Pentalic Utility Sketch Book, 8-1/2-Inch by 11-Inch

Does anyone else remember the plain yellow-covered Grumbacher Utility sketchbook like this from the 80s? Oh! How I loved that sketchbook! You could paste things to the cover, draw on it, write on it in Sharpie... it was the best.Sadly, that sketchbook seems no longer to exist.This is a close approximation of that old standby, save for the annoyingly printed-on cover. That seems to be the only difference. The paper inside, in number of sheets, and quality appear to be roughly the same.It's a good-sized sketchbook for carrying if you're not into the whole traveling-lightly thing, and offers tear-out sheets of a good size. The paper's nice for pencil and chalk, okay for pen, and maybe a little thin for oil pastels. I wouldn't even try watercolor or acrylic on it, though, without expecting a mess. The binding is great for left-handed people, as you can just turn the book over or up to use it, and since it's not spiral-bound, it won't get mangled in your bag.I may paste my own things over the cover, just to have my way. In the meantime, I will test this sketchbook to its utmost to see how it holds up to the old kind.

This is an okay sketchbook. I noticed that when I drew in it with ink, there is some mild feathering and although it does not bleed, I like my lines to be perfectly crisp, and I work primarily in ink. It's okay for some minor doodles, and planning, perhaps, so I keep it stashed next to my drafting table. I don't like the graphics too much on the front because I like to customize my own sketchbooks or keep them relatively low-key. I wouldn't really recommend this, unless you don't care too much for things like the cover image and you don't really use ink. It's a hunk of a sketchbook so you can use it for quite a while, but it ain't too portable so don't expect something portable and go-to. I think that I wouldn't really want this for anything other than simple sketches and concepts that I'll just keep to myself. It's great for doodling if you like to just have some spare paper to draw on while you talk on the phone or just get some ideas down on in a bound format, because there's plenty of room for that. It takes water media okay, and doesn't wrinkle much, so that's a plus.If you like Pentalic, I recommend their Traveler Sketch books that come in small sizes and have a nice little elastic band. They take ink and water media relatively well. The older version seemed to hold up to watercolor and gouache better. Ink goes on smooth and it has good line retention. The covers are also really nice to touch. It feels kind of like rubber/leather or something, it's soft and the paper folds out. It's not perfectly flat but you can easily work with that, especially for the price.For what it's worth, this is a cheap, heavy sketchbook. If you're dirt-poor and want something to draw on, or you want to give your kids plenty of paper to draw on without scattering around their house to stimulate tornade weather, go ahead and buy this. As for me, I'm too artsy for this, since I am an elitist art student who loves to spend tons of money on art supplies that I go through like potato chips.

Very nice sketchbook. Lots of paper and its a decent size. Can hold marker and pen pretty well but i wouldnt try sharpie or anything like that.Sturdy binding. Not great for travel because of its size but really nice to draw in at home.I prefer really smooth paper and this isn't too bad with a little tooth to it.

I have been using these sketch books for years. The paper is high quality for both pencil and pen drawing. I only use the right side page to draw on while the left is left blank so that pencil drawings don't smudge. They also make excellent journals. I really like them being bound and tge large number of pages is a plus.

these are really good for general pencil and pen drawings. hard paper to ensure heavy erases and all the hard presses of the heavy handed, this sketchbook is truly durable. I have 2 other ones of this sketchbook from 3-4 years ago and they look pretty fresh for what I put them through. definitely worth the money

This is not really a review about the product (which I love), this is a review about the condition of the product that was delivered to me. I pray this isn't the new normal. The shipping sleeve was not damaged at all, so a dirty, ripped, damaged item was placed into the sleeve either intentionally or by a robot. How did this make it past quality control? Really disappointed, as my delivery was already late

I've never ordered tablets online so I wish the paper had been thicker, but it's still very nice to sketch on

well I ordered two of these things too doodle and draw in, the paper is allright I didnt get them because I expected them too be super high quality, just a quick cheap thing too fool around with, both of them came with some damage, on one the corner of the book was stubbed across every page, the back cover torn and a few pages had the surface torn and peeling up, the second was in better condition by far with just the edge of the back cover fraying a bit, nothing I'm too worried about both of them will still serve their purpose and I'm still happy too have them but had they been in good condition I would have given 5 stars