Paper Systems and their Uses

I’m sure most of you have experienced either being known as, or knowing someone as, the “[insert item here]” person at work. I’m the pen person to many who have worked with me. Some of my closer colleagues have thought of me more as the stationery person.

Because of that, I’ve recently had several conversations with my colleagues about paper systems. Perhaps because the world is so crazy right now, there seems to be a greater desire to “get organized,” to have better control over your own little corner of the world.

The Systems

The first part of the conversation is, inevitably, what kind of paper system to use. Assuming you are working with a system that contains your paper — rather than just having a bunch of loose-leaf sheets stacked somewhere — I lump paper systems into four categories:

1. Binders
2. Discbinding
3. Multi-notebook compilation
4. Single bound notebook

Binders

I’m sure everyone is familiar with binders. They come in MANY sizes and several shapes. Most of us have used binders for school, and, given their widespread availability at all price points, there’s a good chance that if you don’t currently have a binder, you know someone who uses one.

Discbinding

These seem to be less known than binders. The idea is roughly the same; you have a “book” that holds punched pages that can be rearranged. But, where the binder is a fixed size, you can both increase or decrease the number of discs to use larger or smaller paper and change to discs of larger or smaller diameter to hold more or less paper. You can also alter the disc layout and get discs of different colors, making discbound books more customizable.

Multi-notebook compilation

This is a traveler’s notebook setup. You have an outside cover that holds several smaller, bound notebooks inside of it. I don’t know the max number of notebooks you can add, but I’ve seen people store 5 notebooks and several accessories in one cover.

Single bound notebook

This is your basic notebook. It’s a “one and done,” as you can’t refill it or add more paper. With sewn — and some glue-bound — notebooks, depending on the number of pages, you have one or more signatures of paper bound together with one of many types of covers. You can also have spiral, ring/twin ring, and staple bound notebooks, again, depending on number of pages.

Their Uses

This is where I leave the easy land of fact and trod into the dangerous land of opinion. What I think a paper system is best used for won’t match everyone else’s. So, I advise you read this section with the thought in mind that these are my suggestions, based on the way my brain works. You’ll have to test them to see what works best for you.

Binders

Binders are best for rearranging pages easily and often. You don’t have to deal with keeping an index or color coding unless you want to. Most binders can take a bit of a beating, so you can plop them in any bag without worrying about pages coming loose or getting damaged.

You are somewhat limited in ring layout and paper size in relation to the binder you have. There also isn’t much you can do to customize them. Most binders are sold without any customization options, and not all of them allow you to change the rings.

I recommend binders if you want to commit to a specific paper system and have some idea of how you want to use it. You also need to be willing to take the time to go through your binder every so often to weed out unnecessary pages and avoid overfilling the rings.

Discbinding

I would argue that discbinding is the most flexible of all paper systems. They are excellent for people who tend to grab whatever scrap of paper is near them to write things down. Random envelope, napkin, piece of copy paper? They can all get “hole” punched — I know it’s not actually a hole with discbinding — and popped into the book.

You don’t even have to worry about paper size. Discbound books rarely — if ever? I certainly haven’t seen one — have any type of closure fastening to restrict the paper size. If you don’t mind corners or edges getting a bit crinkled, then use whatever paper you want.

Like binders, all of the paper can be rearranged to suit your needs, but you can’t reorganize often, or you’ll wear out the slots on the paper.

To my knowledge, disbound covers don’t go around the discs, they are just front and back covers. Because of this, they are somewhat less sturdy in bags, and you run a bit of a risk of discs at the top and bottom popping loose if they’re jostled around too much.

I recommend discbinding if you are looking for many customization options, and perhaps don’t have a true plan when it comes to a paper system. Discbound books could be a good way to transition from random notes stashed away to a real system. If you forget to use your book, just punch whatever paper you used, and add it in.

Multi-notebook compilation

Multi-notebook compilations (MNCs) are a hybrid of binders and notebooks. You can keep things separate, have different types of paper, and even move “sections” with ease. However, you can’t rearrange pages.

Typically, notebooks used in MNCs are thin, with either sewn or stapled bindings. They can be great for recording trips and scrapbooking since the limited number of pages don’t allow for much bulk to build up. Because of the simplicity of the notebooks, you could easily make them yourself from your favorite paper.

I recommend MNCs if you really like notebooks, but want to separate your writing into sections. They can also be a good option if you’re intimidated by, or averse to, larger notebooks. MNCs could also be ideal if you want or need multiple types of paper, but don’t want to deal with some of the hassle of binders or discbinding. E.g. loose-leaf paper, hole punching, opening and closing rings.

Notebooks

While I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my switch to a binder system, I can’t really knock notebooks. There are tons of great options with lots of different paper types. If you don’t necessarily need fountain pen friendly paper, then the world is your oyster. You can get a notebook just about anywhere, with the widest choice of cover options.

I recommend notebooks if you’re looking for a “one and done” system. They are great if you either pre-plan your entire book — i.e. bullet journaling — or don’t care about being able to rearrange pages. Depending on how you use a notebook, you may need to implement an index of some kind and/or a way to mark pages — color coding, tabs, washi tape, etc. A notebook is likely to be the most compact paper system, so if your space is at a premium, notebooks may be the best fit.

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I hope you’ve enjoyed this overview of the major paper systems, and that it’s helped you if you’re trying to decide which to use or considering switching to a new one.

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Which paper system do you use? Do you agree with my suggested use cases? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.

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