[dropcap]I[/dropcap] love my commonplace book. Seriously. Copying quotes is a habit I’ve had since I was quite young, but it was one that was displaced during my baby and toddler years. I’m so thankful that Laurie Bestvater’s The Living Page convinced me to pick it back up again, and keep all of my quotes together in one place {instead of wherever I found paper to write}.
It’s been great.
Today we’re going to talk about supplies for keeping a commonplace book, the commonplacing webinar we Scholé Sisters just did, and more.
Supplies
First, of course, you need a notebook. I like something permanent and attractive, but simple. I tend to prefer blank pages, though a good cover can cause me to compromise and use lines, and of course I recently fell in love with dotted journals.
Here are some of my favorite notebook options:
This is the notebook I’ve been using as my bullet journal, and it’s wonderful. Truly. I love the dots, love the feel, love the elastic closure. Love. I’ve considered this, or some other Moleskin product, for my next commonplace. My one issue is that the paper is just thin enough that it is too thin for my beloved Sharpie pens {which we’ll get to, don’t you worry}.
I’ve shared before that I love Paperblank notebooks. The issue is that they are pricey, so I tend to ask for them for gifts. These notebooks are generally lined, which I think is a drawback, but if you love lines, you’ll love these!
The Leuchtturm1917 is very similar to a Moleskin, but more expensive. Still, I’m considering it. A commonplace book tends to last me a pretty long time, and I like that these are supposed to have pages that are a bit thicker. They are still dotted, and a big bonus is that the pages are numbered. If I was to start indexing my journal {something I plan to do when I begin my next one}, having pre-numbered pages would come in handy.
Way more affordable would be a Pentalic sketch journal. Completely unlined, the way I like them. I use Pentalic’s watercolor notebooks for nature journals, and I love them, so I trust the brand. The pages are supposed to be thick enough for a fountain pen, which means they ought to work with my beloved Sharpies. The Traveler 8″ x 6″ journal comes in a number of pretty colors, and it’s designed to lay flat when you’re using it.
After that, of course you need something to write with. Here are my favorite options:
I love these Sharpie pens. They’re my favorites.
The Sharpies are supposed to be no-bleed, but in my experience, they do bleed through really thin paper. So my next choice, when that sort of emergency comes upon me, is to use the simple PaperMate Ink Joy ballpoint pens.
If you are
boringa black or blue ink person, I prefer the Pilot G2. {ps. if you simply prefer gel ink, G2s do actually come in colors…}
The Webinar
Last week, Sarah did a webinar with Andrew Kern on his highlighting and close reading method. After that, we Scholé Sisters threw a bit of an afterparty. We played show and tell with our own commonplace books, and discussed how we do it, how we teach it to our children, and more. It was great fun, and if you’re having trouble wrapping your mind around keeping a commonplace, our video (it’s almost an hour!) should help you feel more comfortable. If you’d like to view the replay, head on over here to purchase.
What Else?
The only other thing you need is a book to read! Most of you have a huge, toppling pile of those and don’t need any ideas. But, just in case, I thought I’d share some favorites. I have copied so. many. quotes. out of these books:
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