Sicura Large Journal

I bought this notebook in TK Maxx as it was £5 and I was slightly intrigued by this Moleskinalike.  Quite by surprise it has turned out to be one of my favourite notebooks so far.

It is the same size as a large Moleskine but has a slightly more textured cover.  This one has a black cover and lined pages.  I think there were also ones with a white cover and plain pages.  The pages themselves are a bit more interesting than the usual lined pages because they have a space at the top to record some title details including date and location for the notes you are taking.

The paper itself is thicker than Moleskine paper and in my opinion better.  I use this notebook for work notes and generally write with a ballpoint pen or a liquid ink pen such as the Pilot V5 Hi-Techpoint.  Both these pens work great on it.  I have used a Lamy Safari on it also which seems to work fine.  I don't tend to use a fountain pen for every day notes so it isn't a problem for me.

Of course the interesting thing for me is where are these notebooks sold?  Usually TK Maxx come up with a few odds and ends from the USA and the information on the back of the label suggests these are no exception.  It says Argento SC by Sikura Inc New York, New York.

I bought this just before Christmas in 2010 and have used it all of 2011 so far.  I came across some small notebooks of the same brand in TK Maxx today so had to purchase them too.  I shall pop them up on the blog at a later date.  Of course the disappointing thing is that I would buy this notebook again however it is unlikely I shall come across it again.  I have, however purchased a Leuchtturm as a replacement when I need it.  I shall include that in a later blog also though I fear the paper is too thin for my liking.