as someone with not a lot of money I cannot express how useful these massive comparison videos are. Thanks so much for the effort and money put into this because i really rely on my bullet journal and i dont have the means to go out and test many many notebooks
I’m so glad someone finally called out archer and olive. While I will say their customer service is AMAZING their journals are not. I have so many issues of bleeding using my Tombows with the blender pen from tombow and water separately and when contacting CS they told me watercolors aren’t meant to use. Even though their website says differently. Thank you so much for this!!
Thanks for this. Sometimes it's hard to be the one who has to break through all the hype so I can break the bad news on a product. I'm sorry you're having such a hard time with you A&O. Which one will you get next?
Like I said their customer service was absolutely amazing and I couldn’t speak more highly of them. And I do think their journals are great, they just don’t work for me. I’m a big fan of scribbles that matter. Love their journals so much! My go to’s from here on out!!
@@XusernamegoeshereX - Just so you know, I purchased the B6 size in Archer & Olive because I didn't want to pay the price of the A6 size. So technically all the journals are the same size.
I ordered a QiHeng a few weeks ago for my 2020 notebook and now I’ve seen this I’m even more pleased with my purchase and glad I didn’t waste my money on an Archer and Olive.
Stationery Nerd I haven’t really started it yet as it’s for 2020. I’ve done some pen tests and it seems to be good so far. No ghosting and the only speck of bleed through I’ve had is with my hard Tombow fudenouske pen, but I think it was slightly faulty on the nib (had something stuck to it that was causing the ink to pool. I’ve fixed it now and it seems to be OK.
I don’t know how I lucked out by choosing the QiHeng (SeQeS) journal. Can’t wait to get it in the mail. I kept seeing A&O fans say it’s the best. I just wasn’t willing to start with the $36 price tag. Thank goodness I didn’t. Thanks again for the honest review.
Finally! Someone who isn't an A&O fangirl! I really wish I had seen your video before I bought my A&O because I've been less than impressed and feel a little misled by the journaling community. Because of the price, however, I'll continue to use it to the end. First of all, my dots don't line up. Seriously?!?! Secondly, I had a lot of pilling and buckling when trying to use watercolors in my journal. Because of this, I didn't even bother trying out my fountain pens in it and your review confirmed my suspicions. I also don't like the satin ribbons; they're flimsy and get folded up in my pages all the time, a minor complaint, lol. Two things I was hoping your review would have covered are dot alignment (super important to me) and how the spine holds up. The spine is kinda hard to do since that's something that doesn't show wear right away. My Lemome started separating from the spine towards the end of its use. Anyway, wonderful, wonderful review. I would've liked to have given it more than one like, lol. I'll definitely give the QiHeng and Tekukor a try when I finish my A&O.
I didn't even think to look at dot alignment until after my review was finished. That's a bad manufacturing mistake and often only effects a few journals out of a full print run - so it's hit-or-miss most of the time.
I picked up a Tru Red brand Explore journal at Staples. Might be a store brand. It's 5x8 and I just checked the dots pretty much line up across pages, has 2 ribbon bookmarks. I thought it was an A5 so it's a lot narrower and it's completely thrown me off trying to figure out grid spacings. I haven't done testing, it's got contact page, goals/objectives page, 3 index pages, then 190 numbers pages outside the grids and a closing thoughts/signature page. Little pocket in the front with a laminated idea sheet for layouts, no back pocket but some words and a sticker to label the spine with. Not sure I'd use that label since the spine gets all squished when you open it and lay it flat. Maybe that's why they want you to label when you are done. No idea about paper thickness it doesn't say, can't remember what I paid for it. The cover is a plain light grey vinyl or something and the ribbons are red. Would prefer different colored ribbons and 3 better than 2. The ends of the ribbons feel sealed so that is nice. No pen loop. I was looking at the Notebook Therapy website and wow do they have some really fun designs and lots of options and accessories.
I just bought my first A&O notebook because they were having a massive retirement sale, but now I'm seeing all of these not-great reviews and I'm worried I made a terrible mistake lol
I love this video. I just ordered a Buke from aliexpress as the had a gorgeous lavender with a butterfly that Amazon did not have. I have SeQes notebook and Pink Mackerel by Tekukor as they were recommended by another video. I was a bit disappointed with the Pink Mackerel as I had quite a bit of feathering using my Ferris Wheel press ink with my Dip pen. At the time I didn’t have a fountain pen but I do now so will definitely try them in the Pink Mackeral. But I adore the SeQes. There are several more 160 gsm notebooks on Amazon now. There are several sellers with the Buke brand. I am interested in the Jourmore as well. I have my eye on some by Scribbles and Dot also. I primarily use them for fountain pens. I am excited to try the Buke one when it arrives.
I already had the Qiheng in my Amazon cart and decided to see if there were any reviews on it before i purchased. After seeing this video I went ahead and purchased it. Im extremely pleased with it. I personally was already feeling A&O is just a statice notebook and the way they're constantly out of stock makes me think they do this on purpose to create a even more elusive buzz around their brand. People are either bragging that they have them or they're frothing at the mouth to get one...its kinda ridiculous. I think youre the only RUclips reviewer that has given an honest review. I was shocked at how poorly it did! Even now watching a ton of people set up their 2020 bujo in a A&O they dont seem to be having any issues but they must be picking their inks wisely....or you used an extremely heavy hand while applying supplies. Either way I appreciate this honest review and the time and effort you took to help inform us stationery geeks. Like I said Im using the Qiheng and freaking loving it! My only issue is the front cover page in mine is wonky and hard to get to lay flat and Im wondering how the cloth spine will hold up over time but other than that its a great purchase!✌✌✌
Wow, I was about to spend a lot on an A&O!!! Looked it up on Black Friday but when I was going to check out, the design I wanted was out of stock 😂 it was a sign...
Hi! After looking at your review I decided to go with the Qiheng notebook! The paper quality is superb and I just wanted to say thank you for this! It's the only video that has the Qiheng book in comparison (:
Wow! I must say this is the first time I’ve heard a REAL. HONEST. TRUTHFUL. REVIEW! And you didn’t hold back at all! This was AWESOME!!! It’s hard when some channels do reviews because you don’t know who is affiliated with who and who’s been sent stuff to review by the company and who doesn’t want to ruffle any feathers so the reviews might not be all that honest... you did a great Review. Who gives a crap that it’s almost an hour long LOL… I sat through the whole damn thing because I wanted to know where my money should go next time… I trusted other reviews that may not have been thorough enough but I’ve learned my lesson. Thank you! This was awesome and now I feel well informed!
Amber - you just made my day! This is exactly the reason why I continue doing these reviews and it means a lot to me when they help others make the right choices about the stationery they purchase. I was duped by one of those "fake reviews" and it's the thing that motivated me to begin Stationery Nerd. I'm here to save others from the same fate. ♥
Stationery Nerd well, I already bought my Scribbles’s and I intend on making the best of it! Good thing is that I haven’t started using it yet so I’m now equipped with the knowledge of what will work and what won’t even though I’m still going to try some watercolors with the understanding of less water less bleed through 😂😂😂 You’re the best and I’m Glad I found you! Have a merry Christmas/happy Hanukkah and a VERY wonderful new year!
Feathering resistance is most important to me. I love using my fountain pens in my journal. Good to know Archer and Olive is completely off my wish list now!
Wow, you've just saved me a LOT of money. I was about to buy A&O, but I'm located in Europe, so it would cost me fortune to get it shipped from the US (plus customs etc...) Thanks to you I escaped the over-hyped and over-priced notebook. I've recently got into fountain pens and it's ridiculous how some bujo community favourites that are marketed as 'fountain pen friendly' notebooks are actually far from that. Having a thick-ass paper doesn't mean it's necessarily fountain pen friendly! When it comes to fountain pens, there's nothing as terrible as feathering paper in my opinion. I'll take bleeding over feathering anytime. That being said, I've actually started to enjoy it when pages ghost a little (or even a lot), because it gives my notebooks very 'used', personal vibe, so I really think I'll check Buke Notebooks. THE SHADING! The shading of Apache Sunset ink is absolutely amazing on that paper and being able to handle watercolours is a plus too. And, it's the cheapest option. As much as I'd love to get a Tekukor, Amazon isn't really keen on shipping stuff to my country, heh. Anyway, great review, thanks!
oh wow! 160gsm is so thick! i can't believe some of them still bleed through. thanks for sharing! i just uploaded my october setup and did a pumpkins & leaves theme!! :p
Bad paper is still bad paper, regardless of how thick it is, and any paper over 100gsm is probably not very good. And as the paper gets thicker, it also gets worse.
