What kind of notebook should I buy?
notebook buying guide
Notebooks are soooooooo versatile - use a notebook to take notes in meetings or for course notes in college, plan a big project or travel adventure, start a business, remodel your house, organise your thoughts and keep on top of your productivity or to track your habits, thoughts and progress towards your goals.
It’s so nice to open a Brand Spanking new notebook isn’t it? - but which kind should you get? Big, small? Lined or plain? Here’s a notebook buying guide to help you to choose the perfect notebook for you, to increase your productivity, make notes in class or meetings or to use as a journal.
Should I have a plain, lined or dot grid notebook?
Think about how you like to work and record in your notebook. Do you need a guide to keep your writing straight? Or do you prefer to doodle and have freedom to dump your thoughts on the page? Will you be only writing down your thoughts at the end of the day? Or brainstorming ideas for your next big adventure?
Notebooks with plain pages
Notebooks with plain pages allow complete freedom for you to doodle, and to write wherever feels right at the time.
Just because the paper is plain doesn't mean that it needs to stay plain though, if you figure out a system that really works for you, you can easily add in sections and boxes to your pages.
Maybe you find that you need to have a little section for a to-do list and a habit tracker but also you want lots of space and freedom for doodling and for writing notes. You can draw in . your own sections, boxes and trackers where you know it’s going to work for you for your workflow.
Notebooks with lined pages
Lined Pages are really great if you know that you're mainly going to be using your notebook for writing and that you like the lines to keep your handwriting even and legible.
You can still divide the page up into separate sections if you want to. Maybe you need to have a section for separate notes that you need to come back to or a checkbox for when certain tasks have been completed.
What can I use a dot grid notebook for?
Notebooks with dots printed onto the pages can be an amazing compromise between a plain page that offers absolutely no structure or lined pages which you may find a little bit prescriptive.
The dots help to keep writing straight but they're unobtrusive so you can doodle over them as well if you want to (and they make doodling geometric patterns very easy if you need a little distraction every now and then).
How can I use a blank notebook as a planner?
If you love getting creative (It’s also an amazing excuse to gather a pencil case full of pretty coloured pens) and just taking some time to sit down each week or each month to organise your layout, a blank notebook is absolutely perfect. Experimenting with different layouts is great fun and exercises your creative muscles.
The dots are amazing at helping you to make layouts and the sections on your pages too. You can just draw a line with a ruler or even without a ruler and keep your pages organised with boxes or sections for different items. .
Maybe you want to have a habit tracker section and a box to pop your to-do list in and then another for days of the week so that you can attribute your to-do list tasks to a specific day
What size notebook should I buy?
Pocket Sized Notebook
A pocket notebook is exactly what it says on the tin. It's nice and small and really easy to fit into your pocket or a small bag so that you have got something with you to jot down notes when you’re out and about. If you’re collecting inspiration for a creative project It’s always helpful to have something with you so that you can write it down when inspiration strikes. it's also the best thing to write your shopping list in!
Epic Sized Notebook
An A4 epic size notebook is is a big beast of a notebook! It’s really great for planning a big project or for taking course notes at college. Each page is around A4 in size and so there is plenty of room there to write down all of your plans and have a massive brain dump if you're trying to brainstorm ideas for a new project. It's just an amazing size I absolutely love using A4 Epic sized notebooks when I’m attending training or planning how to move a big project forward.
Planner Sized Notebook
A planner size notebook is roughly A5. It's small enough to fit into a bag that you're taking out with you for the day and a great size for taking into meetings to make notes.
A5 Planner sized notebooks are really popular to use as a productivity planner - There’s plenty of room to have your to do list but also space to write notes or do a little brain dump when needed. This is my most popular size for Blue Stiggy Notebooks It's perfect to use to organise your time or as a notebook to take into lessons or meetings and to use as a daily journal to process your thoughts.
Blue Stiggy - Eco Conscious Notebooks
• Dot Grid
• Lined
• Plain
• Pocket Sized
• Planner Sized
• Epic Sized
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An invitation to take a moment for your self - to write, draw, paint or sketch. The textured cotton paper makes it so ‘feely’ and will take any medium you throw at it. Choose some really meaningful words for the front cover and I will type them using my vintage typewriter Dorothy. A truly gorgeous treat for your self or the most thoughtful gift for a creative friend. Tied with a recycled silk sari ribbon to make it just that bit more tempting and gorgeous.
Comes in a choice of all handmade cotton paper or a mix of cotton paper and recycled cartridge paper
FAQ’s
Can I use a fountain pen or watercolours in it?
Absolutely - The all cotton paper in these is so strong that it’s totally suitable for watercolour and if you go for a mixed book, the recycled cartridge paper is pretty strong too. l use fountain paper on this paper every day. it doesn’t feather or bleed. you can use a wide range of artist media too, including marker and brush pens, charcoal, pencil and even a light wash of watercolour
How long should the personalised text be?
Your notebook will be typed on a vintage typewriter which means that I can’t change the font size.
These books look best with one or two words and I love to space the letters out for a modern contemporary look - but you can fit a couple of lines on if you wish [spacing between the characters will be standard if you have more than a couple of words. ]
Character limit for spaced out letters is 10 characters for A6 books and 15 characters for A5
If you’re happy to have regular spacing then you can fit up to 56 characters on the A6 and 80 on the A5
Please do message me if you have any questions.
michaelabere@bluestiggy.co.uk
Size?
There is a choice of A6 or A5 for this style of book
All cotton books contain 72 pages of handmade cotton rag paper
Mixed books contain 120 pages and are a mix of handmade cotton rag paper recycled cartridge paper
The Paper
Cotton Paper: 320gsm pre-sized handmade cotton rag paper that has been made from textile industry waste.
Cartridge Paper: 140gsm recycled cartridge paper made from post consumer waste
Sustainability
Materials
Your chunky sketchbook is made from handmade cotton paper [made from t shirt industry waste and is tied with a silk sari ribbon also from textile industry waste
Cartridge paper in the mixed books is made from 100% post consumer paper waste.
Your book will be sewn together with traditional linen thread.
Energy
The power to type your notebook comes only from my nimble fingers. They are fuelled by tea and biscuits and the rest of my studio is powered by the sun
Everything I do at Blue Stiggy HQ is put through the lens of trying to do my best to minimise my impact on the planet. You can find more detailed information about the materials and processes I use and how I try to minimise my impact on the planet here
Packaging
All of my products are beautifully wrapped in eco conscious materials such as recycled wrapping paper and sent in cardboard boxes. I love to and write a little note to each of my customers on recycled paper and I mostly use Royal Mail who will usually deliver your order on foot :)
Delivery + Returns
Personalised Products take 3-5 working days for me to make and press for you.
Standard UK delivery is Second Class Royal Mail and typically takes 2 days to arrive after I dispatch your order. You can upgrade to First Class at the checkout if you wish.
Express Shipping UK is Royal Mail Special Delivery Next Day Guaranteed - Please use this postage upgrade if you are in a hurry. although I may still need 3-5 days to make and press your order I will dispatch it to you as quickly as I can.
Standard Overseas Delivery - Royal Mail International Tracked (transit time depends on the destination country)
Express Overseas Delivery - I will use a courier to send your order to you for speed. transit time depends on the destination country.
Delivery times are estimates but please do message me if you any questions about delivery - michaelabere@bluestiggy.co.uk
Returns - Unfortunately I can’t accept returns for personalised items unless there is a problem with the order. for all other items please contact me within 14 days of delivery to arrange a return - my full Delivery + Returns policy can be found here