Korean Paper Brands 101: Plan d, Beginning Note, Paperian
The Korean paper brand market is a response to bullet journalling demand that the large pen companies never quite served. Plan d, Beginning Note, and Paperian each took a different position in the same gap. Understanding the difference tells you which to order for your specific needs.
Why Korean Paper Brands Exist
The major Korean pen manufacturers — Monami, Dong-A — produce good pens but have not historically focused on paper quality as a differentiator. Their notebooks and planners sell on price and design rather than on paper specification. The 70-75 gsm paper in most mass-market Korean notebooks is adequate for ballpoint and gel but insufficient for fountain pen use and frustrating for the detail-oriented bullet journal market.
The gap created a demand. Korean stationery communities on Instagram and Naver forums began discussing paper quality in detail, comparing gsm weights and ink behaviour, and cataloguing which notebooks handled fountain pens without feathering. Small brands emerged to serve this demand specifically: notebooks designed for ink-heavy use, produced in small runs, and marketed directly to the stationery community rather than through the mass retail channels that favour volume over specification.
Plan d, Beginning Note, and Paperian are the three most visible outcomes of this shift. They sell to a narrower, more demanding audience than Morning Glory or ICONIC, and they succeed because they serve a specific need well.
Plan d and the "Stays-Put" Fountain Pen Paper
Plan d is the most overtly fountain-pen-focused of the three. Their primary reputation rests on the B5 notebook, which uses 90 gsm paper specifically selected and tested for fountain pen performance.
The paper is cream-toned, which reduces eye strain under warm artificial light. The sizing (internal chemical treatment) is heavier than standard Korean notebook paper, which means ink stays on the surface rather than absorbing into the fibres. The result is sharper line edges, more accurate colour reproduction, and slower bleed-through for even the wettest inks.
The dot spacing in Plan d's dot-grid notebooks is 5mm, standard for the category. The dots are light grey and recede when you write over them. The B5 format provides more writing space per spread than A5, which suits people who write dense notes or do detailed layout work.
The binding is sewn. The notebook opens flat and stays flat. This is not a small thing: a notebook that requires one hand to hold it open wastes the other hand that should be writing.
Plan d is the premium option in this comparison. At £14.99 for a B5 notebook, it costs more than the alternatives. The extra cost is for paper quality, and if fountain pen use is a significant part of your practice, it is worth it.
Beginning Note and the Journaling Community
Beginning Note takes a different approach. Where Plan d leads with specification, Beginning Note leads with community. The brand has built a following in the Korean journaling community through consistent social media presence and product ranges designed for the specific visual styles popular in that community.
The A5 lined notebook uses 80 gsm paper, competent for fountain pen fine and medium nibs without the outstanding performance of Plan d's 90 gsm. The binding is also sewn, and the notebook lies reasonably flat. The cover designs tend toward muted, minimal aesthetics: plain clothbound covers, simple two-tone colour combinations, and text treatments that feel considered rather than generic.
Beginning Note's differentiation is in the range of paper rules: lined, grid, dot-grid, blank, and mixed (with alternating ruled and blank pages). For journalers who want structural variety within a single notebook, the mixed paper option is a practical choice that few other brands offer.
The brand is active on Korean social media and releases seasonal collections with limited-edition covers. Some of these reach international retailers; others sell out domestically before reaching YesStyle or similar platforms.
Paperian and Planner-Centric Paper
Paperian occupies the middle ground between the premium fountain-pen focus of Plan d and the journaling community positioning of Beginning Note. The brand produces notebooks and loose-leaf planner inserts, and the paper specification (80 gsm, smooth finish) is designed with a planner-first use case in mind.
The Paperian Dot Note uses a slightly smoother paper surface than ICONIC or Paperian's standard notebooks, which produces cleaner stamp impressions and better ink-pen results. The dot grid is 5mm, the dots are grey, and the binding is stitched.
Where Paperian earns its place is in the planner insert range. For users who run their own binding system — a discbound, ring-binder, or traveller's notebook — Paperian produces punched inserts in multiple formats (daily, weekly, monthly, blank) at a paper weight that handles fountain pens without feathering. This is a specific and narrow market, but there is no better-specified Korean option for it.
UK Shipping: What Actually Gets Through
All three brands are available through YesStyle with UK shipping. Typical delivery time from YesStyle's Hong Kong warehouse is one to two weeks for standard shipping. Items in stock ship promptly; limited-edition or newly released items sometimes have waitlists.
Customs and import duties for the UK apply to orders above the £135 threshold. Most individual notebook purchases fall well below this, so standard ordering is duty-free.
JetPens, the American pen and stationery retailer that ships internationally, carries Paperian and occasionally Plan d. International shipping from JetPens to the UK adds cost but provides an alternative source if YesStyle has stock issues.
Beginning Note is the least consistently available internationally. New collections sell quickly on Korean domestic platforms. YesStyle restocks at a lag, and some limited editions never reach international stock. Following the brand's own social media accounts is the most reliable way to know when new products are available.
FAQ
**Can I use Plan d paper with alcohol-based markers?** Not ideally. Plan d paper is optimised for water-based inks. Alcohol-based markers (Copic, Winsor and Newton Promarker) bleed through almost all paper types. If you use alcohol markers, look for paper marketed specifically as bleed-proof, which typically uses a different base material.
**Is Beginning Note the same as B-Note?** B-Note is a different Korean stationery brand. Beginning Note is a separate company with its own product lines and brand identity. The similar abbreviation causes confusion in some online listings.
**Are Paperian planner inserts compatible with standard ring-binder systems?** Paperian produces inserts in A5 ring-binder format with standard 6-hole punching. These are compatible with most ring-binder systems. For other binding formats (disc, traveller's notebook), check the specific product listing for dimensions before ordering.
**Why is 90 gsm paper not more common if it is better for fountain pens?** Cost and weight. Heavier paper costs more to manufacture and makes the finished notebook heavier. For the mass market, 70-80 gsm is the practical balance between cost and adequate performance. The 90 gsm market is premium by definition and sells to a smaller audience willing to pay for the specification.
