Clairefontaine 1951 Staplebound A5: 90 g Paper

Drawing of a raspberry Clairefontaine 1951 Staplebound Notebook A5, 210 mm tall and 148 mm wide, closed and opened flat on white lined pages with staples in the fold — The 1951 Staplebound A5 closed and open, with a staple in the fold magnified (1 mm = 1 px).

Product facts

Product: Clairefontaine 1951 Staplebound Notebook A5, 48 sheets (96 pages), lined
Brand: Clairefontaine
Brand origin: France
Made in: France^*
Material: Grained card cover, 90 g/m² Vélin Velouté paper (PEFC), staple binding
Price range: $$$5–20 per notebook

Notes on these facts

Made by Clairefontaine Rhodia (Exacompta Clairefontaine group); sold in the US by Exaclair. Made in France: Clairefontaine's French product page for the Carnet piqué collection 1951 says 'Fabriqué en France'; Gentleman Stationer and Hunter Paper Co. agree. Galaxus lists Morocco as the origin of a 1951 Back to Basics A5 notebook, so check the label. Source. Price: example listing.
Price bands are typical US retail, checked October 2026.

Key takeaways

Each notebook has 48 sheets (96 pages) of Clairefontaine's 90 g/m² Vélin Velouté paper, PEFC certified, in a grained card cover.
Clairefontaine's French site lists 14.5 × 21 cm (about 5.75 × 8.25 in), matching Blick; Galaxus rounds it to A5's 14.8 × 21 cm.
It is staple-bound, so it is far thinner and lighter than a 192-page hard-cover A5 such as the Rhodia Webnotebook.
Clairefontaine's French product page says 'Fabriqué en France'; Galaxus lists Morocco for one 1951 Back to Basics notebook.
It sits in our $$ band ($5–20 per notebook), the lowest-priced 90 g/m² A5 notebook we cover.

What is the Clairefontaine 1951 staplebound notebook?

It’s a thin A5 notebook with a card cover and 96 pages of Clairefontaine’s 90 g/m² paper, stapled through the fold. Clairefontaine is the French paper maker that also owns Rhodia, and Exaclair sells both in the US.

The 1951 Collection is the retro-styled line. Retailers also call it “clothbound” (Gentleman Stationer, Hunter Paper Co.) or “Back to Basics” (Galaxus), and JetPens and Officeworks list it in colors such as raspberry and pink.

Clairefontaine 1951 staplebound A5 specs

Spec	Value
Maker	Clairefontaine Rhodia (Exacompta Clairefontaine group)
Size	14.5 × 21 cm (5.75 × 8.25 in), per Clairefontaine and Blick
Pages	48 sheets (96 pages)
Paper	90 g/m² Vélin Velouté, PEFC; acid-free and pH-neutral per retailers
Item (raspberry, lined)	195836C, EAN 3329681958361 (French range code 195136C)
Binding	Staples through the fold
Cover	Grained card (“carte à grain”)
Made in	France, per Clairefontaine

Sheet count and paper weight come from JetPens, Blick and Gentleman Stationer listings; sizes from Blick and Galaxus. We did not reach Clairefontaine’s own product page.

How big is it next to other A5 notebooks?

It’s a full A5 page, slightly wider than the Rhodia Webnotebook and much wider than a Moleskine Cahier Large.

To-scale drawing of three notebook covers, all 210 mm tall: Clairefontaine 1951 A5, drawn at A5 148 × 210 mm (listed 145 × 210 mm), with 96 pages, Rhodia Webnotebook A5 140 × 210 mm with 192 pages, Moleskine Cahier Large 130 × 210 mm with 80 pages — Three soft- and hard-cover notebooks at the same scale.

	Clairefontaine 1951 A5	Rhodia Webnotebook A5	Moleskine Cahier Large
Size	145 × 210 mm	140 × 210 mm	130 × 210 mm
Pages	96	192	80
Paper	90 g/m²	90 g/m² ivory	Not published
Cover	Card, stapled	Leatherette hard cover	Card, stitched
Price band	$$	$$$	$$

The Webnotebook uses the same weight of Clairefontaine paper in a hard case with twice the pages. The 1951 is the lighter, cheaper way to get that paper.

