Moleskine Art Sketchbook, Hard Cover, Large (5" x 8.25") Plain/Blank, Scarlet Red, 104 Pages

I have an art degree but now own two companies. In spite of that, I have realized that exercising the right side of my brain daily is imperative for business creativity and focus and also relaxation of stress. This is perfect for it because I can use any medium well and it's a great size for just getting some ideas going without being intimidating on having to fill a large page. I typically combine two pages together for something complimentary or even an entire scene if I really get going. It takes gesso well for painting or you can apply acrylic right to it. I draw with markers and oil pastels and pencils and more straight onto the pages. Holds up well

Some ghosting if you use a dark pen, but the color is so pretty!

One of the best sketchbooks out there! It is a little pricy though, but it's worth it. It handles a lot of different mediums well. I also like how thick the paper is.

This is the perfect notebook to fit into my purse. I’ve had a moleskin before, I’m not sure if this is a different type or if the paper has been updated, but the paper is thicker than my notebook from about 5 years ago. I really like the paper weight, as it’s thin enough for the notebook to have a substantial amount of pages, but thick enough that I don’t have to worry about bleed-through.

Moleskine Hard Red for Art would be a decent sketchbook for those who want something that could easily fit into a satchel and has surface that is smoother and more rigid than stereotypical sketchbook paper. It is also pretty cute. If you are looking for something larger than pocket-sized but not as large as a letter-sized notebook, and willing to pay some extra bucks for quality, try this one. Some notes: 1. Paper thickness: Somewhere in between that of stereotypical sketchbook and Bristol board.\ 2. Paper texture: Pretty smooth. 3. Color of the surface: Although not well shown in photos, it is actually faint green tea. If you want a surface that is white, then this may not be it. 4. Using fountain pen: The photo that I have uploaded contains two pages using fountain pen. Because of the paper's thickness, doodles and writings from the previous page does not bleed through. Also, because the surface is pretty smooth, it provides an excellent surface for fountain pen. 5. Other instruments/media I plan on testing in the future: Dipping pen and brushes with India ink, colored markers and pencils, watercolor and acrylic paints. ****** Update: 04/18/2012 1. The faint green tea color of the sketchbook surface ... watch out: Be very careful with eraser. Rubbing the surface will fade out the color and reveal a white surface. So, if you expect to use eraser on a regular basis, look for a different sketchbook. 2. Applying acrylic ink and painting: The sketchbook page being worked on will warp, if acrylic ink and painting are used liberally. (Extrapolation based on my experience with acrylics: The same problem will be encountered by applying watercolor.) This is not a big deal, if you are using this sketchbook to experiment and to play around. However, if you want to do polished works using acrylics, look for something heavier.

My go-to sketchbook. I like size and the thickness of the paper is great for painting and markers. Alcohol markers will bled through. That's just the nature of those markers. But I like to use both sides so things like pen, ink, and paint hold up on the page so I can use both sides.

Perfect

I have gone through two full sized moleskines already and just adore them. Their smooth, creamy paper is marvellous for pens, pastels, graphite, charcoal, etc. and it lasts forever! They're also extremely hardy little books. I went camping with my field moleskine and sketched by the river. We went hiking, I left it by the river by mistake and ended up going to bed without thinking about it. In the morning, after a massive rainstorm, I became distraught and realised I'd forgotten it by the river. All was not lost, however! The thing was soaked, but the pages inside were still crispy and clean without a single drop on the most important bits. The edges were a bit soggy, but the whole thing came out with spine, binder, pages and most importantly, drawings intact. I highly suggest this if you're doing field studies, life studies, full-sized drawings, etc. as it's got some of the best quality paper ever and has the sturdiest binding I've ever experienced. Fantastic book!

I've been using Moleskines for notes and some writing for almost a decade, and I simply love the quality. Currently I'm on a new project that requires lots of sketching, and the Art series is just perfect as it has a thicker paper than the Classic series. It even handles light watercolor painting quite well. The hard cover also gives that feeling of something more perpetual which is nice (artists will understand...). Overall it is a great product!

Great Moleskine notebook. I have the Mickey Mouse one, however, I found the paper quite thin to write on with a pen. I decided to try the sketchbook, and although there are less pages, the paper is significantly thicker and I prefer this as I am used to 90 gsm paper thickness on Rhodia pads. Seemingly, Moleskine normal notebooks are only about 71 gsm. The sketchbook paper is of a good thickness and a light cream colour. I prefer this to the original notebooks, especially if you want to write in pen on both sides! I would buy this pad again.

Excellent sketchbooks. Though the description states it is “large” - it is actually 5inches by 8.25 inches- approximately A5 size. The paper is excellent and smooth, renders pencil and ballpoint very well. It can also take light watercolour washes as the paper is 165gsm. I have seen people even use oil and acrylic paint on this paper after preparing it with gesso. The company is Italian but the sketchbook is actually Made in Turkey.

Bello scatchbook. Si apre completamente, le pagine sono resistenti sia al pennarello che all'uso degli acquarelli. Se si una tanta acqua va pressato per un po', ma poi torna perfetto. Robusto, bella carta, tante pagine

I resisted buying this brand as expensive but actually once I worked out what I was paying for the art pads I do use it works out good value and it’s really good quality. I see it as buying two regular sketchbooks in one by page count. I’ve sketched more in this book than any other as the size is so good and portable. It’s the same size as my iPad mini so all fits well in my pencil case and other gear in my bag. I’ve bought a second one this size and recently the next size up to use as a journal. Basically I’m converted