Customer Reviews
Nice but kind of expensive 
2008-08-15
I think this is the nicest notebook you can buy. I just wish they made a larger hard cover notebook.
One thing that bugs me is that they say "imported from Italy", but it says on the notebook printed and bound in China, designed and assembled in Italy. I don't care where it comes to the US from, to me that's made in China, and it should have a made in China price to go with it
Exactly what I was looking for in a journal... 
2008-04-03
I have tried to get into journaling for a number of years. I have done a number of things to try to forge faithfulness in this discipline, however, with each new idea or method my enthusiasm and consistency slowed waned. In the fall of 2007 I was faced afresh with the reality of aging, the brevity of life, the goodness of God, the desire to capture God's faithfulness in our lives for our kids to see when the get older, and a burden to train my heart to daily revisit and rejoice in the manifold blessings of divine grace.
Having then been convinced of the need to journal I needed a canvas. So I decided to research various journals. Nothing caught my eye initially, everything seemed like the same old journal and none of it really reflected my life or something I wanted to carry around daily in my bag. Nothing caught my eye until I came across the Moleskine.
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According to their website the Moleskine...
Moleskine is the heir of the legendary notebook used for the past two centuries by great artists and thinkers, including Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, and Bruce Chatwin.
This trusty, pocket-sized travel companion held their sketches, notes, stories, and ideas before they became famous images or beloved books. The little black notebook, with its typical rounded corners, elastic closure, and expandable inner pocket, was originally a nameless object. It was produced by a small French bookbinder, that supplied Parisian stationery shops frequented by the international literary and artistic avant-garde for more than a century.
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So perhaps the history initially attracted me but it takes more than this to keep me. I checked out a large notebook without lines at a local bookstore. I was impressed with the firm (cardboard bound) black cover and the quality of the thread bound acid free pages. The elastic closure works well and is extremely durable. In addition to a bookmark, there is an expandable inner pocket made of cardboard and cloth that is perfect for you to keep lists, important notes, or other items of interest.
Some have critiqued the pages and their transparency. I have not found it to be an issue. I typically use a Pilot V5 but the ever popular G2 works fine as well. I have also used a Fountain Pen and (as is always the case) as long as the ink gets time to dry it is fine.
I use my Moleskine as a journal to capture what God is doing in my life, what he is teaching me, how he is convicting me, chronicles of family events, various random thoughts about life and ministry, as a prayer journal, sermon notebook, and anything else that happens upon my mind that may contribute to the bottom line. It truly has been a great addition to the regular starting lineup.
I really want to love Moleskine notebooks... 
2007-12-07
...but I don't. They're the perfect size, the perfect weight, there's that excellent handy little pocket in the back, and yet, and yet. The paper in the regular notebooks is too thin to stand up to liquid ink, so my writing bleeds through and I can only write on one side of a page. But the paper in the sketchbooks has some kind of coating on it that liquid ink beads up on and smears before it can dry. If they could make a sketchbook with uncoated pages that take bottled ink well, Moleskine would win my heart. But since they don't, they haven't. Sob.
Great Journal! 2007-12-01
I really like my Moleskine. I take it everywhere with me. It's rugged, yet simple and well designed. If you are going to be using any markers or pens in your journal I would recomend getting the Moleskin Sketch Journal. It has thicker pages that don't show through. This journal shows darker ink on the other side of the page. Other than that I love it!
i love moleskine 2007-08-09
i was first intrigued by this plain black notebook when i saw how it was advertised in my local B&N 'pablo picasso used it! so did ernest hemingway!' altho it seemed pricey at first, it was worth every penny. the binding is terrific, sturdy and dependable. the elastic is efficient and convenient - i like to tab my pen onto it when i'm on the go. and the unlined cream-colored paper is easy on tired eyes.
the only drawback is that once you use a moleskine you can never turn back.
This Moleskine Journal Trumpted an iPod Nano & a Sony Camera 2007-07-21
This long-standing tradition was continued by writer-traveller Bruce Chatwin who used to buy his moleskines at an old Paris stationery shop in Rue de l'Ancienne Comedie where he would always stock up before embarking on one of his journeys. Over the years he had developed a veritable ritual. Before using them he would in fact number the pages, writing on the inside his name and at least two addresses across the world, and a message promising a reward for anyone finding and returning the notebook in case of it being lost. He even suggested this method to his friend Luis Sepulveda, when he gave him a precious moleskine as a present for a journey they were planning to undertake together in Patagonia. And there was no doubt as to how precious it was, given that at the time even the last moleskine manufacturer, a small family-run firm of Tours, had discontinued production in 1986. 'Le vrai moleskine n'est plus' was the short and curt statement of the owner of the stationery shop where Chatwin had ordered one hundred before leaving for Australia. Despite having literally swept up all the Moleskines he could find, they were not enough. Now, the moleskine is back again. This silent and discreet keeper of an extraordinary tradition, which has been missing for years, has set out again on its journey. A witness to contemporary nomadism, it can once again pass from one pocket to another to continue the adventure. The sequel still waits to be written and its blank pages are ready to tell the story.
Sharpie Proof! 2007-05-09
I have three Moleskines. This large plain notebook, a sketchbook with heavier paper, and a weekly planner. I've used several other sketchbooks but I always had trouble with sharpies and even some gel pens bleeding through way too easily and bleeding through 3 or 4 pages. I can get this plain notebook to bleed through to the next page if I really try, and my Moleskine sketchbook I can't get to bleed through! It's great!I can use my sharpies now and not have to worry about remembering to put paper in between the pages (you can see it on the back of the page you're writing on).
Moleskines - Notebooks/Journals Perfected 2006-12-13
I became interested in the Moleskines from reading (all of) Bruce Chatwin's books. I use the small Cahiers (pocket notes, ever-ready for jotting and aide de memoire for everything); the large, plain notebooks - the perfect journal, cannot be beaten; and the extra-large, square-ruled Cahiers for working on guitar designs, design ideas, construction ideas, floor plans, mechanism sketches, etc., etc.: they are my design journals.
This large notebook opens flat, the binding doesn't break, the covers are tough without being too heavy (for carrying), the elastic closure and page marker are very handy, especially the elastic. The weight of the paper is nice and its quality is wonderful: absolutely uniform. The pages feel good in your hand; writing on them is smooth and even - effortless. The size is just right, enough pages but still very compact. (The cahiers are perfect for your pocket.) Very tough and well-made. Just a joy to use. The Moleskines are a bit more expensive than cheaper options; but they are well worth it -- for anything that you intend to retain for a long time (why else write a journal?)
The feel, the sense of perfection, the knowledge of picking up and using the PERFECT TOOL for the job are intangibles that quietly enrich life. (Not to mention the feeling of touching history.) It's like the the perfect chef's knife in the kitchen or a perfectly-balanced razor-sharp chisel effortlessly peeling away wood. They are beautifully, simply elegant in their perfection.
Perfect comes up a lot in this review. There it is!
Fabulous 2006-11-13
I love the Moleskin journals. There is no other journal I'd use. Just great to write on, and it's a perfect size. It is always in my bag ready to go when I have a thought to write. Love it.
Awesome! 2006-11-10
This shipper ("Moleskine Books") really went above and beyond what I would have expected. They were pleasant to work with, quick to respond to questions, quick to ship, and really courteous from start to finish. Awesome product, awesome seller, I'm looking forward to ordering from them again!
