Sunday Reading for February 6, 2022

1. Pen Show Report Card and Philly Pen Show Recap (via Pen Addict). Kimberly has a recap of the Philly Pen Show (which I was sad to miss) along with a new pen show “scoring” system to provide a more objective way to evaluate specific shows. I’m looking forward to seeing how this one plays out.

2. Gravitas Pocket Pen Rainbow Skittle (via Dapprman). The “Skittles” finish on the Gravitas pocket pen is absolutely gorgeous. While I’m not sure that the pocket pen will work for my daily use, I need to try something in this finish ASAP.

3. Leonardo Momento Magico Anima Nera Fountain Pen Review (via SBRE Brown). The Momento Magico is Leonardo’s fountain pen that features not only an integrated piston filler but an ink window. Now available in a matte black finish.

4. No Grime or Raisin (via Quieter Elephant). From a blog I’ve been newly following, here are some thoughts on the Copper Ensso Italia as well as an overlay-style pen from Asvine.

5. Tono & Lims White (via Fountain Pen Pharmacist). No, it’s not what you think. After 1,000 inks, maybe they just ran out of names? :)

6. Snippets: Capillaris, Tibaldi, Dialogue CC, ECO Raden, and This Wonderful Community (via UK Fountain Pens). Anthony does a great job of having frequent reviews of up-and-coming brands and feature releases. If you need and ear to the ground on what’s ahead for 2022, you need to be reading UK Fountain Pens.

7. Falling Out of Love With a Pen (via InkJournal). There are many reasons why we sell off portions of our collections/accumulations, and frequently it has nothing to do with the quality of the product itself.

8. What is the Right Size for My Pen Collection? (via mnmlscholar). As we dive further into this hobby, we all accumulate more than we use at any one time. Yet we can easily get rid of some things yet persistently hang on to others. How many is “too many”? One size doesn’t fit all.

9. Ink Review: Laban Inks (via Well-Appointed Desk). Laban’s “Mythology” Series of inks has been wildly popular, with five new colors recently released. I’ve seen several of these in person and find certain colors (Demeter Brown, Hera Green) subtly fascinating.

10. Ink Line Preview: Monarca Stationery (via Well-Appointed Desk). I have samples of all Monarca Inks in for review at the moment, and will be working them through the rotation to get you my own thoughts as soon as possible!

In Case You Missed It

Back from vacation! From “balmy” 52 degree weather in North Florida to 25 degree weather in Tennessee, with a bonus ice storm! Anyway, it gave me the chance to knock a few things off my review list, including the Wingback Mechanical Pencil in brass, and two beautiful inks by Vinta in the Philippines: Aegean Armada and Leyte Sea Kelp.

View fullsize

New in the Shop This Week

Monday saw the arrival of four new TWSBI models that we introduced to the Curated Shop: the Vac700R in the rainbow anodized “Iris” finish, the Vac Mini, the Diamond Mini, and the latest TWSBI ECO release in Jade. We also restocked on Midori MD Paper, including the MD Cotton Notebooks in the larger F3 and F2 sizes, MD Cotton writing pads, and dated and undated planner stickers. Plus, a few more:

TWSBI

Stálogy

Life Paper

Caran d'Ache

Consider Joining TGS Patreon for Access to Monthly Meetups and First Dibs on Gently Used Stationery, Exclusive Products and More!

For some additional fun, and to help support the blog consider joining the Patreon program. Patreon supporters receive special pricing and early access to product releases and collaborations such as the T.G.S. x Sunderland pen, in addition to other benefits. You can read more about T.G.S. Patreon here. This year I’ve introduced monthly online meetups, which take place on Friday or Saturday and have been super enjoyable. The Patreon membership also has “first dibs” on my regular gently used stationery sales.

Sunday Reading for January 30, 2022

1. What You Need to Know About the Eboya Kobue (via UK Fountain Pens). Anthony has a couple of articles on ebonite pens this week, including this look at the Eboya Kobue, apparently a manufacturing division of the Nikko ebonite company. Eboya used to attend U.S. pen shows, and they are on my short list of pens to experience once international travel starts back up again.

2. Introducing Pen7 Ebonite Pens (via UK Fountain Pens). Anthony also highlights a smaller maker of pens in various beautifully polished ebonites. I love this color combination.

