Da Vinci Notebook stone paper folded

Da Vinci stone paper & Kickstarter campaign

7 April 2014 By ian

The Da Vinci Notebook is a Kickstarter campaign that finishes on Thursday 24 April 2014. As I write this it has reached more than twice its funding goal. Da Vinci Notebooks use bleach free and wood free paper. In fact the paper is made in an environmentally friendly way using stone.

Nick Romer, the Da Vinci Notebook inventor, was kind enough to send me a sample of this unique paper to test. It has some very unusual properties.

Da Vinci Notebook stone paper review

The paper is very white and very smooth and inks look great on it. The paper really shows off inks’ shading. Dry times aren’t fantastic but nor are they by any means disastrous. There is some feathering though. (Actually, it’s probably not feathering as such, but spreading.)

Da Vinci Notebook stone paper feathering

There is also some railroading: this comes from some property of the paper, not from the nibs.

Da Vinci Notebook stone paper railroading

I couldn’t recommend this paper for fountain pens particularly. It isn’t terrible but it’s not Rhodia.

It is, however, the first paper I’ve found that can survive a Sharpie. A Sharpie doesn’t feather, doesn’t bleed and doesn’t show through. Nothing I tried showed through or bled.

This paper is very soft. If I pressed down with a pencil the tip would from an impression on one side that I could then see on the other side

Da Vinci Notebook stone paper soft

Pencils also smudge when you try to rub them out which is a shame because pencil goes on exceptionally well, if a little faintly (because of the smoothness). Blending and smooth shading is a piece of cake on this paper. (I have been told that a squishy/kneadable eraser works well. I know I have one somewhere but I can’t find it so I’ve not been able to check this.)

Where this paper comes into its own, though, is with drawing in ink and colour. Colours are so vibrant and the paper is so smooth that I can imagine pictures really coming to life.

Da Vinci Notebook stone paper arty

This is a fascinating product. I would not use it myself for writing very much in. For diagrams and doodles and art, though, I think it could be great. Colour looks fantastic and pens and pencils glide over it. Blending is easy and smooth. It would be a lot of fun to draw and paint on this. (Just don’t make a mistake!) It would especially suit markers (such as Copic markers) and water-based pens (such as Tombow ABT brush pens and many others).

It’s worth checking out the Kickstarter page because there are several aspects to this paper I haven’t covered here, such as its waterproof nature, or haven’t covered in any depth, such as its environmental benefits, as well as a huge range of customisation options.

Thank you to Nick for sending me this paper and good luck with the campaign!

Da Vinci Notebook stone paper folded