There aren’t many Australian dot grid notebooks available but one that is, is the Lisa Maj bullet journal notebooks.

Disclaimer: I received these notebooks for free in exchange for this review. As always, all opinions are my own.

Lisa Maj Dot Grid Notebooks

I’m not sure if she always gift wraps it this nicely but this is how the notebooks arrived:

There are 2 binding types: wire bound and cotton (stitched) binding.

Let’s take a closer look!

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Starting with my favorite of the 2: the wire bound

• Size: Approx 6″ wide x 8.25″ high (around A5 page size)
• Lay flat binding
• No page numbers
• 100 double sided pages
• Bright white paper (100 GSM)
• Cardstock cover (300 GSM)

Price: $39 AUD

The inside front and back covers are a different, but similar floral design to the front

Love this bright white paper!

The notebooks are handmade – I did notice some inconsistent dot placement at the edges of some of the pages.

Sewn Bound Notebook

• Size: Approx 6″ wide x 8.25″ high (around A5 page size)
• Lay flat cotton stitched binding
• No page numbers
• Choose between 60 and 100 double sided pages
• Bright white paper (100 GSM)
• Cardstock cover (300 GSM)

Price: $20 – $24 AUD (depends on the number of pages)

If you’re a fan of traveller’s notebooks, but prefer a wider page size, this could be a good option.

I’m not normally a fan of sewn bound notebooks but this one actually lays flat.

I do wish the covers were either laminated or a thicker cardstock / chipboard, the corners were a bit scuffed on arrival:

Pen Test

The creator of these notebooks included a helpful pen test list with recommendations for which pens to use and which to avoid.

Despite the product description stating pens won’t bleed through the paper (one of the reasons I was keen to try these notebooks), the paper is only 100 GSM so almost all of the pens and highlighters had some ghosting. If you use this notebook, stick to the Frixion erasable, ballpoint or gel pens.

Pros of the Notebooks

• Portable size
• Bright white paper that’s really smooth to write on
• Each notebook includes lots of pages (the wire bound is 100 double sided pages)

Cons of the Planner

• No page numbers
• Limited cover options (and all are floral patterns)
• Irregular dot placement on some of the pages
• Cardstock covers are thin and easily damaged
• Expensive
• No built in ribbon bookmarks
• Paper is prone to ghosting and bleed through

Would I use these notebooks?

I normally avoid sewn notebooks like Traveller’s Notebooks but I do like the wider page size of this one. However the wire bound version is still my favorite as it lays completely flat. The notebooks are nice but more cover options (I’m not a fan of floral patterns) and / or cover personalisation would be good, as well as thicker paper.

More bullet journal notebook reviews:

• My Favorite Dot Grid Notebooks for Bullet Journaling
• Scribbles That Matter Notebook
• Little More Notebook
• Practical Paper Co. Custom Dot Grid Notebook

Planning Tips:

• Color coding and planner decorating: 10 Pen brands that are available in a pack of 20 or more colors
• Pens & Highlighters Smear Testing: Which ones don’t smear 
• Microsoft Word versus Photoshop: Which is Better for Making Printables?

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