Stillman & Birn Zeta Sketchbook: 270 g/m² Smooth Paper
The Stillman & Birn Zeta is an extra-heavyweight 270 g/m² sketchbook with white, smooth-surface paper, aimed at pen and ink as well as dry and wet media. Exaclair's 2026 catalog lists a hardbound 5.5 × 8.5 in book of 26 sheets at a list price of US$29.00, made in the USA.
On this page
Product facts
- Product
- Stillman & Birn Zeta Series Hardbound Sketchbook, 5.5 × 8.5 in, portrait, 26 sheets (900580)
- Brand
- Stillman & Birn
- Brand origin
- United States
- Made in
- United States*
- Material
- 270 g/m² white, smooth-surface paper; hardbound
- Price range
- $$$$20–75 per ream or pad
- Rate it
Notes on these facts
- Made by Stillman & Birn (Exaclair, Inc.). Made in United States: Exaclair's 2026 Stillman & Birn catalog says the products are made in the USA with Schut paper produced in the Netherlands. Stillman & Birn's own site (blocked to our requests) is cited for the same by our Alpha guide. Source. Price: example listing.
- How we test and disclose samples: How we test stationery.
- Price bands are typical US retail, checked October 2026.
Key takeaways
- Exaclair's 2026 catalog lists Zeta as 270 g/m² white paper with a smooth surface, and the series chart rates it for dry and wet media, watercolor and ink.
- A hardbound or softcover Zeta has 26 sheets and a wirebound one 25, against 62 sheets in a hardbound Alpha and 50 in a wirebound one.
- Hardbound sizes are 5.5 × 8.5 in, 8.25 × 11.75 in and 9 × 6 in landscape; softcover adds 3.5 × 5.5 in, 8 × 10 in and 7.5 × 7.5 in, and wirebound runs from 6 × 8 in to 9 × 12 in.
- Catalog list prices run from US$17.25 for a 3.5 × 5.5 in softcover to US$38.75 for an 8.25 × 11.75 in hardbound or a 9 × 12 in wirebound.
- Stillman & Birn says its books are made in the USA with Schut paper produced in the Netherlands; it was added to the Clairefontaine Rhodia fine art family in 2019.
What is the Stillman & Birn Zeta?
It is the smooth-surface, extra-heavyweight book in Stillman & Birn’s sketchbook range. Exaclair, Stillman & Birn’s US distributor, lists the Zeta series at 270 g/m² on white paper with a smooth surface, the same weight as the Beta and the Delta but with a different surface.
Philip Birn, a Viennese bookbinder, founded the company in New York in 1958, according to Exaclair’s catalog, which says he pioneered the black hardbound sketchbook. The company was added to the Clairefontaine Rhodia fine art family in 2019. Our Alpha guide covers the lighter 150 g/m² book.
How does Zeta compare with Alpha and Beta?
Zeta shares Beta’s 270 g/m² weight and Alpha’s white shade, and it adds the smoothest surface. The catalog’s series chart reads as follows for the white-paper books.
| Series | Weight | Shade | Surface | Hardbound sheets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha | 150 g/m² | White | Medium grain | 62 |
| Beta | 270 g/m² | White | Cold press | 26 |
| Epsilon | 150 g/m² | White | Smooth | 62 |
| Zeta | 270 g/m² | White | Smooth | 26 |
What does the paper suit?
Exaclair’s chart lists dry and wet media, watercolor and ink for the Zeta. It lists “pen and ink, dry media and light wash” for the 150 g/m² smooth Epsilon, and the same dry and wet media, watercolor and ink line for the three 270 g/m² series. We read the chart from the PDF’s text, where its columns are laid out side by side, so check the printed chart if the distinction matters to you.
Stillman & Birn says its papers have both internal and surface sizing, which it says gives wet strength and keeps pigment on the surface. We haven’t tested the Zeta, so we can’t say how the smooth surface takes ink or wash.
What sizes and bindings are there?
Three bindings, all lay-flat per Stillman & Birn: hardbound, softcover and wirebound. Exaclair lists these Zeta sizes; the last column puts its list price in our bands ($$ is $5–20, $$$ is $20–75).
| Binding | Sheets | Sizes | Price band (list) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardbound | 26 | 5.5 × 8.5 in portrait | $$$ |
| Hardbound | 26 | 8.25 × 11.75 in portrait | $$$ |
| Hardbound | 26 | 9 × 6 in landscape | $$$ |
| Softcover | 26 | 3.5 × 5.5 in portrait or 5.5 × 3.5 in landscape | $$ |
| Softcover | 26 | 5.5 × 8.5 in portrait or 8.5 × 5.5 in landscape | $$$ |
| Softcover | 26 | 8 × 10 in portrait | $$$ |
| Softcover | 26 | 7.5 × 7.5 in square | $$$ |
| Wirebound | 25 | 6 × 8 in portrait | $$$ |
| Wirebound | 25 | 7 × 10 in portrait or 7 × 7 in square | $$$ |
| Wirebound | 25 | 9 × 12 in portrait | $$$ |
Single 22 × 30 in sheets and packs of 12 sheets in 8 × 10 in and 11 × 14 in are also listed. These are catalog list prices, so retail prices differ.
Which Zeta should you choose?
Choose the hardbound 5.5 × 8.5 in for a carried book and a wirebound for a desk, in our view. The Zeta’s 26 sheets make a thin book for the money, so if you fill pages fast the 62-sheet Alpha gives more pages.
For a similar-size sketchbook with more pages, see our best sketchbooks guide.
Where is it made, and what does it cost?
In the USA, per Exaclair’s 2026 catalog, with paper from the Schut mill in the Netherlands. Exaclair’s list price puts the hardbound 5.5 × 8.5 in in our $$$ band ($20–75).
We couldn’t read Stillman & Birn’s own site, which refused our requests, or a US shop’s page for the Zeta, so we have no street prices.
Frequently asked questions
What paper does the Stillman & Birn Zeta use?
Exaclair's 2026 catalog lists 270 g/m² extra-heavyweight white paper with a smooth surface. Stillman & Birn says its papers have internal and surface sizing, which it credits for wet strength.
How many sheets are in a Zeta sketchbook?
26 in the hardbound and softcover books and 25 in the wirebound ones. A hardbound Alpha has 62 sheets of lighter 150 g/m² paper.
What is the difference between Zeta and Beta?
Both are 270 g/m² white paper with 26 sheets in a hardbound book. Zeta has a smooth surface and Beta a cold-press surface, per Exaclair's series chart.
Is Zeta good for watercolor?
Exaclair's chart lists dry and wet media, watercolor and ink for the Zeta series. We haven't painted on it, and the smooth surface behaves differently from the cold-press Beta, so test a sheet.
What sizes does the Zeta hardbound come in?
5.5 × 8.5 in, 8.25 × 11.75 in and a 9 × 6 in landscape book. Softcover and wirebound books add other sizes, down to 3.5 × 5.5 in and up to 9 × 12 in.
How much does a Stillman & Birn Zeta cost?
Exaclair's 2026 list price is US$29.00 for the hardbound 5.5 × 8.5 in, US$28.00 for the same size in softcover and US$25.75 for a wirebound 6 × 8 in. Shops set their own prices.
Is the Stillman & Birn Zeta made in the USA?
Yes, per Exaclair's 2026 catalog, which says the books are made in the USA with Schut paper produced in the Netherlands.