Field Notes Steno Pad

Proudly printed by the good people of Schneider Graphics, Inc., Bensenville, Ill.

Covers: Newark Paperboard Mills 60 pt. "Super Duty Chipboard," with a thick, brute force, 1-color application of "Dictation Smudge" black ink.

Innards: Finch Paper Opaque Smooth 70# text "Bright White," with a fine, soy-based, 1-color application of "Double Knee Duck Canvas" light brown ink.

Covers printed on an Advance Process Supply Cameo 34" × 50" flat bed screen press.

Innards printed on a 20" × 29" Heidelberg Speedmaster 74 with perfector.

Line dimension: 3/16" (4.7mm × 4.7mm).

Bound with bombproof black metal Renz "Double-O" Ring Wire, with appreciation to U.S. Patent #2142816, filed in 1935 by W. Walter Grumbacher.

Bottom corners precisely rounded to ⅜" (9.5mm) with a Challenge two-head round corner machine.

Field Notes uses only the Futura typeface family (Paul Renner, 1927) in its materials.

All Field Notes memo books are printed and manufactured in the U.S.A.
Steno book dimensions are 6" × 9" (15cm × 23cm).
Inspired by the vanishing sub-genre of agricultural memo books, ornate pocket ledgers, and the simple, unassuming beauty of a well-crafted grocery list, the Draplin Design Company of Portland and Coudal Partners, a Chicago creative firm, have created Field Notes Brand, a collection of smartly-designed, vintage-styled pocket notebooks, calendars, and various office accoutrements.

In 2006, Aaron Draplin, a designer and collector of American ephemera, decided to create an homage to the utilitarian pocket notebooks found in the first half of the 20th century at full-service gas stations, midwestern feed stores, and all points in between. (Lots more on the products that inspire us here.) He called the hundred or so books he’d printed, “Field Notes,” and sent them out to friends, including Jim Coudal. The day that first book arrived in Chicago, Jim called Aaron. In less than a week, a company was born.

From the very beginning, every Field Notes paper product has been manufactured in the U.S.A. From the paper, sourced from some of the finest mills in the Midwest, to even the inks used, the production of Field Notes has never required travel on a cargo ship or plane; just the roads crisscrossing the country.