You can’t really evaluate a new paper until you’ve used it regularly for a couple of months, and since July I’ve been putting a Stálogy notebook through the wringer as my daily work notebook. I’ve never used this paper before, and I can see this brand easily forming a part of my daily rotation going forward. If I had to sum up Stálogy in a single sentence, it would characterize it as extremely thin, versatile Japanese paper that makes a great daily driver or work notebook, especially if you value quick dry times. That said, if you’re looking for thin paper to showcase pooled ink like Tomoe River, this may not be the notebook for you. While Stálogy doesn’t feather, and the ink looks great on the white paper with the grey ruling, you may see limited pinpoint bleed through with wider nibs and/or wetter inks, as thin, absorbent paper has its limitations.
(You may recall that I wrote a piece back in July discussing how you can customize notebooks by cutting them down to size, and that’s exactly what I did here. Stálogy notebooks don’t come in “Traveler’s Size,” - I made this one myself so a half-year version would fit in my Standard Traveler’s Notebook.)
Stálogy covers come in a range of colors other than black, including yellow. light blue, and red versions.
Style and Build Quality
I love the Stálogy aesthetic. The flexible leatherette cover feels sturdy without adding unnecessary bulk to the notebook, which would only detract from the key selling point of paper this thin. I’ve been carrying this notebook in my briefcase or car on a daily basis for two months (albeit in a Traveler’s Notebook cover), and so far the binding has held up well.
The Stalogy pages feature grey rulings with a header allowing you to label the month, day, and date.
The other thing I am truly enjoying is Stálogy’s light grey, 4mm grid ruling. Those who find bold rulings obtrusive, but who are still looking for more structure than a blank notebook offers, should give the Stálogy system a try. The grey lines essentially disappear under your writing, and 4mm is a great size for those of us who write small.
Every two lines are subtly numbered along the left-hand margin of each page, providing a 24 Hour layout for scheduling and logging.
Layout and Performance
In addition to the minimalist, almost industrial “leather book” aesthetic, people love Stálogy for the subtle date/time layout in the header and margin, allowing you to use this notebook for notetaking or journaling, or as a planner. The left-hand margin is subtly numbered 1 through 24, for a full 24-hour layout if you want to use your notebook as a planner or log book. Across the top, you can select the month, day, and date, which is always useful, no matter what your use case might be.
A handful of writing samples on Stálogy paper. As you can see, the ink looks great on the white paper with grey ruling, and I had absolutely no feathering even with some very wet pens.
Which brings us to the big question: what about the paper? It’s quite good. That said, paper is all about trade-offs. Those who love really thin paper know that in order for a thin paper to handle a lot of ink without feathering or bleed-through, you typically have to coat the paper and accept a longer dry time. Stálogy takes a different approach. This paper is more absorbent than something like Tomoe River, so you have a (much) shorter dry time. (Several friends who are lefties LOVE Stálogy for this very reason.) The paper also has a nice texture that lends a pleasant, tactile feel as you write. The trade-off might be some slight, pinpoint bleed-through with wet inks and wider nibs, though most fountain pens still work very well. While I absolutely did not experience anything that would keep me from using this notebook as a daily driver, I am overly cautious in labeling something as “fountain pen friendly” because that’s become a loaded term that has different meanings for different people.
The reverse side of the same page. You see some slight “pinpoint” bleeds on especially wet writing samples (i.e., stubs and ebonite feeds with wet ink), but nothing that prevents me from using this paper all day, every day. For how I use paper, the quick dry time is absolutely worth the trade-off in a work notebook.
Takeaways and Where to Buy
With future availability of Tomoe River Paper in question, the focus has turned to other options for extremely thin paper that allows notebook makers to pack a high page count into a compact size. While it’s not absolutely “ink proof” like Tomoe River, Stálogy paper is a very good alternative, especially for those of us who need a thin notebook and value more absorbent paper with better dry times. Personally, I’ve been using Stálogy every day for the past couple of months and love both the paper feel and quick dry performance.
My favorite color? The light blue (though the yellow really pops).
Stálogy notebooks are available in a range of sizes, including A5, A6, and B5, in both “365 Days”/“Year” (368 Page) or “180 Days”/”Half-Year” (192 Page) versions (also referred to as “year” and “half-year”). Currently, the T.G.S. Curated Shop stocks the A5 notebooks in both 365 and 180 Days, with the grid ruling. Dot grid is also available, which I hope to stock soon. In addition to the classic black cover, Stalogy has released brighter pastel versions, such as the light blue shown here, as well as periodic special editions. Half-Year notebooks are priced at $20, and 365-Day versions at $28.
The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold, including Stálogy. For more information on paper recommendations, I would check out this post on “Fountain Pen Friendly Paper” and how I categorize different brands.