Wow amazing review! Thanks for all the experimenting :) I’ve always seen everyone swooning over the archer and olive, so I’m glad to see actual information that there are better options that are actually less expensive and the one that even has more pages. That tekucor journal is so beautiful 😍
This is a great and very thorough review, thank you.. I recently bought a “160gsm” scribbles that matter journal, but was very disappointed to see from the belly band when it arrived that it is actually in fact 115. Felt incredibly misled and am still thinking about whether to return it or not... I would be interested to see if the one you have is the same? Oh and just a quick point.. and I’m trying to be helpful and not mean here, but the constant in and out of focus on your video made this very hard to watch in parts..
There was a mislabeling issue with the STM. After they switched to the 160gsm paper, the label for the 115gsm paper was still on the first batch of new journals. I haven't touched the 115gsm paper, but my understanding is that the 160 is rougher, more matte feeling and the 115 is more slick and glossy feeling.
Oh! I wasn’t aware of that.. now I feel a little dumb lol.. I will go have a feel of the paper then before I send it back.. altho iirc it was pretty bad from your review anyway! Thank you for letting me know
Thank you so much for your review! especially for being so honest with all of them! Its hard to find people that will tell you straight up on which planner you should get. Your my new favorite planner lady! :)
i do not know WHAT king of A&O journal you used, but for me i never had this bleed trough issue. I have the same basic, 160 page journal (the crystal one) currently, and ive been painting watercolour paintings on it often. Not a SINGLE time it bleed trough. Sure it got a wrinkle on the other side, but it got smoother as it dried. Also i have no feathering, my entire journal is clean and has no issues. I could mention im not a fan of using sharpies or copics on it cuz of the smell, but otherwise, dunno, guess im new to this journal thing, but i doubt an average living human beings, whos not an instagram user, youtuber or a massive art/stationary geek, will want to spend lot of money on copics or other expensive stationary items to create masterpieces on each page. For me, im fine with my tombows, zebra mildliners, crayola, sakura, uni ball pens and watercolours/acrylics. I do agree A&O is not cheap, and theres lot more cheaper alternatives, and i can see, according to this comment section ill be getting some heat, but i do not want to agree A&O is as bad as you want to call it. Plus, some of the notebooks you mentioned arent even available for some countries, or if possible, cost lot more both with shipping than A&O
I have watched a bunch of videos that were made in 2020 comparing notebook brands and Archer and Olive did very well. And all the reviews I saw were honest and used watercolor, sharpies, tombow, and sakura pens.
Thank you for your reviews! I will totally keep this in mind when I go looking for a new bullet journal. I currently have a Piccadilly and after 9 months of use, the ribbon came off sadly. It's so lovely and your cats are so cute, I love how you just let them roam around while you review!
Thank you so much for your comments. I usually cut my ribbons out and don't use them (I refer sticky notes as page markers). But a lot of times you can glue those bookmarks back in place be adding a glob of glue down the back of the spine. As for the kitties, I don't LET them do anything they just do whatever they want. LOL!
Great video! Such a comprehensive review! I’m really sad that I bought the archer and olive and Scribbles notebooks after reviews from other youtubers. Now on the hunt for Tekukor and Qiheng!
I was already loving this comparison. But when your cats decided that they absolutely NEEDED to help, I was beyond thrilled. Thanks so very much for started my new year off in just the right way.
I was recommended over and over again to get an A&O. I really did not want to spend that much money and I had a gut feeling I wouldn’t be happy with it. I searched everywhere for a decent price and good reviews, came across the QiHeng one. Can’t believe I got that lucky and chose the best one 😂 I really wanted to use watercolor and now I’m beyond content 😌
Thank you for sharing this. I was about to order from A&O but I agree its hard to pay that price if I'm not sure i'm going to like it. I currently use a cheap one from Michaels to see if i even like using this type of book and hate the ghosting and bleeding so I know i'm ready for better paper. i'm glad you were so thorough with your criteria. I just ordered a QiHeng one and we'll see. again, thanks.
@@karafluhart298 -- I plan to pick up the QiHeng journal in 100gsm and check that out too. But for right now I have plenty of pages left in my Tekukor A5 100gsm that I'm using for my long-term collections. My everyday carry is currently a B6 Slim. I tend to jump around into different sizes. I plan to find a use for the QiHeng 160, though.
Thank you so much for this video I wish I had known last year how bad the archer and olive would perform especially with watercolor before I bought it for my 2019 bullet journal. I was so excited since I thought it was going to be this amazing notebook due to all the good reviews but as soon as I used watercolor I was so disappointed. I love using a bit of watercolor in my spreads but it just did horrible I ended up not really doing bullet journaling this year and felt like $40 was such a waste. But thank you so much I think I might go with the Tekukor
THANK YOU for this video!!! It probably took ages to put together but I'm so glad I found this!! I loved that it was non-biased and that you showed everything fairly! Thank you for saving me a ton of money!! :)
This is so helpful! I have used two Nuunas and loved them but I find them so pricey and hard to get. I bought an Archer & Olive for this year and while I love the pages, I realized I can’t use hardcovers. My journals get FAT and the hard cover was just becoming a V and I had to separate the cover/despine it. Are there and 160gsm soft covers?
I just wanted to leave a comment saying your cat is SUPER ADORABLE. She looks a lot like our cats and I just fell instantly in love with her and I really want to pet her, awww With that being said, I have only tried the Archer and Olive myself so this will be interesting
Wow! Thanks for the detailed reviews. It sounds like they would all do great if you just want to do basic bullet journaling with regular pens? I do wish more of them had the page numbers and index though. Seems like a pretty simple thing to add. Really appreciate the time this must have taken you.
Well that was a mega review if ever I saw one! Epic job repeating all of those tests on each book, thanks. 👌🏻😀 I am very surprised at where the A&O book ended up, though I found it funny 😂 Brilliant video.
This was a fantastic review, thank you so much for putting it together! I was looking into getting an Archer & Olive notebook, but will be looking into the other books mentioned for sure since I'm wanting to use watercolor. Thank you again, happy new year!
Loved seeing your kitties in this video - a bonus to the fantastic reviews! My kitties are exactly the same, especially Spook. I can only journal when he's asleep because he plays with the ribbon bookmarks and elastic closure on my journal.
Can't thank you enough for your honest and very comprehensive review. I was about to commit to a $50 SGD notebook, am so glad I found your review before I got it. So I gotten a cheaper and better quality notebook. Keep making quality content! :)
Thank you for such a thorough review! I've been holding off on putting the money into a "real" bullet journal until I knew I would consistently use one and finally felt ready. Just bought the tekukor. I can't wait for it to arrive!
My husband found a bamboo bullet journal on Amazon that has 160 gsm. Have not seen it anywhere would love to see how it holds up it has over 200 pages.
I have used water soluble oil paints in my archer & olive notebook. The page yellowed some, but it didn’t bleed through the other page. To me, that is really impressive because I like to paint in pretty thick layers. I have not used alcohol-based inks though, which appear to not do very well.
I got a dingbats notebook for christmas which I love because they are from lebanon and I'm from Dearborn lol, but there is the slightest bit of ghosting and if i use the blender tombow to blend two colors, the paper gets roughed up. I think it is 160 gsm. So grateful for your review because I love thicker paper and don't want to waste money on trial and error. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing this information. Wow, much work went into producing this. I tip my hat to you! Suggestion for your autofocus, when the books are on the table turn off auto focus, use manual focus then zoom in and out. When zoomed in and out many cameras lens maintain their original focus point.
