Notebooks

Make notes and keep track of your day-to-day schedule with notebooks and office stationery from Cromwell. We stock a wide selection of ruled, To-Do and manuscript notebooks in popular A5 and A4 sizes from well-known brands, like Pukka Pad®, Q-Connect®, Oxford Stationery®, Silvine® and more.

What are notebooks?

Notebooks are essentially a notepad with a spine to allow for permanent handwritten notes to be made. They're available in paperback and hardback variations with sewn binding for heavy usage or spiral and staple binding for more temporary solutions.

Why buy notebooks?

Notebooks are ideal for tasks like recording meeting minutes, writing a To-Do list, and jotting down reminders. They're the perfect bit of stationery for new starters to write down training notes to refer back to and are widely used in a range of industries.

Notebook types

• Case bound notebook   -   Ideal for business use, these notebooks are durable with traditional sewn and bound seams. The hard covers keep notes protected against impact and spills.

• Project notebook   -   This style of notebook is typically spiral bound and contains perforated pages that can be torn out easily, while the plastic cover material prevents against spills and wet weather. Removable plastic dividers are placed at increments throughout the notebook and feature labels to keep your notes organised.

• Spiral bound notebooks   -   This type of notebook is available in both plain and lined paper.

• Manuscript notebook   -   Similar to the casebound notebooks, these variants feature alphabetised sections to help organise your notes.

• Antimicrobial notebook   -   Typically spiral bound, these notebooks feature a BioCote® treatment which inhibits the growth of bacteria for a cleaner working environment.

Considerations when choosing notebooks

• Size - If you intend to take your notebook around with you, its important that it fits into your everyday bag or pocket.

• Paper type - this depends on how you'll be using the notebook. Notes, lists and extended writing will suit lined paper, while picture-notes, doodles and drawings would benefit from plain or graphic paper.

• Binding - if your notebook is likely to get bashed around a bit, traditional sewn binding is strong and will help to keep it in one piece. Spiral binding with a thick card front and back can also protect your notebook's contents and are a cheaper alternative.

Notebook jargon buster

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) originally published a standard to outline the sizes for notebooks, notepads and other paper stationery intended for handwritten notes.

EN ISO 618:1974 outlined the A-Series and B-Series sizing system that we know today. This international standard was withdrawn in 2007, however, it remains in use and is instantly recognised by all Europeans and affiliate nations.

Let's break it down...

• A4 - 210mm x 297mm

• A5 - 145mm x 210mm

• B5 - 190mm x 250mm

• B6 - 125mm x 176mm

• B7 - 88mm x 125mm

FAQs

What's the best quality paper I can get for a notebook?

Paper quality is measured in GSM, which is grammes per square metre. Standard quality paper of between 70gsm to 80gsm is typically used in notebooks. For something better, look for anything at 90gsm and over.