Every quarter, Field Notes produces a limited edition run of their popular pocket-sized notebooks, and each time they attempt to do something creative, impressive, or just plain interesting. With the latest, the Winter 2015 edition, Field Notes managed to hit all those notes with their Snowblind notebooks. The catch: you need a little sunshine.

The cover desing – a glittery-white text on a “silk white” background – is supposed to resemble the color palette of a snowstorm. Bring out the notebook into sunlight, however, and thanks to photochromic ink, the white cover turns to a light, powdery blue.

The chemical reaction in the ink only occurs with ultra-violet light, so your typical indoor light source wont work. But when you do take the notebook out into the sun, the color-change happens surprisingly quick. Step back in the shade, and the color will slowly fade back into its original white.

Obviously, anyone who spends more time outdoors will get a much bigger kick out of this Snowblind edition. Personally, I never got to see this color change very often, as my notebook spends most of its time in my back pocket. The dreary weather in my part of the country hasn’t helped either, so I’ve considered saving one of these notebooks for the summer when there is more sun to be had.

Then again, maybe the rarity of seeing the color change is the point. When it happens, it feels special. After a while it could start feeling gimmicky. For now, at least, it’s one of my favorite Field Notes editions.

Additional Notes: