Notebook Systems: Introducing Laconic Tokyo

May 6, 2023

If I had to describe the Laconic Style notebook system, I would best characterize it as a modular, full-size A5 version of the Kokuyo Jibun Techo. (For those unfamiliar, the Jibun Techo is a dated planner/journal system that combines elements of the Hobonichi Techo with the “tall/slim” format of the Traveler’s Notebook.) The beauty of this particular notebook system is it’s customizability. You can choose from ten different 60-page A5 notebook refills, including four different planner formats (daily, weekly, monthly, or “100 days” with two days on each page), four “productivity” formats (To Do, Meeting, Spreadsheet, and Gantt Chart), and two "Lifestyle/Creativity” formats (Thinking and “My Life,” which some may recognize as similar to the “Life Book” component of the Jibun Techo).

Laconic Notebook Covers A5 — The full range of colorful Laconic covers!

While Laconic makes their own plastic notebook cover, capable of holding two refills, the beauty of this system is that the standard A5 size allows you to expand far beyond that using a system cover/organizer like the Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter or the Lochby Field Journal (which holds up to six of these softcover A5 refills). For example, you could select a Monthly Calendar, Weekly Calendar, and Daily Journal for your “Planner” section, and combine that with Meeting, To Do, and a “Thinking” refill for brainstorming sessions. All of the planner refills are undated, and therefore flexible for those who might skip a day/week/month every now and then.

Laconic Style Multiple Notebooks Cover — You can fit up to two of the A5 Notebooks into the Laconic Style plastic covers.

So how’s the paper? I’ve been testing a Monthly refill since I first spotted these at NY Now back in February, and I would compare the paper to standard Rhodia or Kokuyo Campus. It will work fine with most fountain pens in fine or medium nibs, though extremely wet inks and wider nibs (and particularly a combination of the two) will see some bleed-through. That said, I’m not sure it will be an issue for those drawn to this particular planner, because it’s plainly intended for those who write small. (To that end, a Lamy 2000 EF nib with Pilot Iroshizuku Shin Kai gave me no issues.)

Bonus: Laconic Style Bookmarkers

Honestly, even moreso than the notebook system, what really caught my eye were these Laconic “Bookmarkers,” a set of eight different bookmarks in various formats that allow you to take notes while you read or write in your journal.

The Bookmarkers are sold in packs of 24, and fold over the page to prevent slippage. It’s also occurred to me that the “Planner” and “To Do” bookmarks could be taped or pasted into a bullet journal or other notebooks to add functionality. Personally, the “Reading Memo” layouts appeal to me the most, but I’ve kept a set of each for myself and since I churn through bookmarks fairly regularly I’m sure they’ll get plenty of use.

Laconic Style Multiple Notebooks Bookmarks — As with most notebook systems, all of the Laconic products are designed to work together.

Takeaways and Further Reading: Where Does Laconic Fit in the overall universe of notebook systems?

In the grand scheme of things, Laconic probably fits somewhere in between a single notebook system (each of these refills can be carried individually) and a modular notebook system, because you can combine them in a multi-refill cover to create a planner/organizer/journaling system tailored to your own needs. Laconic Style covers, notebooks, and bookmarkers are available for purchase in the T.G.S. Curated Shop, and they’re actually quite inexpensive, starting at $5 for a pack of 24 bookmarks, and individual notebooks priced at $6.

Laconic Style Zippered Cases — The largest Laconic Zippered case is large enough to accommodate an A5 notebook or two.

I’ve previously written several pieces on “System Techo” and the different types of notebook systems available. If you’d like to read more, see below:

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop, and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. We are an authorized retailer of all brands sold, including Laconic. Please note that due to scheduled travel, orders placed after noon, U.S. Central Time on Saturday May 6, 2023 will have a 3-5 business day processing time. As always, we appreciate your support and slightly delayed orders will include extras!