Great stuff! I loved that I was like “52 minutes?!? No way am I watching all of that!” And then proceeded to sit here and watch it all and then go to your blog post, lol. Another 160 gsm notebook that is coming out soon is by a bullet journal RUclipsr called Inprint. As of right now the journal is on kickstarter but set to come out in December I think? Could you please do a review on it as well?
LOL! I love your comment! I was so worried about a 52 minute video but figured there had to be someone out there who needed to take a break from life and watch me ramble about journals. I haven't heard of Inprint but I'm off to find it. Thanks for the tip!
I'm wondering if A&O's paper has changed in the last year. I watched a review from 2018 by Jannplansthings in which she had no bleedthrough from watercolours. Admittedly she's accustomed to painting in a Leuchtturm (!) and uses artist-quality paint with as little water as she can get away with, but declining paper quality could be a factor as well. (For comparison, Moleskine watercolour albums went through a phase of having inferior paper, but they seem to have fixed that in recent batches.) In any case, as others have noted, your top choices sadly aren't available (yet) outside the US, so I guess I'll be sticking with A&O for now and being selective in my choice of art supplies and techniques!
I'm going to go against the grain here in the comments and say I'm not surprised that A&O didn't do so well, but ugh.. they're just so gorgeous. Their cover quality and designs, and unboxing them is just magical. I have a QiHeng from a few years ago, and it was great I used every page of it but I just love my A&O journals (that I exclusively use now). I keep thinking of a saying my dad (who is an pediatrician) used to say about how he never purchased an extravagant car and to this day drives a Ford Focus. He says it does what it needs to do, if not better than something like a Mercedes. But come on, who doesn't wanna drive a Mercedes? LOL. That's just how I feel about A&O. Ugh, I'm so bad bahaha. :3 Great review, nonetheless! Especially about the paper quality.
Thanks for this! I've ordered, as a random guess, a Buke notebook at the end of last year because I wanted to try journaling with decent paper, but not pay a lot of money... I'm really happy with it, and shocked, that it's overall better as the archer and olive
Honestly, I wanted to get the Tekukor and then read the amazon comments on how many of the dots were very misaligned. Knowing me that small detail would have driven me up the wall. Which is a shame it seems everything else about Tekukor crosses out everything I ever wanted in a notebook? I wonder if they will fix the misalignment soon?
Lorraine - you'll notice that I also have a review published on that Amazon product listing. Once I saw those other customers who had misaligned dots in their Tekukor, I checked ALL of my Tekukor notebooks (I have 14 of them in my house WHOA!!) and none of them had the same issue with the dots. I suspect that the dot issue was a tiny isolated problem with just a few journals in an entire manufacturing run. I've also checked with my Facebook group and others in my community and I can't find anyone who has the misaligned dots in their Tekukor, either.
Have you ever looked at, or tried, the Joie Things bullet journal? They are 160gsm, and I am waiting on my first one to arrive. They can be found on Etsy, but also have their own website too. I would love to know your take on them!
UGH I HATE THAT MOST OF THESE ARE ONLY AVAILABLE ON AMAZON wtf :( if anyone can share links to buy these items directly and not through amazon that would be amazing. otherwise looks like i'm sticking with a&o
fr, I'd love to try some of these notebooks but Amazon is such a trash company, and even if they weren't their shipping is so expensive and takes forever.
Thank you for the honest and thorough review. Just wanted to mention that, while the performance of a journal is absolutely important, Archer & Olive is a U.S.-based, woman-owned small business. Based on this, I assume the costs and availabilities of products reflect this. Just something to be mindful of.
Yeah, in light of everything going on in the world and the disruption of the supply chain, I feel like people are starting to realize the “cost” of cheap manufacturing and labor.
Which had the smoothest paper? I only heard you mention the Buke, but I'd prefer less ghosting. I'm looking for a smooth paper for my brush pens that's also thick enough to handle some relatively heavy black inks.
I guess A&O has troubles with quality control, it's not that all their notebooks perform so bad or so well. I've watched other reviews saying their dots don't match up across the pages. But anyway I won't be buying A&O as it's so expensive with shipping!
Thanks so much for these thorough reviews! I wanted to get an A&O but you and the comments below quite convinced me not to ^^ I'm waiting for the bullet journal created by Inprint with kickstarter, it's 160 and I really hope it will live up to my expectations! Since the best in your reviews are not available or crazy expensive in France :-/
@@StationeryNerd It's out now so it would be great if you could test it! It seems to have it all, but so did Archer & Olive before i watched this video..
This video is fine fine gold, sadly I think the qiheng doesn't sell in Spain and the ant design isn't available anymore which makes me really sad :(. Thank you for taking soooooooo much time to review all these nbs for stationary lovers like us, you're really helping in the community, I hope your video gets more views :)))))
Have you heard of the Tsuki bullet journal? I recently bought it and am really loving it! It’s got 160GSM paper too and I got it for $19.50 which is pretty good I though (includes free shipping!) thank you for this video, it’s so nice to see more affordable options on the market!!
Strong work, Pam! I had never even heard of 160 gsm notebooks. You did a wonderful job comparing. I was surprised that so many didn’t pass the art supplies test, and honestly shocked at the feathering on some. Of course I now have to seek out the Qi Heng! Pick me when you give away one of those Tekukors!! LOL
The most expensive are the worst. Interesting. I think I will go with the Tekukor mainly because I don't like any of the designs on the SeQeS currently. I also like that the pages are numbered on the Tekukor. Thank you for this wonderful review.
Thanks for such an excellent review! I read your blog post and watched this review. I love your cat! This is exactly what I’ve been looking for - the heavier paper and NOT Archer and Olive. Unfortunately, I found you too late - the Tekukor is unavailable on Amazon! (There is a floral design cover that seems to be the same - not at all my style but it’s what’s inside that counts, right?) Or maybe the QiHeng ant will do. Still deciding.
So I just got an Archer and Olive (Jun 2020) was worried because I saw this video and considered returning it. I just tried gouache and acrylic pen on the pages. There wasn’t any ghosting. It bends a little but like... I don’t understand why everyone is freaking out about the A&O. I guess I’ll try watercolor here in a bit but Either the paper changed from the video to this season but like... if you’re like me and was worried about an A&O purchase, I haven’t had problems. Oh and I paid for it myself. And I’m not a famous youtuber or influenster. I guess I just want to let people know that if they wanted an A&O and were worried after watching this video, just know that I felt like my journal handled the gouache and acrylic paint and such just fine. Now if it’s cost prohibitive, then that’s a different story. But I’d like to add that (to my knowledge), A&O try to run a conscientious business and all. Oh and Speaking of business practices, are Tekkukor and QiHeng running sustainable and/or ethical practices? I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t really think there’s some sort of Big Bullet Journal conspiracy lol. (Kinda like Big Pharma but Bug Bujo) bon
You keep focusing on how it works for gouache & acrylic, which don't behave the same as watercolor or the other tools that the reviewer used? How is your reassurance going to help people who are worried about feathering with their fountain pens, for example? There are also not that many people upset about A&O *compared to* all the loyal customers who love the journal and write positive reviews. I would not characterize the negative responses as "freaking out," but it is surely understandable for people to be upset if they paid nearly 40 dollars for a journal only to have it not work out for the tools they want to use. Also, you don't need to have a Big Pharma type of "conspiracy" for a company to market itself very well to a niche audience (bullet journal influencers) who maybe oversell the product in their enthusiasm. Or for people to think it works for all media just b/c it works for the few media they happen to use, & therefore unintentionally mislead others about the paper's suitability.
I tired an A&O and got the same results as this video when using the supplies. I received it as a present, I'm a fountain pen user.... well, I feel less guilty because thank goodness I did not buy it with my money. It's unusable for me. For people that are like me, this review is a very important one, because people everywhere saying how great A&O is, and not actually going in depth... it's not useful to anyone. And sustainable, ethical. I understand and I've seen their website, but please keep in mind that A&O are NOT notebook manufacturers, they're "resellers", so they buy from a manufacturer and then put their brand on and sell it with profit margin (hence the price). I do not believe in big conspiracies, and i do believe that the founder of A&O truly sourced a great company, but I'm always skeptical about companies declaring something that is actually not about them: they do not manufacture books, their word is based on someone else's word! So even if the owner of A&O is 100% sure they are selling vegan/ethical books, her word tells me nothing, because she's not the one making the book.
