***2nd update: It's been several months and this notebook is still going strong! No bleed-through or cracked spine. My only complaint is that I'm close to filling this one up and would like to buy more, but it only comes in one color. I wish the colors they offered for their other types of notebooks were available for the lined grid as well. (Still going to buy it again, but would probably be more tempted to buy in bulk if there were more colors.)
***Update: it's only been about a week, but I've been opening it and closing it a lot and it seems to be holding up great! Also, I have been using paper mate felt tip pens and haven't had any bleeding. I've even used the darkest colors, and have had to go over some lines multiple times and still nothing!!****
If you've ever opened a new hardcover book, you know the spines are usually pretty stiff. When it comes to lay-flat books and notebooks, unfortunately the spine has to be thinner and more flexible to actually lay flat. It's just the way it is. When reading the reviews for this notebook, the only real problem people seemed to encounter was the spine cracking. This seemed like the perfect journal for my needs though, so I decided to risk it and take preventative measures when I got it to keep the spine strong.
First off, I received this at the end of December, which means the package was cold when it got to me. I took it out of the box and let it sit for a bit before attempting to open it. I figured it being cold for a long period of time would make the glue a little more brittle. Once it was room temperature, I followed the steps in the diagram I've included. (I did it one page at a time instead of a few pages at a time though, and smoothed my finger along the inner edge for each one to make sure it was laying flat.) Once I did this, I repeated it in reverse when closing it. After I repeated that a couple of times, I flipped through the pages in both directions a few times. It might seem like a pain, but it only took me about ten minutes, and is completely worth it in my opinion. After I was done, the spine felt much more flexible. I will probable do this occasionally to keep it nice and limber. Honestly, lay-flat spines are never going to be as durable as normal ones. I hate writing in notebooks that barely open though, so this little bit of extra work wasn't really a hardship for me.
The pen holder got a little squished in the box, but holds my pens just fine. The pages are nice and thick, and the grid isn't skewed at all. I will try and update this review once I've used it a bit to show how it has held up.
| Brand | Lemome |
|---|---|
| Item Weight | 15 ounces |
| Product Dimensions | 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches |
| Item model number | LMCONTRASTGRID |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Color | Brown |
| Material Type | Paper |
| Ruling | Squared |
| Manufacturer Part Number | LMCONTRASTGRID |
