Handmade in Nepal · tree-free lokta
Nepali Keeper
A lokta-covered notebook with 96 deckle-edged pages of handmade lokta paper, in four covers and three sizes. The Busy Bee, our most popular, honors the wild bees of Nepal.
Our most popular cover: a bee print on honey-yellow lokta
5 × 7 in · 96 unlined pages
- Pages
- 96 unlined pages (192 front/back), deckled/feathered edges
- Paper
- Handmade lokta, 75–80 gsm; varies a little from page to page due to being handmade
- Sizes
- Small 5 × 7 in · Medium 6 × 9 in · Large 10 × 9 in
- Covers
- Busy Bee, or vegetable-dyed Sage, Terra Cotta and Dark Walnut
- Pens
- Gel pens work best; ballpoint, pencil and fine-nib fountain pens too
- Made in
- Nepal, following a 1,000-year-old tradition
Honoring the Wild Bees of Nepal
The Busy Bee
Nepal is famous for its honey hunters, who have braved the cliffs for over 200 years to harvest honey from the giant beehive colonies that thrive along them. In the Kaski district, families have benefited for generations from these wild hives hanging from sheer rock.
The Busy Bee honors that tradition, and nature’s helpers the bees, with a bee print on a beautiful honey-yellow cover.
It’s our most popular Keeper. The small 5 × 7 is the favorite, sized for a bag or a bedside table; the 6 × 9 medium gives a little more room to write and sketch.
Shown in the small 5 × 7. Also in medium 6 × 9 and large 10 × 9.
A honey hunter on the cliffs of Nepal
Where the Busy Bee Began
Hundreds of feet up the rock, a hunter climbs a rope ladder toward the golden combs of Nepal’s wild honey bees. The bees on the Busy Bee Keeper are for them.
Four covers, three sizes
Which cover?
The pages are the same handmade lokta in every Keeper. Choose the cover, then the size: small 5 × 7, medium 6 × 9 or large 10 × 9.
Busy Bee
Most popularA bee print on a honey-yellow cover, honoring the wild bees of Nepal and the honey hunters who brave the cliffs to reach their hives. The small 5 × 7 is our bestseller, with the medium close behind.
Sage
A soft sage green made by mixing two vegetable dyes: indigo (blue) and pomegranate skins (yellow). The small Sage is one of our most-chosen Keepers.
Terra Cotta
A warm red from the sap of cutch wood, boiled out and dried into a resin for dyeing.
Dark Walnut
A rich dark brown from walnut husks, a natural dye used for centuries.
Writing in it
Which pens work best?
Gel pens first, then ballpoint, pencil and fountain pens with fine nibs. At 75–80 gsm the pages are the weight of our printer paper, so very wet inks can feather and ghost through.
Is one side rougher?
A little. Each sheet has a smoother side, where it formed against the screen, and a “sun-kissed” side with more texture. The flecks from the lokta bush are part of the paper.
Why does every cover differ?
The vegetable dyes are mixed by artisans, not machines, so the shade varies from batch to batch. No two journals are the same.
More about this journal
New Look. Ancient Tradition.
Nepali Keeper Journal
The Nepali Keeper handmade notebook is the perfect note-taking companion at home, work, or for your adventures and travels around the globe.
Keep and preserve your memories, thoughts, or sketches on the 96 unlined pages (192 front/back).
This Himalayan handcrafted treasure supports the talented Nepalese artisans and preserves the thousand-year-old tradition of hand made paper in Nepal.
The Nepali Keeper comes in four Colors: Busy Bee, Sage Green, Dark Walnut, and Terra Cotta
Nature's Touch
Three Sizes Ready for Adventure
Use the Nepali Keeper to keep and preserve thoughts & memories from your travels. Use it as a sketchbook or writing journal to record your daily adventures.
Each color comes in three different sizes:
Large: 10×9 inches
Standard: 6×9 inches
Small: 5×7 inches
The large Nepali Keeper is especially handy for scrapbooking, or guestbooks that prefer an organic feel and texture to their paper.
A 1,000-year-old Handmade Tradition
Nature's Renewable Paper
A tradition of over 1,000 years in Nepal, our 100% Lokta paper is not treated with bleach like other papers and is hand made in rural, high altitude villages of Nepal.
The fibrous inner bark of the lokta bush is “cooked” into a pulp then spread on screens and sun-dried in the Himalayas. The beautiful texture from the process is characteristic of hand crafted lokta paper.
Lokta paper has a beautiful texture containing natural flecks from the bush and can vary slightly in thickness from page to page due to the unique handcrafting process.
Because the lokta bushes are not destroyed when cut, they grow back quickly, making them a renewable paper source.
- Tree-Free Paper
- Lokta bushes grow on the southern slopes of the Himalayas of Nepal.
- Vegetable-Dyed
- Natural vegetable-dyes create the beautiful variety of colors in the covers.
- Renewable
- Lokta bushes regrow quickly after being cut, regaining full height in 5-7 years.
- 96 Pages (192 Front/Back)
- The deckled-edges (similar to rough cut) are made by hand and add to the tradition style.
- Bleach and Acid Free
- Modern papers are bleached to gain brightness, our paper is bleach free and acid-free and retains its natural color.
Handmade Color
The Colors of Nature
The cover coloring is produced with the traditional and vegetable plant-based dyes that have been used for hundreds of years.
No two journals will be the same. The vegetable dye process is not like using synthetic dyes which can match a specific color number every time.
The vegetable dyes we use are mixed by artisans, not machines, and the colors can vary from batch to batch making each journal a unique creation full of character and individual style.
The Sage Green Nepali Keeper Journal is made from a combination of Indigo (blue) and Pomegranate (yellow from the pomegranate skins) mixed together creating a unique green color.
The coloring for the Dark Walnut Eco Journal comes from actual walnut husks which produce a rich dark-brown coloring. The walnut husk surrounds and protects the walnut seed and has been used as a natural dye for centuries.
The unique red of the Terra Cotta journal is made from sap extracted from Cutch wood. The wood is boiled removing the sap which is then dried into a resin to later be used for the coloring process.
Handmade Lokta Paper
Nepali Keeper Handmade Notebook
Include the Nepali Keeper vintage notebook in your next adventure.
Kalinchok, Nepal
Ready to Travel Anywhere
Whether traveling around the globe or right in your own backyard, use the Nepali Keeper as a way to keep track of your travels.
The three size options make the Nepali Keeper a great choice for a special sketchbook, nature journal, meditation or prayer notebook, or writing journal.
Take the Nepali Keeper with you, and capture the moment.
Thank You for Supporting Talented Nepalese Artisans
Thank you for helping to preserve a 1,000 year old tradition in Nepali paper making.