How hard can it be to find a notebook?

I have not bought a notebook for a very long time, because I have been using books from my stash. I used to buy unusual notebooks whenever I saw one, so have been working my way through those.

The past week or so I have been looking for a travel notebook that is light and durable, with a soft cover and elastic closure. Lined pages and a pocket at the back would be nice additions.

I could not believe how the notebook selection has narrowed – everywhere. I guess that is proof that the digital world has taken over for many people. I popped into stationery shops all over town and apart from Leuchtturm1917, Moleskine and generic (badly made) books from China, there was almost nothing.

I did find some interesting ones here and there though. This was a travel notebook with three inserts, including a practical undated calendar. The cover was not good quality but it was cheap.

I think this one was made of paper but it was serviceable and a rather nice design.

I chuckled at this one. The antithesis of ‘dream and do’, ‘achieve your goals’ and that is why I loved it. Be imperfect!

This one was on sale, and not great quality, but I really liked the idea of Glimmers, finding sparkling moments of joy in each day.

I settled for this notebook in the end. It was cheap and ticked all my boxes.

One brand I did like – though the notebooks were too heavy for travel and had stiff covers – was Dingbats.

The widest selection of notebooks that I found was at Flying Tiger. They tend to be okay quality for the really cheap price. They have done some really amazing ring planners over the years, and their diaries/calendars are nice.