3. Lamy Safari Black Encode Digitizing Rollerball Review (via SBRE Brown). I’ve never been drawn to the “digitized handwriting” market, but at least the look of this Safari maintains overall brand and design integrity. In the past pens like these have been huge and clunky. At the end of the day, how useful these tools are comes down to how well the software/app functionality works.

4. Ink Review: Wearingeul Kyonghui (via Macchiato Man). As I’ve mentioned in some past posts, Wearingeul is a new Korean brand that’s caught my eye recently with their literature-themed inks. This is an interesting shade of orange-brown.

5. State of the Art: Allowing for Flexibility (via Comfortable Shoes Studio). Well said. When you need the recover/down time, take it.

6. Lamy Dialog (via Scrively). The Lamy Dialog is one of the more overlooked retractable nib fountain pens out there, probably due to its larger size, somewhat offbeat design, and high price point. I like it though, and need to get my own review up.

7. Ink Review #1738: Pelikan Edelstein Golden Beryl (via Mountain of Ink). A great review of Pelikan’s 2021 Ink of the Year. I miss having the opportunity to check these out at the annual Pelikan Hubs events.

8. Kaweco Perkeo vs. Ferris Wheel Press Carousel - A Showdown (via Pen Addict). Kimberly compares two similar pens from Kaweco and Ferris Wheel Press. (I’ve yet to try a FWP pen for myself.)

9. Ink Line Review: Robert Oster Cities of America (via Well-Appointed Desk). Rober Oster seems to be getting in on the “states and cities”-themed inks, with a new line developed around cities in the U.S. The stories behind how they come up with these colors is what grabs me.

10. Trying Out: Kobeha Graphilo Paper (via InkSharks). I’ve heard a lot about Graphilo paper from Japanese stationery enthusiasts, but I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a full review.

In Case You Missed It… Discount Code for Today Only!

I’ve been out of town for the past several days, resting up after a hectic holiday season, so there wasn’t any new content this week. Be sure to check out the links above, and if anything in the shop catches your eye, take 10% off your order (excluding TWSBI and Sunderland) with the coupon code “WINTERBREAK”! It expires tonight at midnight!

Consider Joining TGS Patreon for Access to Monthly Meetups and First Dibs on Gently Used Stationery, Exclusive Products and More!

For some additional fun, and to help support the blog consider joining the Patreon program. Patreon supporters receive special pricing and early access to product releases and collaborations such as the T.G.S. x Sunderland pen, in addition to other benefits. You can read more about T.G.S. Patreon here. This year I’ve introduced monthly online meetups, which take place on Friday or Saturday and have been super enjoyable. The Patreon membership also has “first dibs” on my regular gently used stationery sales. Check out the current sale, as there is at least one custom fountain pen remaining!

Sunday Reading for January 23, 2022

1. 2022 Philadelphia Pen Show Trip Report (via Pen Addict). I was unfortunately unable to attend this year’s Philly Pen Show due to a combination of bad weather and work conflicts, but Kimberly has a great writeup here.

2. Wearingeul: High-concept inks from Korea (via UK Fountain Pens). This might be the third or fourth time someone has mentioned Wearingeul inks recently. I love the literary themes and some of the colors are right up my alley.

3. Personal Values (via Quieter Elephant). The concept of value is something that tends to get lost in the pen community, amidst the marketing and FOMO and obsession over particular brands. Once you discover what you value in a fountain pen or piece of stationery, you may find that your needs are met by something that costs less than $10.

4. Ink Review #646: Tono & Lims Seaglass (via Fountain Pen Pharmacist). Light blue or sky blue inks have grown on me over the years, and Tono & Lims, as usual, have a bunch of them available.

5. Conklin Endura Abalone Shell 1898 Limited Edition with Gunmetal Trim (via Dapprman). This is a beautiful pen, though as Dapprman points out, Conklin has long been plagued with nib issues out of the box. Fix those and they have themselves a well-positioned pen brand.

6. Onoto Magna Sequoyah Fountain Pen (via Pencilcase Blog). Onoto is a British brand that’s now held by the same company (Bespoke British Pens) that holds Conway Stewart, and the two companies make pens that share a common, traditional design language. Personally, I love it and need to get my hands on an Onoto pen for review.

