Exaclair product review, Part 2: Quo Vadis Habana review, US version

I'm still sick, and it's cold outside, so this seems like a good time to catch up on my review of the US version of the Quo Vadis Habana. Like the Rhodia Webnotebook reviewed last week, this was also a sample from Karen at Exaclair. It's markedly different from the Quo Vadis Habana I bought in Calgary about a year and a half ago, which at the time had me wondering at the raves it was getting on various forums and blogs.

As I wrote at the FPN forum :
"the paper in my Habana does not have the silky feel that I expected from a Clairefontaine product... It feels nothing like Rhodia, Clairefontaine, or the Quo Vadis planners I've owned in the past. It feels toothy running your hand over it...Writing on this paper made my pen feel scratchy - in fact, I had to keep some Rhodia notepaper nearby to write on intermittently to assure myself that the tines didn't suddenly spring out of alignment or catch a fibre. There isn't any doubt that it was the paper causing the scratchy feeling."

That post produced some discussion at the Quo Vadis blog, and it appeared that notebooks sold in Canada and Europe were different from the ones in the US, a situation that is still true: the difference between the Canadian market Habana and US market Habana is apparant in more ways than one - though not till you open up the book.

The outer appearance is the same: hard cover padded with softer vinyl, similar to the Webnotebook . In both versions, the logo is imprinted in the bottom right hand corner.
(all pictures are clickable to larger versions)



Both of these are the large size, approximately 6" x 9", so larger than either the large Moleskine or Webnotebook. Note that the the Canadian version with the brown/orange label contains 224 pages, in contrast to the US version with 80 sheets/160 pages. Implicit here is the difference in paper weight: in a notebook of identical size, the Canadian version necessarily contains lighter weight paper - 60 g according to the thread referenced earlier.


(Canadian version on the right, with orange and brown label)

The Canadian version has cream colored paper, which I personally really like and a narrower ruling, which I don't love, but don't mind, either. In contrast, the US version has bright white Clairefontaine paper, with wider ruling.


(Canadian version in cream on the left, US version in white on the right)

Actually, on the front page, both notebooks seem to perform well. There's no feathering from any of the inks in the Canadian version. The lighter weight is really apparant, though, as you can easily see the writing showing through from the next page. That might not, in itself, bother me. If it weren't for this:


(Canadian version in cream on the left, US version in white on the right)

Quite a bit more bleeding through that I really would like. In comparison, there is no bleedthrough, and minimal showthrough in the heavier, glossier paper used in the US version. The paper feels just as you'd expect Clairefontaine paper to feel - strong, smooth, and perfect for fountain pen ink. I've used Clairefontaine clothbound notebooks for some time, and it's great to have this paper bound in a hardcover with elastic and pocket.

Like the Webnotebook, the US version of the Habana is superior to the Canadian/EU version in many ways, although personal preference might come into play. Some people dislike the bright white colour and the wide ruling, although that would not personally be a deterrent for me. It could also be argued that with less pages, 160 vs. 224, it might be less of a bargain - but the trade-off is paper weight: if you end up only writing on one side of the lighter, 60 g pages due to bleeding or showthrough, all those extra pages aren't much of an advantage.

Bottom line:
I like the US version of the Habana a good deal better than the Canadian one, and would again find it more usable. However, I don't like it better than the Webnotebook, which would be my preference because of the smaller size, cream colored pages, and slightly narrower ruling. Because of the wider ruling, I would be less likely to use the Habana as my personal journal, and more likely to use it as a project journal where I want ideas laid and spaced out more clearly (I like my personal stuff to look cramped and cryptic :) - like my thoughts)

The Habana would be a great choice for anyone who likes Clairefontaine paper, which has always been consistent for me in performance and texture. It has a utilitarian, no-nonsense look and the slim build and durable binding would make it ideal for carrying around day-to day. However, for the reasons given above my first choice would still be the Webnotebook.

Exaclair product review, Part 1: Rhodia Webnotebook , the US version

A little background, to start with: the buzz over the much anticipated Rhodia Webnotebook seems to have come in two waves. The first wave anticipated the initial release of the Webnotebook, which looked to be a promising alternative to the ubiquitous and highly successful Moleskine. Moleskine users, while favoring the hard covers, elastic band, and inner pocket, bemoaned the inconsistency of the paper, which sometimes feathered or bled when used with fountain pen ink. Many fountain pen users are already fans of the smooth, ink-friendly paper found in Rhodia pads, so the idea of Rhodia paper bound in a moleskine-like format would offer the best of both worlds.

