Midori MD Cotton Paper is one of my favorite all-purpose options, including for letter writing.

Shop Update: Paper for Letter Writing

March 22, 2022

Even though I failed to get my act together in time to participate in NaNoWriMo last month, I’ve tried to do better with my letter writing, especially now that I have access to a ready stream of paper that’s more appropriate for casual letter writing. I’ve never been one for dedicated “stationery sets,” other than correspondence cards that people have sent me over the years, preferring to rely on standard writing pads that offer more writing space. (Hey, when I do write letters, they tend to be longer.) If you’ve ever received a letter from me, you’ll know that I prefer three types of paper: Clairefontaine Triomphe, Midori MD Cotton, and standard 52gsm Tomoe River paper (which is currently hard to source due to manufacturing changes). What do I like about these specific papers? They’re all “standard” enough to be both readily available and reasonably priced, while still maintaining that classic “vintage stock” feel that’s nicer than a standard legal pad, for both the writer and the recipient.

We’re happy to carry most of these papers in the shop, along with a few other quirky options.

Clairefontaine Triomphe

Available in both blank and lined formats, I would call Clairefontaine Triomphe my workhorse letter-writing paper of choice, since it’s both readily available, inexpensive, and ink-friendly. I love that it’s sold in bound writing pads, so you can use it for general writing and notetaking as well as correspondence. Available now in both A4 and A5 sizes, starting at only $5 USD.

Midori MD Writing Pads (MD Cotton and MD Standard)

If you favor more absorbent paper than Clairefontaine, or if you sometimes enjoy using pencils to write your letters, Midori MD Writing Pads are an excellent option. The unlined MD Cotton Paper has the best overall feel of any writing paper out there (in my opinion) and my only regret is that they don’t make it with a ruling. At the end of the day, I’ve simply adapted to using unlined paper. As I’ve mentioned before Midori MD pads are excellent for letter writing, and they can pull double-duty as a desk pad since they are bound on two sides and can be turned into a landscape orientation to fit beneath a keyboard. Available in both A4 and A5 sizes, starting at $10 for MD Cotton and $12 for standard Midori MD.

Life Noble Note and Bank Paper

While Japanese Stationery Company “Life” sits outside the stationery mainstream, receiving less attention than peers like Midori, many people find their paper equally as good and it’s developed a cult following. Their “Noble Note” 100-sheet writing pads come in blank, lined, and grid rulings. Personally, I find Life’s standard paper to behave closest to standard Midori MD, though perhaps with a bit more texture? If you favor toothier, more absorbent paper, check out their heavier, vintage-style Bank Paper. Available in A4 size, starting at $26 for a 100-sheet pad of Noble Note, and $28 for a 100-sheet pad of Bank Paper.

WMS & Co. ColorPads

Though color-coated paper is extremely hit or miss with fountain pens, I’ve had a lot of fun lately sending notes on the ColorPads from WMS & Co, mainly using ballpoint pen and pencil. (Colored Pencil looks exceptionally good on the grey paper.) I have one of the “Large Square” ColorPads on my desk at work, which I use for both taking notes and sending professional correspondence (thank-yous, cover notes, etc.). The best part is that all of the WMS & Co desk pads contain a minimum of 185 sheets of paper, so they’ll basically last forever. Available from $25.

WMS & Co makes writing pads in a variety of shapes and sizes. I’ve been using the large square ones (center) for work cover notes and casual correspondence.

Disclaimer: The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands shown here. The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

Hotel desk shot as I nervously prepare to open my pen rolls after flying with eight fully inked fountain pens.

Your Questions Answered: Flying with Fountain Pens

March 12, 2022

A common question I’m asked concerns fountain pens and travel, namely, “Can you fly with a fountain pen?” or “Can you take inked fountain pens on an airplane?” The answer I always give is “Yes”, with a few qualifications. I flew out to Baltimore on Thursday, and as my flight was sitting on the tarmac getting ready to leave Nashville, I realized that I had (inadvertently) packed five eyedroppered fountain pens, two Parker 51s with vintage aerometric filling systems, and a Lamy 2000, all of which were more than half-full of ink. Experiment time!

Instagram Poll Results

My first thought was to ask the readership (via Instagram): Which pens do you think will leak? Here’s what you all thought:

Two of the eyedroppers were Opus 88 Japanese-style pens with the shut-off valve, so I didn’t include them in the poll. Predictably, they didn’t leak.

Real World Results

And the “real world” test results? The only pen that truly leaked - meaning that it dumped a bunch of ink into the cap to the point where I had to rinse it out - was one of two Parker 51s with a vintage aerometric-filling system. Interestingly, a modern “fantasy” Parker 51 that used the same filling system but had a modern barrel and cap didn’t leak or even burp ink slightly. All three Schon Design eyedroppers had absolutely zero ink in the cap or on the nib, and my Lamy 2000 had a blob of ink on the feed that required me to blot it prior to writing. Importantly, I did NOT keep these pens “nibs up” during the flight. They were in my bag, in my pen case on their sides as I had to slide my backpack under the seat.

This unintentional experiment confirmed that you don’t have to worry excessively about flying with fountain pens. It’s never been something that I obsessed over, and these results are typical of what I’ve experienced over the years. Only one out of eight pens burped a significant amount of ink into the cap, though no ink leaked into my pen case, and that one pen was a vintage pen which I probably shouldn’t have flown with inked up anyway.

Tips and Techniques for Flying with Fountain Pens

If you absolutely want to minimize the possibility of a leak when flying with fountain pens, I might suggest the following general tips:

Fly with eyedropper/vacuum-filler pens with shut-off valves, such as Opus 88 pens, the TWSBI Vac700R, or the Pilot Custom 823 (among others).
Make sure any pens with other filling systems are full. This sounds counterintuitive, but it’s the expansion of air inside the filling system as air pressure changes that pushes ink out of the nib during a flight. If you remove the air by filling the pen immediately before taking off, you have a smaller chance of a leak.
Remove your pens from your carry-on bag and fly with them nibs-up in the seat pocket in front of you. Just don’t forget to take them with you when you deplane. I’ve heard horror stories.
Don't fly with vintage pens inked, especially vacumatic and aerometric filling systems. I’m no vintage pen expert, and can’t say why specifically these pens (in my experience) tend to leak more often than modern pens, but I suspect it’s due to modern feed/section/housing designs that minimize leakage. The majority of airplanes leaks I’ve experienced have involved me flying with vintage pens to or from a pen show.

Again, these are not absolutes, and there are no guarantees that you won’t have an issue, but I’ve had a lot of success flying with fountain pens and regularly do so.

Laban Greek Mythology Inks — Check in on my regular updates from Baltimore via Instagram!

Check Out My Instagram for Real-Time Photos of the 2022 Baltimore Pen Show!

I’ve been posting a series of pictures from the 2022 Baltimore Pen Show, ranging from crowd photos to vendors to nib grinders. It’s a combination of posts and stories (the latter of which are saved to the highlights so they don’t expire), and I’ll continue through today. To give you some examples of what you can find at the show, I picked up several inks from the Laban “Greek Mythology” series, took delivery of some specialty nib grinds I ordered from Custom Nib Studio (Gena Salorino), and had nibs ground in person by J.C. Ament (The Nib Tailor) and Josh Lax (J.J. Lax Pen Co).

Also, to celebrate the Baltimore Pen Show, and to compensate for the fact that I don’t have a table, all orders placed in the Curated Shop while I’m traveling this week will receive a free gift, and I’ve also added some new items from my personal collection to the Gently Used page.

This post does not contain paid third-party affiliate links, and I paid for all products featured in this post with my own funds. The Gentleman Stationer relies upon purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and the T.G.S. Patreon Program for support.

