Thursday Drops: Caran d'Ache Restock, Washi Tapes, Penwells, and More!

Well, I’ll kick off this Thursday’s “Drop” announcement with the news that everyone’s been waiting for: Grown-up Washi Tape is back in stock, as are many of the other patterns in our Washi Tape and Pins section! If the past is any predictor, the “fun” Washi Tape will be gone by sundown. :) The next round of T.G.S. Special Edition Penwells will arrive and start shipping on Saturday, so if you’d like to reserve one of these from a relatively small batch, pre-orders are available. To read more on what went into designing our first exclusive product, check out this post.

As noted below, we recently received a restock of many of our core Caran d’Ache products, including the 849 Rollerball and the woodcase pencils. Finally, don’t miss out on the most recent TWSBI releases, especially if you’d like to pair a Glow Green with the upcoming Glow Purple! Happy Shopping!

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brand sold, and T.G.S. is entirely supported by shop sales and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program, which comes with early access to Gently Used sales, meetups, and more.

1. Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball. We recently received fresh stock of the Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball Pen, including additional pens in the matte grey, white, and black finishes. We also received more of the excellent CdA Rollerball refills in both black and blue ink, which are Parker-style cartridges that fit many different pens. You can read the full writeup on the Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball here.

2. Caran d’Ache 849 Standard Ballpoint. We also have a full restock of the standard 849 ballpoint pens in most colors, including the popular sapphire, dark blue, and my personal favorite, matte anthracite grey. Matching mechanical pencils are also available.

3. Caran d’Ache 2022 Limited Edition Dark Violet and Pastel Yellow 849 Ballpoints. The Dark Violet pens sold out extremely fast, so we ordered more and they recently arrived. The Pastel Yellow, however, is a sleeper. The colors are designed to complement one another so why not make yourself a set?

4. Caran d’Ache Claim Your Style Edition No. 4. What’s your favorite of this year’s Claim Your Style pen? The two blue options are outstanding - especially the Polar - but “Frozen Lemon” and “Clay Green” might make their way into my own growing accumulation of 849s.

5. Caran d’Ache Ecridor Racing Ballpoint and Mechanical Pencil Sets. The Ecridor Racing might be my favorite of Caran d’Ache’s higher-end releases, with the matte-black coated finish paired with a bright red racing stripe.

6. Caran d’Ache Swiss Wood Pencils. We have Swiss Wood pencils available individually, in packs of 10, and in prepackaged gift sets perfect for the upcoming holidays. Most other Caran d’Ache pencils have been restocked as well, including the standard yellow office/school pencil and the wonderfully smooth 3B Edelweiss.

7. Caran d’Ache “Color Treasure” Postcard Sets. I took a flyer and stocked some of these, and it turns out I absolutely love them. Part of this year’s holiday collection, these postcards are printed on thick watercolor paper that allows you to color with anything from colored pencil to fountain pen ink!

8. TWSBI ECO “Cerulean Blue” Fountain Pen. Easily my favorite solid-color ECO fountain pen that TWSBI has released in the past couple of years (MAYBE with the exception of the discontinued Yellow), the Cerulean Blue is a vibrant dark turquoise that sets off the red finial. You can have a lot of fun with fountain pens for $32.99!

9. TWSBI ECO “Glow Green” Fountain Pen. Apparently the glow-in-the-dark “Glow Green” ECO has kicked off a trend, because TWSBI just announced the “Glow Purple,” which glows blue and will launch on Halloween with pre-orders available a few days ahead of time. Be sure to check out the pics below!

10. Platinum Preppy Wa Limited Edition Fountain Pens. This year’s Preppy Wa release features six new patterns drawn from Japanese tradition. Choose your favorite or collect all six for less than $50!

11. Platinum Plaisir “Aura” Fountain Pen. I’ve been enjoying the pearlescent finish on this year’s limited edition Plaisir, and I’m liking it even more now that I’ve figured out that you can swap the fine or medium nib in the Plaisir for the sweet extra-fine nib sold in the Platinum Desk Pen!

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In Stock: The Caran d'Ache 2022 Limited and Special Editions

Every year, Swiss maker Caran d’Ache releases multiple special and limited edition pens and pencils, often just in advance of the holidays. This year, they have released the “Colour Treasure” collection, the first of which have arrived! While the series will eventually include new special edition 849 Ballpoints and even a jumbo pencil set, we have in stock now these sets of 12 high-quality postcards designed to be colored using your favorite colored pencils, perfect for catching up on your holiday correspondence. (In my case, the particular postcard pictured here will be turned into a Patreon thank-you note.)

Shown here with the three-tone Midori MD colored pencil set.

We also have the rest of the Caran d’Ache 2022 releases, including this year’s Claim Your Style 849 Ballpoints, the Dark Violet and Pastel Yellow 849s, and the Black Code, Gold Bar, and Brut Rosé mechanical pencils designed to match the ballpoint versions. Finally, we have a healthy stock of the eminently giftable Swiss Wood Pencil Gift Sets, and the Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Edition No. 4 Swiss Wood Pencils.