The initial release of the Webnotebook, unfortunately, failed to meet expectations: users at Fountain Pen Network reported that the paper was quite unlike that found in the Rhodia pads and was disappointingly unsuitable for many fountain pens and inks. Exaclair , the US distributor of Rhodia, Quo Vadis, Exacompta and Clairefontaine (among others) listened to the response and moved quickly, and several months later, released an improved version of the Webnotebook, this time with the Rhodia paper everyone knew and loved. Sadly, this version was only released in the States, as I found out when I purchased a Webnotebook in my home province of Alberta - it was one of those with the inferior paper.


left: black Webnotebook bought in Canada. 80g paper, 192 lined pages, 14.5 x 21 cm
right: orange Webnotebook, US version from Exaclair. 90 g paper, 192 lined pages, 5"x 8"
(this picture and all the rest are clickable to larger sizes)

Stephanie of Rhodia Drive took pity on me, especially since she knew this was my second experience with a Canadian version of a product that did not perform as well as the US versions. She contacted Karen Doherty of Exaclair, who generously sent me sample copies of the Webnotebook, the Quo Vadis Habana, and the Exacompta Basics sketchbook in a Madiera cover.

My first reaction - "Only in America? Pity!" (you have to be a certain age and nationality to get that reference)
OK - that was actually my second (or third) reaction: my first reaction was "Put those down! Those are for me!" as my husband and son pounced on them: "These look great! can I have one? Can I have THIS one?"

The Webnotebook is certainly a good looking notebook, as is the Habana and Madeira sketchbook accompanying it. The version I received is just a little wider than a large Moleskine. It might be my imagination, but it also seems a tad thicker than my Canadian purchased version, which could either be because it contains 90 rather than 80 g. paper - or, it could just be because black is slimming :)

bottom to top: Canadian-purchased Webnotebook, US version Webnotebook, large Moleskine

The build is very like the moleskine, with a softer vinyl cover that is slightly imprinted by the elastic band, but that's not something that would bother me. There is an accordion pocket in the back (I admit I rarely use the pocket in this size journal, but it is still nice to have). Others have commented that they don't care for the Rhodia logo stamped on the front or printed on the page corners, but again, this isn't something that would really bother me.



There's two things I really want my ideal notebook to do: Lie flat when open, and take fountain pen ink without bleeding (ink spreading through to the other side) or feathering (spidery ink veins spreading from the line).

I'm happy to say that the US version of the Rhodia webnotebook does both, for the most part. I really hate writing into the "hump" in the middle of a book - that should not be a problem here. The signatures seem sewn in a little tighter than the Moleskine, so the pages don't lie quite as flat - but they will remain open if you leave the book open. I think they will likely loosen up with use and over time.



The paper is cream colored and, happily, is as great to write on as the Rhodia pad. I believe it's a touch heavier in weight - 90 g as opposed to the 80 g in the pads, but it has the same smooth feel. Best of all, it takes fountain pen ink happily, allowing a nice crisp line without bleeding or feathering. Now, I admit that I'm using somewhat different inks, because I bought the Canadian version several months ago, but most of the pens used in this test are the same, with similar inks. Click through to get the Flickr "all sizes" option if you like.


left: Canadian version. right: US version. Lines are much crisper.


left: Canadian version - note large amount of bleeding and showthrough. This makes me crazy, because I am much too cheap to only write on one side of the page.
right: US version - no bleedthrough. Yay!

My only disappointment is that this version is not available in Canada, to the best of my knowledge. The US version appears to have been produced in response to its users and the initial reviews, but there doesn't appear to be a similar response from Canadian distributors. There may well be some good reason having to do with trade and imports that I can't begin to understand, but the bottom line is that if I were in a Canadian stationery store with both the Webnotebook and Moleskine on nearby shelves, I would still pick up the Moleskine, because even with the inconsistent paper, it's still better than the Canadian version of the Rhodia Webnotebook.

If you're in the States, or can get easy access to the improved, 90 g paper version of the Webnotebook, it's certainly worth picking up. I would also love to see a plain or gridded version of this, in addition to the lined one. If in Canada, wait till you're travelling south of the 49th before buying this, or until the happy day that Canadian distributors catch on, and start stocking this much better version. Well - if you use a fountain pen, that is. If you don't have that to worry about, go ahead and get either version - it's a great notebook: sturdy, handsome, in utilitarian black or outspoken orange.

It's baffling to me that the same company is producing two versions of a notebook with the same name. If I did not know, from reading various forums and blogs, that a better version of the notebook existed, I might have sworn off this brand entirely. Unfortunately, this isn't the only Exaclair product like this - the Quo Vadis Habana suffers the same Canadian handicap, and I'll be reviewing that next.

Many thanks again to Stephanie and Karen for giving me the chance to sample the good stuff.