7. Pennonia Zuzmó Lichen Ink Review (via Pen Addict). I’ve grown to enjoy this double shading ink from Pennonia, which is a green with pink undertones. I’ve found It can be very light for standard writing in narrower nibs, but in a stub or a flex nib, it’s gorgeous.

8. PenBBS 469 Double Nib Fountain Pen (via Well-Appointed Desk). I love this pen, and its too useful not to be inked up. I need to get it back into rotation.

In Case You Missed It….

This week on the blog, I got the review train back on track, looking at the ever-popular Bank Paper, a fountain-pen friendly writing option that’s become increasingly popular over the years. I also reviewed the Otto Hutt Design03 fountain pen, the latest offering from the oft-overlooked German manufacturer.

This Week in The Curated Shop

We still have a small selection of Clairefontaine French-ruled looseleaf paper available, but the big news from this week is that we’ve received a fairly large restock of TWSBI Fountain Pens, TWSBI Inks, and Write Notepads paper! We were running low on fine and medium nib options for the fountain pens, but are all stocked up again. Check out this week’s Deals & Drops post for more details.

TWSBI Pens

Traveler's Notebook

Write Notepads

TWSBI Ink

Consider Joining TGS Patreon for Access to Monthly Meetups and First Dibs on Gently Used Stationery, Exclusive Products and More!

For some additional fun, and to help support the blog consider joining the Patreon program. Patreon supporters receive special pricing and early access to product releases and collaborations such as the T.G.S. x Sunderland pen, in addition to other benefits. You can read more about T.G.S. Patreon here. This year I’ve introduced monthly online meetups, which take place on Friday or Saturday and have been super enjoyable. The Patreon membership also has “first dibs” on my regular gently used stationery sales. Check out the current sale, as there is at least one custom fountain pen remaining!

Sunday Reading for January 16, 2022

1. My Writing Style (via Dapprman). We all have different writing styles and preferences, which affect anything from what types of pens and nibs we enjoy to how we hold the pen to how much pressure we use.

2. Thoughts on Handwriting (via UK Fountain Pens). I also generally prioritize the act of writing over the art of writing, though I’ve recently been exploring more art and calligraphy as a less work-focused hobby.

3. Stickers, Washi Tapes, & More (via InkSharks). I’m just as guilty with my consumables, especially things like Washi tape, sticky notes, and stickers. I likewise have made a conscious decision to use more of these things however I can.

4. Laban Skeleton: Perfect if Bling Is Your Thing (via UK Fountain Pens). I’ve never been drawn to “skeleton-style” pens, but I know many who enjoy Laban’s version. There is a gunmetal/ruthenium finish that looks great.

5. State of the Art: Talking Myself Out of Things (via Comfortable Shoes Studio). A skill I have yet to master.

6. Wearingeul Jekyll to Hyde Ink Set (via Mountain of Ink). These color-changing inks from Korean company Wearingeul continues their literature-inspired theme. I have not yet tried any Wearingeul inks, which I believe are available only on Amazon.

7. Sailor x Tinterias: A Deliciously Inky Combination (via Pen Addict). I picked up one of Tinterias food-themed inks (“Homemade Tortillas”) back in October at the Chicago Pen Show. Kimberly reviews both colors.

8. Analog Coping Mechanisms (via From the Pen Cup). More from Mary on why these things we love are important.

9. Never Too Late to Start Planning (via Well-Appointed Desk). Indeed, I’m still tweaking/perfecting my own setup, especially on the journaling front.

In Case You Missed It…

This week on the blog I wrote a piece about natural (undyed) leather, which has become a personal favorite of mine over the years as I’ve learned to love items with a more worn/used look. I also introduced a new product with a bit of a story behind it to The Curated Shop: French-ruled looseleaf sheets and booklets from Clairefontaine! Read on to hear a bit more about why I love this unique paper, and how I discovered it.

This Week in The Curated Shop

Apart from the main Clairefontaine paper dump, we continue to add new woodcase pencils, including the Edelweiss 3B from Caran d’Ache, which sold out immediately the first time we stocked them. There are plenty now! This week’s Deals & Drops post has additional details! Also, note that the Caran d’Ache Infinite ballpoint and mechanical pencil are apparently being discontinued. we were able to stock another round of the ballpoints but I’m down to about two pencils, so if you’re interested now’s the time.

