by Tony Thomas

I really enjoy making my own notebooks. Not only do I save a lot of money, I can use whatever paper I like.

I have used HP Laser Paper (32#), Staples Laser Paper (28#), Rhodia grid paper, Canson Drawing paper and others. For covers, I either use card stock from my office supply store or fancy paper from the scrapbook section of my local craft store.

I use my ancient Boston paper cutter and my limited sewing skills to put them together. My notebooks are only 24 pages making them easier to trim.

I highly recommend making notebooks if you are a fountain pen user and love fountain pen friendly paper.

Notebook Survey Results

by Tony Thomas

Here are the results of the notebook survey:

• Composition Books: 74% said they use composition books.
• 3.5" x 5.5" Notebooks:  A bit over half use this format.
• If Rhodia made a composition book (9.75" x 7.50"), would you buy it?:  48% said yes.
• If Rhodia made a 3.5" x 5.5" notebook like the Moleskine Cahier or Field Notes Brand, would you buy it?: Only 35% said yes.
• Notebook popularity: Rhodia was #1 by a wide margin (70%), Clairefontaine was #2 (48%),  Leuchtturm 1917 was # 3 (35%), Kokuyo, Field Notes Brand, Generic Composition book all tied for #4 (22%), and Apica and Moleskine tied for #5 (17%).  Others used include Maruman, Midori, Tomoe River, Banditapple, Filofax, Picadilly, Aurora, Graphilo, and Fabriano.

Is Rhodia Missing the Boat?

by Tony Thomas

I love Rhodia products, but I really wish they would make them in popular US sizes rather than just European (metric) sizes.

Two examples are composition books and 3.5“ x 5.5” side-stitched notebooks (like the Moleskine Cahier and Field Notes Brand notebooks).

Neither of these sizes is available from Rhodia (although its parent company, Clairefontaine, offers some 3.5“ x 5.5” notebooks that aren’t as easy to find). And Rhodia does have a smallish 7.5 x 12 cm 48 page notebook that would be just perfect if it was a bit larger.

I have nice leather covers that fit these two sizes and I would love to fill them with Rhodia notebooks!

Clairefontaine/Rhodia has hinted that they may be open to producing composition-sized notebooks if there is enough interest.

How do you feel? Would you be interested in these size notebooks? Let Clairefontaine/Rhodia know via their U. S. distributor, Exaclair:

http://www.exaclair.com/contact.php

Take a quick survey on this subject:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TG6SM7C

Rhodia Clic-Bloc Mouse Pad Paper

by Tony Thomas

I decided to participate again in Rhodia Drive's Paper Project.  The project allows you to test free samples of their most popular products.  Up this week (13) is their "Clic Block" mouse pad paper.  

According to the Rhodia web site, this product has a non-skid backing, iconic grid (5x5), 80g paper and a smooth surface for mouse and pen.

First, I tried it as a mouse pad.  Works great.  Next, as a writing pad.  Although the grid lines are darker than I would like (I prefer the faint violet lines), it performed flawlessly for writing using a variety of fountain pens and inks.  No bleed through and very faint show through.  I also tried it with pencil and was very impressed with its smoothness.

Another great product from Rhodia and highly recommended!

For more information:

http://rhodiapads.com/collections_boutique_mousepad_clicbloc.shtml

http://www.rhodiadrive.com/2015/02/16/week-13-of-the-paper-project-free-samples-from-the-rhodia-mouse-pad/

Clairefontaine Paper Tests

by Tony Thomas

I participated in the Rhodia Paper Project (Week 2) at www.rhodiadrive.com.

First of all, what a delightful assortment of papers from Clairefontaine!

I inked up some of my favorite fountain pens and also pulled out a pencil for this test.  Pens/pencil used were: Pilot Metropolitan Fine w/Noodler's Black, TWSBI Vac 700 (.8 Nemosine Stub nib) w/Waterman Serenity Blue, Lamy Studio EF w/diluted PR Chocolat, Lamy Vista (1.1 stub) w/Noodler's Black and a Pentel Kerry Mechanical Pencil with .7 HB lead.

Here are the tests:

G. Lalo Verge de France (100g): This is a great slightly off-white laid-finish paper that would be great for formal correspondence.  As a result, it has a bit of texture that is only slightly uncomfortable when writing with an EF or fine nib. It accepts ink beautifully and drying time was acceptable.  No feathering observed.  The paper also performed well when I used my pencil, producing a solid, dark line.   A really great paper.

Clairefontaine GraF it (90g):   This was my least favorite paper of the three that I tested.  As it is a sketchpad paper, it has quite a bit of tooth (like most sketchpad papers).  That said, it performed quite well with fountain pens with no feathering.  It was really uncomfortable when using the EF and and fine nibs.  As expected, the pencil worked well with this paper.

Clairefontaine Triomphe (90g):  This  was my favorite of the three.  This is very expensive stationary paper and performs like it.  Very smooth texture with great performance with both fountain pens and pencil.  Beautiful, crisp, lines with no feathering and acceptable drying time.   Pure joy to write on with a fountain pen or pencil.

In summary, I think Clairefontaine makes some of the finest papers in the world!

A $3 Homemade Traveler's Notebook

by Tony Thomas

I was a bit bored today so I decided to try and put together an inexpensive traveler's notebook similar to the familiar Midori.  A "Po-Dori", you could call it.

So, I headed off to the local craft store to see what materials I could find.  I discovered a 9" x 12" piece of stiff felt for a buck and 3 yards of green bungee cord for about $1.60.  The materials used are far from optimal but they are cheap and durable.

Total cost: less than $3 with tax.  Plus, I have enough materials left over to make a smaller one if I so desire.

I used Ray Blake's video on You Tube to provide the instruction needed to make it.  You can watch that video here.  Total construction time: about 15-20 minutes.

In any case, it turned out OK and it works!

I also made a short video on the way it turned out here.



















My "Po-Dori" with Clairefontaine 9 x 14 cm and Rhodia 7.5 x 12 cm notebooks installed.

Rhodia and Me

by Tony Thomas

I love Rhodia pads!

As you can see, I have a nice assortment of them handy most of the time.  I used the graph, lined and Dot Pads for various daily tasks including note taking, lists, testing pens, capturing ink samples and more.

Why do I love them so much?  Two words: Paper quality.  They use "superfine vellum RHODIA paper 80g" that is wonderful to use with fountain pens.  It generally doesn't feather or bleed (unless you are using really wet or broad nibs) and you can usually write on both sides.  In addition, it is very smooth and my pens just glide along the smooth surface.

Highly recommended!

www.rhodiapads.com 

Hidebound Leather Notebook Cover

by Tony Thomas


Not too long ago, I ordered a custom leather notebook cover for my favorite Clairefontaine Classic staple-bound notebook (6.5" x 8.25") from Hidebound Leather.   They turned it around quickly and it has become an important part of my EDC.  Hidebound does all kinds of leather products including book and Bible covers, journals, sketchbooks and more.  They also offer a series of Rhodia pad covers.  Their prices are reasonable and their quality and service are top notch.  I heartily recommend them!

http://www.hideboundleather.com/