Museum of Notebooks

notebooks from the philippines that remind me of ice cream

2009-07-25T07:41:00.001-07:00

My friend Prabda is in the Philippines right now and kindly sent me over these charming notebooks. He got them at the National Bookstore, across the street from one of the country’s most prestigious universities, Ateneo de Manila, in Quezon City (a section of Manila). Thanks, Prabda! I'd love to know what the bottom notebook says...

The First 1000 Days baby journal

2009-05-25T19:38:00.001-07:00

Last week, my friend Melissa surprised me at work with this amazing gift: a baby journal by papercut artist Nikki McClure...."A place to record your baby's first puddle, rainbow, blueberry, tree." I'm so excited to start to fill it! I'm thinking the assignment might require the help of a Polaroid Pogo.

the museum of notebooks' first mention in a book!

2009-03-05T06:33:00.001-08:00

See my yellow and blue "66 notebooks" from Beijing here? They made it on to the cover of Timothy O'Donnell's book about graphic designers' drawings-- Sketchbook: Conceptual Drawings from the World's Most Influential Designers. Timothy mentions the blog in the book, and features a few more images of my notebooks.

Anyway, exciting news for the museum......

"luang prabang" notebook

2009-02-15T11:42:00.001-08:00

The yellow and blue notebooks below inspired me to search my archives to locate this gem from my trip to Laos in 1999.

yellow and blue notebooks from laos

2009-02-09T18:25:00.003-08:00

PLEASE SEE IT LARGE!

My old friend Prabda in Bangkok kindly sent me these two notebooks. They're from Laos, and look so handsome together side-by-side. Thanks so much, Prabda!

notebook from a china trip

2009-02-09T18:25:00.001-08:00

A classic notebook from China, again courtesy of Prabda in Bangkok. I love the thick calligraphy strokes....they look so dignified. I imagine my grandfather jotting notes in a volume like this, sipping tea on a verandah.....

tamil writing notebook

2009-02-09T18:20:00.001-08:00

OK, so this isn't a traditional notebook with blank or lined pages. Rather, it's a writing exercise book in Tamil that I found in an Indian bookstore in Jersey City, NJ. I have such a fondness for these fine red and blue lines that I decided to slip this entry into the museum.

monastery notebook

2008-09-17T17:31:00.001-07:00

I can't believe I'd misplaced this notebook for so long! This is from my trip to Tibet in 2001, when I spent a lot of time at Buddhist monasteries. In Samye, I met some very kindly monks and, on the day of my departure, they surprised me with this delicate notepad from their monastery (the oldest monastery in Tibet actually, circa 775AD).

the bhante buddharakkhita notebook

2008-09-17T17:26:00.001-07:00

my friend kara gave me this dignified little notebook moments after we completed a sitting with the most amazing monk, Bhante Buddharakkhita.... thus, i thereby name this the "Bhante Buddharakkhita Notebook." it's 3 inches high, two inches wide...and just perfect for dharma notes or small whimsical doodles.

green notebook

2008-07-26T21:05:00.001-07:00

lee gave this to me when we met and i'm happy to find it and add it to the museum.... a nice simple korean notebook

tiny notebook with bird inside

2008-07-13T08:45:00.001-07:00

...

Imagine my surprise when I received a small package on my third day at my new job...and found inside this adorable tiny (3x2 inch) notebook, a gift from my dear friend Henry. He must have known a new notebook would make my transition go much more smoothly... Thank you so very much, Henry!

I adore this little precious bird flying with a notebook in her beak greeting me on the first page. I'd love to hire her to work at the Museum...

monthly planning notebook

2008-07-02T19:46:00.001-07:00

i found this at the bookstore at MACBA [museu d'art contemporani] in barcelona. it's similar to my nava notes notebook in that, at first, the notebook appears quite basic, but inside, you find pages that allow you to create your own calendar....

le tiger notebook

2008-07-01T08:42:00.001-07:00

a gift from abbey on my last day of work. i love the orange, i love the tiger! the backstory on this is that abbey and i love animals. we went to the zoo together a few months ago and brought home tigers. thus, the notebook for my tiger

"notebook from corsica" in use

2007-12-01T15:23:00.001-08:00

A French contact commented on my Flickr page that my so-called "notebooks from corsica" are actually designed to be used as tickets. here's a nice example: my ticket from "La Chapelle du Rosaire" designed by Matisse in Vence, France. My philosophy is that you can appropriate anything into a notebook.

winner of best notebook paper 2007

2007-10-21T19:09:00.003-07:00

notebook by nava notes, a company based out of milan, italy. it looks like any other smart european notebook until you OPEN THE BOOK UP and see the "date it yourself" pages!

PLEASE SEE IT BIG!

rhodia comes out with mini 3x4" notebook

2007-10-21T19:09:00.001-07:00

it's a classic beautiful rhodia notebook from france, but in a very small size, like a notebook for a rabbit. after scanning this, i really see just how amazing the rhodia logo is. makes you want to jump on a plane for a trip to the swiss alps

little red book notebook

2007-10-11T05:03:00.001-07:00

found this in NYC

united nations notepad

2007-10-09T18:57:00.001-07:00

Bought this at the gift shop at the United Nations headquarters, New York City.

notebooks from corsica

2007-10-09T18:44:00.001-07:00

bought this is a tiny stationary shop in bonifacio, corsica. i asked a saleswoman take apart a set of 10 to get me a fresh yellow pad. she was so frustrated she exclaimed, "mon dieu!"

66 notebooks

2007-10-09T18:42:00.001-07:00

found this in beijing, china

Air Mail Notebook

2007-02-22T17:42:00.001-08:00

i found this fragile, flimsy notebook of air mail paper in beijing

Girl Notebook

2007-02-18T13:22:00.001-08:00

with paper illustration that folds off the cover. measures 3 in. x 2 in. found this in tokyo

Grid-it! Notepad with Jan Tschichold Typography

2007-02-18T12:46:00.000-08:00

Found this one in a shop in London. It's got an amazingly subtle font

Playful Notebook

2007-02-14T19:44:00.000-08:00

the best chinese notebooks i ever found were (sadly) in tibet....this one i found in a market in lhasa

Rainy Day Notebook

2007-02-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

found this at some market in southwest china.

Apple Notebook

2007-02-14T19:35:00.000-08:00

found this in a little shop in rangoon, burma. makes me wonder: do the burmese know what Apple Computers are?

Panda Robot Notebook

2007-02-14T19:34:00.000-08:00

here, my two favorite characters [by Aranzi Aronzo] unite on the front and back of a notebook. found this in tokyo

Smallest Notebook in the World

2007-02-14T19:30:00.000-08:00

this measures a few inches tall. found it in a small town in southern Thailand. i reads: "good luck notebook"

Buddhist Notebook

2007-02-14T19:29:00.001-08:00

This is technically Buddhist sacrificial paper [paper thrown into a fire as a sacrifice to certain spirits]....but I like to use it as a notebook. Got it in Hong Kong

Cultural Revolution Notebook

2007-02-14T19:27:00.003-08:00

This is from during the cultural revolution--my cousin saved it and i found it among his mother's belongings in beijing. no words inside. just this mysterious english writing on the cover...

Peaceful Notebook

2007-02-14T19:00:00.000-08:00

hmmm...don't remember where i found this one exactly. but the scenery reminds me of Yangshuo, China

Chairman Mao Notebook

2007-02-14T18:45:00.000-08:00

very sad. i found this in lhasa, tibet.

UPDATE: According to trium on Flickr: "the man isn't chairman mao!!! he is lei feng who is a very famous soldier in china."