2022 Daily Carry Everyday Notebooks — My core set of daily carry notebooks should look familiar.

2022 Daily Carry: Starting the New Year

January 5, 2022

I haven’t put that much thought into what I’ve ended up with for my 2022 “daily carry,” but perhaps that’s a good thing. With a couple of exceptions, I’ve defaulted to what works for me, and unless something breaks during the year the “Core Notebooks” and “Bags and Pen Cases” haven’t changed from 2021 and won’t change for 2022. I have an insanely busy schedule from January through March, and I’ll need consistency to make it through.

Core Notebooks

Primary “Day Job” Notebook: Standard Traveler’s Notebook with Stalogy Half-Year. Of all the various “systems” I’ve tried over the years, I keep coming back to the Traveler’s Notebook format. I love the long, narrow page layout, which fits my notetaking style. I use a checklist/action-item style of notetaking that’s similar to bullet journaling but idiosyncratic in that I’ve used it for years, adapting it to my specific needs, and aspects of it make sense to nobody other than me. I’ve also enjoyed the Stalogy paper for its light weight and grey grid ruling. It doesn’t handle ink as well as Tomoe River paper, but it dries much quicker and therefore perfect for my workday.
Personal Journal/Workbook: Roterfaden Slim with Traveler’s Company Inserts. A collaboration with Baum-Kuchen, this Traveler’s-size Roterfaden is used as my personal journal/workbook, as I love that I can easily swap out the refills with the Roterfaden clip system. I don’t know whether this particular size of Roterfaden has been discontinued, but Baum Kuchen sells an A5 Slim version that’s similar. The specific refills I use in this notebook change regularly, but one constant has been the MD Cotton Letter Pad from the “B-Sides and Rarities” collection. (I don’t use it to write letters - it’s just a really convenient skinny notepad with great paper.)
Sketchbook: Nanami Paper Cafe Note. If you’ve met me at a pen show, you’ve seen this notebook. A combination journal/scratch pad/sketchbook, “whatever” notebook, this compact notebook features an absolutely massive amount of Tomoe River paper and goes with me anywhere. There’s no “system” or dedicated purpose for this notebook. As of now, it contains two years’ worth of pen show doodlings, draft reviews, ink tests, drawings, and other nonsense. And I love it.

Bags and Pen Cases

This category has remained consistent for years (with the exception of the Superior Labor Pen Roll, which I recently picked up). I don’t see any changes coming soon.

Filson Original Briefcase. It’s a classic, plain and simple. I acquired this six (?) years ago and haven’t been tempted by another briefcase or messenger bag since. The definition of a durable, versatile bag that also looks great.
Nock Co. Sinclair. Another classic, which unfortunately is going out of regular production. This three-pen zippered case in a limited waxed canvas finish helpfully limits the number of pens I can cart around at any given time, and slips easily into my oft-overstuffed briefcase or backpack.
Superior Labor Pen Roll. By far the single nicest leather accessory that I own. I love the olive green tone, the soft-yet-durable leather, and the layout. No, I don’t mind my pens touching.

The Cortex Theme System Journal, shown here in a gorgeous leather cover sent to me by Harber London, which I’m currently reviewing.

Other Tools I’m Using or Still Figuring Out

I have a third category of notebooks that are either tools that I’m trying to work into my main rotation or “role players” that, while important to me, don’t necessarily get used every day.

Plotter System. I was lucky enough to receive a complimentary Plotter system for testing at the San Francisco Pen Show, and have been thoroughly impressed with both the quality of the binders, paper and other accessories. Contrary to popular belief, the Plotter is NOT designed as a planner (though the system can certainly be set up to be used as one). If I had to summarize it, I would describe it as more of an “analog content manager,” with a range of flexible options for managing to-do lists and notes, including a unique foldering system that I’ve been relying on to help manage T.G.S. I’m diving deep into Plotter this year, so look for an initial review in the coming months.
Cortex Theme System Journal. Last week I wrote about my personal goals for 2022, as they pertain to T.G.S., and many of you mentioned how my discussion parallels many of the ideas discussed on the Cortex podcast and their “Theme Journal” that’s been receiving some attention in pen circles. As it turns out, while I listen to that particular podcast only occasionally, I picked up a Theme Journal and have been waiting for the beginning of the year to use it. I’ll have a more thorough write-up once I finish setting up the notebook and working through the system for a couple of months, but so far I’m impressed with the thought that went into it, the ideas behind its creation, and the flexibility of the layout.
Commonplace Book. I sporadically keep a “commonplace book” to track quotes from my reading, but I’ve fallen off the wagon with commonplacing a bit and need to catch up. Here I’ve typically relied on a Write Notepads Hardcover Notebook for durability purposes, since I envision keeping my commonplace books for the longhaul as I fill them up.
Filofax Notebooks. Not fancy stationery by any means, but I use these highly versatile notebooks to manage handwritten notes from my job. Also, if I print out an article or a denser piece of online writing to read later with a pen or pencil, I will stick it in one of these to carry with me or save for later. While the included Filofax paper is pretty good, I highly recommend investing in the hole punch so you can use the paper of your choice.

I’ll likely do a mid-year check-in on how this lineup is working out, with some longer-form reviews in the meantime. I intend to spend more time focusing on workflows, notetaking, and analog “systems” this year, as it’s a personal interest of mine and something readers have been requesting. Stay tuned!

This post does not contain paid third-party affiliate links. T.G.S. is supported by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop. If you would like to support us even further, please consider checking out the T.G.S. Patreon Program, which offers access to online meetups, exclusive discounts and pre-orders, and more!

Headed into 2022 with half-empty ink drawers, and I’m very happy about this!

Best Wishes for 2022, and My Own Wishes for this Community

January 1, 2022

Happy New Year! Earlier this week (otherwise known as “last year”), I discussed five personal intentions for 2022. Today I’ll broaden the scope a bit, with a five-item wish list for the community at large. I know that we’re not supposed to “wish” for things that are entirely out of our control, but since all five of these are directed at the community (inclusive of myself), I’m going to call it fair game, as I’ll need to do my part to make sure these happen. Most of these build on themes discussed in my earlier post, so if you haven’t read that one yet, I’d encourage you to start there.

Restore Balance to Social Media. I’ll be honest and up-front here: much of this list is going to sound like a screed against social media, and while I’m not anti-social media in principal, the past year has only confirmed my belief that, as least as currently utilized, it’s NOT a positive force for our community and the world as a whole. Whether it’s allowing the easy dissemination of bad information made to look convincing, or fueling FOMO by promoting commercialized influencer content that is nothing more than undisclosed paid advertising, social media is changing the face of our hobby by largely determining which brands and taste-makers get the most hype and attention. Sure, those of us who have been around pens for a long time know to look past this, but many who are just discovering the hobby do not. We would all do well to remember this the next time you’re scrolling. By all means, go ahead and enjoy the content, but keep in the back of your mind that what you’re seeing is being determined by an algorithm set by a company with no stake in the health or success of our community, and that behind the scenes there are smaller makers, writers, and creators, who you are not seeing because they don’t pay to play, and/or insist on retaining full control over their content and opinions. What can I do? For my part, I plan to try to amplify more well-considered, long-form content as opposed to uninformed hot takes and obvious puff pieces.
Pay More Attention to the Makers and Doers, not Accumulators. Related to point one. Stationery social media has started to devolve into a “Gotta Catch ‘em All” or “Look What I Bought” brag show. We’re all guilty of this, myself included. This kind of content generates clicks and attention, it’s quick and easy to produce, and it’s a “strategy” that businesses are encouraged to foster to direct potential customers to their brands and shops. It’s also vapid and does little to foster meaningful community dialogue. There’s a wealth of creators who not only buy a lot of pens but do stuff with them, whether they’re a writer, artist, or just a thoughtful individual looking to share knowledge and ideas. Again, explore beyond what “the algorithm” puts in front of you.
Drop the Fixation with Reviving Failed Brands and Create Something New. OK, so this one is more of an industry critique, but I’ll say it anyway: Esterbrook did a good job, and it’s here to stay, but stop trying to catch lightning in a bottle by resurrecting more failed pen brands. For example, with Leonardo and Maiora both releasing pens containing Delta DNA that are arguably better than anything Delta ever made, do we really need Delta to come back as a stand-alone brand? (Not to pick on them, I hope they do well, but it’s just that I’d personally prefer to see this funding and energy go towards bringing more Leonardos/Maioras/Scribos into the world.)
Stop Encouraging People to Hoard Hundreds of Bottles of Ink They Will Never Use. There’s been a flurry of articles recently discussing how the modern economy is based on fostering addictive behavior, including through the use of FOMO (“Fear of Missing Out”). The stationery industry isn’t immune to this, with its seemingly endless focus on limited editions, “seasons” of ink, and subscription services that result in more mindless consumption. I enjoy ink variety as much as the next person, but when you see brands starting to duplicate colors (intentionally or otherwise), and reducing ink volume while increasing prices and adding fancier bottle designs, it’s time for a new approach. This past year I sold off a huge chunk of my ink accumulation, cancelled a couple of subscriptions, and started buying samples and using what I already own.
Save Smaller Shops. Once again, industry participants, and particularly retailers, find themselves staring into a potential void of shutdowns, cancelled pen shows, and generalized economic uncertainty. Beloved NYC shop CW Pencil Enterprise closed this past year, and anyone could be next. As many people continue to do most of their stationery-related shopping online, it’s easy to succumb to the trap of price-shopping, taking advantage of deep-discount clearance sales and loss-leader promotions to get a pen for essentially nothing, even if it’s not something you would normally buy. If you value what the smaller businesses bring to the table, especially if they’re active participants in the community, consider, for example, foregoing the purchase of five heavily discounted $10 pens in favor of one $50 item from a smaller retailer or maker who can’t afford to exist on a 10% profit margin. If there’s anything that’s going to stifle innovation and diversity in the community, it’s race-to-the-bottom business practices.

Maybe I’m starting to become one of those “get off my lawn” types who just can’t adapt to “new tech” and the “new way of doing business.” However, I don’t think that’s correct. I get plenty of that in my everyday life outside of this hobby, and what drew me here originally was the genuine feeling of community and the lack of overt commercialization - people were engaged because they were interested in cultivating a space where they weren’t being aggressively marketed to every minute of every day, and could enjoy the company of others with mutual interests in an analog-focused hobby where the barrier to entry, cost-wise, wasn’t all that high. I do have some concern that pens and stationery have been “discovered” and targeted as a new market for commercial exploitation, and while this could be positive in the sense that additional funding and attention might bring interesting new products to market, we need to be mindful that the “community” aspect does not get degraded by those whose only interest is monetary and who would view it as a way to profit without contributing in return.

Now, rant over, it’s time to cook some black-eyed peas and collard greens for good luck. Best wishes for a happy and fulfilling 2022!

Last year I decided to cut the cord on paid advertising and third-party sponsorship, and move T.G.S. in the direction of becoming self-sustaining so that I have more control over the direction of my content and the practices I’m encouraging. To that end, I launched the T.G.S. Patreon Program, which allows readers to support and engage with T.G.S. and other readers in a more direct way, as well as the T.G.S. Curated Shop, which lets me directly promote a select group of products that I believe dovetails with my core mission statement. Any support you can give us is greatly appreciated!

Five Intentions For 2022: What I Want To See From Myself

December 29, 2021

It’s that time again, when we’re all socially pressured to publish our “New Year’s Resolutions,” or otherwise publicly declare why we’re opposed to doing so. I’m taking a bit of a middle ground for 2022, throwing five out there but using the term “intentions” as opposed to “resolutions.” A resolution, at least to me, implies a concrete goal, and failure if it’s not realized. Also, certain things just aren’t subject to being measured or quantified, so “intention” fits better, especially where I don’t necessarily want to make wholesale changes, but rather expand on certain things I’m already doing. This post will focus more on the personal, and later this week I’ll have a follow-up post on things I’d like to see from the community and industry at large.