Nahvalur Original Plus Rose Gold Fountain Pens

Thursday Drops: Big Lochby and Lamy Restocks, New Nahvalur Original Plus Fountain Pens, and Paul Smith x Caran d'Ache!

May 4, 2023

This week we received two long-awaited releases: The Nahvalur Original Plus “Matira White” and “Lovina Black”, featuring rose gold trim, as well as the fourth Caran d’Ache + Paul Smith collaboration! We’ve also restocked on Lochby Venture pouches, Lamy Cursive nibs, and several models of Lamy pens. Note that we will be traveling starting Saturday night (family wedding), so order fulfillment may be 3-5 business days next week as opposed to your typical 2-3. If there’s something you’d like to have in your hands next week, please get your orders in by Saturday (May 6) at noon. Happy Shopping!

Oh, and did I mention that we have more Kaweco Sketch-up Clutch Pencils in new colors, as well as a “Softfeel” restock? The highlighter leads are also restocked.

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

Nahvalur Original Plus Rose Gold Fountain Pens. Nahvalur (formerly “Narwhal”) re-released their “Original” Fountain Pens in vacuum-filler form earlier this year, and recently followed up with a rose gold version that sold out quickly. We managed to get some additional stock in both the Matira White and Lovina Black. Read more on the Original Plus and it’s filling system here.
Caran d’Ache + Paul Smith Limited Edition 849 Ballpoint Pens. The Caran d’Ache / Paul Smith collaborations have been something of a tradition over the years, but the last one was released in 2020, so it’s been a while. This release features six different two-toned barrels in signature Paul Smith colors.
Lochby Venture Pouch Restock in All Colors! Those of you who came to see us at the Baltimore and Arkansas pen shows loved the Lochby Venture Pouches, and we now have more, in all colors. These reversible pen pouches feature a “standard” pen pouch on top, and open up to reveal a slotted pen case on the bottom. Read more here.
Lamy Cursive Nibs. I can say one thing - Lamy USA works fast. You all cleared us out of Lamy Cursive nibs in less than a week and we received more yesterday. You can read about this specific nib here, and upon request, I am happy to install one for you on any compatible Lamy pen purchased from our shop. Just send a message through the “Contact” link at the time you place your order.
Lamy 2000 Multipens. A not-surprising best seller has been the Lamy 2000 4-Color Ballpoint (their Multi-Pen), and we recently received a restock. This pen takes standard D1 refills, so you can either use Lamy’s excellent stock options or replace them with the D1 refill of your choice. The Lamy 2000 Multi Pen is a personal favorite and I’ve written about it a lot over the years.
Nahvalur Fountain Pen Inks. There hasn’t been much attention paid to them so far, but Nahvalur is releasing their own line of fountain pen inks, including these four nicely muted colors that are in offbeat shades I’ve enjoyed, especially the “Dark Forest”.
Lochby Field Journal A5 Refills. As long as Lochby has a stockpile of the 68gsm Tomoe River paper, I’m going to continue to carry these excellent A5 softcover notebooks! Five different rulings available, including dot, plain, lined, wide lined, and planner.
Midori MD Light A4 Notebooks. These slim A4 notebooks are sold in packs of three, in different rulings, and fit the standard Midori MD A4 notebook covers in PVC, Paper, and Leather. (You can get two notebooks in a cover by using the front and back cover slots.)
Midori MD Block 500 Sheet Notepads. These Midori desk pads feature 500 sheets of fountain pen friendly MD paper in blank, ruled, and grid format. The block pad measures 4x4”, around the size of a large post-it.
Expanded Inks and Refill Selection. In response to reader/customer requests, we’ve made an effort to expand our selection of bottled inks, and we also offer compatible refills for nearly every pen and mechanical pencil that we sell.

New Arrivals: Paul Smith x Caran d'Ache Edition No. 4!

