Archie Grand – The Notebook Corporation

by Adrian How

It’s amazing how many new people I get to know through How’sHouse. The online medium is a wonderful way to build real relationships in the virtual world. From the time I’ve set up How’sHouse until the present, I’ve made numerous friendships along the way – most asking for advice on their homes; many paying their compliments (it always feels great knowing I made someone happy reading my site); and others who are site owners themselves who drop by to say hello.

However, my most recent friendship was build in a different manner than the others. I got to know Johan Karmen, from Archie Grand – the Notebook Corporation, when he sent me an email telling me how much he liked How’sHouse and that he wanted to show his appreciation for my work by giving me one of his famous little notebooks. If you’ve been to his site, you can surely guess which title he sent me – ‘Designers I Met and Liked‘. I have to say, I’m delighted to have received this little notebook in the post a few days ago.

To me, most things that are elegant and beautiful are often the ones that are simple and subtle and Archie Grand’s notebooks religiously sticks to this concept and works just brilliantly. This is my very own copy:

More about Archie Grand:

The Grand family has produced journals and artist material for many generations. Today Archie Grand makes notebooks for friends and foes in bright colours, to make writing or taking a note a just a little bit wittier.

The present company came out of the late recession of the 1980s; the family company was in dire straits after the death of Archie’s grandfather Reinhold Grand. Archie was at that time in London for his education, attending Central St Martin and Royal collage of Art. Though not being very successful in getting a gallerist to exhibit his sculptures for the next decade, Lasty year Archie decided to revamp and revitalize parts of his grandfathers company. Having bumped into some of the charlatans of English society, like Alan Clark, Nigel Coates, Lord Acher, Bruce Bernard and other during his London years. Archie decided to give all the charlatans a notebook in matching colour. And so Archie Grand Notebooks for friend and foe came into life.

Our notebooks are made in Sweden, with great care to quality. They have a rigid cover, are thread sewn and have a matt leathery lamination. The size is a standard 160×115 mm to fit most suit pockets and small evening bags. Each notebook contains 160 blank pages of quality Swedish paper

Here are some of the ones I like and can relate to. In fact, there’s such a huge variety of titles, anyone will be able to relate to one at least. Simply briliant! Kudos to simplicity

Being in consulting, it’d be nice to keep a list of the ones I fancy though I doubt I’ll be able to fill in 160 pages full

This goes without saying that Ryan Giggs would be at the very top of this list, followed by, oh let’s see, the entire Man Utd team? I could think of another book title in which Mr Lampard and Terry could fit in