When I was a kid, there was a Japanese stationery store that all the girls at school would get special jelly pens at. It was in the mall behind the parking lot of my mom’s office, and she’d give me a few bucks to walk over and buy myself something nice. (A pen, or those little food shaped erasers.) These were the best days ever.
(This is a good time to briefly acknowledge that I had the best kind of parents: the ones who would buy me fancy Japanese erasers or Polly Pockets as the occasional treat, but who never said no to buying me books. Books were an automatic yes. This must have been incredibly expensive, but was one of the best things they could have done for me as a person. If you had parents who let you go crazy at Borders or Barnes & Noble or the local haunt, shout out to them too.)
As a kid who was always writing messy little stories in my notebooks and journals, playing a game of make-believe alone in my own head, buying an expensive Japanese jelly pen felt like the equivalent of being gifted a new magic wand.
I feel the same way about a nice notebook as a grown-up. There’s an air of possibility about the whole thing. When I wrote about notebooks recently in my piece “8 things I don’t regret spending money on,” one reader commented that she does regret acquiring more notebooks than she will possibly realistically get through— I empathize with this, it is technically correct for me too— but the magical allure of a notebook that sees the world, that gets beat up and takes on a slight patina… a chill goes down my spine!
I have the itch to nest into some sort of “adult” version of “back to school” preparation these days. Certainly sometimes this is the fallacy of thinking that if your workspace were “better” you would somehow be able to do [insert XYZ thing you’re procrastinating on that will really only get accomplished if you are disciplined and whose ultimate accomplishment has nothing to do with your office supplies].
I acknowledge this reality. At the same time, I am sick with covetousness, and I will be sharing my crazy with you today.
I love analog life, but my life and livelihood depend entirely on my ability to use tech— so I exist in the in between, like a lot of us. I romanticize bygone eras and models of technology (I miss an iPod Nano) and try to limit my time spent on a screen outside of my day job. This has produced in me weird desires for devices that are nostalgic for my adolescence or youth but also have hyperspecific 2026 era use cases…
I have had this sort of hazy vision of myself— I’m at my favorite coffee shop, Capsule in Ericeira, Portugal and I am doing creative work. At first, I was using an iPad with a stylus— don’t ask me why, I guess in my imagination I was doing some design work?
The vision evolved when my friend Kim of the Internet and I were bemoaning our struggles/attempts drafting our first books. She put me on to this most alluring device that promises writers a completely analog state of being while still bringing the ease of a keyboard— so a typewriter. But a smart, portable, expensive typewriter… the Freewrite Traveler.
Now I was picturing myself at Capsule, typing up a storm but sans internet. I’ve been writing my novel longhand because it’s the only way I won’t go back and edit everything, or get sucked into Slack or Substack or email notifications. (I find it really, really hard to write a novel on the same device where I earn a living. It makes no sense, but my personal computer is also my work computer, so there’s no separation of church and state.)
In this new vision of reality, I am able to write without looking backwards or getting distracted by the internet, but I can type a hell of a lot faster than I can hand write. A very alluring proposition indeed…
These things are wicked expensive. I connected with another Substacker who won hers for a great price on eBay, so now I check eBay every day. I’ve lost three auctions. I’m sort of a woman possessed. This will be one of those fixations I will most likely see through…!
And if my personal-work-laptop kicks the can? I am so getting one of those cute brightly colored Macs. They scratch the same itch in my brain as those Japanese erasers! I’m impressed by the price point as well, buying a new computer was always a painful, 4-figure affair. I wish a brand new Mac for under $700 had been an option when I needed to buy this computer!
As I reach the end of my favorite notebook— a gorgeous blush pink linen covered beauty from Copenhagen brand Notem that I scored in the Gleneagles gift shop in Scotland— I am having a hard time deciding which notebook should take up its mantle. I currently write my book longhand on these beautiful legal pads, but I go through a legal pad much faster than I thought I would! I have a stack of eight “dead” legal pads on my desk. A notebook with a refill might be an easier path!
I have a few that I’ve had my eye on…
The poshest and most luxe on this list, certainly would be a splurgey treat to self— Aspinal of London’s gorgeous personalized and refillable croc notebook with soft suede lining. This would be a SUCH a great gift for someone! (Me.)
Green ostrich leather and a beautiful seashell make for one of the most unique and beautiful notebooks I’ve come across.
Saffiano leather notebook (that can be refilled and personalized!). I like the light blue but there are several color options— these can be customized to match a phone case, laptop case, etc, so you could have a full matching suite.
Polene’s refillable leather woven notebook cover is chic enough to be an accessory on its own.
If you love the Polene book but want charms, you can’t beat this beautiful scallop weave from an Etsy maker at a great price.
Another refillable leather notebook— this one is customizable, and with a tie in an accent color that snakes through the cover.
An absolute steal for $15!
The practical, classic and customizable Etsy version of the Louise Carmen viral success.
If you can stomach forking up for shipping, this Etsy maker has the best charms for their leather refillable folios. They’re better than a lot of my jewelry…
This is also an open call to you. Show me your beautiful notebooks! Your beautiful pens! I am ready and willing to be influenced to make a purchase!
For those who like a thick, juicy pen, I’ve mentioned that these are my favorites. I have also gone through them too fast writing longhand— at time of writing I have drained 8 of these pens of ink. I can’t tell if these are unsustainable pens, or if hand-writing a book is just gobbling up more resources, or both!
My only other pen convictions are that I like to swipe them from hotels and restaurants, with a strong preference for hotels. My morning pages today were written in pen stolen from The Carlyle, my to-do list hastily penned in a beautiful green one filched from Gleneagles.
Then there are the folders, the planners, the little tchotkes. I think people like the Louise Carmen inspired leather folio notebooks (many, many options linked above!) so much because they are begging to be accessorized, they require some additions that are emblematic of your personal style. My favorite is this fish clip, which I now proudly own. I present you some of my other bonus finds:
The cutest Anthro x Papier pencil case. (There’s a matching planner too!)
Mr. Boddington’s Customizable (and refillable!) Cherry Red Leather Desk Pad is simply divine. Perfect!! No notes!
I like my notebooks lined, but if you like unlined or a sketchbook, these vintage books that are repurposed into new notebooks are so fabulous.
Inner Child does the most beautiful marbled paper (I have some!). This unlined marbled notebook is stunning.
A perfect donut Rollbahn.
This Japanese pocket weekly schedule is both cute and practical.
A beautiful and well designed agenda from Mr Boddington again— this one starts now, in September.
This personalized pencil box is divine. What a nice holiday gift this would be!
While not a technological nor stationery based need of mine, there is hardly a kid around who couldn’t get some delight out of the coolest tool in school, a Tin Can.
I would be so remiss to not mention Papier’s completely customizable notebooks, planners or stationery— all of which I have purchased for myself or for a friend in the last year!
What’d I miss? Any favorite stationery stores, notebook or pen purveyors I need to know about? I’m clearly in the market!
My parents had the same policy on books. I am an avid reader and so thankful they encouraged my appetite for reading!
I write my first drafts longhand, too, and I use a five star spiral notebook- ha. Really makes me feel like I’m buying school supplies! I also have a Louise Carmen notebook, and I love it but that’s what I use for brainstorming and notes bc I like a lot of space for drafting!