This is very interesting. I’ve only just discovered all of these after trying a Leuchtturm in 2017 and forgetting so quickly that I have 184 pages left. 80gsm so I’ll see if I can be that light-handed if I want to watercolour. I’m not surprised alcohol markers bled, they do that to everything including their own coated papers. I can find all but one of these in the U.K. and that’s QiHeng. I’d only heard of Scribbles that Matter and Archer & Olive, and both cost enough that I put them on the future-maybe pile. Tekukor costs an eye-watering £40 on Amazon U.K. for the 100gsm version, £50 for the B6 with 52gsm. Buke is immensely cheap, though, half price at $12.50 for some reason right now and with free shipping. 160gsm Tekukor is $36.01 on Amazon US including shipping with import fees and that converts to £27.52 today.
I am in search of stencils, at 18:25 you mention that these stencils are not high quality. Do you have suggestions? Amazon is filled with not "so high quality," and I don't know what I am looking for in a stencil. What makes a good stencil? Suggestions for finding good stencils would be appreciated.
Would you consider doing a pen test video comparing different paper thicknesses? I have only ever used 80gsm as I didn't realise it went higher than that until recently!
Just because you love work and stationary doesn't mean your a nerd! And yes, this is the first time i actually came across someone who is calling themselves a nerd, be positive!!!
When I call you a nerd, it’s the highest form of a compliment I can give you. I’m a nerd and I love other nerds - we’re the coolest type of people around. We love to learn as much about a product before we make a purchase. Nerds are intelligent and single-mindedly obsessed with a hobby or pursuit and has an extreme interest in research, academics, and how something works - yes, even stationery.
I also have found the quality pretty on par with my Archer and olive. My watercolours are bleeding just as badly. And I ended up having the problem where the grid doesn't line up from page to page.
I know this video has been out for a while now, but scribble and dot make 160gsm bullet journals and I am aware this video is about 160gsm but I have a 150gsm that is fantastic from ottergami. I really like these types of videos as the advice you give is Amazing thank you
I bought an Archer & Oliver journal a couple of months ago in anticipation of using it as my 2020 Bujo, but after watching through the in-depth analysis of each journal, I'm going to pick up either QiHeng or Tekukor. Thank you so much for your thorough review, and I love your kitties!
thank you thank you thank you!! this helped me out a lot in finding a bujo! i ordered a maroon Tekukor last summer for 2021 and i love it!! however i can’t seem to find them anywhere now. i searched on Amazon and they’re all out of stock and it says they don’t know when/if there will be a restock!! i’d love to get the other colors of Tekukor but i can’t find them. any suggestions??? please help!
I did buy myself my very first dotted notebook I thought I would like it but I don't I prefer lined paper so when I write a sentence see how long it it on line paper and I also like the number on the end of the paper the tells you how many pages are in a notebook that really helps a lot❤💜💖💗💞💕📓🖋📃
I use the SCTM and I love it. However, that blue Tekukor is absolutely STUNNING. I thought I was just going to buy the same SCTM when I run out of pages but now I'm second guessing that decision. I also love that there is three ribbons, right now I find myself wanting another ribbon. However, I'd like to know if any of these notebooks have the "plus sign" and dashes in the dot grid to help you find the middle? The SCTM has them and they're sooo helpful! Dont know if I'd want to buy any other notebook if it doesn't have them :/
I saw at least one who does that with painting, but also sells the art pages as downloads I think.Makes sense since then she can collect the original art pieces somewhere else
I have both the BUKE and A&O (bought the first, boyfriend gave me the second), and while now I primarily use A&O this was very enlightening and I will definitely refer to it when purchasing my next one. I ended up on this video because I am trying to find B5 options for 160 gsm -- I teach so I like to make my teacher journals pretty with a bunch of lettering and using different pens and markers. Unfortunately, I could not find another brand that offered B5 160 gsm, so if you know of any, would you let me know? I looked at Minimalism but they only offer 120gsm
Thank you doing this review. I was a fan of Baron Fig for a bit but these journals are outstanding. I was going to get an Archer and Olive but since watching this I think I will get going with QiHeng. :)
What kind of ink is most likely to have feathering issues and on what kind of paper? Is it a more wet kind of ink that feathers? I'm not really familiar with the fancier pens that are used for journaling. I have pens in the quality range of G2 or bic gelocity, or Uniball signo.
Hi, I was wondering, and I know, don't hate me.. But I hate white paper... But do use a lot of the products that most of the time bleed thru. Can you advise one with a cream /beige color which is similar to qiheng? 🙈😅
I just looked at Scribbles that Matter on amazon, and the price was over $900! Checked a couple of links and they're all the same. I'm thinking a BIG type!
why didnt i watch this video before i added the Archer and Olive on my xmas wishlist :( the hype made me want it for my 2020 bujo, but now i kinda wish i dont get it so i can buy the QiHeng!
as someone with not a lot of money I cannot express how useful these massive comparison videos are. Thanks so much for the effort and money put into this because i really rely on my bullet journal and i dont have the means to go out and test many many notebooks
"And... we have a kitty" That's the moment when I liked the video.
LOL! Stick around... those kitties make plenty of appearances in the videos. They tend to do what they want around here.
My favorite stationery reviewer. Exposing the A&O lie.
Hi Karen! Just doing my job as a stationery-obsessed nerd. Gotta know all the facts before you buy!
I’m so glad someone finally called out archer and olive. While I will say their customer service is AMAZING their journals are not. I have so many issues of bleeding using my Tombows with the blender pen from tombow and water separately and when contacting CS they told me watercolors aren’t meant to use. Even though their website says differently. Thank you so much for this!!
Thanks for this. Sometimes it's hard to be the one who has to break through all the hype so I can break the bad news on a product. I'm sorry you're having such a hard time with you A&O. Which one will you get next?
Like I said their customer service was absolutely amazing and I couldn’t speak more highly of them. And I do think their journals are great, they just don’t work for me. I’m a big fan of scribbles that matter. Love their journals so much! My go to’s from here on out!!
I am so glad I saw this video, I was planning to use them for 2020! I was also shocked at how tiny it was compared to the others!?!
@@XusernamegoeshereX - Just so you know, I purchased the B6 size in Archer & Olive because I didn't want to pay the price of the A6 size. So technically all the journals are the same size.
@@StationeryNerd AH ok. Good to know, thanks! ;)
I ordered a QiHeng a few weeks ago for my 2020 notebook and now I’ve seen this I’m even more pleased with my purchase and glad I didn’t waste my money on an Archer and Olive.
I'm so glad you got the QiHeng. How are you liking it so far?
Stationery Nerd I haven’t really started it yet as it’s for 2020. I’ve done some pen tests and it seems to be good so far. No ghosting and the only speck of bleed through I’ve had is with my hard Tombow fudenouske pen, but I think it was slightly faulty on the nib (had something stuck to it that was causing the ink to pool. I’ve fixed it now and it seems to be OK.
Same!✌
I don’t know how I lucked out by choosing the QiHeng (SeQeS) journal. Can’t wait to get it in the mail. I kept seeing A&O fans say it’s the best. I just wasn’t willing to start with the $36 price tag. Thank goodness I didn’t. Thanks again for the honest review.
Finally! Someone who isn't an A&O fangirl! I really wish I had seen your video before I bought my A&O because I've been less than impressed and feel a little misled by the journaling community. Because of the price, however, I'll continue to use it to the end. First of all, my dots don't line up. Seriously?!?! Secondly, I had a lot of pilling and buckling when trying to use watercolors in my journal. Because of this, I didn't even bother trying out my fountain pens in it and your review confirmed my suspicions. I also don't like the satin ribbons; they're flimsy and get folded up in my pages all the time, a minor complaint, lol.
Two things I was hoping your review would have covered are dot alignment (super important to me) and how the spine holds up. The spine is kinda hard to do since that's something that doesn't show wear right away. My Lemome started separating from the spine towards the end of its use.
Anyway, wonderful, wonderful review. I would've liked to have given it more than one like, lol. I'll definitely give the QiHeng and Tekukor a try when I finish my A&O.
