Comparing Sketchbooks

Now, as I might have mentioned, I like to use sketchbooks a lot. Lately, I've been looking for the Ultimate Sketchbook. Haven't found it, but in case you were wondering what sketchbooks are closest, here are my thoughts on five of the nicer brands.

A. Moleskine Sketch Book

The fancy name brand. Rather overpriced for what you get: a stylish book, but not really better than the others. The paper is a very smooth off-white card, which doesn't look like it'd be very good for pencils. However, I haven't actually drawn in mine yet, so I could be wrong. Looks great for nib pens, though, because it's so smooth. The cover is a very tough imitation moleskin that's okay. The spine looks sort of cheap, as do the ribbon and elastic band. (Though I alway cut out the ribbon anyway. Who needs a ribbon in a sketchbook, for heaven's sake?) On the other hand, the binding is great. It always lies perfectly flat. No binding is perfect, of course, and this one can break as well as any, but it's pretty good anyhow. Typically costs 15-17 dollars US. Black only (boo!) Two sizes available: 5.5x8.5 in. and 3.5x5.5 in.

B. Watson-Guptill Sketchbook

Your basic sketchbook. No frills, plain white paper with medium tooth (not real thick, but not thin, either), no ribbon, elastic, rounded corners, or any of that silly stuff. These books have been around for a while, so you can find them at all sorts of prices, and in all sorts of colors (I saw a hot pink one on Amazon the other day.) The binding is tough, though it doesn't always want to lie flat. Good general-use sketchbook. 5.75x8.75 in.

C. Hand*Book Journal

A nice off-white thick sketching paper that's good with pencil, though it doesn't work real good with ink. Doesn't wrinkle very badly with watercolor, either. I still don't really like the paper as much as I could, though...it just seems dry, if that makes any sense. Nice cloth cover, very nice elastic closure, not-so-nice pocket in back. The pocket in the Moleskines are spiffy, but this is just a plastic envelope glued to the back cover. The binding is okay, but I've already broken it in one place. The spine looks great. Overall, it's a quality-looking book, though perhaps its quality isn't as high as first appears. Mostly, it's just not my kind of sketchbook. Costs about the same as a Moleskine, but available in several nice colors. Same two sizes as the Moleskine.

D. A la Modeskin by Pentalic

The cheaper alternative to the others. Which kind of shows, though it's very good for the price. The cover is a sort of wierd spongy vinyl with a fine leather texturing. Unlike all the others, the cover is not hard, merely stiff (it bends without wrinkling, though, so that's okay.) The paper is ivory, smooth, and not real thick, with square edges like the Watson-Guptill. It's good-quality paper, though. The binding is sewn and tough, but too springy to really lay flat. Nice ribbon, elastic, and pocket. Available in three sizes: 6x9, 4x6, and 3x4. Lots of colors, though they are mostly sort of wierd-looking 70's colors. I hate retro. The red and black are okay. Cheap--always under $7 at Amazon.

E. Pen & Ink Sketch

This might be the best of the bunch. The paper is an inviting smooth ivory stock that's pretty thick. The cover is well-made, though I admit I don't really care for the faux leather thing. But it's soft and attractive, so that's okay. The binding is as good as you might expect, at least as good as the Hand*Book. They both lie flat good most of the time, but there are weak spots where signatures were glued together where it's easy to break the binding. The Moleskine has this problem too, of course, just not as bad. Decent ribbon and elastic, nice pocket (same as the Moleskine.) The whole thing just exudes an air of high quality, unlike the others, all of which have cheap-looking or -feeling bits. The problem is, it only comes in one size: 3.5x5.5 in. Small, in other words. Bummer there. Black only, costs about ten bucks.