I was recently approached by a company asking me to review their new notebook. And let me tell you, this was a pretty big moment for me and the Miss Stickers Blog! It was the first time a company I’d never heard of, run by people I’d never met, had discovered my little corner of the internet and thought it would be a good fit for their brand-new notebooks. 🥹💖
Of course, I was excited about what this could mean for the blog. But I was also genuinely intrigued by their product. A journal made from paper that doesn’t come from trees? Sign me up!
Naturally, one thing was clear from the start: even though I was incredibly flattered by the opportunity, my review would remain honest.
They were perfectly fine with that. In fact, they insisted on it!
So, a week ago, I received a sample notebook from DustToPage. I’ve been putting it through its paces, and now I’m ready to share my honest thoughts with you!
Disclosure: DustToPage provided me with a sample notebook to review. As usual, all opinions expressed here are my own.
🪨 DustToPage and Rock Dust Paper
The company’s name is DustToPage, which seems rather fitting since the paper used in its notebooks isn’t made from wood pulp, but from rock dust!
Every year, tons of marble waste are left behind in quarries after marble is cut and polished. Traditionally, much of this material goes unused.
But DustToPage saw an opportunity and found a way to turn that rock dust into paper!
The result? A notebook made with an entirely different kind of paper. 🌿 Here is how they explain it.
According to the company, its paper is:
- 🌳 Tree-free
- 💧 Water-free to manufacture
- 💦 Waterproof
- 💪 Tearproof
- 🐛 Pest-proof
- ♻️ Recyclable
- 🌎 Sustainable and eco-responsible
That’s quite a list of claims! But what is this paper actually like to use?
Let’s find out!
📦 First Impressions: Unboxing and Taking a Closer Look
The notebooks are manufactured in India and shipped from there. And let me tell you, I’ve never seen a notebook wrapped so securely!
Seriously. I don’t think a single drop of water could have made its way through that packaging! 😂
Unfortunately, all that wrapping couldn’t protect the notebook from a few minor bumps during shipping. The damage was very small, though, so nothing too concerning.
Once I’d won the battle against the very tight wrapping (with a little help from my trusty scissors ✂️), a brightly coloured notebook emerged, decorated with an instrument pattern. A yellow ribbon had been carefully wrapped around it, with some lovely notes tucked inside.
The notes thanked me for my purchase and explained how the notebooks were made and how to recycle them. One important detail: these notebooks cannot be recycled with ordinary paper, so it’s worth paying attention to the company’s recycling instructions!
📔 The Notebook
The notebook measures 6″ x 8.5″ and contains approximately 100 sheets. The sample I received is a dot-grid journal, but according to the company’s website, it plans to offer a whole range of notebooks to suit different needs.
One thing I particularly liked was the dot grid itself. The dots are darker and slightly larger than those in most dot-grid journals I’ve used. I usually have to strain my eyes to see the dots in my notebooks, but not this time! They’re clear and easy to follow.
The downside? Those darker dots are also more likely to show through pale washi tape or washi tape stickers. Something to keep in mind if you love decorating your pages!
The binding feels sturdy, and with a little pressure, the notebook can stay open. 👍
I was less impressed with the first few pages, though. The first page after the title page was half glued to it. As for the few pages after the cover, they weren’t neatly attached to the cover and were quite badly wrinkled.
This made me wonder whether writing on the left-hand side of the notebook would be awkward or uneven.
Thankfully, I could investigate that during my writing tests!
🎨 The Cover
I have to admit that the cover didn’t particularly impress me either.
Although the colours are crisp and beautiful, the material feels like a thin layer of cotton glued to a chipboard backing. It definitely doesn’t seem stainproof or waterproof. In fact, I would be a little worried about the bright colours running if the cover got wet.
It also tears rather easily if your scissors get a little too enthusiastic while opening the packaging. LOL. 😂✂️
That said, the colours are lovely, and the cover feels quite different from those of other notebooks I own. There’s no plastic or faux-leather finish here!
Instead, it has a soft, textured feel that reminds me of a baby blanket. It’s an unusual choice for a notebook cover, and I can appreciate the appeal.
✨ The Paper
Now THIS is the part I’ve been waiting for!
And let me tell you, the paper did not disappoint!
Writing on it was a completely unique experience. It’s buttery smooth, and the pages are thick enough that even a black permanent Sharpie marker could barely ghost through!
