I've been journaling for most of my life, except back then it was called writing in a diary. I go through about two journals per year and I still have maybe a handful that are waiting to be used. Recently I wanted to explore leather journal covers with the idea that I should buy refillable notebooks instead of buying new journals to be more eco-friendly.
I picked out three brands to try out. Leather Tannerstein's Pegai, Shinola, and KMM are put to the test. Which one has the best leather and design for the price?
I picked the Dymnos Brown because of the leather description "top-grain calfskin with a nubuck finish that invites touch before anything else". I love nubuck and am obsessed with adding a nubuck bag to my collection. Until I find one I figured maybe a nubuck leather journal would scratch the itch for now. After taking it out of the plastic packaging, I was so disappointed with the leather. It does not feel like nubuck at all. I also wasn't impressed with the design and the thickness of the leather. In my video I show the design flaw. I could not send this one back fast enough. Price is $50 and it is not worth it at all.
Next we have Shinola's Medium Snap Leather Journal in Rust. The color Rust is gorgeous. Made of vegetable tanned Italian leather, I had high hopes for this one. This cover had the best stitching, very nice edge paint, and fantastic finishing details, but for the price, I was disappointed with the snap closure. I go into more detail in my video. The leather felt dry, but as it is vegetable tanned leather this is the type of leather that will patina over time. It will absorb the oils on your hands and I'm sure it will soften up. It just wasn't what I was looking for. For the high price tag of $175, I was disappointed. Shinola has another version without the snap closure in pebbled leather that I would like to try in Merlot. It's also $50 less than the snap version.
Last, we have KMM's Luxe Pocket Travel Journal in Seidel British Tan Double Shot. I was very impressed with the leather choice. The leather is very smooth and soft. I love the rich chocolate brown. The elastic closure has the perfect amount of tension. It has very nice stitching, and I also love the design.
This journal comes with three refillable notebooks. The inside has a front pocket and another back pocket as well. This one is my favorite of the three journals I bought. My only small complaint is the finishing of the edges could have been cleaned up a bit more.
I'm so impressed with the KMM journal cover that I would like to get a second one in the A5 size in Horween English Tan Dublin. I'm going to wait for a sale though.
Do you have a favorite journal cover? Let me know which one it is! That's it for me, I hope you all have a marvelous Monday! 😀
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Yasss!!! Love all things stationary. I did go through a travellers notebook phase a while back, and got a lot of accessories to go with it like a brass ruler/bookmark, places to put cards etc. those things can get hefty if you allow it to. Do you have any pen preferences to go along with your journaling? The fountain pen was always the perfect pairing for this leather bound set up, but those are hard to keep up with too.
ReplyDeleteHi AC! I haven't gotten too deep into pens, but I might. I picked up a glass pen with some bottles of ink but I haven't yet tried it. I'm worried about the clean up part. So for now I just use a Pilot pen. I can get the exact model for you when I get home!
DeleteMy favorite pen is Pilot V Razor Point Extra Fine in blue or purple. Purple is getting hard to find I think. I haven't seen it in a long time.
DeleteThis is the purple but it's out of stock.
Deletehttps://www.pensandpencils.net/products/pilot-v-razor-point-pen-extra-fine-purple-ink?srsltid=AU7gw4Up6VFxhakAnsm6oczR0L89qiVQ2Lru0Y-fP1kadNUgwY8bN9qz
AC asked my question before I could: what are your favorite pens?
ReplyDeleteSee above! I'll add that I would love to get a serious fountain pen one day. But I need to practice with my glass pen first.
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