What does 90 g/m² paper mean in practice?

At 90 g/m², the sheet is about 24 lb bond, a step heavier than everyday 20 lb (75 g/m²) copy paper. Heavier paper is less likely to show writing through from the other side, though sizing and finish matter as much as weight.

It is also heavier than the 80 g/m² paper in a standard Leuchtturm1917 and the 70 g/m² in a Moleskine Classic. Among the notebooks we cover, only 120 g/m² editions such as the Leuchtturm1917 Bullet Journal Edition 2 go heavier.

Who it suits: students who want fountain-pen-friendly paper for class notes, and anyone who fills a notebook a month and would rather not pay hard-cover prices each time. Wonderpens includes Clairefontaine in its budget list for exactly that reason.

Is it good for fountain pens?

Fountain pen shops recommend Clairefontaine paper, but we haven’t tested this notebook ourselves. Gentleman Stationer says Clairefontaine paper should handle even very wet nibs, and Wonderpens lists Clairefontaine among fountain-pen-friendly notebooks on a budget.

Smooth, well-sized paper keeps ink on the surface, which usually means crisper lines but slower drying, so left-handers should test before committing. The Pen Addict called a smaller Clairefontaine staplebound an excellent deal for the amount of paper.

For more choices, see our best notebooks for fountain pens. For a thin Japanese alternative, the thread-bound Tsubame Fools Notebook A5 has 30 sheets of 81.4 gsm paper.

1951 or Classic staplebound: which should you buy?

They share the format and the paper; choose by the cover you like.

1951 Collection: retro-styled covers, sold in colors like raspberry and pink.
Classic staplebound: the plain Clairefontaine covers; Goulet lists the A5 graph version with 48 sheets of 90 g/m² paper.

Both are stapled through the fold, with no hard cover, elastic or ribbon. Retailers list lined and graph rulings; check each listing for the ruling you want.

Where is the Clairefontaine 1951 made?

Clairefontaine’s French product page says “Fabriqué en France”, and Gentleman Stationer and Hunter Paper Co. agree. Clairefontaine is a French brand, part of the Exacompta Clairefontaine group, which also owns Rhodia.

Galaxus lists Morocco as the country of origin for one 1951 Back to Basics A5 notebook. Origin may vary by product or batch, so check the label if it matters.

Frequently asked questions

How many pages are in a Clairefontaine 1951 staplebound notebook?

The A5 staplebound has 48 sheets, which is 96 pages. Officeworks lists it as a 96-page notebook.

What paper weight is the Clairefontaine 1951 notebook?

Clairefontaine lists 90 g/m² Vélin Velouté paper, about 24 lb bond; retailers add acid-free and pH-neutral. That is heavier than the 80 g/m² of a standard Leuchtturm1917.

Is Clairefontaine paper good for fountain pens?

Fountain pen shops recommend it: Gentleman Stationer says Clairefontaine paper should handle even very wet nibs. Smooth paper also keeps ink on the surface, so it can dry more slowly. We haven't tested it ourselves.

What size is the Clairefontaine 1951 A5?

Clairefontaine's French site and Blick list 14.5 × 21 cm, about 5.75 × 8.25 in, sold as A5 format; Galaxus rounds it to 14.8 × 21 cm.

What is the difference between the 1951 and the Classic staplebound?

Both are Clairefontaine A5 staplebound notebooks with 48 sheets of 90 g/m² paper. The 1951 Collection has its own retro-styled covers, which retailers also call clothbound or Back to Basics; the Classic has the plain Clairefontaine covers.

Where are Clairefontaine notebooks made?

Clairefontaine's French site says the 1951 staple-bound notebook is made in France, as do Gentleman Stationer and Hunter Paper Co. Galaxus lists Morocco for one 1951 Back to Basics notebook, so check the label.

Is a Clairefontaine staplebound notebook cheap?

It falls in our $$ band, $5–20 per notebook, below hard-cover notebooks like the Rhodia Webnotebook or Leuchtturm1917, which are in the $$$ band.

Sources (13)

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