I didn't even think to look at dot alignment until after my review was finished. That's a bad manufacturing mistake and often only effects a few journals out of a full print run - so it's hit-or-miss most of the time.
I picked up a Tru Red brand Explore journal at Staples. Might be a store brand. It's 5x8 and I just checked the dots pretty much line up across pages, has 2 ribbon bookmarks. I thought it was an A5 so it's a lot narrower and it's completely thrown me off trying to figure out grid spacings. I haven't done testing, it's got contact page, goals/objectives page, 3 index pages, then 190 numbers pages outside the grids and a closing thoughts/signature page. Little pocket in the front with a laminated idea sheet for layouts, no back pocket but some words and a sticker to label the spine with. Not sure I'd use that label since the spine gets all squished when you open it and lay it flat. Maybe that's why they want you to label when you are done. No idea about paper thickness it doesn't say, can't remember what I paid for it. The cover is a plain light grey vinyl or something and the ribbons are red. Would prefer different colored ribbons and 3 better than 2. The ends of the ribbons feel sealed so that is nice. No pen loop.
I was looking at the Notebook Therapy website and wow do they have some really fun designs and lots of options and accessories.
I just bought my first A&O notebook because they were having a massive retirement sale, but now I'm seeing all of these not-great reviews and I'm worried I made a terrible mistake lol
wow I was surprised with how poorly archer and olive performed
I was too. I really wanted them to do better.
My most recent bullet journal was form archer and olive I really liked it.
I love this video. I just ordered a Buke from aliexpress as the had a gorgeous lavender with a butterfly that Amazon did not have. I have SeQes notebook and Pink Mackerel by Tekukor as they were recommended by another video. I was a bit disappointed with the Pink Mackerel as I had quite a bit of feathering using my Ferris Wheel press ink with my Dip pen. At the time I didn’t have a fountain pen but I do now so will definitely try them in the Pink Mackeral. But I adore the SeQes. There are several more 160 gsm notebooks on Amazon now. There are several sellers with the Buke brand. I am interested in the Jourmore as well. I have my eye on some by Scribbles and Dot also. I primarily use them for fountain pens. I am excited to try the Buke one when it arrives.
I already had the Qiheng in my Amazon cart and decided to see if there were any reviews on it before i purchased. After seeing this video I went ahead and purchased it. Im extremely pleased with it. I personally was already feeling A&O is just a statice notebook and the way they're constantly out of stock makes me think they do this on purpose to create a even more elusive buzz around their brand. People are either bragging that they have them or they're frothing at the mouth to get one...its kinda ridiculous. I think youre the only RUclips reviewer that has given an honest review. I was shocked at how poorly it did! Even now watching a ton of people set up their 2020 bujo in a A&O they dont seem to be having any issues but they must be picking their inks wisely....or you used an extremely heavy hand while applying supplies. Either way I appreciate this honest review and the time and effort you took to help inform us stationery geeks. Like I said Im using the Qiheng and freaking loving it! My only issue is the front cover page in mine is wonky and hard to get to lay flat and Im wondering how the cloth spine will hold up over time but other than that its a great purchase!✌✌✌
Wow, I was about to spend a lot on an A&O!!! Looked it up on Black Friday but when I was going to check out, the design I wanted was out of stock 😂 it was a sign...
Thanks! I'm so glad I could help.
I actually haven’t had any problems with mine.
Hi! After looking at your review I decided to go with the Qiheng notebook! The paper quality is superb and I just wanted to say thank you for this! It's the only video that has the Qiheng book in comparison (:
I'm glad I could help you find your next journal!
Wow! I must say this is the first time I’ve heard a REAL. HONEST. TRUTHFUL. REVIEW! And you didn’t hold back at all! This was AWESOME!!! It’s hard when some channels do reviews because you don’t know who is affiliated with who and who’s been sent stuff to review by the company and who doesn’t want to ruffle any feathers so the reviews might not be all that honest... you did a great Review. Who gives a crap that it’s almost an hour long LOL… I sat through the whole damn thing because I wanted to know where my money should go next time… I trusted other reviews that may not have been thorough enough but I’ve learned my lesson. Thank you! This was awesome and now I feel well informed!
Amber - you just made my day! This is exactly the reason why I continue doing these reviews and it means a lot to me when they help others make the right choices about the stationery they purchase. I was duped by one of those "fake reviews" and it's the thing that motivated me to begin Stationery Nerd. I'm here to save others from the same fate. ♥
Stationery Nerd well, I already bought my Scribbles’s and I intend on making the best of it! Good thing is that I haven’t started using it yet so I’m now equipped with the knowledge of what will work and what won’t even though I’m still going to try some watercolors with the understanding of less water less bleed through 😂😂😂
You’re the best and I’m Glad I found you! Have a merry Christmas/happy Hanukkah and a VERY wonderful new year!
Feathering resistance is most important to me. I love using my fountain pens in my journal. Good to know Archer and Olive is completely off my wish list now!
Yes!! Feathering is a deal breaker for me, too.
This really should be higher up when you look up Archer and Olive
Wow, you've just saved me a LOT of money. I was about to buy A&O, but I'm located in Europe, so it would cost me fortune to get it shipped from the US (plus customs etc...) Thanks to you I escaped the over-hyped and over-priced notebook.
I've recently got into fountain pens and it's ridiculous how some bujo community favourites that are marketed as 'fountain pen friendly' notebooks are actually far from that. Having a thick-ass paper doesn't mean it's necessarily fountain pen friendly! When it comes to fountain pens, there's nothing as terrible as feathering paper in my opinion. I'll take bleeding over feathering anytime. That being said, I've actually started to enjoy it when pages ghost a little (or even a lot), because it gives my notebooks very 'used', personal vibe, so I really think I'll check Buke Notebooks. THE SHADING! The shading of Apache Sunset ink is absolutely amazing on that paper and being able to handle watercolours is a plus too. And, it's the cheapest option. As much as I'd love to get a Tekukor, Amazon isn't really keen on shipping stuff to my country, heh.
Anyway, great review, thanks!
oh wow! 160gsm is so thick! i can't believe some of them still bleed through. thanks for sharing!
i just uploaded my october setup and did a pumpkins & leaves theme!! :p
Hello Juliette - I was surprised too! Thanks for watching. ♥
Bad paper is still bad paper, regardless of how thick it is, and any paper over 100gsm is probably not very good. And as the paper gets thicker, it also gets worse.
@@jamesaritchie1 Watercolor paper is supposed to be 100% cotton, and treated to handle water and it's 300 gsm
Wow amazing review! Thanks for all the experimenting :) I’ve always seen everyone swooning over the archer and olive, so I’m glad to see actual information that there are better options that are actually less expensive and the one that even has more pages.
That tekucor journal is so beautiful 😍
Tekukor is definitely a great choice!
This is a great and very thorough review, thank you.. I recently bought a “160gsm” scribbles that matter journal, but was very disappointed to see from the belly band when it arrived that it is actually in fact 115. Felt incredibly misled and am still thinking about whether to return it or not... I would be interested to see if the one you have is the same? Oh and just a quick point.. and I’m trying to be helpful and not mean here, but the constant in and out of focus on your video made this very hard to watch in parts..
There was a mislabeling issue with the STM. After they switched to the 160gsm paper, the label for the 115gsm paper was still on the first batch of new journals. I haven't touched the 115gsm paper, but my understanding is that the 160 is rougher, more matte feeling and the 115 is more slick and glossy feeling.
Oh! I wasn’t aware of that.. now I feel a little dumb lol.. I will go have a feel of the paper then before I send it back.. altho iirc it was pretty bad from your review anyway! Thank you for letting me know
Thank you for your time to present this to us stationery nerds!!!
You're welcome! So glad you watched! ♥
Thank you for doing this extensive testing! I love to find the best that can handle all my supplies. I so appreciate your time and care!!
You're welcome. Happy I could help!
I love Pounce and Jack! 💕 BTW, the Tekukor olive is a Ginko leaf.
