Northbooks A5 Blue Notebooks Dotted Grid (Pack of 3), Sustainably Sourced Premium Papers Made with Pride in USA, Minimal, Natural, Portable, Flexible Design, Bullet Journaling, Office, School, WFH

OK I really want to love these journals, because I love supporting smaller companies, especially ones that are convenient and let my impatient self order through Prime. I ordered a two pack because I plan on using one as an organized sketchbook and the other as a bullet journal. I'm gonna throw my negativity up here first to get it out of the way, then I'll go more in depth the the books.Upon first opening the package I was really thrilled with the texture of these notebooks, they're nice and smooth and the perfect surface for some really nice stickers. However, I was not super excited to open one up and find it full of giant inky finger prints across the first page (you can see in my picture) I am a lady with smaller hands so I know they're definitely not magically from me. This may be the stupidest complaint ever and I know there are tons of people who can just get past something like this, but I'm unfortunately not that person. Journals/Sketchbooks are a very important piece of my life/function as an artist, so if at all possible I don't want uninvited guests mucking up my pages.That being said I contacted the seller on 3/31 so hopefully I hear back from them soon and I can update this review to a much more deserved rating.For the journals themselves, hopefully they can live up to some serious wear and tear because I bring journals/sketchbooks everywhere with me. I've yet to find a company that makes one that my picky self can stick with, so maybe this is the one. I'm not usually sold on soft covers, but decided I'd mix it up as I need something that can handle a little abuse. I really like the dotted pages for both my journal and my sketchbook as I really like to be able to add technical notes to sketches for the final product. The paper is just a liiiiiitttle thinner than I generally like, but it still stands up to some light water color decently well, which was kind of surprising. For the most part I use light watercolor and erasable colored pencils in my sketch books so I think the paper will hold up for my needs. When using water color there was some paper wrinkling, but there was absolutely no color bleed through which is definitely important imo. I generally keep a piece of card stock or something in my journals to sit behind the current page so that I don't gouge into the pages behind it, a good trick and I think necessary for this paper in particular.Surprisingly these dudes flatten out fairly well! This is awesome for both journaling and drawing. They don't close flush again after flattening, but that doesn't bother me in the slightest as I can clip it shut with something if I feel the need to do so, so far I have not. I've of course only had these for a few days, so if I'm a return customer I'll definitely update this review to let you know how they hold up to my use. For the sketchbook in particular I can go through a new one once a month or even twice a month when I'm particularly productive so I'm hoping that these live up to my hype.The journal is being used as a bullet journal, with 144 pages I've measured out to last me about four months, so that's where the real test will lie, if it can last being shoved in and out of a back pack for four months.Edit: I'm not sure why Amazon chose not to update my review! BUT, I received not one but TWO replacement notebooks for the one that hand finger prints in it! Customer service was extremely quick with fixing the situation. I can also say that these books have held up incredibly well to be hauled around for a few weeks so far. Although I'd 100% recommend using a clip like the one you can see in my second image, it keeps the book closed once you've broken the spine to get it to lay flat. Super super handy. So far I'm loving these books, my literal only wish is that they made a version with slightly heavier paper.

As much as I love a hard cover journal, I am delighted for having found these particular Northbooks. I already carry a lot every day and having a high-quality notebook that is light and durable makes a big difference (round corners are a must for me). I ordered the one with the lines but will probably try the one with the grid too.The cover is strong but still flexible and feels great, and the light blue color is very pretty. I write a lot, and enjoy using my good pens, but only on good paper! The pages in these books are smooth and very resistant to bleeding, the printed lines are super thin and go all the way to the end. I read a review here mentioning they didn't lay flat, but I didn't have a problem with that.Northbooks seems to care about the planet and the quality of their products, I'm glad I found them!

For anyone who’s read the artists way… morning pages. The tool to keep it all flowing. They need the perfect book and this is it for me.I’ve always struggled with the size of the pages and lines until these. I like to write three pages everyday but want the book to lie flat else I hate starting on the back (left sided) page and will just skip it. Nothings better than Northbooks for MPs!!

Let me start off by saying that If Northbooks has no fans, I am dead. I've ordered 3-packs of the 5x8 since 2018 and love them. Just opened these and noticed they're flimsier than the other notebooks I've used and ordered, plus the pages aren't tearable! Still like these, still can't wait to use them, but would love tearable pages and more durability.

Utility: I've been using this for planning software development projects and it meets every criterion for that purpose. The dots are subtle enough that they're not distracting, while providing convenient guidance for drawing neat boxes and diamonds.Paper: The paper is thick and smooth, making it possible to write on both sides of the page even with a relatively wet fountain pen. The paper also feels really nice to write on with a fountain pen, the nib glides without catching or scratching as it does on rougher paper. One note about that however is that the drying time is a bit longer so that fanning the pages is occasionally necessary.Durability: It's been tossed around a fair bit the past week or so and doesn't show significant signs of wear.Aesthetics: The cover feels like it's made of cardstock. I like the cover design and feel, although one comment about the cover is that it shows even small amounts of finger oils. It's not particularly noticeable from a distance, however.Spine: These notebooks have to be broken in. It involves opening and flattening the notebook every 10 or so pages to distribute the stresses across the entire spine instead of focusing it at the center and breaking the binding. If you want it to lay flatter you can reduce that interval of course. The binding involve sew lines every 10 or so pages, which I imagine helps durability.Misc. The last 5 or so pages are perforated near the spine so they can be removed.tl;dr - The notebook is perfect for sketching program concepts, has high-quality paper, is durable, looks nice, and needs to be broken in if you want it to lay flat.