I’ve been carrying Moleskine notebooks for a couple of decades now, ranging from pocket-size for jotting, up to the larger 5×8 size, which is conveniently close to the dimensions of my iPad Mini. Both are great for slipping into a coat pocket.
Really got into the larger size Moleskine when I began my work in biomimicry and frequently need to capture / visualize functional strategies in nature, for which I’ve also re-discovered drawing with nicely weighted technical pencils (my favorite is the Pentel Sharp Kerry 0.7mm). Great for sketching on a walk in the woods.
I most recently ventured into the Evernote Smart Notebook, which is, as they say – “they” being CNET here if you’re curious – optimized for taking photos of pages with my iPhone or iPad camera through the Evernote app.
If my handwriting weren’t similar to that of a doctor hastily scribbling a prescription onto a Post-it note to get me out of his office, like, pronto, I’d be able to take notes, snap a shot, upload to Evernote and, with their OCR handwriting recognition pixie dust magic, search for key words I’d handwritten in that photo’d note.
Must say, that’s pretty cool. But it’s not what this post is about. Rather, I – like many other people it turns out – wondered (aloud) how you actually pronounce “Moleskine.” Or at least how the company would like you to.
What I discovered made the perfection-to-the-pixel brand steward side of me squirm … but the let-your-customers-own-your-brand side of me applauded, shouted-out a bravo (!), and capped it with a two-finger whistle.
Turns out they don’t really care how you pronounce it.
From the company’s website: “Many Moleskine users send us enquiries as to which is the correct way of pronouncing the word “Moleskine”. The answer is: there is no predetermined answer. Moleskine is a brand name with undefined national identity. And that’s the way we like it. As a literary name, it was used by British travel writer Bruce Chatwin in his book “The Songlines”, referred to the little black notebooks he usually bought from a stationery store in Paris. Everyone should feel free to pronounce it as he/she prefers. Enjoy.”
Well, there you have it. Now hear this:
I think I’m going to go with Mole Skin for now. Like it’s an animal skin; though presumably “no animals were harmed in the making of.” But if I were in Milano (where Moleskine is HQ’d), would likely change my tune. Ciao, y’all….