The Moleskine Notebook Renaissance

Moleskine Notebooks have been enshrined in legend as the notebook used by Oscar Wilde, Hemingway, Picasso, Matisse, Van Gogh and several others. In the modern era, they were known to be used by British novelist and travel writer, Bruce Chatwin. Today, there are several varieties of Moleskine notebooks on the market and they can be found in your neighborhood stationary stores, bookstores, art stores and are even carried by large chains such as Barnes and Noble. Many customers wonder, are they the direct descendant of a long creative tradition or a modern copycat profiting from good association?

They are not direct descendants of the original Moleskine brand, but many artists and writers feel that their quality and tradition have been carried on in the spirit of the name and still refuse to use any other brand. Originally produced by a tradition of French bookbinders, the last manufacturers closed down production in 1986. So hugely popular, it was said that those who could afford to, ordered and stockpiled hundreds of the notebooks in an effort to keep their supply.

In 1998, an Italian company Modo e Modo, revived and started producing the product line again, modeling them after the original designs and features that made the Moleskine notebooks famous. They have since expanded their line to include different styles, shapes, bindings, and even differences in the stock (paper) that are designed for artists working in a variety of mediums. The current Moleskine website states:

"With its various different page styles it accompanies the creative professions and has become a symbol of contemporary nomadism.
Moleskine is a family of notebooks for different functions, according with a free mindstyle, both basic and emotional."

And very many free minds and creative types are indeed catching on to these little books and becoming lifetime devotees. In fact, the brand has built up a kind of cult-following amongst artists, travelers, writers, scholars, students, bohemians and a modern twist on an old craft - the recent trend of scrap-booking. There are user groups devoted to Moleskine loyalists on social networking sites myspace, facebook and friendster. One popular website, Moleskine Art has international news, links and a forum where users can share stories, as well as an exhibition project where people can send in art produced in Moleskine notebooks. Another site, Moleskinerie posts stories and photographs from various contributors and co-sponsors give-aways where you can win your very own.

For those of you who are unacquainted with the line of Moleskine notebooks, here is a brief introduction of the varieties that are available:

Pocket notebooks are 3.5 by 5.5 inches. They are available with ruled, squared, or plain paper. In this size, they also make address books, info book, sketchbook, storyboard (heavier paper), Japanese pocket albums (which fold-out accordion style) and memo pockets (six pockets instead of paper).

Large notebooks are 5.25 by 8.25 inches. As with the pocket size, they are available in ruled, squared, plain, and address book, sketchbook, and memo pockets.

Cahier notebooks are thinner with a softbound cover and come in packs of three. They are available in three sizes; pocket, large and extra large (7.5 by 9.75 inches).

Diaries or date-books come in pocket and large sizes. Several daily, weekly, mixed-planner and monthly versions are available for all your schedule planning and keeping needs.

Reporter style is similar to the regular notebooks but are bound at the top.

City Notebooks are an entire line of tabbed notebooks in which you can record notes while traveling, therefore creating your own self-written guidebook to a city. They contain full maps of each city and street indexes, as well as tabs and categories for food, places, arts and culture and local sights and legends. These are available for Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Dublin, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Prague, Rome, Wien, Boston, New York, San Francisco and Washington DC. More cities are set to be released in Fall 2007.

Whether you are an artist, writer, student, traveler or even just a busy person who needs to keep track of notes, dates and phone numbers - there appears to be a size and style of Moleskine to meet your needs. So give it a try and see if it lives up to the hype. If nothing else, its a good conversation starter in a coffeehouse, to say that you are using a notebook of legend.