Office and school supplies can be fun and the Sumikkogurashi™ Notebook + Stickies Set are rank high up on the fun meter. The set comes wrapped in clear cellophane; each piece wrapped separately. The Notebook + Stickies Set includes:

• ballpoint pen
• mechanical pencil
• scissors
• ring bound notebook
• notebook with glued binding
• small memo pad
• tri-fold package of sticky notes
• individual page of sticky notes

Each of these has the image of cute, cuddly characters on them. These characters, according to the shop website, like to live a quiet and solitary life in corners. They are sweet looking characters and are very appealing to elementary aged girls. 

The ballpoint pen and mechanical pencil both have a click top to advance the writing point. They have a soft grip close to the tip to make for comfortable writing. The pencil requires 0.5mm leads which are easy to replace, though there was a minor issue with one of the original leads having broken off inside and taking a bit to get out. After removing that, it has worked well. The pen writes smoothly and does smear. Both have been kept with a Bible and used about three times a week to take notes during worship. Other than the minor issue mentioned, they have been particularly good writing utensils. 

The scissors are about 4 inches in length and come with a rubber blade cover with the Sumikkogurashi characters on it. It slides off to reveal rounded-tip blades. These blades are not as rounded as safety scissors, but they are not pointed. The scissors are a bit tight when first received, though they seem to loosen up after a bit of use. They cut smoothly and are very sharp, even cutting through rubber bands easily.

The sticky note sets also have images of the Sumikkogurashi characters. The individual page of sticky notes contains a set of 50 notes that are 2"x2". They are sticky at the top half. The tri-fold package of sticky notes contains a set of eight different sticky note shapes. There are four characters, each about 2"x2" and sticky on the top half. There are two rectangular sizes that are about 2"x1" and sticky on most of the back. There are also two sizes that are about 2"x ½" and sticky on the left 1", so these are more like flag-style sticky notes. Each of these have about 50. The sticky notes have been great for writing Bible verses on to keep with sermon notes. They are sticky but will not keep the sticky surface if moved very many times. 

The small memo pad is about 2"x3" and bound at the top on the short side. It has a transparent plastic cover on the front to help with durability. The pages have a picture of the characters sitting with their faces toward a corner, in keeping with the description of how these characters like to be. It is the right size for keeping in a purse or bag for quick notes that need to be jotted down.

The spiral bound notebook is 8.5"x 5.5" and is bound on the left. It has 50 sheets of wide-ruled paper. It has been used to take sermon notes and fits well in the Bible carrier. The notebook with the glued binding is letter sized. Each page has four colored sections running the width of the page and about 3" tall. There is a distinctive character on each section. A 2-page spread has eight sections, making it great for a weekly to-do list or keeping track of student assignments.

The Sumikkogurashi™ Notebook + Stickies Set has been a fun set to use.  With cute characters and pastel colors, it is highly appealing to elementary aged girls. From drawing the characters to taking sermon notes, from making to-do lists to keeping track of scriptures, the set has been a joy to use, providing fun for many young friends.

-Product review by Lori Hooten, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, July 2019