Rhodia Notepad, No11 A7, Lined - White

I'm dyslexic and left handed. Notebooks bound on the side suck because my hand sits on the binding because of my leftie grip. Plain lined paper is sub-optimal both because I tilt my paper (leftie) and because my margins get messy (dyslexic). But I absolutely love the sensation of a good pen writing on smooth paper. This pad is fantastic. The paper is silky, a little on the glossy side. If you're using a pen with very wet ink you will want to write slowly and wait for it to dry or you will have smearing issues - some other reviewers noted that. But as a leftie I tend to use pens that dry fast anyway because my hand smears through what I've just written anyway. I find that with a porous point pen this paper is delightful to write on and my writing looks more organized and is easier to read.

Do you want to be the kind of person who carries a recognizably expensive pad of paper around with you, or are you so into treating yourself that you don't even care who sneers at your stationery? If it's the first thing, well, this will do the trick. If it's the second, this paper really is very, very nice. I like it with a super fine Hi-Tec-C Maica, and with my stainless sharpie pen. Smooth as can be, and the dot pattern is where it's at. Used to be embarrassed carrying a conspicuous orange pad around, but you know, I'm worth it.

Fantastic paper. Super smooth, resilient, non-absorbent. It's somehow all of these things yet still very light, so it has a delicate and elegant feel. I used a crow quill nib (a dip pen nib specifically made for thin lines which therefore has a needle sharp point and catches on everything, for those who aren't familiar) with very thin fountain pen ink, and the Rhodia is the only paper I could find out of my options that doesn't allow it to bleed and feather to the point of incomprehensibility. The nib didn't catch which I was writing and the lines came out completely clean. Even a heavy, high-quality drawing paper I tried couldn't handle this ink and pen combination, resulting in bleeding and feathering. For comparison there's a piece of normal printer paper. Many of the letters with the printer paper are distorted and smeared because in a single sentence the nib caught 5 times. The ink has bled and feathered to a ridiculous extent, making the writing messy and terrible. Once again, the Rhodia had none of these issues, and remains my standard paper for personal writing, practice, and any finicky pens. For projects I'd recommend a heavier paper only because it's...well...heavier.When I'm making some important document I want a paper that's a little thicker, but that's not what this paper is for and not what I want it to do. The lightness of this paper makes it perfect for things like letters and journaling. I have yet to find a paper that is so effective for penmanship.

I'm learning brush lettering. Most art paper catches the brush and according to what I've read, a rough surface also wears the brushes out. This paper is super-smooth and makes drawing clean letters so much easier. The subtle dot grid provides structure without being intrusive. I just got the pad yesterday and have already covered both sides of 6 pages with practice strokes. It's wonderful!

I'm very particular about the texture of paper. I’ve spent many years in search of the “perfect” combination of paper and pen. Not exactly an obsession but always a consideration when I’m shopping. The paper is very smooth and works well with my fountain pens. The inks that I use vary in color, texture and brand and so far I have had no trouble with bleed through. Very dark inks will show through a little but not badly. I use a broad nib pen most of the time.I find the paper very comfortable to write on with a Jetstream pen. I chose the dots and find they are to close together to be used as ruled lines. When I can get over my compulsive nature and need to write between the lines they work well as guides to keep my writing from wandering down the page towards the end.

I purchased this notepad after reading rave reviews about how much it improves the writing experience when used with good pens. After a few weeks of writing with a wide variety of pens, the combination of this Rhodia Classic Ice notepad and Pentel EnerGel (0.5 and 0.7) is pretty excellent. I write in both English and Japanese, and the smoothness of this paper requires less effort than a cheapo notepad. The lines are consistent, crisp, and bold. The paper itself is not too heavy, but also not too thin. The lines are subtle, unlike most other notepads which have big/annoying/wide ruling. The cover folds into place easily, and stays out of the way. You never notice the staples. All-in-all the size, colors, and quality make this notepad a refined and enjoyable bit of stationary to keep with you at work or at home.Lastly, if you like your paper with a little more texture to it, or if you are used to cheap notebook paper, you might not appreciate how literally smooth this paper is. It has very little texture to it and will smear more easily if you don't let your ink dry. For some people, paper is paper is paper. Those people probably will not appreciate the higher price for this notepad.

Nice paper with micro-perforations to allow sheets to be torn off easily. The cover folds back completely to allow you to write on the tablet without the cover in the way. The only comment I would make on the negative side is that the entire table is A5 size, not the sheet as torn off the tablet (which is shorter by the margin that is held by the stapled cover). So the torn off sheet is only 18.9cm/7.5in long, whereas the tablet is 21.2cm/8.25in long. The weight of the paper is great for note taking (80gsm), but I'd use a heavier paper for correspondence (e.g., the 90gsm Clairefontaine tablet which has a full A5 sheet after tearing it off the glue binding). I don't get bleed through with any of the fountain pens I use (but I have mostly Fine or Medium nibs). Even so, I would not write on the back side--while there is no bleed through, the paper is translucent enough to see the writing on the other side, so you'd want to read a sheet with writing on both sides on something else, not holding a single sheet in your hand so light could get through it.