Karen recently received some questions about Herbin’s Perle Noire ink. Since this is one I have reviewed and regularly use, I’d be happy to respond.

Is this ink a really dark black? While I haven’t tried every black ink on the market, I have used quite a few across brands such as Noodler’s, Sailor, Pelikan, Aurora and Diamine. It was important to me to find a very black ink and I was happy enough with the Perle Noire that I stopped looking. I’ve heard of Noodler’s having a number of different black inks that I have not tried. (I’ve only ever used their Bulletproof Black)

I also tend to place a certain amount of importance on the smell of an ink- Herbin inks have a slight sweet odor that I find completely acceptable. Some inks have more of a chemical scent which I try and stay away from.

Second, is this ink pH-neutral? From JHerbin.com: “Herbin uses all natural dyes in their fountain pen inks. This natural composition is reflected in the very neutral pH of the inks.”

Third, is this pen a ‘wet’ or ‘dry’ ink? In my own personal experience, I would call this a “wet” (quite free flowing) ink – and is probably the “wettest” of all the Herbin inks. (I’ve tried them all)

Fourth, which pens would be best suited to the J. Herbin ‘Perle Noire’, or will it work well in ALL fountain pens? It’s going to be a matter of personal opinion of which pens would be best for this ink. It’s suited for all pens, but one must consider the  pen/ink/paper combination as a whole. Since it’s a fairly “wet” ink, I’ve found that I like it best in a thinner nib on quality writing paper.

Lastly, what is the drying time of the Perle Noire ink? This will depend on the paper you are using as well as the relative humidity of where you are doing your writing. Fountain pen friendly papers tend to slightly resist inks which mean a slightly longer drying time. I’ve never noticed that this ink took longer to dry than any other. (As much as I can remember anyway… I’ve tested a lot of inks and I’m getting old.)

Click here to read my original review of Perle Noire
Click here to see a comparison of 4 black inks including Perle Noire

Are you a fan of our Rhodia Drive Facebook page? Yesterday it was revealed to our Facebook fans that something new will be blooming in the Spring with our new orange covered dotPads. Are you excited? We had many, many requests for these.

What other kinds of Rhodia products are you hoping to see in the new catalog?

This wirebound Multiple Subject book by Clairefontaine features 60 sheets in pale pastel colors: blue, pink, green & yellow. It is graph ruled and includes 12 tabbed sections- this medium size is 6 3/4″ x 8 5/8.” Small (8 tabs) and large (4 tabs) versions are also available.

With 12 tabs, my first instinct would be to use this book in a yearly fashion; one month per tab – but how could we use this book? I’d love to hear your most ingenious ideas.

Check these out! Exclusive to Levenger are the new Circa Rhodia Meetings books!

From the Levenger website:

• Annotation margin is compatible with the Cornell method of note-taking
• 60 Circa-punched sheets of 90-gsm Clairefontaine paper, milled in France
• 1/2-inch Circa discs can hold up to 80 sheets
• Durable translucent cover with Rhodia orange cover sheet
• Pages are printed in Rhodia’s signature purple
• Printed and assembled in the USA
• Junior: Paper, 5 1/2W x 8 1/2H; cover with 8 discs, 6 5/8W x 1/2D x 8 5/8H
• Letter: Paper, 8 1/2W x 11H; cover with 11 discs, 9 5/8W x 1/2D x 11 1/4H

So what do you think, will you buy one? I myself am a big fan of the Meeting Books and also of the idea that I can rearrange things at will.

Based on the amount of feedback and emails we have received, we are reintroducing Rhodia WebPlanners for the 2012-2013 academic year. 

Any last-bits of advice on changes, enhancements, etc.?

One of my favorite non-Rhodia products from Exaclair is the Quo Vadis Habana. They are a slightly different animal than Rhodia’s Webbie. First off, they have stiff, but not hard covers – take note that the cover on the small Habana is stiffer than on the large.

The paper in the Habanas is an 85g off-white versus the 90g off-white found in the Webbies and from what I’ve found so far, the 85g appears to be as fountain pen friendly as the 90g.The Webbie sizes are 3.5×5.5″ and 5.5×8.25″ and the Habanas 4×6.3″ and 6.25×9.25″. Webbies are made in France, the Habanas in the USA. Habanas are available lined or blank with 80 sheets (160 pages) the Webbies come lined, blank or dot grid and have 96 sheets (192 pages.)

Each has an elastic closure, a ribbon bookmark and rounded corners. (I am a big fan of rounded corners as they don’t dig into your hand as you reach the bottom of the page.)

