Ecosystem Planners and Notebooks

Here is a brand I've only recently discovered: Ecosystem, a brand of 100% post-consumer recycled paper planners and notebooks. Please understand that I do live under a rock, and I don't have access to many brands that are commonplace in the US or UK, so if everybody already knows about these except me then please forgive me. But they look really interesting!

The 4 categories are cleverly designated: Author (lined pages, for...writing), Artist (blank pages for...art), Architect (quad ruled pages for...architect-ing) and Advisor (planners!!!).

They look very Moleskine-esque with their elastic strap and ribbon page marker. But unlike Moleskine they have a nice selection of cover colors. I especially like the Watermelon (pink) and Lagoon (blue), but of course I had to jump onto their website to send in my request for purple. I can't help it, I like all things purple and hey, they asked for color suggestions!

Perhaps most intriguing is that they sell separate inserts in a variety of formats to tuck into the back pocket of the book: to-do lists, monthly calendar (!), addresses, lined, blank and more. In my opinion this increases the functionality of a book exponentially. For people who have tons of lists but few appointments, you could tuck a monthly calendar into the back pocket of a lined book and boom, there's your planner. When the notebook fills up before the end of the year, no problem: you just move the monthly insert to a new notebook and you're set. Or for people who need to schedule appointments and write lists or notes, tuck a notes insert into the back of your weekly planner, and when the insert fills up you can easily replace it. I think this is a great system.

Ecosystem seems to have done everything right: a great selection of sizes, cover colors, and formats. 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Made in the USA. But I'm wondering what the actual products are like. Is the paper nice to write on? Does liquid ink bleed through? Will the book hold up to a year of use and being thrown into a bag?

If you have used an Ecosystem notebook or planner, please leave a comment! I'm veeeery intrigued. Hmmm...