In the Shop: Mid-Summer Spruce-up, Discontinued Pens and Limited Editions

We spent the weekend getting the “shop” (i.e., the warehouse) spruced up for a revamp, and it’s a much less intimidating prospect now that we’ve cleared out some excess inventory. You can actually see what’s in and out-of-stock, which is helpful! As it turns out, I found some extra items that I thought were long sold out, and which are now live in the shop, including:

1. Hightide Folding Metal Bookstands in White, Red, Pink, and Blue.

2. TWSBI ECO Jade. If you missed this one, I found another with an EF nib in stock.

3. TWSBI ECO Lilac. I’ve heard through the grapevine that these are slated to be discontinued (or at least go out of production for a while). We have a handful.

4. Midori MD 70th Anniversary Fountain Pen and Ink Sets. Just a few of these remain!

Also, Traveler’s Notebook Limited Editions are getting low. We still have several “Traveler’s Airline” editions in stock, which is a standard size with a blue cover, but only one “Traveler’s Train” passport edition and maybe one or two Hotel notebooks left.

Finally, check out the new layout!

We’ll also be bringing in more Maruman Mnemosyne!

And don’t forget that we also carry core stationery such as Rhodia and Clairefontaine!

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

Inventory Reduction: Last Call for Certain Brands and Products

Many thanks to everyone who’s participated in this month’s sell-off-a-thon! Through the D.C. Pen Show next month (ending August 7, 2022), most pens, pencils, and paper in the Curated Shop are subject to a 10% automatic discount at checkout, on top of reduced clearance pricing on certain items as the shop gets right-sized. I’m down to the last few items on several skus, so if you’ve been waiting to pick up some of these, act quickly:

1. Caran d’Ache 849 Fountain Pens. Excellent fountain pens, now at an even better price. I only have a few left.

2. Soumkine “Oh My 307 Universal Planner”. I still have a few in Charcoal and Rose. These are the hardcover journals, which aren’t made anymore, at a reduced price. 160 numbered pages of high-quality paper.

3. Hightide Desk Accessories. I still have ONE 30-minute clear hourglass, and 5 and 3-minute hoursglasses remaining in most colors. Folding bookstands are running very low….

4. Caran d’Ache 849 “Claim Your Style” Season 3. Personally, I thought the third season of Claim Your Style was the best. I have the last few pens marked down, and you take the 10% on top.

5. Caran d’Ache Ecridor Racing Ballpoint/Mechanical Pencil. Honestly, if someone doesn’t take this last set off my hands, I’m going to end up buying it myself and I really can’t afford to do this right now.

6. Caran d’Ache + Nespresso Swiss Wood Pencil Sets. This year’s Nespresso collaboration included a set of Swiss Wood Pencils featuring end caps made from Nespresso capsules. They were really popular, but I ended up ordering a lot of them.

7. Kokuyo PERPANEP A5 Notebooks. I’ve heard that Kokuyo is not continuing with the PERPANEP paper, at least in this format. I have a handful of notebooks left, in the popular “Steno” ruling, but after they’re gone that’s it.\

8. Kokuyo “Sketch” Hardcover Pocket Notebooks. I have a handful of these left in green, white, charcoal, anise, and dark blue.

9. CW+T Pen-Type A and Pen Type-C. All Pen Type-Bs have sold, but I still have one Pen Type-A and a handful of Pen Type-C’s remaining. Enjoy a clearance discount on these excellent EDC options for Hi-Tec-C lovers.

Many thanks to all your support! The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

Inventory Reduction Summer Sale, Plus a Lochby Restock!

I mentioned briefly on Tuesday’s post that I need to clear out some old inventory in order to make room for some other projects I’m working on, including possibly bringing back the T.G.S. Special Edition Penwell and another run of Sunderland mk1 pens! Today’s post has all the details.

To start, take 10% off your entire order using the coupon code “SUMMER”, subject to the exclusions set forth below. This discount will be in addition to any clearance markdowns, and all orders over $75 still ship free.

Items with Clearance Pricing

The following items are on clearance, meaning that they likely won’t return to the store once they’re sold. That’s not because they aren’t great products - they are - it’s just that a variety of factors go into deciding whether to stock something. This includes the cost of obtaining it, the speed at which the inventory moves, the space necessary to store it, the cost of having it shipped to me, and the cost/time involved in packing/shipping the product and getting it to you. 10% discount applies on top of clearance pricing.

1. Caran d’Ache 849 Fountain Pens.

2. Caran d’Ache Ecridor Racing Ballpoints and Pencils.

3. Remaining Dated Planners (Traveler’s Company) and Planner Stickers (Midori). Marked down to 50% off.

4. Hightide 5-minute and 3-minute Sandglasses.

5. WMS & Co. Rubber Stamps (including some “cheeky” ones that remain).

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Last call for Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Edition No. 4!

Discontinued Items

Certain items, including limited editions are set to be discontinued or already have been discontinued by the manufacturer. Depending on demand and stock, some have been marked down to “clearance” pricing, some have not, but these are all eligible for 10% off + the free shipping threshold.

1. Soumkine Notebooks. Sadly, it doesn’t look like Soumkine is going to continue making their fabulous hardcover planners. Once these are gone, they’re gone. I’ve marked down remaining colors on clearance.

2. Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Edition 4 Pencils. Caran d’Ache just issued a “last call” notice for retail stock, indicating that these are about to go away. I’ve marked down my remaining stock slightly.

3. Caran d’Ache “Claim Your Style” Ballpoints Edition No. 3. I only have a handful remaining from last year’s run, and I have yet to decide whether I bring in the next season (not do I know when they’ll be available). Remaining stock has been marked down.

4. Kokuyo PERPANEP Notebooks. I’ve heard that these notebooks will be discontinued, but haven’t had confirmation. The paper is very, very good, and remaining stock is marked down.

5. Caran d’Ache Infinite 888 Ballpoint Pens and .7mm Mechanical Pencils. The pencils have been discontinued, so what’s left is absolutely it, but I likely won’t bring the pens back either once this batch is gone because I enjoyed selling them as a set.

6. Midori MD 70th Anniversary Fountain Pens and Ink Sets. I have a few of these left in stock, in blue and orange. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

7. Midori MD 70th Anniversary MD Notebook Light Special Set. I only have a couple of these remaining in stock. Like the fountain pen sets, they’re special editions and I won’t pick up another run.

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All Lochby cases are back in stock!

Exclusions

The only brands excluded from the 10% off sale are TWSBI and Lochby. Lochby has also been restocked, with Field Journals, Quattro Four-Pen Cases, Pocket Journals, Tool Rolls, and all the Tomoe River 68gsm notebooks currently available for purchase!

The Gentleman Stationer Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

From the Curated Shop: Favorite Pens for Reading

Whenever I go on vacation in the summer, or even when I’m just lounging around here at home, I like to read outside (weather permitting). If I’m reading nonfiction, I tend to be a relatively “active” reader, meaning that I enjoy highlighting/underlining passages, entering marginalia and jotting down notecards that I sometimes store in a library pocket before I transcribe them to a commonplace book. I generally have a specific set of pens that I use as “reading companions,” mainly lightweight ballpoints and/or pencils that I can clip to the cover or tuck between the pages unobtrusively. It’s a major category that I’ve elected to stock in the shop, and since I know so many of you are avid readers, I thought I’d share my favorites here. If there are any “bookmark-style” or other annotation-appropriate pens that you enjoy and think that we should consider stocking, please drop us a line or leave a comment below!

[UPDATE: I’ve been reviewing my stock and it’s time to do a summer clearance! Take 10% off almost everything in the store using the coupon code SUMMER - automatically applied at checkout - and some items have been placed on deep discount already. Excludes TWSBI and Lochby! Sale Ends at 11:59pm on July 5.]

The Gentleman Stationer Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands shown here.

1. Traveler’s Company Brass Ballpoint Pen. My favorite pen for reading and annotation went with me to the beach this month and added to it’s patina. Lightweight and featuring a needle-tip hybrid ballpoint/gel refill, I consider this the perfect pen for marginalia and annotation. (We also sell the refills.)

