At the outset, PD would like to say that he has not been approached by Field Notes Brand for a review, nor has been provided with free goods nor any other kind of incentive. All goods were purchased by PD with his own hard earned money. FNB did not know beforehand that PD would be writing a review.
Prowling Dog loves stationery - paper, pens, inks, diaries. Thankfully, despite the convenience of notepad functions on cell phones and emails, old fashioned stationery has had a resurgence in the past few years. There is a huge choice out there. Why settle for poor quality when even good quality every day stationery is available at a reasonable price.
Pocket notebooks are very convenient, jotting thoughts, plans and lists. Having written something down means not having to stress about forgetting it, leaving your mind to concentrate on matters at hand. As the Field Notes Brand moto states, "I'm not writing it down to remember it later, I'm writing to remember it now".
PD has been using FNB notebooks regularly. They are reasonably priced and of good quality. The covers are sturdy and the paper nice to use. There is a choice of plain, lined or graph paper. PD has used pencil, biro and fountain pen ink. There is no problem with any; the fountain pen ink (J. Herbin ink) has some see-through, however there is no bleeding.
The original books have kraft covers, however one of the nice things about FNB is the seasonal surprise. At the beginning of each season FNB releases a limited edition notebook. At first this meant different colours, including the immensely popular Raven's Wing:
Some editions had different printing on pages, such as the Traveling Salesman Edition, which was in the form of ledger and also had a souvenir button:
A previous special, the American Tradesman Edition, came with a cute carpenter's pencil:
Some editions have different information inside or on the covers, such as the Arts and Sciences version. This also was of a larger size, good for conference notes, as well as a puzzle hidden in the back cover:
Recently, with the Shelterwood edition, FNB experimented with a cover of real wood which was thin and flexible:
Most recently, FNB came up with its most elegant special, the Ambition edition of three different notebooks, each with gilded edging. Each of the three books has different pages: ledger, graph and an undated week to a page diary:
FNB also has leather notebook covers, pens, wall calendars, pens, pencils, rubber bands and a wooden archive box for your notebooks.
PD usually buys two to three sets of each edition, one to keep and the other(s) to use. Oh, by the way, shipping costs are very good, especially compared to those of some other companies.
PD rating: 5 paws out of 5.
Note: Images are from the Field Notes Brand website and are copyright of the owners of Field Notes Brand.
© 2015 Prowling Dog
Contact Prowling Dog at prowlingdog@protonmail.ch