Five Ways With: Old-School-Inspired Supplies

1. Papermate White Pearl Eraser (Set of 12), $9.99 Even the handwriting font on this premium eraser is a classic. Get it: Discount School Supply

2. Know-It-All Pencil Set, $10.00 This smart set of No. 2 pencils would have been your number-one pick during pop-quiz time. Get it: ReForm School

3. Hand-stitched leather pencil case, $40.00 Keep your writing utensils in chic shape with this case crafted from vegetable-tanned Italian cowhide. Get it: Zenok Leather

4. X-Acto Ranger 55 Heavy-Duty Pencil Sharpener, $28.99 Give your modern workspace a twist (or, we should say, a crank) using this retro design. Get it: Amazon

5. Chalkboard Tablet, $22.00 List-making gets easier (and eco-friendly) when you create them on tablets made from high-school bleachers, reclaimed black leather, and chalkboard paint. Get it: Peg and Awl

Want more product picks? Check out my various collections and random finds on Pinterest.

Notebooks

For all the time and effort that people put into finding that perfect pen, it’s amazing that they will write on just any old paper. Maybe this was OK when you were in 1st grade learning how to spell your name without backwards letters, but if you are looking to upgrade your overall writing experience, take a look at some of the outstanding notebooks below.

Some of my favorite notebooks for everyday use are from the Black n’ Red brand.  Nothing fancy here, however you can’t beat the combination of their simple visual appeal, impeccable quality, and great value.  Sturdy covers, with good quality binding, and most importantly high quality paper that won’t have your writing bleed through.  There are many options to choose from, but I like the coil bound version with polypropylene cover. $7 via Amazon

If making the decision between traditional ruled paper, and graph paper is just too hard for you, the notebooks from Doane Paper will make your day.  The unique design of their notebooks give you graph paper and ruled paper all on one page by using a heavier horizontal line to make up the squares of the graph paper.  Doane Paper notebooks are available as standard legal pads, pocket size journals, and hard-cover coil-bound versions.  $4.50 to $11 via DoanePaper

Whitelines notebooks come in multiple formats including coil bound and book style binding, with your choice of ruled or graph paper style. The paper itself is a very light gray, while the lines are actually white.  The logic behind this design is that the white lines will not distract or interfere with your writing or drawing.  Also, when you scan or photocopy the paper, the lines become invisible.  My personal favorite is the lined A5 with hard black cover and coil binding.  $12 via Amazon

If you are a fountain pen user, or someone who hates when your writing shows through to the other side of the page, the Rhodia Web Notebook is the perfect option for you.  These notebooks use a heavy 90 gauge paper that deals well with just about any ink and is also the smoothest paper you will ever write on.  $20 via Amazon

For the most professional looking notebooks, you can’t go wrong with the Levenger’s Circa system.  These notebooks are not cheap; however their unique disc binding system and high quality cloth or leather covers will make you stand out from the crowd in a meeting.  The disc binding system allows you great flexibility in moving and organizing your notes. $49-$129 via Levenger

Illustrations by Jordan Awan

No More Trees?

Who would have thought it could be true, but it is, treeless paper has hit the market and it’s a great green addition to the eco-conscious home office. MoMa started using treeless paper and cardboard in their packaging back in 2007 and now we’re seeing it creep into the home. Currently manufacturing treeless paper uses sugar cane, bamboo, elephant dung and hemp. Each of these can be harvested specifically for paper manufacturing. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency the average office worker uses 10,000 sheets of paper each year. That’s more than 2 pounds each day. Wow!  Currently 4 billion trees are cut down each year to meet the world’s demand for paper.

While treeless paper can certainly make a dent you won’t be walking into your local office supply store to purchase it just yet. However, demand will eventually drive supply. Until that time, shopping online is your best bet. Aaron Schiff of Ecopaper.com says their sugar cane office paper sales are second to the banana paper, which is used for invitations. “For the office, sugar cane paper is almost identical to regular paper and has 80 per cent tree-free content.” Schiff, who sees the paper industry slowly becoming greener, is confident that sugar cane paper will be a popular brand for Ecopaper in the coming years.

As treeless paper is currently emerging on the market, I’d love to hear your questions or experiences with this product.