notebookism

Palm leaf manuscript writing

“We can learn a lot of things from palm leaves, including grandmother’s remedies, chronology of kings, the Puranas, Thevaram, the Ramayana, Bhagavatham, and Siddha remedies.”

Palm leaves have even been used as divination tools.

A bunch of leaves, with each leaf measuring 8 x 2.5 cm that contains verses from the Ramayana has been used to help people make decisions. A thread is slipped at random between the leaves and the verse is read out.

The outer wooden cover of a manuscript on home remedies has this line written on it, “Rukku nee ooruku poi 27 naal aagudhu,” where a husband notes that it is 27 days since his wife went out of town!

He believes that only if one writes can one read Tamil manuscripts.

Extraordinary zest for Tamil
BY Deepa H Ramakrishnan
The Hindu

LINK

Sketchpet

I'm not sure what these are but they look cool. Brownie points to the reader who can enlighten us.

The Sketchpet at Magin/Wulf

LINK

[Via Chris M.]

Hooked on Classics

As one habit dies hard, another takes hold. The ban on smoking in public places comes into operation in the UK on July 1, 2007. Tank is launching a series of books designed to mimic cigarette packs – the same size, packaged in flip-top cartons with silver foil wrapping and sealed in cellophane.

    TankBooks pay homage to this monumentally successful piece of packaging design by employing it in the service of great literature. Cigarette packs are iconic objects, familiar, tried and tested, and over time TankBooks will become iconic objects in their own right. The launch titles are by authors of great stature

– classic stories presented in classic packaging; objects desirable for both their literary merit and their unique design.

    TankBooks are for people on the move, lovers of literature and connoisseurs of design. Try one and you’ll be hooked.

LINK

[via Amateur Econ Blog]

Moleskinerie Blog Domain Mapping Issue

As you may have noticed Moleskinerie.com is having domain name hiccups (again). We're working to resolve this issue soonest.  The blog should be back in a day or so.  In the meantime, visit the Moleskinerie communities at:

FLICKR
http://flickr.com/groups/moleskinerie/

GOOGLEGROUPS
http://groups-beta.google.com/group/Moleskinerie

FACEBOOK (Registration required)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2574227115

See you there!

Thanks to all those who emailed/called. I appreciate your concern.

- Armand

Update 7.27.07

My apologies for the disruption this week. It was purely a technical matter not involving any notebook terrorists and other conspiracies:)  Thanks to all those who called or emailed. I appreciate your concern and enjoyed your wild theories. - ABF
.................................................................................................................................

Discover and join our communities on Facebook,  FLICKR and GoogleGroups. Check out our Blank Page discussions. We'll see you on Monday.  

Blank Page # 52

Every Wednesday at Notebookism we open a "Blank Page" -  your chance to ask, answer and discuss anything notebook-related.  Keep it nice, keep it relevant.

Blank Page, an Open Thread.

Every Wednesday at Notebookism we open a "Blank Page" -  your chance to ask, answer and discuss anything notebook-related.  Keep it nice, keep it relevant.

Blank Page, an Open Thread.

Every Wednesday at Notebookism we open a "Blank Page" -  your chance to ask, answer and discuss anything notebook-related.  Keep it nice, keep it relevant.

Blank Page, an Open Thread.

Les Herger's Notebooks

The 3 notebooks I carry with me everyday are as follows- bottom- a recycled sign vinyl notebook, it's my work bible. It goes to meetings, conference calls and important notes about everything work related. middle notebooks- handmade hedgehog with cardstock pages, sheep hide cover, fabric penslip a pen and a pencil inside. I alternate between this and another hedgehog for all sketches and product ideas. Top- pocket sized gridded moleskine with a black leather penslip. The penslip used to house my space pens, but I made the mistake of leaving my silver space pen loose on my desk with all my notebooks and some SOB stole it.

View at Notebookism/FLICKR

Fountain-pen converts are doing the write thing

People have started collecting fountain pens for the strangest of reasons - because they want to write with them.

The world-record price for a fountain pen is the £183,000 paid at Bonhams in London for a 1928 Dunhill-Namiki 'No 50 Giant', all of 10 inches long and decorated with hand-lacquered dragons.

But that was seven years ago. Since then, the market has shaken down: most of today's fountain-pen enthusiasts are buying for their desktop or inside pocket rather than their display cabinet. They aim to own perhaps seven or eight classic, mostly modern, designs, all inked, instead of hoarding hundreds of vintage models that they never use. Typical spending is now about £200 to £500.

For example, a large Parker Centennial Duofold: £300 new, £150 second-hand. Or a standard Meisterstuck by Montblanc, pioneer of fat, status-symbol pens: £280 to £300 new, £100 to £120 second-hand.

"Fountain-pen converts are doing the write thing"
By John Windsor
The Guardian Unlimited

LINK

MUJI Notebooks

MUJI is distinguished by its design minimalism, emphasis on recycling, avoidance of waste in production and packaging, and no-logo policy. Products range from pens, notebooks, and clothing for men and women to food items and major kitchen appliances. Its primary business includes Café MUJI, Meal MUJI, MUJI Campsite, florist and home furnishing; the company has recently taken steps into housing construction.

MUJI

Link to Notebooks

Grid it Notepads

" Grids form as essential part of our lives. We may not always notice them, but their influence on what we see, hear and do is everywhere. Wherever plans have been called for in the building of objects, the division of areas, of the decoration of flat surfaces grids have been involved. The desire to bring order to the bewildering confusion of appearances reflects a deep human need. In this sense, they can be seen as metaphors for the human need to make sense of the world and to position ourselves in control of it. The grid is not a typographic device alone. The tension between chaos and order and its concomitant anxieties are present in all human activity, not just graphic design. From gridlock to sonnet structure, electricity to politics, dentistry to hopscotch, a journey down London's Oxford St. or any other street in any town, grids are everywhere. Grids, modules, and systems not only have practical applications, as a means to resolve complex design problems, but they also provide a sense of order and and temporary respite from the most pressing and basic human fears and dilemmas. .."

Grid it Notepads

The Art of the Grid /Main page

[Photo: M. Salinas]

Discover and join our communities on Facebook,  FLICKR and GoogleGroups. Check out our Blank Page discussions. We'll see you on Monday.  

Between A & B

"When writing, I aim for tightness. I often joke that my ideal written piece would contain no words. In my fantasy, my editorial carving is so advanced as to yield a splendidly blank page. Needless to say, such revisionary persistence is absurd and pragmatically useless, yet I often yearn for it. Why? Of what value is a blank page?

For most of us, the realm of ineffability is safely tucked away, reserved for use by dreamers and psychotics. I propose a partial boycott of our "effable" hardware. Let's make way for blank pages. Or, better stated: L t s m k w y f r b l k p g s. Who knows what we'll see?" 

Eric Shapiro

[via Whiskey River]