However, since this paper is made from rock rather than wood pulp, it behaves differently from the paper we’re used to. It’s less porous, which means ink doesn’t absorb as quickly.
And that, my friends, called for some stationery experiments!
I also wanted to test the waterproof and tearproof claims.
Time to head to the test lab (aka my desk LOL)!🔍
🧪 The Stationery Test: Let’s Put It to Work!
Since this is a completely different type of paper, I couldn’t just admire it and call it a day. I had to put it to the test.
Or rather, put it to the tests. Plural. 😁
🖋️ Writing Tests
I tried all the different types of pens I own and discovered some interesting things!
First of all, rock paper and fountain pens are not a match made in heaven. The same goes for other writing tools that release a lot of ink.
Because the paper is less porous, the ink tends to sit on the surface for quite a while. This makes smudging almost inevitable.
Most gel pens are out, too, much to my disappointment. 😭
Thankfully, the Writech Nebula seems to dry faster than other gel pens (which is probably why all their ads focus on them being virtually smudge-free as I mentioned in a previous post). They also glide across the paper in a rather mesmerizing way. It’s wonderfully smooth!
Ballpoint pens, on the other hand, are the winners! If, like me, you write your journal entries in ink, these are probably your best bet.
Other decent contenders are slow-release ink pens such as the Sharpie Pen, Staedtler pigment liner, or the Micron archival ink pens. The writing feels a little more “scratchy” than with the Writech Nebula gel pen, but the smudging is much less so it’s a trade-off.
But the biggest surprise came from pencils and mechanical pencils. They work surprisingly well on these pages, with no smudging in my tests. ✏️
Highlighters are a little trickier. Most of the ones I tried caused the ink underneath to run when I highlighted a passage.
The workaround I discovered was to highlight the page before writing on it. It’s a little tricky to get used to, but the results are beautiful, especially with Mildliner highlighters!
One final tip: let everything dry completely before running your hand over the page. Otherwise, you might end up with smudgy fingers like mine. Ask me how I know. 😂
🎀 Stickers, Washi Tape, and Decoration
Oh, I’m so happy about this one!
Stickers and washi tape adhere really well to the pages, and they can be repositioned when needed (yep, even after a few days). Washi tape comes off easily, while stickers require a slower, more careful hand to avoid tearing them.
As usual, vinyl stickers are a different story. They cling firmly to the page and require considerably more effort to remove.
Still, if you enjoy decorating your journal, this paper has plenty of possibilities!
👀 The Other Side of the Page
Zero bleeding. Zero ghosting.
‘Nuff said! 😂
💧 Waterproof and Tearproof?
So I did the tests and it turns out that yes, the paper is indeed waterproof! In fact, water can sit on the page for a few minutes and still come off without any damage to the paper.
However, if you drop water or any other liquid on a page that’s already written on, the ink will run, of course, so you better be quick about drying it off.
As for the tearproof claim, I found it to be almost true. The paper does tear but it takes a considerable amount of effort, so much more than would be necessary with a regular paper notebook.
💖 The Verdict: Would I Use It?
Absolutely!
However, because the pages feel more permanent than those of a regular notebook, I might save this one for projects I want to preserve for a long time. Think junk journaling, memory keeping, scrapbooking, or any kind of writing that I know I’ll want to revisit years from now.
I absolutely love how smoothly the Writech Nebula pens glide across the paper. Writing feels effortless, almost graceful! And the thickness of the pages makes me feel as though I can throw just about anything at them.
The cover and the length of the ribbon bookmark were my two biggest disappointments. I wish the bookmark was just a little longer, and I would have preferred a sturdier cover.
But were those issues enough to put me off the notebook?
Not at all! In fact, I liked it enough to back DustToPage’s Kickstarter for two more journals. 😍📚
If, like me, you’re intrigued by the idea of waterproof paper made from rock dust, this notebook might be worth a closer look!
You can find DustToPage’s campaign on Kickstarter and choose from the available pledges. At the time of writing, the company expects all notebooks to ship before Christmas.
💭 Final Thoughts
All in all, this has been a wonderful experience. And I’m not talking only about testing the notebook!
Being approached by a company and getting to exchange ideas with its team was exciting in itself. DustToPage, and especially Geetika, whom I’ve been in touch with throughout this process, were incredibly kind and understanding. They made the whole experience easy and fun!
I’ll definitely be following them on social media and keeping a curious eye on their progress as the company grows. 👀💌
Who knows what they’ll come up with next?
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