Waverley Genuine Tartan Cloth Commonplace Notebooks

A couple of years ago I met the lovely people from Waverley Books during my visit to the Spring fair and they introduced me to their wonderful line of Tartan notebooks.  I was given a Caledonia cloth notebook to review and I was really impressed, you can read my post about it here.  Anyway Liz got in touch with me again to say they had added more tartans and sizes to their range and would I be interested in testing some out so I said "Yes please!" and here we are!

First of all let me tell you a little bit about commonplace notebooks in case you haven't heard of them before.  These books were made to be used for compiling your thoughts, ideas and information.  They were small enough to fit in your pocket or bag so they were at hand when you were struck by inspiration or simply remembered something you had to write down.  I can imagine a poet feeling compelled to jot down a verse while watching a glorious sunset or a scientist sketching herbs and flowers while recording their properties and uses during the 17th century. Okay, so I might be getting a bit carried away now, let's get back on track!

Waverley commonplace pocket notebook

All of the Waverley notebooks are made using genuine Kinloch Anderson tartan which is the company who supply tartan for kilts for the royal family!  How swish! There are currently over 40 different kinds of tartan available for these books so if you are Scottish or have some Scottish ancestry you might be able to find the right tartan for your clan!  If you are not associated with any clan then the tartans I am showing you today are perfect for you as they have been created by Kinloch Anderson and can be worn by anyone.

The notebooks come in large (£14.99), pocket (£9.99) and mini (£7.99) sizes and I have some of the pocket and mini ones to show you today.  

All of the pocket size notebooks have coordinating elastic closures and matching stained edges.  They also come with a bookmark telling you about the tartan used and an information booklet about Waverley Scotland, commonplace notebooks, tartan and a clan map of Scotland.  

One side blank and one side lined

Both the mini and pocket size books contain blank pages on the left and lined  pages on the right so you have space to draw, doodle and write.  The 80 gsm cream paper is smooth and very nice to write on.  I would definitely say it is fountain pen friendly too as I have used a few different inks in mine over the last 18 months and none of them have bled or feathered. 

The notebooks also come with a ribbon page marker and eight perforated pages at the back which can be removed easily without leaving you a messy edge behind.  I hate tearing a page out of a notebook if I need a piece of paper for something so I love this idea, it's fantastic!

Business card holder & expandable pocket

The mini and pocket books also have an expandable pocket at the back to hold anything you want to pop in there and a space for a business card, bank card or loyalty card as well which is super handy!

The mini notebooks are the exact same design as the pocket size books but a little smaller and come with an elasticated pen loop that matches the colour of the closure and a coordinating pen.

The history of commonplace notebooks inspired me to take these books outside to photograph them.  They feel like they belong among nature instead of sat on a desk so I took one or two with me any time I went on an adventure or somewhere new......

Castle Grey mini notebook

Romance pocket notebook

Black And White mini notebook

Thistle pocket notebook

Heather mini notebook

Rowanberry pocket notebook

Hunting mini notebook

Dress pocket notebook

And after all that time outside there's nothing better than coming home for a nice, warm cup of tea and shortbread while spending some time journalling in my Dress tartan notebook!

Which of these is your favourite book?  Are you suddenly feeling the urge to buy one and take a holiday under the "luxuriant skies" of Scotland or to study the works of Thomas Campbell and Robert Burns?  Please say it's not just me!

I would like to say thank you to Waverley Books for sending me all these gorgeous notebooks and if you want a sneak peek at the new tartans which will be released later in the year you can check them out here!

Bye for now!

Lucky Dip Club - Biscuit Box

Have you ever seen the giant biscuit cushions by Nikki McWilliams?  They are made to look like custard creams, jammy dodgers and lots of other fun biscuity designs, I think they are great and I have had a couple of them on my wish list for a while now.  Anyway I follow Nikki on Instagram and she announced that she had designed some products for the Lucky Dip Club, I was intrigued so I went off to investigate.  I found that the Lucky Dip Club is a monthly subscription box for people who love handmade products, personalised presents and receiving a surprise in the post.  It sounded right up my street so I got onto the computer and ordered myself the October box.  The boxes are available on the 1st day of the month and sell out pretty quickly, they are then made up and posted to you at the end of the month.  I was so excited by the time my parcel arrived in the mail!

Lucky Dip Club - October's Biscuit Box

Inside the box you find your Club zine booklet which tells you a little about the lovely products and the people who have made them.  

Biscuits!

Lots of fun things to read with a cuppa and a biscuit

Underneath the booklet your surprises are wrapped up in bright yellow tissue paper.

Your surprises are waiting...

The first thing I spotted once I opened the box was the biscuit brooch with my name on, you get one personalised product in each box and you can pick which name or word you would like on it.

Look at all the goodies!

I was over the moon to discover that one of the goodies supplied by Nikki was a DIY mini biscuit cushion kit.  Inside the packet was a printed rainbow party ring image and a yellow piece of fabric to make the cushion, stuffing, fully illustrated instructions and a little sewing kit with pins, a needle and coloured cotton.  

Nikki McWilliams DIY biscuit cushion kit

My mini cushion after I made it

The Lucky Dip boxes have contained a charm of the month for the past eight boxes (including this October box), my charm is a jammy dodger biscuit and it came on a silver coloured necklace.  The December box, which goes on sale on the 1st December at 7am will have a cats and cocktails theme and it will contain the last charm of the month.  I emailed Leona (the lovely lady who makes the Lucky Dip boxes) and asked her what will be inside next year to replace the charms but she told me it is a surprise so we will have to wait and see!

Charm of the month, personalised brooch & sticky notes

You can see my sweet biscuit brooch here, isn't it cute?  There was also some pink party ring sticky notes which are really fun! 

I'm a smart cookie wall art

The second product from Nikki was this holographic word wall art print, it is really hard to photograph but it looks great in person!

You see the lovely biscuit background I used for these photos?  Well that is what is printed on the back of the club zine, how cool is that? 

Everything together

So this is everything I got in the box all together, I am really happy with it!  I paid £20 for a one off box including free P&P but if you subscribe then the boxes only cost £18 each and they also include free UK postage.  There is no set time limit for a subscription so you can cancel it at any time if you wish. 

So what do you think of the Lucky Dip Box?  Is it your cup of tea?  It is certainly mine!

* Disclaimer - I purchased this product myself and was not paid to write this post.  I am not affiliated with the Lucky Dip Club or Nikki McWilliams.  I received my box by the end of October, it has just taken me a while to finish my review, sorry!