Thank you so much for your review! especially for being so honest with all of them! Its hard to find people that will tell you straight up on which planner you should get. Your my new favorite planner lady! :)
Thanks Melina!
i do not know WHAT king of A&O journal you used, but for me i never had this bleed trough issue. I have the same basic, 160 page journal (the crystal one) currently, and ive been painting watercolour paintings on it often. Not a SINGLE time it bleed trough. Sure it got a wrinkle on the other side, but it got smoother as it dried.
Also i have no feathering, my entire journal is clean and has no issues. I could mention im not a fan of using sharpies or copics on it cuz of the smell, but otherwise, dunno, guess im new to this journal thing, but i doubt an average living human beings, whos not an instagram user, youtuber or a massive art/stationary geek, will want to spend lot of money on copics or other expensive stationary items to create masterpieces on each page. For me, im fine with my tombows, zebra mildliners, crayola, sakura, uni ball pens and watercolours/acrylics.
I do agree A&O is not cheap, and theres lot more cheaper alternatives, and i can see, according to this comment section ill be getting some heat, but i do not want to agree A&O is as bad as you want to call it. Plus, some of the notebooks you mentioned arent even available for some countries, or if possible, cost lot more both with shipping than A&O
I have watched a bunch of videos that were made in 2020 comparing notebook brands and Archer and Olive did very well. And all the reviews I saw were honest and used watercolor, sharpies, tombow, and sakura pens.
@Maryam Khalid
I use an A&O . I agree with this video. Ghosting and bleeding occurs when I use sharpie in my journal.
Thank you for your reviews! I will totally keep this in mind when I go looking for a new bullet journal. I currently have a Piccadilly and after 9 months of use, the ribbon came off sadly. It's so lovely and your cats are so cute, I love how you just let them roam around while you review!
Thank you so much for your comments. I usually cut my ribbons out and don't use them (I refer sticky notes as page markers). But a lot of times you can glue those bookmarks back in place be adding a glob of glue down the back of the spine. As for the kitties, I don't LET them do anything they just do whatever they want. LOL!
Great video! Such a comprehensive review! I’m really sad that I bought the archer and olive and Scribbles notebooks after reviews from other youtubers. Now on the hunt for Tekukor and Qiheng!
Thanks for checking out the video. Good luck with your quest in finding the perfect journal!
I was already loving this comparison. But when your cats decided that they absolutely NEEDED to help, I was beyond thrilled. Thanks so very much for started my new year off in just the right way.
The cats own the place... they simply allow me to live here as long as I feed them. LOL! Glad you liked the comparison!
I was recommended over and over again to get an A&O. I really did not want to spend that much money and I had a gut feeling I wouldn’t be happy with it. I searched everywhere for a decent price and good reviews, came across the QiHeng one. Can’t believe I got that lucky and chose the best one 😂 I really wanted to use watercolor and now I’m beyond content 😌
I'm so happy you found a notebook you love!
Thank you for sharing this. I was about to order from A&O but I agree its hard to pay that price if I'm not sure i'm going to like it. I currently use a cheap one from Michaels to see if i even like using this type of book and hate the ghosting and bleeding so I know i'm ready for better paper. i'm glad you were so thorough with your criteria. I just ordered a QiHeng one and we'll see. again, thanks.
I'm so glad I could help you find a journal that will work for you. You're going to love the QiHeng.
Thank you for taking the time to do this! It was super insightful! I'm gonna actually buy a bujo that isn't STM now :)
I'm sad about the demised of STM. I miss the original ones. Which one will you get?
@@StationeryNerd I love their new thick paper but I'm gonna try the one rated as #1 in this review. Are you changing brands?
@@karafluhart298 -- I plan to pick up the QiHeng journal in 100gsm and check that out too. But for right now I have plenty of pages left in my Tekukor A5 100gsm that I'm using for my long-term collections. My everyday carry is currently a B6 Slim. I tend to jump around into different sizes. I plan to find a use for the QiHeng 160, though.
Thank you so much for this video I wish I had known last year how bad the archer and olive would perform especially with watercolor before I bought it for my 2019 bullet journal. I was so excited since I thought it was going to be this amazing notebook due to all the good reviews but as soon as I used watercolor I was so disappointed. I love using a bit of watercolor in my spreads but it just did horrible I ended up not really doing bullet journaling this year and felt like $40 was such a waste. But thank you so much I think I might go with the Tekukor
I'm sorry that last year's journal choice caused you to abandon your bullet journal. Hopefully this coming year will be better.
0:00....... Introduction of 6 books 📓 📔 📒 📕 📗 📘 📙
24:05.... Supplies / Pens
26:34... *Paper Pen Test* on each book 📖 ☑✍🏼🖋😎👍
THANK YOU for this video!!! It probably took ages to put together but I'm so glad I found this!! I loved that it was non-biased and that you showed everything fairly! Thank you for saving me a ton of money!! :)
This is so helpful! I have used two Nuunas and loved them but I find them so pricey and hard to get. I bought an Archer & Olive for this year and while I love the pages, I realized I can’t use hardcovers. My journals get FAT and the hard cover was just becoming a V and I had to separate the cover/despine it. Are there and 160gsm soft covers?
Thank you for posting this comparison! I watched the whole way through and now I can make my decision! Also, subscribed. 🤗
I just wanted to leave a comment saying your cat is SUPER ADORABLE. She looks a lot like our cats and I just fell instantly in love with her and I really want to pet her, awww
With that being said, I have only tried the Archer and Olive myself so this will be interesting
If I ever need a cat sitter...I'll give you a call. LOL! Thanks for checking out the video. 🤓
Wow! Thanks for the detailed reviews. It sounds like they would all do great if you just want to do basic bullet journaling with regular pens? I do wish more of them had the page numbers and index though. Seems like a pretty simple thing to add. Really appreciate the time this must have taken you.
Well that was a mega review if ever I saw one! Epic job repeating all of those tests on each book, thanks. 👌🏻😀 I am very surprised at where the A&O book ended up, though I found it funny 😂 Brilliant video.
Thanks so much! I tried to be as fair and equal in my testing as possible so I'm glad it came through that way. 💛💛
This was a fantastic review, thank you so much for putting it together! I was looking into getting an Archer & Olive notebook, but will be looking into the other books mentioned for sure since I'm wanting to use watercolor. Thank you again, happy new year!
Loved seeing your kitties in this video - a bonus to the fantastic reviews! My kitties are exactly the same, especially Spook. I can only journal when he's asleep because he plays with the ribbon bookmarks and elastic closure on my journal.
Sometimes it's impossible to get anything done with kitties around! LOL! Good thing they're cute, right?
Can't thank you enough for your honest and very comprehensive review. I was about to commit to a $50 SGD notebook, am so glad I found your review before I got it. So I gotten a cheaper and better quality notebook.
Keep making quality content! :)
Would love to see a review on the Primrosia bullet journal! Also 160gsm
Thank you for such a thorough review! I've been holding off on putting the money into a "real" bullet journal until I knew I would consistently use one and finally felt ready. Just bought the tekukor. I can't wait for it to arrive!
My husband found a bamboo bullet journal on Amazon that has 160 gsm. Have not seen it anywhere would love to see how it holds up it has over 200 pages.
I have used water soluble oil paints in my archer & olive notebook. The page yellowed some, but it didn’t bleed through the other page. To me, that is really impressive because I like to paint in pretty thick layers. I have not used alcohol-based inks though, which appear to not do very well.
I got a dingbats notebook for christmas which I love because they are from lebanon and I'm from Dearborn lol, but there is the slightest bit of ghosting and if i use the blender tombow to blend two colors, the paper gets roughed up. I think it is 160 gsm. So grateful for your review because I love thicker paper and don't want to waste money on trial and error. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing this information. Wow, much work went into producing this. I tip my hat to you! Suggestion for your autofocus, when the books are on the table turn off auto focus, use manual focus then zoom in and out. When zoomed in and out many cameras lens maintain their original focus point.
Great tips Ric! Thanks so much. 💛
Great stuff! I loved that I was like “52 minutes?!? No way am I watching all of that!” And then proceeded to sit here and watch it all and then go to your blog post, lol. Another 160 gsm notebook that is coming out soon is by a bullet journal RUclipsr called Inprint. As of right now the journal is on kickstarter but set to come out in December I think? Could you please do a review on it as well?
