Review: Rhodia Reverse Book Black

This is a review of the Rhodia Reverse Book in black.

Features:

210 X 210 ( 8 ¼ x 8 ¼ " )
80 sheets
Perforated sheets

Styles: Orange and Black

This is the first Rhodia product I ever bought and tried. Drove all the way to Target in Grand Forks, North Dakota, just to find some RhodiaMy impressions?

Pros:

-160 pages of writing surface (80 sheets) - just enough to stay exciting but not so many that you’re hauling around a giant textbook.
- The rulings on the paper are violet grids, not boring blue like most grids are! I find with really dark grids, it’s frustrating to write on because it’s hard to read writing over the grid. The violet grid lines of the Reverse Book makes it easy to read any writing, even yellow!

Microperforations & violet grid

- The 80 g paper is velvety soft and smooth. As with all Rhodia notebooks, it’s an absolute pleasure to write on.
- Definitely fountain pen-friendly - no bleeding through pages or ink feathering.
- Brings out the colors of fountain pen ink and gel inks; inks look more intense and bold.

- Very micro tip friendly - the paper is so smooth that any nib glides on it. Ink flows smoothly with micro tips and there’s no scratching on the paper or catching of the nib, or fibers collecting from scratching the paper.

- You can write vertically or horizontally! Very left-handed friendly because of this, you can write with the coils at the top and not have to bother with the coils getting in the way!
- Ink drying time is fairly quick for most pens. For wet ink/medium and broad nib fountain pens, you are looking at 5 seconds or so drying time, which is not long for a great writing experience!

Drying times - Lamy Joy Calligraphy Fountain Pen 1.1 mm nib

Cons/Other Observations:

- Usually I don’t like coiled notebooks much but the coils on the reverse book are snug and firm. I hate cheap coils. It ruins the page-turning experience.
- Soft cover - doesn’t give much support for writing on but this is a minor concern compared to the quality of the paper and the writing experience.
- Because the cover is soft, it tends to scratch, scuff and mark. It has a slightly glossy finish so it doesn’t really show much and it takes a pretty good gouge to get through the finish.

Back cover scuffs

Price:

Target - $10.00
Amazon - $10.00
Writers Bloc - Metallic Reverse Book $11.40
Fahrney’s Pens - Metallic Reverse Book $12.00

Overall:

Like all Rhodia products, I love the Reverse Book. I wish the cover was a little more firm so I could write on it without needing another surface but otherwise, I love it! No surprise that this is a great notebook for fountain pen usage, or any other pen choice, of course! I can hardly recommend one Rhodia product over another. I say, just get 'em all!!!!