Write More Fulfilling Content. Of course there will still be reviews and industry trends, but I want to continue to expand the scope of what we talk about here at The Gentleman Stationer, including a greater focus on the reasons people are drawn to analog tools and how we use them, not just the acquisition of stuff. Accumulating things for the purpose of social media posturing is not what this site has ever been about. (At least, it’s not what this site is supposed to be about, yet I admit I’m prone to falling into the same traps as everyone else.) I’ll talk about this a bit further below, but my main motivation in getting into this hobby and starting this blog has always been to discover new tools to help me do the “real” work in my everyday life. While T.G.S. has evolved into a bit more than a casual hobby, it’s still a small fraction of what I do on a daily basis, and I can still say that I’m not into pens for the sake of pens.
Travel More and Reconnect. Community is important, and in-person interaction is crucial (even for this proud introvert). This might be a controversial topic to discuss right now, but here goes. Heading into year three of the pandemic, it doesn’t seem like COVID is going anywhere anytime soon, if ever. More people are deciding what level of risk they are willing or able to tolerate, and carrying on the best they can, mostly taking reasonable precautions. Personally, since I’m vaccinated and willing to take common-sense health precautions in my everyday life, I want to re-engage with family and friends in the coming year, including attending as many in-person events such as pen shows that I can. After much consideration, I currently have no plans to attend shows as a vendor, and would prefer to focus on helping to expand the range of non-consumption-centered experiences at these shows. Sure, it’s fun to shop, but as I noticed at some of the shows this year, without classes and social events they lose their luster and excitement fairly quickly. I’m increasingly intrigued by the idea of a PenCon/StationeryCon-type event that does NOT revolve around buying and selling, and maybe even prohibits it entirely. If you’re interested in helping to organize or facilitate something like this, hit me up.
Minimize/Stash Reduction. You may have noticed an overarching theme here: FOCUS. I want to further refine my already-reduced collection of pens and inks to those that I regularly use for real writing. Those that don’t work for me personally are still great pens, and I need to find them homes where they will get used.
Bring Other Interests Together. One of the many things I find fascinating about this community is the diversity of not only backgrounds but interests. If you’re into pens and stationery as a hobby, chances are you have a range of other interests (or obsessions) as well, including many that overlap with other members of the community. I’d love to find a way to better connect with people beyond the “pen world.” One aspect of the T.G.S. Patreon that I’ve enjoyed is getting to know readers during our face-to-face zoom calls and learning about what brought them here.
Enjoy the Journey. 2022 will mark ten years of serious engagement as a user of fountain pens and stationery on a community level. As with any hobby, there’s a tendency to get so wrapped up in drama, such as quality control controversies, the “superiority” of certain brands, models, or (gag) limited edition releases, and petty personal conflict, that we tend to lose track of why and how we got here in the first place. Case in point. Every couple of months I get asked some version of the following question: “How do you use your pens/pencils/notebooks, is it solely to write reviews/make ink swatches/instagram posts?” The answer to that is “no,” and honestly it’s sometimes hard to get my head around the fact that such a thing (owning and writing with pens solely for the sake of reviewing pens and posting pictures on social media) could even exist, though I know it does and many people are quite happy with it and if they are there’s nothing wrong with that. That said, while I certainly enjoy exploring the world of well-made writing instruments, fine stationery, and related “stuff,” the testing/reviews I do here online represent a small fraction of the writing and work I do in my everyday life, and questions like this one makes me worry that this aspect of things gets lost. For as long as I can remember, writing things down by hand is how I’ve processed thoughts, emotions, and strategies; analyzed books I’m reading or ideas I’m studying; and started the initial draft of basically every piece of personal and professional writing I’ve ever done. I honestly don’t know how to do it any other way and it’s a fundamental part of who I am and how I operate. I want that to come through in the work I do here, and need to remind myself of it regularly, especially when I’m feeling burned out by the constant pressure to consume.

Anyway, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed 2021 with you all, regardless of whether it turned out exactly the way we all hoped, and I’m genuinely excited for 2022. I still plan to be here writing and hopefully will get to meet many of you in person. (Is the Philly Pen Show really in two weeks!?!)