LOL! I love your comment! I was so worried about a 52 minute video but figured there had to be someone out there who needed to take a break from life and watch me ramble about journals. I haven't heard of Inprint but I'm off to find it. Thanks for the tip!
I'm wondering if A&O's paper has changed in the last year. I watched a review from 2018 by Jannplansthings in which she had no bleedthrough from watercolours. Admittedly she's accustomed to painting in a Leuchtturm (!) and uses artist-quality paint with as little water as she can get away with, but declining paper quality could be a factor as well. (For comparison, Moleskine watercolour albums went through a phase of having inferior paper, but they seem to have fixed that in recent batches.)
In any case, as others have noted, your top choices sadly aren't available (yet) outside the US, so I guess I'll be sticking with A&O for now and being selective in my choice of art supplies and techniques!
Yeah, I just bought my A&O and it actually handles like a dream. And I’m not sponsored by them or an Influenster
I'm going to go against the grain here in the comments and say I'm not surprised that A&O didn't do so well, but ugh.. they're just so gorgeous. Their cover quality and designs, and unboxing them is just magical. I have a QiHeng from a few years ago, and it was great I used every page of it but I just love my A&O journals (that I exclusively use now).
I keep thinking of a saying my dad (who is an pediatrician) used to say about how he never purchased an extravagant car and to this day drives a Ford Focus. He says it does what it needs to do, if not better than something like a Mercedes. But come on, who doesn't wanna drive a Mercedes? LOL. That's just how I feel about A&O. Ugh, I'm so bad bahaha. :3 Great review, nonetheless! Especially about the paper quality.
Thanks for this! I've ordered, as a random guess, a Buke notebook at the end of last year because I wanted to try journaling with decent paper, but not pay a lot of money...
I'm really happy with it, and shocked, that it's overall better as the archer and olive
Honestly, I wanted to get the Tekukor and then read the amazon comments on how many of the dots were very misaligned. Knowing me that small detail would have driven me up the wall. Which is a shame it seems everything else about Tekukor crosses out everything I ever wanted in a notebook? I wonder if they will fix the misalignment soon?
Lorraine - you'll notice that I also have a review published on that Amazon product listing. Once I saw those other customers who had misaligned dots in their Tekukor, I checked ALL of my Tekukor notebooks (I have 14 of them in my house WHOA!!) and none of them had the same issue with the dots. I suspect that the dot issue was a tiny isolated problem with just a few journals in an entire manufacturing run. I've also checked with my Facebook group and others in my community and I can't find anyone who has the misaligned dots in their Tekukor, either.
Have you ever looked at, or tried, the Joie Things bullet journal? They are 160gsm, and I am waiting on my first one to arrive. They can be found on Etsy, but also have their own website too. I would love to know your take on them!
I haven't tried their notebooks. But thanks for sharing... I'll check out their products.
Wow! That was one of the most thorough comparison videos I have seen. Great job! I am going to buy the winner right now!
Thanks Jeanne! So glad I could help!
This was a super helpful video and the adorable kitty made it even better 😍😍😍
Which one would you recommend for journaling, like writing a diary?
Because I really like when the pages are white and numbered, and with an index.
I literally watched this whole video for the kitty cameo’s while listening to the reviews ❤️😂
Archer and Olive has a 160 page option or a 192 page option .. at least for the A5 size.
UGH I HATE THAT MOST OF THESE ARE ONLY AVAILABLE ON AMAZON wtf :( if anyone can share links to buy these items directly and not through amazon that would be amazing. otherwise looks like i'm sticking with a&o
fr, I'd love to try some of these notebooks but Amazon is such a trash company, and even if they weren't their shipping is so expensive and takes forever.
Hi Pam!! Ahhhh... the famous video I heard so much about!! I'm a huge stationery nerd too!! Appreciate this! :)
Oh just wait...there are more where this came from! 💛
Thank you for the honest and thorough review. Just wanted to mention that, while the performance of a journal is absolutely important, Archer & Olive is a U.S.-based, woman-owned small business. Based on this, I assume the costs and availabilities of products reflect this. Just something to be mindful of.
Yeah, in light of everything going on in the world and the disruption of the supply chain, I feel like people are starting to realize the “cost” of cheap manufacturing and labor.
Which had the smoothest paper? I only heard you mention the Buke, but I'd prefer less ghosting. I'm looking for a smooth paper for my brush pens that's also thick enough to handle some relatively heavy black inks.
The top two notebooks - Tekukor and SEQES are both great options. The paper is smooth and handle brush pens and fountain pen ink nicely.
@@StationeryNerd Awesome, thanks!
That's not a lotus leaf on the green Tekukor journal; it's a gingko leaf.
Thank you! I asked everyone about the palm fronds but not this one. Ugh!
I guess A&O has troubles with quality control, it's not that all their notebooks perform so bad or so well. I've watched other reviews saying their dots don't match up across the pages. But anyway I won't be buying A&O as it's so expensive with shipping!
Thanks so much for these thorough reviews! I wanted to get an A&O but you and the comments below quite convinced me not to ^^
I'm waiting for the bullet journal created by Inprint with kickstarter, it's 160 and I really hope it will live up to my expectations! Since the best in your reviews are not available or crazy expensive in France :-/
I've been watching the progress of the Inprint journal. I can't wait to see how she does with that Kickstarter and the sales afterward.
@@StationeryNerd It's out now so it would be great if you could test it! It seems to have it all, but so did Archer & Olive before i watched this video..
This video is fine fine gold, sadly I think the qiheng doesn't sell in Spain and the ant design isn't available anymore which makes me really sad :(.
Thank you for taking soooooooo much time to review all these nbs for stationary lovers like us, you're really helping in the community, I hope your video gets more views :)))))
Oh no! I'm bummed you can't get QiHeng in Spain. Hopefully you'll be able to find an option that works for you.
Have you heard of the Tsuki bullet journal? I recently bought it and am really loving it! It’s got 160GSM paper too and I got it for $19.50 which is pretty good I though (includes free shipping!) thank you for this video, it’s so nice to see more affordable options on the market!!
I hadn't heard of Tsuki... so I googled. Looks like a great option. Thanks for sharing.
Stationery Nerd you’re very welcome :) I’m really in love with mine
I'm sad that they're out of the cute little ant design but I got the owl version instead, looking forward to it! Thanks for the review!
Oh no! I'm bummed the ant is out of stock, too.
I love Pounce in the video! Kept watching for her! Lol
Strong work, Pam! I had never even heard of 160 gsm notebooks. You did a wonderful job comparing. I was surprised that so many didn’t pass the art supplies test, and honestly shocked at the feathering on some. Of course I now have to seek out the Qi Heng! Pick me when you give away one of those Tekukors!! LOL
Keep an eye out for that giveaway. It'll be later this week.
The most expensive are the worst. Interesting. I think I will go with the Tekukor mainly because I don't like any of the designs on the SeQeS currently. I also like that the pages are numbered on the Tekukor. Thank you for this wonderful review.
Thanks. I'm a beginner at bullet journaling so it's very helpful.
Although I watched with x2 speed
Thanks for such an excellent review! I read your blog post and watched this review. I love your cat! This is exactly what I’ve been looking for - the heavier paper and NOT Archer and Olive. Unfortunately, I found you too late - the Tekukor is unavailable on Amazon! (There is a floral design cover that seems to be the same - not at all my style but it’s what’s inside that counts, right?) Or maybe the QiHeng ant will do. Still deciding.
Pounce is adorable!!!
So I just got an Archer and Olive (Jun 2020) was worried because I saw this video and considered returning it. I just tried gouache and acrylic pen on the pages. There wasn’t any ghosting. It bends a little but like... I don’t understand why everyone is freaking out about the A&O. I guess I’ll try watercolor here in a bit but Either the paper changed from the video to this season but like... if you’re like me and was worried about an A&O purchase, I haven’t had problems.
Oh and I paid for it myself. And I’m not a famous youtuber or influenster. I guess I just want to let people know that if they wanted an A&O and were worried after watching this video, just know that I felt like my journal handled the gouache and acrylic paint and such just fine. Now if it’s cost prohibitive, then that’s a different story. But I’d like to add that (to my knowledge), A&O try to run a conscientious business and all.
