Red Pine Wooden Page Sketchbook

The Red Pine Wooden Page Sketchbook is a Japanese sketchbook whose 20 pages are real Ina Valley red pine (akamatsu), shaved into kyogi sheets and bound by hand at Misuzudo in Nagano. The sheets are 0.35 mm thick, noticeably heavier than the 0.2 mm pages in the wooden notebooks, cut that way so they resist cracking and show-through.

This one exists because customers asked for it. People who had been drawing on our Red Pine Wooden Page Notebook told us they wanted to paint on the wood, not only sketch on it. We brought that back to Yamatowa, and they answered with the largest sheet they can shave, thickened to take more than a pencil. The pages are the same 0.35 mm stock as our Red Pine Wood Message Cards.

Colored pencil, marker, ink, and light watercolor all sit on the surface. Wood is still wood, so fountain pen ink feathers along the fibers and a sheet can warp if it gets very wet, but the extra thickness resists bleeding through to the sheet behind. Every page carries a different grain pattern and the faint resin scent of pine, which is why a drawing made here cannot quite be repeated.

Pages come out one at a time. Hold the block near the glued spine and peel slowly, and a finished piece lifts away clean enough to frame.

The hardcover is linen over board, in undyed natural or brown, with an elastic band to hold the book closed. Cloth against wood is a quiet pairing, and it keeps a sketchbook that lives in a bag from looking worn after a season.

Explore our Japanese sketchbooks collection.

Details

• Size: 6.1" × 8.7" (15.5 cm × 22 cm)
• Page size: 5.7" × 8.3" (14.5 cm × 21 cm), close to A5
• Sheet Material: Natural Wood (Japanese Red Pine)
• Sheet thickness: 0.35 mm
• Pages: 20
• Sheet Type: Blank
• Cover Material: Linen over board, with elastic band
• Binding: Misuzudo, Ina Valley, Nagano
• Brand: Shiki bun

Coexistence with the Forest of Shiki bun

In the Ina Valley, located in Nagano Prefecture in Japan, a company called Yamatowa supports coexistence with forests. Once, people were closely involved with forests and received many blessings from them. However, as lifestyles changed and forests were left untended, overgrown and dark forests increased. Untrimmed branches and leaves block sunlight, damaging the health and ecosystem of the forest.

Yamatowa believes that although it is difficult to return to the old ways of living, it is possible to bring living closer to forests again and increase the number of healthy and bright forests that are well-maintained, as in the past. They think that using Japanese wood appropriately in daily life will lead to forest conservation, and with this in mind, they launched a brand called Shiki. The red pine used for these pages comes from forest thinning, which removes excess trees so the remaining forest gets the sunlight and space it needs.