Vintage Leather Journal - Antique Handmade Deckle Edge Vintage Paper Leather Bound Journal - Book of Shadows Journal - Leather Sketchbook - Drawing Journal - Great Gift (Green, 7.5"x5.5")

I just received my purchase of the large journal and I feel compelled to clear up some of the previous reviews that mentioned issues with quality and craftsmanship. tl;dr: I didn't experience any of the negatives mentioned in previous reviews. On to the full review: Firstly comes the unboxing - the journal arrived in a simple, but neat plastic sealed pouch and Amazon did a good job selecting the proper-sized box and air padding. The key comes wrapped in foam so as to not scratch or become damaged during delivery. The leather strap and securing strap where the key slips in were both properly seated and there were no issues around quality in this area. The leather wrap was just as pictured (wraps around the journal twice) and gives a nice look to the journal. The outer leather is thick, yet soft and pliable. There was no off-putting odor detected in the slightest. I purchased the antique brown leather journal and it's just as pictured - simply beautiful. On to opening the journal... It's clear that care was taken to protect the deckle edge in transit as there was a sheet of thin cardboard in place to prevent any bumps from damaging the edges of the paper within. Upon removing the cardboard piece, there was a nice, somewhat consistent deckle edge. The variance is just as expected and doesn't push beyond around 3/8" or 1/2" or so at maximum. The leather binding within is quite nice and feels nice and secure. I don't feel as though any pages will fall out given the thickness/perceived durability of the paper. Since the sheets are secured in sets with a leather binding, there is a very slight variance in the positioning of each of the individual paper stacks, but not beyond what would be expected from a handcrafted journal as such - certainly nothing I can't live with (nor is too bothersome for me to look at with my obsessive-compulsive eye). Also, the pages will lay pretty flat when opened. There may be some areas that may pose a bit more of a challenge to open fully in this manner. The journal itself and its pages are quite thick, so it's unreasonable to expect every single page to lay completely flat in every position within it. This is nothing that can't be easily handled with a paperweight or something similar, if you're so inclined to do so. From a paper coloring perspective, it does have quite a strong antiquing color which is fairly close to what is pictured in the listing. It's very realistic looking and has a nice, soft texture to it. This texture might be different than what you're used to, so don't purchase this journal expecting perfectly smooth pages - that's not going to happen with handmade paper of this type; but don't let that discourage you - it's actually quite nice and makes it feel more vintage and, in my case, more powerful! Given the paper used (its thickness and composition), it's fair to say that there will be zero bleed from my Sakura Pigma brush pens to the underside of the pages - no concerns here whatsoever. Again, given the color of the antiquing, the only minor issue you may have here is that if you're working with color for your artwork and/or writing/letter-work, it may not be as vibrant (obviously) as if the pages were bright white in color (but, after all, that bright white color would defeat the beauty and whimsy of this journal, wouldn't it?). I also received a message from Liam shortly after receiving my order to make sure it was everything I had expected. This is a testament to their dedication with regard to customer service. I couldn't be more pleased with my purchase. I will definitely buy from this purveyor again in the future. The quality and experience are top notch!

Wow! This journal is absolutely gorgeous! The quality & craftsmanship is amazing! The leather is very soft & the pages are very thick. I was somewhat apprehensive about purchasing it after reading the reviews, good & not so good, plus seeing the pics others have posted. I had a few concerns & was completely prepared to return it if need be. But to my utter delight, no return is necessary! My first concern was with the shade of green that I would receive. Mine is absolutely perfect! I had seen pics of an extremely bright & unnatural green & did not want that! I am guessing it was just the lighting. In my pics there is one that is somewhat bright but it is NOT! The color green is reflected in the other pics. My next concern was the darkness of the paper. I was VERY happy that they are not as dark as initially shown! I read in some reviews that some were not happy with the pages in their journals. I am personally thrilled with them! The varying shades of the aging, the inconsistency & the "misalignment" of each page, with a serious deckled edge, makes for one beautiful antique looking journal! There is one very slight issue that I can fix myself. The wrap around with attached key is about 3 inches too long. In my pics you can see that I pulled the knotted end back through the slit to make the wrap around fit better. I can leave as is or I can cut & make new knot. I have not written in it yet & I will wait to do so only after I have mastered the art of calligraphy! All in all, this is a beauty & well worth the price! It's very giftable but if you are anything like me then you would have to keep it for yourself and buy another one to gift!

Absolutely beautiful! From the cover to the pages, it is so soft! Does not bleed through! Enough pages to journal for a long time! The beauty and quality makes me want to use it everyday! Stunning!!!

