The leather isn't flimsy per se, but it's rather soft and supple. If you're right-handed, I think it's good for small doodling and sketching--the paper is wide enough to make that happen. There's silk in the paper, so it's not as absorbent as regular paper, but it's so elegant to write on. I'd suggest going to an H store and looking at it for yourself, if you are close to one. For me, that's what I had to do, because I really couldn't tell online.