Thursday Drops: Back to School Season (Already?!?)

We start school in our house today, and the 2022 D.C. Pen Show hasn’t even happened yet! Well, at least it was an excuse to go stationery shopping, and we ended up buying our first Trapper Keeper. (Apparently they still exist.) I’ve been receiving requests for recommendations from readers looking to purchase fountain pens, pencils, and high-quality paper and supplies for college, for their school-age children, and even for back-to-work as offices continue to reopen and require in-person attendance, so today’s post will pull those together into a list. Enjoy!

Fountain Pens

1. TWSBI Swipe Fountain Pen. I would consider the Swipe to be the perfect entry point for those looking at a work-friendly fountain pen, because it ships with two different converters and a cartridge included. TWSBI recently expanded the Swipe lineup to include two new colors, “Salmon” (Pink-Orange) and “Pear” (a light green).

2. TWSBI ECO Fountain Pen. If you’re not afraid of filling from a bottle (and you should’t be!), the TWSBI ECO represents tremendous value in the fountain pen world. The new “Transparent Yellow” demonstrator version just hit the shop yesterday and it’s a stunner.

3. TWSBI Diamond 580 and Diamond Mini Fountain Pens. The original TWSBI fountain pen remains my personal favorite, as does the mini version. The recently released Diamond 580 in the gorgeous “Iris” finish is now available for purchase in the shop.

4. TWSBI Vac Mini. The Vac Mini remains my go-to TWSBI pocket pen, as it makes for a perfect pocket “ink tank”. If you enjoy posting your fountain pens, TWSBI’s “mini” pens feature threading on the barrel-end, which allows you to secure the cap and turn the pocket pen into a full-size writing experience.

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Pencils, Ballpoints, and Rollerballs

1. Tombow 2558 Pencils. Good pencils top my list of requested recommendations this time of year, and each time I always go back to this Tombow pencil, which sports a beautiful golden orange lacquer, an excellent eraser, and a dark graphite core available in both HB and B.

2. Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball. The Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball is a slightly larger version of the classic 849 hexagonal form factor. While it ships with an excellent CdA rollerball refill, it will also take any Parker-style refills, including ballpoints.

3. Caran d’Ache 849 Ballpoint. The ballpoint that’s been around forever remains one of our top-selling products. We’re fully stocked on the classic version, and also have several of last year’s limited edition “Claim Your Style” pens available, marked down to make room for the new season arriving soon.

Notebook Systems and Cases

1. Traveler’s Notebooks. My personal favorite of all planner and notebook systems out there, this simple folded leather cover-and-cord system is infinitely customizable with a full range of accessories. Each notebook comes in a starter kit, with everything you need to get writing, and for a limited time you can still pick up their 2022 limited releases in one of four themes: Hotel, Airline, Train, and Records!

2. Midori MD Paper System. If you’re looking for something perhaps even more flexible, with more available paper sizes yet which incorporates the same fountain pen friendly paper as the Traveler’s Notebook system, try out Midori, which also features a wide array of accessories.

3. Lochby Notebook Covers and Cases. The newest addition to our lineup, Lochby, is known for is simple-yet-durable notebook covers and cases, ranging from the A5 Field Journal to the Quattro Four-Pen Case to the versatile Tool Roll. I will have the full line of Lochby samples present at my table in D.C., so stop by and check them out!

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold, including those shown here. If you’re attending the D.C. Pen Show this weekend, please visit our table. We aren’t selling on-site, but we will have a special coupon that readers can use to access certain promotions. As always, U.S. orders over $75 ship free.

Thursday Drops: Gently Used and Pencil/Paper Inventory Reduction!

As you can tell from all the announcements I’ve been posting recently, I’ve been doing a lot of “summer cleaning” and pruning not only the site and shop but shop samples, review samples, and other gently used products that have accumulated over the years. There’s some great stuff in there, including some that’s uncommon! Check out the “Gently Used” Stationery Sale page, and remember that orders from T.G.S. Gently used can be combined with general shop orders to save on shipping.

Update on Inventory Reduction

As I mentioned yesterday, we will be running specials through the D.C. Pen Show early next month in an effort to reduce our general inventory further and allow us to focus on other projects with the T.G.S. website and Patreon Program. For this week, all Paper and Pencils are 10% off, no coupon code required. The discount will be automatically applied at checkout! To the extent something is on clearance pricing, the discount will be in addition to the sale price.

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Lochby Tool Roll in Charcoal, anyone?

Lochby Restock - New Colors and Designs

Yesterday’s post highlighted the recently arrived Lochby Venture Pouch, but we also received a restock of Brown, Charcoal, and Navy options for the Lochby Field Journal and Lochby Tool Roll. Finally, there is a TON of Lochby paper in stock, and now would be a good time to stock up on 68 Tomoe River!

If you’d like to support T.G.S., consider visiting our Patreon Program! Going forward I plan to focus on growing that group as a primary means of supporting the site. We do meetups and more!

Thursday Drops: Restocking Old Favorites

We’re entering the “June lull” between new product releases, when everyone has finished up with school, work (hopefully) slows down, and people prepare to take vacation. Personally, it’s been a hectic past few weeks and I’m looking forward to some time off next week. Since I will be on vacation, orders placed between Saturday, June 11 and Saturday, June 18 will begin shipping the following week. What does this mean? If you want something delivered as a graduation or Father’s Day Gift, please get the order in during the next few days. I will do one last shipment the morning of Saturday, June 11.

As I mentioned on Tuesday, we recently received a huge restock of Midori MD products, and are also fully stocked on Caran d’Ache, Write Notepads, and many more favorites.

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands stocked.

1. Midori MD 70th Anniversary Fountain Pen and Ink Sets. These literally sold out in a day last time, and we’re already running low once again on certain colors. For their 70th Anniversary Midori has paired a special color MD fountain pen with three inks that match their colored pencil set (grey, orange, and blue).

2. Caran d’Ache 849 Black Code, Original, Gold Bar, and Brut Rosé. The four “Pop Line” ballpoints were some of the first products I stocked in the shop, and I recently re-upped for the start of gift season. We also have Gold Bar and Brut Rosé mechanical pencils in stock - the Black Code version sold quickly but we will get more.

3. Caran d’Ache Fixpencil and Fixpencil 884 (Colors). Another “launch product” from the T.G.S. Curated Shop, these 2mm leadholders were the original “mechanical pencil,” developed in response to wartime materials shortages. We also carry replacement leads in HB, B, and 2B hardnesses.

4. Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Swiss Wood Pencils. While the Nespresso 849 pens are unfortunately out of stock (at least until the next collaboration), I managed to snag another shipment of the Swiss Wood Pencil Set.

5. Caran d’Ache Swiss Wood Gift Sets. One of our most popular seasonal gift items, this pencil set contains three Swiss Wood pencils in different , a sharpener, and a high quality eraser.

6. Midori MD Journal A5 Dot Grid. This dot grid version of the classic Midori MD A5 notebook always sells out quickly, and we fortunately were able to get another shipment in quickly.

7. Midori MD A4 Notebook. The largest of the Midori MD notebooks, only available in plain/blank paper. We also stock the durable paper covers.

8. Write Notepads Memo Pads. These letter-size memo pads have easily become my favorite paper for everyday writing. I prefer dot grid, but the Cornell-style “Meeting Pads” and the lined versions are also incredibly popular.

9. Write Notepads Classic Hardcover Notebook. If you’re looking for an exceptionally classy gift for graduation or Father’s Day, look no further than this hardbound notebook that features Write’s excellent lined or dot grid paper.

10. Revamped Washi Tape Page! Be sure to check out our revamped page of washi tape, pins, and more! We recently reworked the page to list each tape individually with better pictures, and also listed nearly a dozen new patterns.

Reunion Season Throwback: Things I Wish I Had In School

So in addition to it being graduation season, it’s reunion season, and I’m currently in attendance at my 20th. (High School or College, I refuse to say.) But being here brought back a lot of memories, and since my own school experience abroad is a big reason why I got into this hobby and have remained engaged in the community over the years, I’ve spent some time thinking about the products that I would have found the most useful when I was a student. Sure, some of these almost certainly existed somewhere in the world at that time, but they weren’t easily accessible to me.

1. Extra-fine Fountain Pen Nibs for Annotation. Sure, I used fountain pens starting early on in college, but for whatever reason, all I could find were medium nibs, and that’s what I used exclusively until about ten years ago. Interchangeable nib fountain pens such as the TWSBI Diamond 580 would have been extremely useful tools, paired with a nib like the Mark Bacas Predator Hybrid or one of the Japanese extra-fine needlepoints I’ve reviewed in recent weeks.

2. “Slim” Style Notebooks. I’ve always been a note-taker and list-maker, but seemingly found myself limited to legal pads, larger letter-size or A4 notebooks, and DayTimers (remember those?) when what I really love are sizes like A5 Slim (“Traveler’s Style”) and B6 Slim (like the Nanami Paper Cafe Note and the Midori MD equivalent). If something like the Traveler’s Notebook system had been around, I certainly would have used it.

3. Quality Sticky Notes. I used to buy sticky notes by the case, but hated the fact that they all bled through with literally any pen except ballpoints.

4. Book Darts. I still have some books from high school and college, flagged with the aforementioned multicolored sticky notes and plastic document flags. Aged brass or bronze Book Darts probably would have looked a lot nicer.

5. Highlighter Pencils. Now this is a product that was almost certainly around, I just didn’t know anything about it and for whatever reason highlighter pencils never made it onto my radar until I started my legal practice and found one lying around the law library at my first job. The fact that you can use them over ink without causing the ink to bleed is infinitely useful.

6. Quality Woodcase Pencils for Writing. I’ve always been a pencil enthusiast as well as a pen lover, but towards the end of my school days the quality of U.S. pencils dipped tremendously as manufacturers outsourced and cut corners on materials. Pencils such as the Tombow 2558 and the Caran d’Ache School pencil remind me of what was available during my elementary school days, but had largely disappeared by college.

7. Quality Pencil Sharpeners, Especially Long-Points. If only I had known that I could have avoided years of feeding perfectly good pencils into the crappy electric sharpeners…

Later today I plan to make a run by the school bookstore, and while I’m not overly hopeful at what I’ll find, I’ll probably still add to my ever-growing stockpile, if only for the sake of nostalgia!

This post does not contain any paid third-party affiliate links. The Gentleman Stationer is supported by purchases through the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges through the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

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Thursday Drops: Recapping All That's New and Shiny

It’s been a big couple of months around here and I’m only now getting caught up. Between our milestone giveaway, office renovation, and just life in general, you can say there’s been a lot going on and, of course, more to come! I wanted to take a few minutes to recap all the recent new arrivals, and personally thank everyone who’s supported the site and our little shop during what’s been a fun - but stressful - growth phase.

The biggest news from this week, of course, has been the arrival of a massive shipment of Washi Tapes and Snail Mail accessories, discussed in this post from earlier this week. We’ve also redesigned the Washi Tapes and Enamel Pin section of the shop to make it more navigable. and to better show off the designs of the individual tapes.

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

1. Caran d’Ache “Black Code,” “Gold Bar,” and “Brut Rosé” Mechanical Pencils. What I like to think of as our “signature” everyday writers, since they were the first high-end pens we carried, are now available in .7mm mechanical pencil format.

2. TWSBI Swipe Fountain Pens in Salmon and Pear. TWSBI has begun to release its “Swipe” cartridge-converter fountain pens in different color acrylics, including Salmon (more of a peach than a pink, at least to me) and Pear (a bright green). I find these a perfect match for a couple of ink colors in TWSBI’s six-ink sets.

3. Platinum Carbon Desk Pens. Featuring one of the best steel extra-fine nibs that I’ve tried anywhere, this desk pen is an excellent writer and costs only $13. The base is sold separately, if you’d like to add a vintage look to your desk setup.

4. Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Swiss Wood Set. We recently received a large shipment of the Caran d’Ache x Nespresso collaboration pencils! These have been out of stock for a while, but the Swiss Wood with colored ends made from recycled Nespresso capsules are back. Standard Swiss Wood gift/starter sets are back as well.

5. Tombow Mono 100 Woodcase Pencils. It’s a toss-up between the Tombow Mono 100 and Mitsubishi Hi-Uni as to what’s the best high-end Japanese pencil on the market. Both brands sharpen exceptionally well, and as a gross generalization, those who prefer a slight bit of tooth to their graphite will appreciate Tombow, while those who like a perfectly smooth pencil will go Hi-Uni.

6. Mitsubishi Hi-Uni Woodcase Pencils. See above. You can’t go wrong with either. We recently received several 22-pencil drawing sets containing the full range of Hi-Uni graphite hardnesses.

7. Midori MD Notebook Light. In addition to the thicker Midori MD Notebooks (which have probably become our best-selling product in the shop), we’ve also stocked the Midori MD light range, which are slimmer notebooks sold in packs of three. In addition to the standard sizes, we have the 70th Anniversary set.

8. Traveler’s Company Spiral Ring Notebooks. In addition to the standard Traveler’s Company lineup, we’ve added the Traveler’s Company Spiral Notebooks, which contain 100 pages/200 sheets of blank Midori MD Paper.

9. Midori Five-Year Journal 70th Anniversary Edition. I’ve picked up my five-year journal again, and what spurred me to finally do it was the release of this gorgeous leatherbound edition for Midori’s 70th Anniversary.

10. Midori Leather Notebook Covers. These are on backorder from the distributor, but I have a couple of the natural leather notebook covers in B6 size. I will update the site once the other sizes become available once again.