Established a minimalist stationery brand that seamlessly blends functional design and engaging digital storytelling.

Mesoki didn’t start as a stationery brand. Initially, I imagined it as a line of magnetic iPhone accessories with playful colors and subtle geometry. The accessories were promising, but something about the tactility of paper—its quietness—kept pulling me in.

I began noticing how cluttered most notebooks felt. I wanted to build something that wouldn’t interrupt thought but instead gently hold it. So I paused the accessories path and redirected the brand toward notebooks.

To understand what made a notebook feel “right,” I collected dozens—Japanese, European, academic, creative. I documented their structure, materials, page balance, weight, binding types. It wasn’t research in the formal sense, but more like observation with purpose. I looked for moments when form supported clarity.

I set a constraint early: the front cover should have only one word. I also decided each notebook would live in a color—flat, vibrant, self-contained. The identity had to speak in simplicity, and color became the language.

Mesoki taught me how to listen—to color, to weight, to white space. It made me more patient. Less obsessed with cleverness. More focused on rhythm, balance, and staying out of the way when it’s not your turn to speak.