25 Aug 2012

not all it's cracked up to be? The Moleskine brand?

I read this link yesterday evening (I know I'm a bit late on the uptake considering it was posted back in mid-June).


It made me wonder things about the Moleskine brand.

Having used a Moleskine diary for about 9 months back in 2011, I found that they were nothing to shout about. The minimalist design is nice, yes, but the paper quality is a bit lacking. Especially when you take the price of one of those badboys into account.

In a way, I agree with the article above that the marketing of the notebooks have been very clever but I don't agree that they are the best that money can buy. I don't want to agree with that when I have yet to try Rhodia and Leuchtturm notebooks; both of which are held in high regard within the stationery world. Moreover, there are other brands out there, which, I am sure may well be better than the Moleskine branded ones!

What do you think? Moleskine = overhyped and over-glorified, or do you think they have a justifiable reputation?

14 comments

  1. Definitely overhyped! The price is just ridiculous when you look at the paper quality. In europe you can buy knock-offs for a fraction of the price and get way better paper...
    I used the planners for a few of years, but always hated the paper. I also bought the notebooks, but they would mostly end up unused, because I didn't just wanted to write banal stuff in those expensive notebooks (yeah, I'm crazy like that). Today I'm almost immune to the hype :D

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    1. Tell me about it! I used it for a year as my diary and the paper quality really did annoy me. Normal ink pens (like the Uni-ball eye ones) ended up bleeding and feathering, and were also had show-through. And I totally get what you mean about not wanting to write banal stuff in them! With a price like that, I never wanted to buy one as a notebook for that reason x

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  2. I hate to be one of those golden agers but it's true: when Moleskines first hit the shelves, the paper quality was much, much better. I recall using fountain pens without any problems in my first few notebooks. Then, there were a few years when the paper quality was unpredictable; now, the notebooks are consistently bad, so I no longer bother. I couldn't even use an inky rollerball (0.5 tip).

    I think Japanese companies like Midori and Maruman make excellent-quality notebooks at similar (or better) prices as Moleskine, and I love Muji for their good value and pretty fair quality. Clairefontaine and Rhodia offer great paper quality, but something about the darkness, coloring, thickness, and spacing of their lines and grids drives me crazy. I have yet to try Leuchtturm books; I've lately been using a Midori Traveler (talk about another cult-ish notebook), which is somewhat unwieldy but still quite pleasing! The Midori refills for these books aren't the best quality, but still much better than Moleskine,

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    1. Oh no, it's interesting to hear about how they were when they first started out! I was too young to even have thought about using a Moleskine when they first started out and by the time I had my first (back in March 2011 - not that long ago!), I felt let-down by all the hype.

      I definitely agree with you on the Muji front - I have been a loyal user of their notebooks for five years now and I keep going back to them. Now that I've finished my degree though, I'm lost as to what to use them for! (I have a pack of 5 still unopened, and also another two which haven't been used too!)

      I've never tried the Midori notebooks but you're making me want to. Your comment just shows how many alternatives there are to the Moleskine brand and I hope other people will come to realise this. Of course, if Moleskine were to up the quality of their paper, I (and many others) may just change my opinion of them but until then, I think we will just be let down... x

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  3. I can understand them if they build their marketing strategy as design and still etc but quality. No, I don't think so. And claiming that Moleskine is the best notebook you can buy. Definitely not, their quality range is decreasing day by day unfortunately.

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    1. Totally agree with your first point. The use of the black covers, the black elastic fastening and the ivory coloured paper are signatures of the Moleskine brand but yet they still insist on bringing in quality. Even if they did brand their notebooks as just the design, etc, the price is still far too high just for a 'pretty' or 'fashionable' notebook! x

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  4. So overhyped!!! I recently just bought my first moleskine diary thinking its simple, elegant and looks smart.But the pages are ridiculously thin, no quality atall!. Even just writing in a normal roller ball pen is noticeable on the other side of the page! I could have bought some lovely filofax inserts instead with my money! That's life though, I bought a 'fake' moleskine today for half the price and the paper quality is excellent! Love your blog!! :D Check out mine! xx

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    1. I know, it was such a disappointment for me too last year when I got my first Moleskine. I think I'll be sticking to Muji for notebooks for the time being, and once I run out of those, maybe Leuchtturm! x

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    2. If you liked the Muji notebooks you should try Kokuyo Campus notebooks! Best paper quality everrr. :)

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    3. Definitely going to go and Google these now! Not in need of any notebooks atm, but this brand has just gone onto my list to try :) Thank you! x

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  5. Thanks for posting the link to the Guardian article! I long suspected the moleskin magic was a slick scam so it's bittersweet to have it confirmed -- still -- as someone obsessed with stationary, I don't blame them for being so clever with their marketing! The paper IS too thin for my taste (and the ink-y pens I love!), but I haven't found any other brand that makes the ones that are the size and thickness of a credit card. Those are so useful for carrying around when I am using a pretty purse (at a wedding say) but can't be without paper!!

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    1. I'm glad that I'm not the only one who dislikes the shoddy paper quality. I find the price a bit too excessive for a notebook with such lame paper even though I love the design.

      Have you ever thought about using Muji pocket notebooks for your purse? The paper quality is a lot better and the price should also be better. I saw some instore yesterday but didn't purchase them as I have so many notebooks to get through already! If you google image Muji pocket notebooks, some results should come up though it doesn't seem to be available for purchase online unfortunately x

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    2. Muji makes pocket notebooks!?! *gasp* I hadn't thought of that -thankie muchly. A co-worker is heading to Japan for vacay and offered to scoop up all the Muji pens as I want. Ha ha - hopefully adding a few wee pocket notebooks to my 'order' won't be too much of an imposition. Thanks for the tip! Paper quality makes such a difference.

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    3. Hehe glad to have been of some help! Hope you like the paper as much as I do! :) x

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