Meet The Brand: TRAVELER'S COMPANY

Well, we're very excited! We've finally managed to get TRAVELER'S COMPANY stuff on-board and we're totally smitten with it. If you've not heard of them before, well, they do notebooks. But they do them really well, and they also do lots of other bits and pieces that go, well, really well with notebooks, like pen holders and index clips and sticky pockets… But I'm getting ahead of myself.

They've been going since 2006 when they were founded in Japan by travelling fanatics keen to equip all you fellow wanderlusties (ooh, a new word!) with the perfect way of recording travel plans, flight details, lists of places to go and somewhere to write it all up once you've been there. And the perfect way? Well, that's up to you, because we're all different.

So… a TRAVELER'S COMPANY notebook consists of, first and foremost, a simple, staple-bound notebook in one of four layouts: plain, ruled, squared and dotgrid. The paper is good for pretty much any type of writing instrument and ink, because for every traveller that prefers a ballpoint, there'll be plenty more who swear by fountain pens or rollerballs, or who just like to use a pencil. And speaking of them... No! I'm jumping ahead, sorry. I'll continue with the basics. Right, where was I? Oh yes, paper. Well, there are different types of paper, too, including some for sketching and super-thin, super-fine Tomoe River. You can add perpetual diary pages too, which are always useful when planning jaunts, and because they're not limited by dates, you can confidently start off in the middle of a month if you like, without the guilt of wasted pages.

Then there's the leather cover, which will age over time and become a thing of even more beauty, to protect the inner notebook. It's got elastic to hold it secure, and more elastic to keep the whole bundle together. What's more, the cover will hold more than one notebook, so if you can't decide between ruled and plain, for example, well, you don't have to: just have one of each! And why not add a planner as well, or some sketching paper while you're about it.

You can stop there if you like. But if not, ooh, where do I start? OK, photos. Well, they're always a good addition to any self-respecting traveller's notebook, and TRAVELER'S COMPANY offer the perfect way to keep them safe: Pocket Stickers and Pocket Seals! All you do is stick them in your notebook and they'll display not just photos but tickets and receipts, and even small mementoes such as shells, pebbles and other treasures.

What if you need different parts of your notebook to record different things, and you need to see instantly where to navigate to, to find your flight time, or your travel plan? Marking pages with sticky notes is fine, but even better are TRAVELER'S COMPANY Index Clips. They're made of brass, another material that - like the leather covers - will become even more gorgeous with use. There's room in them for a hand-written label and you just slide them onto your notebook pages for instant - and beauteous - reference.

Now, you can have as many notebooks as you like, but most are pretty useless without some kind of writing implement. TRAVELER'S COMPANY do those too. And - like the rest of the range - they're designed very much with portability in mind. First off, like the Index Clips, they're made of brass: sturdy, saltwater-resistant (useful for when you're travelling by sea) and good to look at. Secondly, you can choose from a fountain pen, rollerball or ballpoint, and you can throw in a matching pencil holder as well. When capped, all of them (pencil included) are just 10 centimetres long and they're all refillable with readily-available refills. Oh, and they all have a pocket clip which can be removed if you don't need it, and the pens have a little ring on the end of the cap which you can use to attach to a keyring or lanyard.

But if you don't want to attach your chosen writing instrument to anything other than your notebook, then there are TRAVELER'S COMPANY penholders. Of course! But these are not just any penholders, oh no. These consist of a metal clip that slides snugly onto the side of your notebook cover and which is attached to a leather loop which will hug your pen or pencil and keep it safe, so there's little chance of its going missing when these chaps are on the case (or on the notebook).

So there's me waxing lyrical about travelling around but you don't actually have to travel to use a TRAVELER'S COMPANY notebook. They're excellent for journaling, especially because of how flexible they are, and they'd make a great portable sketchbook. You could use it for a daily - or not so daily - diary, or notes for that novel you keep saying you're going to write. Your TRAVELER'S COMPANY notebook can - in all honesty - be whatever you want it to be.