Okay, so I gotta admit, I was a bit intimidated by this product, because it was expensive. But after reading the product description, and the reviews, I took a chance. And WOW. The journal arrived quickly and it was packaged really well! The journal itself was sealed in plastic to keep water from getting on it, and the key was wrapped in a protective sort of foam to ensure the cover of the journal wasn’t scratched by it. The inside of the journal had a piece of brown card stock type paper that kept the deckled edges of the journal safe from damage as well. I noticed in some of the reviews that there was confusion about the paper inside, because every single page is different. The size difference is minimal and really not a concern, not for me at least (literally all the pages were pretty much the same size with maybe like a millimeter of variance between pages). And the edges are not MEANT to be “clean” or “even” because this paper has a “deckle edge”. For those who may not know, handmade paper is done with a mold and deckle. The edges are rough unless you cut them, and the product description clearly says that this journal has a “deckle edge” meaning it’s uncut. As far as the various stains and such on the different pages, again this is to be expected. The journal is designed to appear antique and weathered. It supposed to look really old and worn. And again, the product images and such make that clear. The journal is definitely as thick and lovely as advertised, and I could NOT be happier!! I’m a cosplayer on TikTok (@theLacieverse if you want to check it out) and I needed an old journal for a prop that one of my characters will interact with. This journal is absolutely PERFECT for that. I haven’t tried writing in it yet, but I have a dip-pen calligraphy set that I wanted to pair with this. I will let you guys know how that goes once I try it.

First, I REALLY love this book, this is one of the best buys you can get on a realistic, old-world look journal, in my opinion. I don't need this for anything except a photography prop, and because it was very cool, so with that in mind, I made it look even older. I scratched it, I folded it, wadded it up, I scuffed it, I did all I could think of to 'age' it. For added realism, I used a green Scotch-brite pad to scuff it up, and even a little sandpaper. For around the edges to make it even more worn I used the pad to burnish the edges all around, it helped to give it that well-worn look that older books have. I even used a little oil, it was gun oil, but it really shouldn't matter if you wanted to try that out, I'd try it on the back and use it sparingly, just until you know if you like it or not. Mine didn't change that much, so maybe yours wouldn't either. I have a bucket of dirt that I use for cases like this, I dusted it pretty good for realism, and also ground it in. I'm pretty sure that if you use yours for its intended use, you won't be doing this part. :) The key was also scuffed with Scotch-brite too, but it was the brown version, it is used for stainless steel, I just happened to have some, and I toned down the 'newness' of it all. I read in the Reviews that a woman mentioned that she felt her journal was useless because her strap that goes around the book was too long (or short?), and she felt that she had no recourse. Well, I'm sure that we all know that is not the case. If yours is too long, just do what I did, I untied the knot (I know you know) and adjusted the strap to where it fit perfectly where I wanted it to be into the key/strap keeper. You can cut yours off, but I left mine with the longer end because I used that to help keep the strap and key inside of the holder. I like it that way, you may not. I took a picture of the book, along with another book, and some props, that is, after all, what I wanted it for. Not necessarily this picture, I did it just for Amazon, just playing around. The smaller black book I dirtied it up and did about the same thing that I did with this leather book. I will more than likely be getting a couple more of these books for props too, they make all different kinds of these and I was not aware of their existence until I saw this one, so I had to have it, 'just because'.

I have bought a few journals to write events into. The issue I run into for the most part is after time a lot of journals, especially ones with a thicker amount of pages is the cheap glue they use to put them together dries up and then pages come apart in clumps. If you've bought journals and kept them for a while, I'm sure you know what I mean. This book is bloody awesome. I bought a smaller version of it because I didn't want to spend 60 bucks for the larger amount assuming it would be like the others I've bought in the past. The pages are actually like a true papyrus cloth. The leather is actually a nice smelling and thick leather. If it's fake leather, I've been tricked happily. If you write in the book with a nice rollerball pen, the pages suck in the ink and it looks awesome. The binding is sturdy straps, and the leather strap wraparound to keep it closed is neat if not a bit too long to walk around with when unwrapped. Still it is so neat that I don't mind it. The only downfall to it is if you want to write on both sides of a page you'll need a sturdy hand underneath or something thick and flat to put it onto. Since it is so thick, writing on the first page is easy, but then if you turn it over you've got like three inches of space to fill or else it's just hanging at a weak weird angle. Still, short of a hardcover, that's pretty much something you have to deal with with any book. If I had to give a recommendation for any journal, this would definitely be in the top 2 for looks, feel, quality and longevity. I'm not some paid shill for this product, it's just very awesome and I wanted to give credit for a journal that far surpassed my expectations.

The leather and paper seem very well made and sturdy. You'll notice that it compresses down noticeably more on the right hand side than the left due to the thickness of the stitching for the binding, but its not terribly noticeable. Seems like a well made journal that matches the description and will hold up both in personal use or as a giftable item. One side note: I dont know why every journal maker and their mom decided that the journal closure method to pick was a key. It doesnt do more than slide under the leather loop, so it isnt the most secure method, and I'm not a huge fan of the look anyway. I clipped off the key with some wire cutters easily, since its a softer metal, and used some 10 ga copper wire to fashion a hook that (when resting flat with the leather wrap) will stay hooked and help both retain a pen and keep the journal closed.

W bought this for a friend who loves vintage things and journaling. He absolutely loved it. Much better quality than I thought it would be.