Clairefontaine

Caran D'Ache Fixpencil

Caran d'Ache 888 Infinite

TWSBI

Consider Joining TGS Patreon for Access to Monthly Meetups and First Dibs on Gently Used Stationery, Exclusive Products and More!

For some additional fun, and to help support the blog consider joining the Patreon program. Patreon supporters receive special pricing and early access to product releases and collaborations such as the T.G.S. x Sunderland pen, in addition to other benefits. You can read more about T.G.S. Patreon here. This year I’ve introduced monthly online meetups, which take place on Friday or Saturday and have been super enjoyable. The Patreon membership also has “first dibs” on my regular gently used stationery sales. Check out the current sale, as there is at least one custom fountain pen remaining!

Sunday Reading for January 9, 2022

1. 2021 Year in Review (via Well-Appointed Desk). Ana has a comprehensive review of last-year’s developments in the stationery world. Suffice to say, there was a lot of change, both good and not-so-good.

2. The Noodler’s Cinematic Universe: Noodler’s Q’ternity (via Left Hook Pens). Wow. This is a great article going deep into the various references on the Noodler’s Q’ternity bottle, which is getting to become a bit of history that many people might not recognize immediately.

3. Leonardo Officina Italiana Furore Aquapetra Rose Gold and Zenzero (Ginger) Gold (via Rants of the Archer). More great materials from Leonardo, and I think that “Zenzero Gold” might be my favorite of these two.

4. Magna Carta Elements Earth Fountain Pen Review (via S.B.R.E. Brown). Magna Carta is one of those brands that I’ve admired from afar (mainly due to their classic shape and materials), but I haven’t actually had a opportunity to get my hands on a pen.

5. Hello, Hello (via Ink Between the Teeth). Sometimes you just need a break. Welcome back!

6. Reflection: Journaling for Clarity (via Comfortable Shoes Studio). When I spoke earlier this year about promoting more content that shows how people use their stationery in a way that’s meaningful and useful to them, this is exactly what I was talking about.

7. Elbwood Pocketmaster: An Uncompromising Pocket Fountain Pen (via UK Fountain Pens). This is a really interesting pocket fountain pen design, especially the fluting on the metal section.

8. State of the Art: Working on Useful Journaling V2 (via Comfortable Shoes Studio). Ever wondered what goes into creating a zine? I really enjoyed Useful Journaling V1, and can’t wait to see the new edition.

9. Stabilo Boss Pastel Highlighter (via Pen Addict). For some reason, these were my favorite highlighters when I was in school. Maybe it was the compact, ergonomic design or the fact that they last forever. Anyway, I now find myself wanting to get my hands on these again.

In Case You Missed It….

This week on the blog I looked at my daily carry to start out 2022, which is a mix of the familiar and a few new items. I also kicked off ink reviews for the year with a review of Ancho Chili Pepper, a subtle, muted color from The Birmingham Pen Company. Finally, please don’t forget to check out this post, which discusses the T.G.S. Patreon and how you can help support what we do here at T.G.S. in 2022.

This Week in the Curated Shop

There weren’t many new arrivals this week, other than a small restock of Hightide Sandglasses which I got listed. (Some colors continue to trickle in.) For a recap of our top-selling products over the past year, you can check out the “Best Sellers” category, along with this “Back to Basics” post from earlier this week containing some ideas on basic products to help stock your office or writing space for 2022.

Clairefontaine

Traveler's Company

Write Notepads

Life

Consider Joining TGS Patreon for Access to Monthly Meetups and First Dibs on Gently Used Stationery, Exclusive Products and More!

For some additional fun, and to help support the blog consider joining the Patreon program. Patreon supporters receive special pricing and early access to product releases and collaborations such as the T.G.S. x Sunderland pen, in addition to other benefits. You can read more about T.G.S. Patreon here. This year I’ve introduced monthly online meetups, which take place on Friday or Saturday and have been super enjoyable. The Patreon membership also has “first dibs” on my regular gently used stationery sales. Check out the current sale, as there is at least one custom fountain pen remaining!