Oh and Speaking of business practices, are Tekkukor and QiHeng running sustainable and/or ethical practices?
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t really think there’s some sort of Big Bullet Journal conspiracy lol. (Kinda like Big Pharma but Bug Bujo) bon
You keep focusing on how it works for gouache & acrylic, which don't behave the same as watercolor or the other tools that the reviewer used? How is your reassurance going to help people who are worried about feathering with their fountain pens, for example? There are also not that many people upset about A&O *compared to* all the loyal customers who love the journal and write positive reviews. I would not characterize the negative responses as "freaking out," but it is surely understandable for people to be upset if they paid nearly 40 dollars for a journal only to have it not work out for the tools they want to use. Also, you don't need to have a Big Pharma type of "conspiracy" for a company to market itself very well to a niche audience (bullet journal influencers) who maybe oversell the product in their enthusiasm. Or for people to think it works for all media just b/c it works for the few media they happen to use, & therefore unintentionally mislead others about the paper's suitability.
I tired an A&O and got the same results as this video when using the supplies. I received it as a present, I'm a fountain pen user.... well, I feel less guilty because thank goodness I did not buy it with my money. It's unusable for me. For people that are like me, this review is a very important one, because people everywhere saying how great A&O is, and not actually going in depth... it's not useful to anyone.
And sustainable, ethical. I understand and I've seen their website, but please keep in mind that A&O are NOT notebook manufacturers, they're "resellers", so they buy from a manufacturer and then put their brand on and sell it with profit margin (hence the price). I do not believe in big conspiracies, and i do believe that the founder of A&O truly sourced a great company, but I'm always skeptical about companies declaring something that is actually not about them: they do not manufacture books, their word is based on someone else's word! So even if the owner of A&O is 100% sure they are selling vegan/ethical books, her word tells me nothing, because she's not the one making the book.
can anyone send me a link for where to buy the QiHENG journal? I can't seem to find it anywhere!
QiHeng journals are available on Amazon. Here's the link: amzn.to/2qRqcUV
This is very interesting. I’ve only just discovered all of these after trying a Leuchtturm in 2017 and forgetting so quickly that I have 184 pages left. 80gsm so I’ll see if I can be that light-handed if I want to watercolour. I’m not surprised alcohol markers bled, they do that to everything including their own coated papers. I can find all but one of these in the U.K. and that’s QiHeng. I’d only heard of Scribbles that Matter and Archer & Olive, and both cost enough that I put them on the future-maybe pile. Tekukor costs an eye-watering £40 on Amazon U.K. for the 100gsm version, £50 for the B6 with 52gsm. Buke is immensely cheap, though, half price at $12.50 for some reason right now and with free shipping. 160gsm Tekukor is $36.01 on Amazon US including shipping with import fees and that converts to £27.52 today.
I wish the test included graphite pencil and how effectively it erases.
OH! That's a great idea. I'll add that to future notebook reviews. Thanks for sharing.
I am in search of stencils, at 18:25 you mention that these stencils are not high quality. Do you have suggestions? Amazon is filled with not "so high quality," and I don't know what I am looking for in a stencil. What makes a good stencil? Suggestions for finding good stencils would be appreciated.
Thank you so much for this. Super helpful video. I’m trying to get back into making art and daily journaling.
Would you consider doing a pen test video comparing different paper thicknesses? I have only ever used 80gsm as I didn't realise it went higher than that until recently!
Just because you love work and stationary doesn't mean your a nerd! And yes, this is the first time i actually came across someone who is calling themselves a nerd, be positive!!!
When I call you a nerd, it’s the highest form of a compliment I can give you. I’m a nerd and I love other nerds - we’re the coolest type of people around. We love to learn as much about a product before we make a purchase. Nerds are intelligent and single-mindedly obsessed with a hobby or pursuit
and has an extreme interest in research, academics, and how something works - yes, even stationery.
Such an amazing review. sadly the top two are stupid expensive to get into canada ($70.00) unless I am missing something :(.
Oh no! I didn't realize they weren't easily available in Canada. What a bummer!
I have had this problem too, especially since I prefer a square grid. I ended up just ordering a printed planner.
I also have found the quality pretty on par with my Archer and olive. My watercolours are bleeding just as badly. And I ended up having the problem where the grid doesn't line up from page to page.
I know this video has been out for a while now, but scribble and dot make 160gsm bullet journals and I am aware this video is about 160gsm but I have a 150gsm that is fantastic from ottergami. I really like these types of videos as the advice you give is Amazing thank you
I bought an Archer & Oliver journal a couple of months ago in anticipation of using it as my 2020 Bujo, but after watching through the in-depth analysis of each journal, I'm going to pick up either QiHeng or Tekukor. Thank you so much for your thorough review, and I love your kitties!
Thanks for checking out the video Michele. So glad I could help you find the journal that works best for you.
Ugh literally just experienced this problem with the archer and olive on a brand new book 😭😫
thank you thank you thank you!! this helped me out a lot in finding a bujo! i ordered a maroon Tekukor last summer for 2021 and i love it!! however i can’t seem to find them anywhere now. i searched on Amazon and they’re all out of stock and it says they don’t know when/if there will be a restock!! i’d love to get the other colors of Tekukor but i can’t find them. any suggestions??? please help!
I did buy myself my very first dotted notebook I thought I would like it but I don't I prefer lined paper so when I write a sentence see how long it it on line paper and I also like the number on the end of the paper the tells you how many pages are in a notebook that really helps a lot❤💜💖💗💞💕📓🖋📃
I use the SCTM and I love it. However, that blue Tekukor is absolutely STUNNING. I thought I was just going to buy the same SCTM when I run out of pages but now I'm second guessing that decision. I also love that there is three ribbons, right now I find myself wanting another ribbon.
However, I'd like to know if any of these notebooks have the "plus sign" and dashes in the dot grid to help you find the middle? The SCTM has them and they're sooo helpful! Dont know if I'd want to buy any other notebook if it doesn't have them :/
Guessing there’s a reason so many seams to be painting on a different paper, scanning, printing and glues it to the page...
I saw at least one who does that with painting, but also sells the art pages as downloads I think.Makes sense since then she can collect the original art pieces somewhere else
I have both the BUKE and A&O (bought the first, boyfriend gave me the second), and while now I primarily use A&O this was very enlightening and I will definitely refer to it when purchasing my next one.
I ended up on this video because I am trying to find B5 options for 160 gsm -- I teach so I like to make my teacher journals pretty with a bunch of lettering and using different pens and markers. Unfortunately, I could not find another brand that offered B5 160 gsm, so if you know of any, would you let me know? I looked at Minimalism but they only offer 120gsm
I came for the journal comparisons, I subscribed for the kitties
Welcome to the Nerd Herd!
Thank you doing this review. I was a fan of Baron Fig for a bit but these journals are outstanding. I was going to get an Archer and Olive but since watching this I think I will get going with QiHeng. :)
What kind of ink is most likely to have feathering issues and on what kind of paper? Is it a more wet kind of ink that feathers? I'm not really familiar with the fancier pens that are used for journaling. I have pens in the quality range of G2 or bic gelocity, or Uniball signo.
i absolutely love the color on your nails!
i loved this.. it was awesome!! if you ever do a b5 vid i would be so grateful since i use a b5 and most of these don't have that format oof
Loving the B5 size really limits your choices. :-( Great review!
Have you tried Minimalism Art Premium Edition? It comes in B5. 🤓💛
I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST ME
Hi, I was wondering, and I know, don't hate me.. But I hate white paper... But do use a lot of the products that most of the time bleed thru. Can you advise one with a cream /beige color which is similar to qiheng? 🙈😅
I just looked at Scribbles that Matter on amazon, and the price was over $900! Checked a couple of links and they're all the same. I'm thinking a BIG type!
why didnt i watch this video before i added the Archer and Olive on my xmas wishlist :( the hype made me want it for my 2020 bujo, but now i kinda wish i dont get it so i can buy the QiHeng!
It is now 2021 - I can't find the Tekukor ANYWHERE. Did they go out of business?