The small Habana is my book of choice for when I travel as I prefer its slightly larger size to the small Webbie. For an every day journal, I prefer the large Webbie to the large Habana though some of that had been due to the fact that the last time I tried a large Habana, they had white paper (I prefer off-white) and wide ruling. I’ve got a new one to try and am eager to dig into those blank off-white pages.

Have you tried a Habana yet?

Large Rhodia and small Habana outfitted with Quiver leather pen holders.

We hear….

-Rhodia will be introducing a No. 18 Dot Pad.

-Dot Pads will be available in several spiral sizes, including the popular No. 13 and No. 14.

-There will be a Dot Pad cover in orange.

More soon….

The R by Rhodia, our new premium pad, is scheduled to arrive in the U.S. the third week of July.  This means it should be at retailers by early August. 

The R was a hit at shows this spring – National Art Materials Trade Association (NAMTA), the National Stationery Show and Book Expo America.  People loved the richness of the paper and the new “soft touch” cover.

The R by Rhodia features blank or ruled 90g ivory paper.  It comes in three sizes – No. 12, No. 16 and No. 18. The covers are orange and black.

Rhodia Drive will offer a “R by Rhodia” giveaway to 20 lucky winners later this summer.

Yesterday I mentioned moving into a Quo Vadis Habana. Did you know that the new Habanas with 85g ivory paper are now available? I’m very much looking forward to trying one of these as I prefer ivory paper to white and I like the sizing of the small Habana for travel. If you missed the story on why the paper was changed, you can read about it here.

Wondering if this 85g paper will stand up to your favorite fountain pen and ink? According to Brian Goulet of Goulet Pens, it will indeed. Other than the color of the paper changing, the width of the ruling has been modified as well. In the large Habana, the ruling was 8mm and it is now 5.5mm. Fine nibbed users rejoice! In the small Habana, the ruling changed from 5mm to 5.5mm.

One more thing- there had been several different versions of the Habana in the US versus the rest of the world. The Habanas are now standard all over the world. 85g off white and 5.5mm ruling in both the large and small versions.

Much thanks to Brian for putting together this detailed video review of the new Habana which references the changes from the older versions.

A short while back when we were looking for bloggers to review Exaclair products, David from the blog David-Wasting-Paper responded that he would like to try one of the 8×8″ Clairefontaine sketchbooks. (One of my favorite Exaclair products because the round mandalas that I draw happen to fit nicely into a square page.)

“I really like this sketchbook and look forward to filling it up. The paper takes a nice smooth pen line even though it is medium toothed and also handles watercolors well without much buckling. The heavy back cover is definitely a plus.”

David’s review struck a chord with me because I am partial to product reviews which a ton of photos. Especially ones that showcase a plethora of art supplies. You can see David’s review in it’s entirety, here.

I know you wanted it, and now you can finally get it! Junior sized Circa Rhodia Notebooks are available right now, only at Levenger. When Circa met Rhodia, it was a match made in heaven. Pairing Rhodia’s classic orange and black notebook with the convenience of Circa organization is a win-win note-taking combination.

Features of the Circa Rhodia Products:

• Annotation margin is compatible with the Cornell method of note-taking
• 60 Circa-punched sheets of 90g  Clairefontaine paper, milled in France
• 1/2-inch Circa discs can hold up to 80 sheets
• Durable translucent cover with Rhodia orange cover sheet
• Pages are printed in Rhodia’s signature purple ink
• Printed and assembled in the USA
• Junior, 6 1/4W x 1/2D x 8 3/4H
• Letter, 9 3/8W x 1/2D x 11 1/4H

Have you ever tried Circa products, or any other brand of disc-bound notebooks? I have, and I love the having the flexibility of moving the pages where I want/need them when working on a writing project.

The new “R” by Rhodia notepads contain a 90g Ivory Clairefontaine paper and are available both blank or lined. I am most definitely looking forward to seeing these! For writing, I prefer off-white paper. For drawing, I prefer white but not a super bright white. How about you? What’s your preference for writing or drawing?

Look what showed up in my mailbox today! dotWebbies! These were shipped special from France so Karen & the Exaclair folks would have them for NAMTA, the National Stationery Show and the Book Expo. If you are a retailer visiting one of these trade shows, you will be able to see (and order!) the dotWebbies at that time. Otherwise, it will be a little while until they are available from your favorite US retailers. (Late Spring maybe?) Karen promised I could give a bunch away as soon as she can get her hands on more.

Off-white paper with gray dots.

Did you ever question the names of J. Herbin’s inks? From what I understand,  the chosen names for each color are  poetic to preserve the originality of the brand, and as a French tradition.

