Just in time for the holidays, I thought I’d round up this year’s crop of custom fauxdori and traveller’s notebook makers and sources. We’ve lost some from last year and gained some this year. I haven’t bought as many recently (I’ve been making my own- more on that later)-  so I have less personal experience. However, I still have a list of currently active makers.

♠ STORES FOR MIDORI BRAND

Scribe Writing Essentials (Physical Store)

• pens, papers, and all sorts of writing implements can be found here, including the original Traveler’s Notebook (ie., Midori) brand, as well as Color Crush planners, which also have a line of fauxdori. Scribe is a a physical store with branches in SM Megamall, Shangri-La Mall, Eastwood Mall, SM Aura, Glorietta 5, and SM Cebu. They’ve recently started accepting online orders though . They carry Midori and Color Crush inserts, though availability can vary.

CraftyLane PH (online)

• a great source for Midori inserts, accessories, and covers. They tend to be a catch-all for Japanese stationery.

Belle du Jour (Quest Planners)

• mass-market pleather travelers notebooks that come in Standard size. They also sell refills. You can find  them at National Book Store and Fully Booked branches. They’re quite affordable and great as beginner journals.

♣ TRAVELER’S NOTEBOOK (TN) MAKERS

11_11 Handmade PH (online)

• specializes in simple, elegant full-grain leather fauxdori in various sizes, though she can also customize with pockets, pen loops, and other simple configurations.

Sunday Leather Craft (online)

• specializes in custom leather materials that include fauxdori in various sizes. They’re fantastic craftsmen, but good luck contacting them these days: they’re so much in demand right now that communication can be a little….iffy. Still, they make great notebooks, journal covers, and bags. They don’t sell inserts.

Leather.PH (Online)

• premium leather artisans who work with beautiful imported Argentine full grain leather. They’re known for the quality of both work and materials. they can do custom sizes and designs, but also have the default Standard and A5. They’re a bit on the more expensive side of TN’s.

Mrs. P (Online)

• a relatively new TN maker who specializes in dyed leather products, including fauxdori. I haven’t seen her work in person, but she seems to do great custom designs, such as incorporating purses and pockets into your standard notebook covers.

Craft and Papetries (Online)

• more of a craft shop, but they also seem to do simple leather TN’s and Hobonichi covers.

Alunsina (Online and Physical @Common Room PH)

• the famous makers of the Kislap, which comes in Cahier ( something slightly smaller than A5) and Passport size. The Kislap is extremely simple and the leather is thin, but their designs are attractive. They also make very nice fountain-pen-friendly inserts, though these have to be specially ordered and are rarely available at their pop-up stores or their physical shop in Common Room at Rockwell and Katipunan.

Airees Creates (Online and Physical @ the Common Room PH)

• Airees makes interesting traveler’s notebooks out of abaca fibers. They’re lightweight, tough, sustainable, and vegan. She imprints them with her artwork, but has plain color editions as well. She also sells refills in various sizes, and they’re just as lovely as her notebooks covers are elegant and the paper is thick and smooth, appropriate for washes and ink.

Jaquie Ang

• a leather artisan who makes incredible journals, bags, purses, and covers. I don’t know much about her, except that she works with imported leather, and is quite expensive (though I hear the quality is commensurably high)

Pick and Grab (Online)

• though known more as leather tool dealers, they also make travelers notebooks.

Planners and Journals (Online)

• creators of local ring binder type planners, Hobonichi planner covers, and leather traveler’s notebooks in bright prints and designs. They carry refills as well.

CN Paper Crafts (Online)

• creators of the Macata, a PVC traveler’s notebook. It’s very simple- no pockets or pen loops. However, they’re one of your more affordable and durable options. Their covers come with refills.

The Crafty Chinita (Online)

• makes clothbound trabeler’s notebooks (“Adoribles”) in colorful prints, mostly Standard sized.

Noted Journal PH (Online)

• another creator of imitation leather traveler’s notebooks in two sizes- Standard and Passport. they also have a large selection of refills designs. They claim their paper is fountain-pen friendly, which I’ll have to test sometime!

Kuwero (Online)

• currently fulfilling back orders, they specialize in interesting leather fauxdori using materials  such as carabao leather. Keep an eye out for them when they re-open (hopefully) in 2017.

♥ REFILLS

Everything Calligraphy (Online)

• like their name implies, they carry all sorts of calligraphy materials, as well as refills made from the famous Tomoe River journals and their own Elias-branded paper.

Pengrafik (Online)

• -Sells Curnow journals, which are fountain-pen-friendly refills (either their own paper or Tomoe River) that come in Standard, Passport, or A5 size.

FolklorePH (Online)

• Sells refills in a variety of sizes that are supposed to be fountain-pen friendly. They also sell dated refills, for those who want to plan for 2017! Oh, and they carry stickers, postcards, and other small stationery items.

Stationer Extraordinaire (Online)

• sells the occasiaonl Midori as well as Standard-size Yumi refills, which have fountain-pen-friendly paper. they also carry c”curated” items, mostly Kaweco accessories at this time.

 Sketchnotes (Online)

• hand-stitched notebooks in a variety of sizes, from Standard to Pocket and Cahier. They use thick paper, around 90 gsm or so, and it’s quite smooth. Some of their covers are handpainted and very attractive.

 Design Hatch (Online and in Scribe Writing Essentials)

• A5 and A6 refills in lined, blank, and dotted pads. Also undated weekly planners. Fountain pen friendly.