Papeterie Nota Bene has been keeping Montreal’s creative crowd supplied long before “stationery nerd” became a personality type. The shop reflects owner Russell Hemsworth’s long-running obsession with good tools: notebooks built to last, fountain pens with actual heft, and paper you don’t have to pretend feels nice. Designers, writers, and students drift through for the same reason: everything here is chosen with intent.

The space itself is bright, orderly, and surprisingly calm for a spot that draws both daily regulars and visiting collectors. And upstairs, a small gallery gives local artists and poets room to experiment, a reminder that the shop is quietly feeding the city’s creative ecosystem.