It truly pains me to say it, but the holiday shopping season is starting now, whether I like it or not. (Personally, I enjoy Halloween and would prefer to celebrate my holidays one at a time.) That said, if you’ve had your eye on something that you are considering for a gift, please don’t sleep on it. Restocking has been delayed, especially for items arriving from overseas. Many thanks for your support!

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all products sold, including Caran d’Ache.

It's Back! The T.G.S. x Penwell "Aged Red" Exclusive (Available for Preorder)

Over the past few years, I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with some of my favorite makers on exclusive products, and one of the creations I’m most proud of is the first one: the T.G.S. exclusive Penwell pen holder in a unique “Aged Red” finish that draws its inspiration from the T.G.S. blog colors, burgundy and black. While these Penwells are powder-coated aluminum, as opposed to Urushi, I wanted to pick a finish that complements the look and depth of the dark red finish on my Nakaya Decapod. The subtle black and red grain on the Aged Red came out absolutely gorgeous during the last run, and given the number of requests for more I wanted to do another batch.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Penwell, it’s one of my favorite fountain pen accessories that allows you to turn any pen into a desk pen. I have one (or maybe two) on my desk at all times, and you can read my full write-up here.

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Packaging may vary with the new run.

These special edition Penwells are available for preorder in the T.G.S. Curated Shop, priced at $75, which is the same price as the prior run and qualifies for free shipping. T.G.S. Patreon Supporters receive a special pricing + free shipping, so if you are a Patreon member, please check your messages. The Penwells should arrive in a week or so, and I will ship upon receipt. Please feel free to combine your Penwell pre-order with other items to save on shipping charges, though combined orders will ship together with the Penwell. Many thanks for your support, and I can’t wait to get them in your hands!

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold. Also, a reminder that today is the last day to use your discount code as I’m returning from vacation. Use “VACAY10” at checkout to receive 10% off all paper orders.

Thursday Drops: How to Spend Your Vacation Discount!

I’m going to keep reminding people that if you’re placing large paper orders this week, please use the “VACAY10” coupon code at checkout to get your 10% off paper! Orders will start shipping Saturday and Sunday, and all will include something extra to accommodate any delays. (I should be getting another round of T.G.S. stickers and buttons in stock any day now!)

If you’re looking for ideas on how to spend your discount, be sure check out the following eligible items:

1. Traveler’s Notebooks, Refills and Accessories. Looking to break into the Traveler’s Notebook System? Now is a great time to pick up a Starter Kit as well as the refills you need to set your notebook up for exactly how you’ll use it.

2. Soumkine Undated Planners. I suspect that these hardcover planners, which have a long-narrow format that many people love, will not be around for much longer. Currently we have the Charcoal and Rose covers in stock.

3. Lochby Tomoe River Refill Notebooks. Speaking of paper that may not be long for this world, the Lochby Notebook inserts feature 68gsm Tomoe River paper. While these notebooks are designed to fit the Lochby Field Journal, they are standard A5-sized.

4. WMS & Co. Undated Planner Desk Pads and Oversized Notepads. These large pads of paper are fountain pen-friendly and come in a range of colors. Be aware that YMMV with the “ColorPads” (those that contain colored writing paper) if you want to use fountain pen ink, though I’ve had success with the grey version.

5. Write Notepads Spiral and Hardcover Notebooks. Write Notepads makes some of the best overall writing paper out there, especially in the spiral notebook format. We currently have standard spirals in dot grid, lined, landscape, meeting, and “Weekly Planner” format, as well as the Classic Hardcover Notebooks.

As always we continue to stock standbys and favorites such as Rhodia, Clairefontaine, Life, Midori, and Maruman Mnemosyne. You can visit our full range of paper here, and our offerings of pens, inks, desk accessories, and washi tapes by visiting the main store page. Many thanks for your support!

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

In the Shop: Platinum Preppy Wa Fountain Pens, Second Edition

One of the sleeper hits from last year was the Platinum Preppy Wa, which refreshingly expanded the limited edition fountain pen craze to a lower price point. Well, this year Platinum has done it again, with six new traditional patterns that are now available for purchase in the Curated Shop. I think my personal favorites are the Urokomon (yellow) and Seigaiha (blue wave) patterns, though they all look really cool. The Platinum Preppy is a versatile fountain pen that uses Platinum cartridges - one is included with purchase - and can also be eyedroppered using an o-ring or silicon grease. These pens are priced at $7.80, so you can even grab the entire series for less than $50!

Since I’m traveling this week, orders will ship on Saturday or Sunday upon my return. In the meantime, we’re also running a paper sale, where you can grab 10% off all paper orders using the coupon code VACAY10 at checkout. Sale ends Saturday!

Ichimatsu

Seigaiha

Hanabishi Kikko

Urokomon

Sakura Tatewaku

Yagasuri

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