Here at Bookbinders Design we’re prepping the birthday celebrations and getting ready for the 15th anniversary of Midori MD Paper Products. To celebrate, Midori are updating their classic line with some great new products. They’ll also be releasing a small selection of limited-edition products that we are very excited to bring you.
Founded all the way back in 1950, Midori has long been one of Japan’s finest papermakers. Through careful filtration of local river water, Midori are able to achieve the utmost purity, ensuring no water-based imperfections make it into their paper.
On top of this, you know that super easy-on-the-eyes light-beige colour of Midori’s signature paper? Rather than being dyed into the paper at a final stage, that colour is baked in all the way back when the pulp is first being broken down.
Midori’s product line has been full of a great variety of playful and professional notebooks, notepads and accessories in their long history. But it wasn’t until 2008 that they would release just about the finest example of Japanese minimalism in a notebook.
2008 - The Birth of the Midori MD Paper Notebook
The Midori MD Notebook, with its subtle off-white colour and beautifully fountain pen friendly paper, has risen to cult classic status in the stationery community. It’s just about the Goldilocks of notebooks, with paper textural enough for pencils to feel spectacular, as well as finely woven enough for fountain pens not to bleed.
Over the years, more and more formats have been introduced to the line. From the early plain, ruled and squared notebooks to the introduction of yearly diaries and the long-awaited dot grid, the Midori MD Notebook has become almost a one-stop shop for stationery aficionados.
Their semi-soft covers and excellent flat-lay binding makes them fantastic to use on their own, but even better when paired with a cover. Whether it be a transparent plastic cover, a Cordoba paper cover or a supple full-grain goatskin cover, the MD Paper Notebook adapts to how you want to use it, not the other way around.
2023 – Happy 15th Birthday, Midori MD Paper Notebook
Cut to February, 2023 (that’s now!) and the Midori MD Paper Notebook has turned 15 years old. So what’s changing? Well, that’s the best part. Because while nothing is changing, everything is changing. Confused? Don’t worry, it’ll make more sense soon.
The MD Paper Notebook will still look just about as it always has looked, the binding is still fantastic, and the paper will still be Midori’s long beloved off-white paper. However, now there’s more of it. MD Paper is now not only used for the pages inside, but for the cover and flyleaf too. In Midori’s own words, “Now you can make every inch of your MD Notebook your own.”
Decorate the cover with fountain pen illustrations, write the contents in pencil and erase as plans change, whatever you like. Remember what we said about how the MD Notebook adapts to you? Now it’s truer than ever.
The New Additions Here To Stay
While we did promise limited edition products (and trust us, they’re coming), we are also getting some new additions to the Midori line. These won’t be limited by quantities, so we’ll be stocking them for the foreseeable future.
MD Dip Pen
Dip Pens seem to be all the craze at the moment. Can’t say we saw it coming, yet here we are. Made from environmentally friendly material consisting mainly of paper powder, the MD dip pen brings the friendly and earthy feeling of their Notebooks to the world of dip pens.
If you use your MD Notebooks to sketch or to test your overflowing collection of fountain pen inks, the MD dip pen is just what you need. As there’s no cartridge or converter in sight, the MD dip pen nib needs only to be washed like a paintbrush before it’s ready for the next colour.
MD Bottled Ink
Kinda makes sense, doesn’t it? To pair alongside the introduction of the MD dip pen, Midori are also introducing three new bottles of dye-based fountain pen ink, and no, they’re not just boring old black, blue and red.
Instead of going the obvious route, Midori are releasing three inks made to suit the colour scheme of the MD Notebook, creating a perfect complement. We have a bright sky Blue and Grey that match the lines in the MD Notebook, as well as a vivid Orange that matches the accent used in the MD Diaries.
MD Notebook Light A7
Midori’s slim staple-bound notebooks are introducing a new size! Soon arriving in the tiny A7 size in blank, lined and grid, the MD Notebook Light A7 will easily fit snugly in your palm.
Whether you’re diversifying your disappearing coin tricks and looking to incorporate stationery into your magic act, or just looking for a diminutive notebook for an equally diminutive pocket, the MD Notebook Light A7 is everything you need.
MD Memo Block
If you’re a memo-head like us, this is the memo block of your dreams. A suitably minimal block of MD Paper, glue-bound on one side to allow easy tearing, these memo blocks are a great addition to your desk.
Available in blank, lined and grid, each pad comes as a stack of 500 sheets meaning you can really go to town on your memo flinging.
MD Correction Tape
Just about the coolest looking correction tape we’ve ever seen, and we're not saying that because it kind of looks like a Zippo lighter… The MD Correction Tape looks like something straight out of a science fiction film.
With a cream colour reminiscent of the MD Notebook it’s to be paired with, the MD Correction Tape case and tape are made from synthetic resin consisting of 51% paper and 49% polypropylene. This means that in Japan, it can be disposed of in combustible garbage. That’s cool!
Limited Edition Product you say?
Yes! We do say! Where to begin…Midori have really out-done themselves this time around. Not only are there exclusive notebook releases (surprise, surprise), but also some very nice additional limited-time-only ink colours.
MD Notebook Artist Collaboration
To celebrate the MD Notebook’s 15th birthday, Midori invited 15 artists to unleash their own unique styles on a limited series of notebooks. Beautifully debossed, each one of these covers have an identity all of their own. This only exemplifies the real theme of the day being: Midori notebooks are whatever you want them to be!
Featured artists include the likes of Lindsay Arakawa, Andrew Joyce, Aries Moross, COOKIEBOY (I think we’d get along), Charlene Man and many more.
MD Bottled Ink
Paired alongside the three standard inks introduced this year are six more limited time only dye-based inks - some of which we really hope will stick around.
We have a great Red, Green and Navy Blue, but most excitingly to us? Blue Grey and Dark Red. The world needs more great dark red inks and we're secretly hoping Midori lets this one stick around.
In Conclusion… Happy Birthday!
And that’s it! Happy Birthday to Midori’s MD Notebook and we hope you love the new products that are coming your way. We’re proud to be one of Australia’s most comprehensive Midori stockists, and you can shop the rest of the Midori range in-store or online here.
Questions? We’d love to hear from you, so don’t be shy! Contact us on Facebook, Instagram or via email at info@bookbindersdesign.com.au
