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January 6, 2020

Erin Condren Softbound Dot Grid Notebook Review (Pros, Cons & Pen Testing)

Erin Condren are known for making pretty things, so when they came out with dot grid notebooks I wanted one!

Quick facts

  • Size: 5 x 8″ inside pages (the cover is slightly more than this)
  • Softcover
  • Stitched binding
  • Optional cover personalisation (your name in foil)
  • 124 pages
  • 80# (120 GSM) paper
  • Choose between dot grid or lined inside pages

Price $14 USD (+$5 extra if you opt to personalise the cover)

Let’s take a closer look!

To enlarge the screen of the video, click the square icon in the bottom right hand corner of the video (it will say ‘full screen’ when you hover your mouse over the icon).

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See the rest of my Erin Condren haul in this post.

The Cover

The cover is soft and bendy – that vegan leather material. The corners are rounded so it shouldn’t get damaged.

erin condren dot grid softbound notebook review video pros and cons

Love that silver foil edging on the pages!

erin condren bullet journal notebook review 5 x 8 inches purple silver foil edging bright white paper pros and cons

erin condren bullet journal notebook review 5 x 8 inches purple silver foil edging bright white paper purple cover

Approx 0.5″ thick

erin condren softbound notebook dot grid silver edge hardcover a5 page size

erin condren notebook review softbound

erin condren take note dot grid notebook review pros and cons pen testing paper quality

The pages do lay flat on their own.

There is 1 built in ribbon bookmark:

erin condren softbound notebook dot grid a5 page size bright white paper bookmark ribbon built in

There are different colored asterisk flags throughout – quite a variety: gold, orange, purple, blue, green, pink, purple, mint, teal and pastel pink.

erin condren bullet journal notebook review 5 x 8 inches purple silver foil edging bright white paper bujo

erin condren bullet journal notebook review bujo video flipthrough colorful

I really hate when companies put things inside the dot grid. Usually it’s page numbers – in this instance it’s the logo. I know the notebook is Erin Condren, I don’t need a reminder in the corner of every 2nd page. It’s really annoying – you can’t really write over the top unless you use whiteout which will look odd since the pages are ivory – not pure white.

erin condren bullet journal notebook review 5 x 8 inches purple silver foil edging bright white paper

The dots are 7mm spacing – so bigger than most dot grid notebooks that have 5mm spacing.

erin condren bullet journal notebook review 5 x 8 inches purple silver foil edging bright white paper colorful personalised

erin condren dot grid notebook softbound bright white paper

I’m not a fan of this big gap near the spine – an extra column of dots could’ve been added.

erin condren bullet journal notebook review 5 x 8 inches purple silver foil edging bright white paper video flipthrough

Pen Testing

For all the hype Erin Condren created about the improved Mohawk paper… it’s not that great:

erin condren softbound notebook pen testing highlighters ghosting bleed through

Everything had light ghosting – more for the highlighters than the pens.

erin condren softbound notebook for bullet journaling review pen testing paper quality bright white paper gel ballpoint fine tip

Pros of the Notebook

  • Portable size
  • Lightweight
  • Rainbow colors throughout
  • Option to personalise the cover
  • Different cover colors to choose from
  • Silver foil (you can also get rose gold) edging on the pages
  • Pages lay flat
  • Fast shipping internationally (my order arrived within 5 days and it included a personalised notebook too)

Cons of the Notebook

  • The Erin Condren logo printed on every 2nd page
  • There is a large margin near the stitched binding i.e could’ve fit another column of dots
  • Paper is prone to ghosting
  • No pocket folder
  • Only 1 ribbon bookmark
  • No numbered pages
  • Dot grid is bigger than the usual 5mm dot grid (that most of this type of notebook have)

Would I use this notebook?

Maybe. I like this notebook but a few functionally flaws let it down: no numbered pages, the logo within the dot grid and the paper is prone to ghosting. It’s nice and only $14 USD is a good price.

More notebook reviews:

  • Practical Paper Co. Custom Dot Grid Notebook
  • Poluma Dot Grid Notebook
  • Artfan Dot Grid Notebook 

Planning Tips:

  • Setting up a new month in my bullet journal (minimalist style)
  • How to choose the right bullet journal notebook for you (10 things to check)
  • 7 Bullet Journal Supplies I Don’t Use

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erin condren bullet journal softbound notebook dot grid bright white paper pen testing honest review

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Posted In: Bullet Journal, Bullet Journal Reviews · Tagged: bullet journal notebook review, bullet journal with silver edging, ec bullet journal, ec notebook, ec planner, erin condren bujo, erin condren bujo notebook, erin condren bullet journal, erin condren bullet journal notebook, erin condren dot grid notebook, erin condren dot grid notebook review, erin condren paper pen testing, erin condren pen testing, personalised bullet journal, personalised bullet journal notebook

Comments

  1. Kim Rychwa says

    January 6, 2020 at 23:21

    I did purchase one of these as well. I can overlook the logo placement and wide margins. I actually find the larger spacing of dots a “pro” as I’ve had a hand injury and I cannot write as small anymore. The ghosting is bothersome though…

  2. JennyME says

    January 8, 2020 at 03:22

    I love the foiled edges! That asterisk on the cover drives me *nuts* though. I don’t like it at all & refuse to buy these notebooks because of it.

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