The Paris Traveler

Clairefontaine vs Rhodia

by Kim on January 13th, 2008

The title sounds like some big heavy weight fight being held in some casino in Las Vegas, but really it is a much gentler battle between–notebooks!  Back to school shopping is a big deal in our house.  We all love buying new pens, pencils, folders and notebooks.  A new semester starting this past week meant new classes and gear for those courses.  Going back-to-school shopping in France was an experience us office supply geeks were clearly made for. The French take the organization of their words very seriously and you can find hundreds of stores devoted to all manner of pens, pencils and notebooks to help that process.   The small, individually owned shops are called “papeterie” and sell a wide assortment of things that go beyond just paper.   Beautiful wrapping paper, cards, Paris maps and leather goods are just a few of the fun things you might find.  In your travels you certainly should try and spend some time in one if like me, you enjoy these things.   There is an on-going debate for individuals and students we ran into holding very strong opinions as to which notebooks are the best.  Even in my household we are divided on this topic, with me on one side and everyone else on the other.  First, there is Clarefontaine. Clairefontaine is a company that has been making paper since 1858 and stationary products since 1890.  Located in the Vosges region of France, this incredibly Earth friendly company was “green” long before it became cool to be so.  Their paper is so exceptional,  smooth and super white,  that any writing you have to do becomes an absolute pleasure.  Lining up on the Clairefontaine team are some heavy hitters like  Carrie Bradshaw ( Sex in the City), authors John Berendt (The City of Falling Angels,  Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil–both awesome by the way) and Claire Messud (The Emperor’s Children–good also).   Facing off against this paper powerhouse is Rhodia.  ”The French orange notebooks with a cult following” is how these notebooks are described.  Founded in 1932 by two brothers, Henri and Robert Verilhac, their background was one of paper merchants in southern France.  The name “Rhodia” comes from the river Rhone that runs by Lyon where the company started and the two fir trees on the cover represent the two brothers.   Although the paper is, in my estimation, not the quality of Clarefontaine, I use these as they score the top for a clean edge when you turn the page and being a lefty, I love the spiral at the top!    People joining me on team Rhodia are Francis Ford Coppola (filmmaker and vintner), Paul Smith (designer),  and Joshua Ferris (author, Then We Came to the End–awesome read!).  To make your shopping in Paris easier, I am going to send you to a few places that are easy to find and have tons to choose from.

1.  Le Bon Marché,  24 rue de Sevres,  Metro: Sevres-Babylon or Vaneau.  The lower level, -1, has a wonderful selection of both Clarefontaine and Rhodia, along with a slew of other beautifully bound journals and pens, both plain and fancy.
2. BHV,  14 rue du Temple, Metro:  Hotel de Ville.  Be prepared:  you may find yourself spending more time than you intended in this place.  This is the French version of Home Depot, but not. 

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POSTED IN: Great Reads, Miscellaneous, Shopping