For Example: Rose Tendresse shown above, whose name translates to English as “Tenderness Pink,” This is the rose of love and the flowers of the same name and symbol of love. The color represents the feeling of love and also tenderness shared by 2 lovers.

You can read about each of the names of the 30 inks on the J Herbin website. While you are there, feel free to poke around the rest of the site. Lost of great information to be found!

Rhodia dotWebbies,  Rhodia Premium Stapled Pads with Soft Touch covers, new Rhodia pad holders,  Rhodia Unlimited, Rhodia Leather Pencil Cases, Rhodia Pencil Holders,  Clairefontaine Reporter pads, Clairefontaine Crok’ Book Sketch Notebooks, Redesigned Quo Vadis Habanas, (Keith Haring Habanas!) and more!

Want to see? Check out the online catalog here.

As Exaclair does not sell direct to the public, paper catalogs are only available to retailers.

Christina Villecco is an attorney and consultant who works in fashion merchandizing and related services. She also maintains a style blog, Wearing White After Labor Day.  Here’s what she had to say about Paul Smith Rhodia pads:

“No outfit is complete without the perfect accessories. Whether you’re a fashion addict like me, or someone who occasionally browses the New York Times Style section, the Rhodia notepad is a must-have. I’ve never been a one-size-fits-all kind of girl, so when it comes to my notebooks, there’s no exception. When Rhodia celebrated their 75th anniversary last year by collaborating with English fashion legend Paul Smith, the result was both obvious and irresistible. The iconic orange and black notepads got a facelift with ironic images from the English brand. If you’re wearing a simple white T and jeans kind of dresser, the classics are still a safe bet. But if you have a little edge in your step and prefer to mix stripes and patterns, try out the Paul Smith logo collection for an accessory sure to put the finishing touch on your ensemble.”

Image courtesy of Biffybeans © All Rights Reserved

New developments on the Habana front! The small 4×6 3/8″ Habana (which I’ve always referred to as the “Baby” Habana) is new & improved. There is now a blank version available with the 90g Clairefontaine paper  – the same paper found in the large version. For the doodlers among us, Wheeee!

Due to the addition of the thicker paper, the number of pages (in the small blank version) has been reduced from 96 to 80, but to me, this is a fair swap. Exaclair had been receiving feedback that the 64g wasn’t fountain pen friendly enough, and so Voila! They changed it, and yet the book size stays the same. The  new 6×9″ blank version will maintain the same number of pages (80) as the lined version. There is also the addition of a  ribbon book mark.

The blank version will be available in two new colors-  Green (think lime) and Raspberry, and will also be available in Black and Red.

For a limited time, Levenger will be carrying an exclusive line of Clairefontaine Linicolor products – spiral bound with bright Polypro covers, (blue, green, orange, pink & yellow) they contain Clairefontaine 90g paper and are available in the following formats:

• 4 7/8″  x 5 7/8″ Lined Wirebound Notebook (120 pages)
• 8 3/4″ x 11 3/4″ Lined Wirebound Notebook (80 pages)
• 5 3/4″ x 8 3/4″  Lined Wirebound Notebook – Steno Style (80 pages)
• 8 3/4″ x 11 3/4″ Lined Wirebound Notebook – Top Bound (80 pages)
• 8 3/4″ x 11 3/4″ Wirebound Notebook – Meeting Format (80 pages)

Rhodia pads range in size from the wee little #10 at 2×3″ to the monster #38 at 16 1/2 x 12 1/2″.

While I can see a plethora of uses for the #10 since it can easily fit into just about any pocket or bag, I’m wondering exactly how people are using the #38. My first thought was back to the mid 80′s and my short but enjoyable career as dungeon master playing Dungeons & Dragons, drawing careful and complex castle schematics on graph paper.  (Are people still playing D&D the old way, or is it all done via computer now?)

Some other uses I can imagine for the #38 include, garden planning, dream house visualizing, calligraphy practice….

How would you use each of these?

Uh-oh,  I guess I should add a disclaimer that the ink isn’t actually made out of lightning bugs….

Exaclair will be debuting this new J. Herbin Phosphorescente ink at the upcoming National Stationery Show in New York City, May 16th-19th at the Javits Center.

Karen told me that this ink is meant to “glow like a firefly’s belly” and that it does! It is not an ink for fountain pens, so break out the dip pens for this one. And I’m certain you can guess what I did with it the minute I got it, right? Glow-in-the-dark mandala? You betcha! Now I just have to figure out how to take a picture of the results!