2. Pokka Pens. While the tip isn’t as small as the needle-point on the Traveler’s Company Brass Ballpoint Pen, the Pokka Pen is extraordinarily light, and when paired with the optional clip, makes for an awesome pen to clip to the cover.

3. CW&T Pen-Type C. Fans of the Hi-Tec-C gel pen will want to consider this flat titanium “bookmark pen,” which gives you the CW&T writing experience at the $50 price point. Personally, I clip the pen to the front cover as opposed to using it as a true bookmark. (It’s also a useful pen to slip into the PVC pouch on a Traveler’s Notebook.)

4. Caran d’Ache Bicolor Annotation Pencils. The perfect companion for those of us who like to highlight or annotate in colored pencil. The standard graphite is relatively firm, so you don’t need to sharpen often, and it’s still dark enough to remain legible.

5. Mazzuoli Nobile ITALIA. A unique writing instrument that I haven’t written about in a whlle, this ergonomic ballpoint from Mazzuoli ships with three different ballpoint refills and a .7mm mechanical pencil insert. I have the “Aviation Blue” version with the mechanical pencil, and it makes for a great portable writing companion.

Thursday Drops: Fountain Pen Friendly Paper and Landscape-Style Notebooks

One of my favorite developments in the pen community over the past several years has been the proliferation of the “landscape-style” notebook and notepads, particularly since this design allows you to work with a notebook below your keyboard. We carry fountain pen friendly, landscape-style notebooks in a variety of formats, including lined, grid, blank, and even a weekly undated planner. I’m currently using a combination of the WMS & Co. Planner Desk Pads and Midori MD Writing Pads for most of my own everyday writing!

For more on fountain pen friendly paper brands, and suggestions on high-quality paper in general, be sure to check out this page, which is periodically updated. The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

1. Write Notepads Landscape Notebook. The original landscape-style spiral notebook that we first started carrying three years ago. Available in a lined format, with six different color options. (Pro Tip: If you prefer a dot grid ruling, the standard Write Notepads Spiral Notebook can simply be turned sideways and used in landscape format.)

2. Write Notepads Weekly Planner. Track or plan out your week on two pages, with no dates so that you can use the “calendar” as often or as infrequently as you need. Featuring the same excellent fountain pen friendly paper as all Write Notepads products!

3. Maruman Mnemosyne Notebooks. We recently brought in more of Maruman’s excellent Mnemosyne line, and not only is the paper exceptionally fountain pen friendly, but the grid-ruled notebooks come in landscape format.

4. Midori MD Paper Pads. Both the A4 and A5 Midori MD writing pads can be used in landscape mode, and the pads even come bound on two sides for maximum durability.

5. Traveler’s Company Spiral Ring Notebooks. The B6 version of this notebook contains 100 sheets/200 pages of blank Midori MD paper in landscape format.

6. WMS & Co. Planner Desk Pads. Another exceptionally handy option for those of us who enjoy an undated planner or a scratch pad that’s organized in a weekly layout. The paper is quite good, and these desk pads come in both full-size and a slimmer format specifically intended for under-keyboard use.

7. WMS & Co. Standard Desk Pads. These larger blank desk pads and notepads contain up to 285 pages of thick writing paper, perfect for jotting notes or brainstorming. (Note that the colored paper is more appropriate for pencils and non-fountain pens, as it’s coated.)

8. Life “Noble Note” Writing Pads. While not a landscape-style writing pad, we don’t do enough to promote this excellent brand of Japanese paper, which comes in thick 100-page writing pads in three different rulings/formats.

9. Clairefontaine French-Ruled Looseleaf Sheets. We still have limited stock of French-ruled paper in these looseleaf booklets, which I find incredibly versatile for notetaking, drafting, and even letter-writing.

10. Soumkine “Oh My 307” Universal Planners. We still have stock of the Soumkine Hardcover Planners, which look like they may be discontinued (at least for now) as part of the brand’s redesign. If you’re a fan of long, skinny format planners or journals, give this one a try.