Moleskine Templates
This template is based on a medieval scribal page layout principle described in Robert Bringhurst’s excellent book on typography, ‘The Elements of Typographic Style’. The template is for the unlined Large/13 x 21cm Plain Notebook (with the green label). You won’t be able to see the guide through the paper if you use the Sketchbook version.
The Large-sized notebook’s aspect ration is nearly equivalent to a Golden Section rectangle (1:1.61803…). The design of the template is related to the golden section/Φ/the Fibonacci sequence. The template makes a handy bookmark too!
Using the Template
- Download the PDFs
- Print each PDF on a double sided piece of card-stock (flipping laterally, not vertically)
- Alternatively, print single-sided and then glue the pages to a piece of light card stock
- Cut out the templates along the dotted line
- The spine and top margins are narrower than their opposites. Place the template behind the page you are writing on, making sure it is oriented properly
- Try writing with the templates and decide which one you like better
- The small boxes at the top left and right are there in case you number your pages
- Alternatively, you can use the small boxes at the bottom
- The separated bottom line or two is for footnotes
- If you like the template, leave it in as a bookmark
The Files
Version A is based on the method above (1/9th margin).
» rodgraves-moleskinelarge-a.pdf
Version B is similar but has smaller margins (1/12th margin).
» rodgraves-moleskinelarge-b.pdf
By popular request, there is also a version for the smaller pocket Moleskine:
» moleskine_small.pdf
Construction of the guidelines
Line-spacing (1/2 of spine margin)
Example