New vs Old Black n’ Red Notebook Comparison Post

Notebooks / Stationery

I’ve used Black n’ Red notebooks for almost three years now. I ran low on my current notebook and decided to buy a new one. 

It was not the same notebook.

I did get it from Amazon and they’re not known for order accuracy (not that I blame the workers considering their horrible conditions), so I decided to try it anyway.

I started replying to my penpal and instantly realized it was not the same. After pitching it into my “giveaway” pile, I drove to the nearest Staples.

All of the notebooks at Staples were the same.

The only ones spared were the “book” bound, which aren’t of any use to me because I primarily use BnR paper for writing letters to my penpals.

I knew what I had to do.

What Pictures Don’t Show

The first thing you will notice (outside those annoying black boxes) is that the paper is thinner and not as smooth.

The second thing are those boxes. There is an app called “Scribzee” associated with EverNote and congrats! You can use the app with the notebook! 

I have no intention of scanning the letters I write to my penpals, no thank you. 

I can understand you want to promote your new app, but create a new line of notebooks for that. Don’t change the notebooks that are recommended across the line by Fountain Pen users and have been unchanged for years.

The Old

The Black n’ Red I’ve used for years
The backside. No ghosting at all!

The New

Annoying black boxes in the corner, not going to be easy to cover up with washi tape either
There is ghosting
Closer image of ghosting

The Nitty-Gritty

New lines on top, old on bottom

The lines changed. The lines are thicker and appear blurry next to the crisp lines of the old. The line spacing has changed to accommodate the app guidelines.

The “Old” paper had some slight feathering on Fuyu-gaki
The feathering is more pronounced on the “New” paper.

It is harder to get a picture of the sheen, but between the two, I had more pens sheen on the old. I had trouble getting the sheen on Skulls and Roses to show up, and I’ve never had a problem with sheen with that ink. Yamadori sheened on the old and did not on the new.

Other inks had less shading and appeared darker. The first three inks on my list are close in color and tone at first glance, but it is easy to tell them apart. The new paper makes them seem like they’re nearly clones of each other. Lavender Black, especially. (I am aware I misspelled it on the sheet; sue me) Most of the inks appeared darker than they did on the old paper.

Verdict

I am not going to be using this as much. It’s not the same paper I fell in love with, first of all, and second, those black boxes A N N O Y me.

I don’t feel comfortable recommending these notebooks anymore. 

I hope to find another paper that’s consistently good and brings out the best in my inks for a reasonable price. Well, that might seem like a tall order. What’s the old saying? You can choose two of the three?

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