May 2, 2023

They’re here! Finally, we get a follow-up to the wildly successful release that helped us kick off the T.G.S. Curated Shop all the way back in 2020. This new collaboration between designer Paul Smith and Swiss brand Caran d’Ache features the iconic Caran d’Ache 849 ballpoint in six color combinations: Racing Green + Navy, Warm Red + Melrose Pink, Cobalt + Emerald, Sky Blue + Lavender, Chartreuse + Rose, and Cyan + Steel. Available now for purchase, though some colors are going fast and we will restock more soon.

We carry a wide range of Caran d’Ache products in our shop, including the 849 ballpoints, the larger 849 Rollerball, and - recently arrived - the full range of Chromatics fountain pen inks.

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

Thursday Drops: Midori MD Notebook Light in New Sizes, Life Airmail Envelopes, and Highlighters

April 27, 2023

More drops from Midori this week! We received a shipment of the A4 MD Notebook Light in the largest size Midori has to offer, as well as the pocket-sized A7. We also received a box of the MD “Memo Block” notepads, which are 4 x 4” desktop memo pads featuring 500 sheets of Midori MD Paper, and closed out a couple of backorders, finally receiving the matching envelopes for the Life Airmail and Letter writing pads.

We still have plenty of the Lamy Cursive nibs, and as I noted yesterday, I’m happy to install one of these on any compatible Lamy fountain pen if the two items are purchased together. Just send me a message through the “Contact” link above. Happy shopping!

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

Midori MD Notebook Light (A4). The standard MD Notebook in A4 has been a popular seller for us, and while the thick version is backordered, we just received a shipment of the MD Notebook Light in this larger size. Sold in packs of three, this one comes in blank, lined, or grid. You can fit two of these notebooks into the corresponding Midori MD Notebook Covers.
Midori MD Notebook Light (A7). On the opposite end of the size spectrum, these tiny A7 pocket notebooks are perfect for writing on the go. Also sold in packs of three, in all of the various Midori MD rulings.
Midori MD Light 70th Anniversary Color Grid Notebook Set. Released last year for Midori’s 70th Anniversary, this set of seven A5 notebooks features seven different grid colors with matching thread on the binding. Super fun!
Midori MD Memo Block Notepads. These chunky 4 x 4” notepads feature a whopping 500 sheets of fountain pen friendly Midori MD paper, in grid, blank, or lined rulings. Fountain pen friendly memo pads in this format are fairly rare. If you’re looking for sticky notes, we’ve also got those!
Life Airmail Envelopes. A few week ago we announced that we had received a shipment of the EXTREMELY thin, yet still fountain pen friendly, vintage-style airmail paper. Well, now we have those cool retro red and blue airmail envelopes to finish out the set!
Life Letter-Writing Envelopes. If Airmail paper isn’t your thing, we also have the standard Life letter envelopes to match the standard writing set.
Kokuyo Dual-Tone Highlighter Marker Sets. Now available in sets of five colors, these dual-tone markers allow you to highlight text in varying tones of the same color for emphasis, etc. Each marker has a double-sided tip with a different ink reservoir.
Mnemosyne A4 Notepad Holder. These excellent A4 padfolios are leather-free, yet still remain supple without any of that irritating chemical smell so common with synthetic leather. Each padfolio ships with one pad of A4 Mnemosyne paper.
Mnemosyne A7 Notepad Holder. Looking for a pocket padfolio to hold your A7 notepad, as well as a pocket pen?
Caran d’Ache Chromatics Ink. Now available in bottles and cartridges! Caran d’Ache offers a selection of eleven gorgeous colors, some of which are quite unique.
Lamy Pico Pocket Ballpoints. Speaking of pocket pens, if you haven’t tried one of these, do so. The extendable design takes this pen from a small palm-sized capsule to a full-size ballpoint pen in seconds.

New Arrivals: Caran d'Ache Chromatics Inks in 50ml Bottles!

April 25, 2023

On yesterday’s Currently Inked video, I mentioned that Caran d’Ache Chromatics inks would be joining the T.G.S. Curated Shop in 50ml bottle format. We now have all 11 colors in stock and ready to ship! This is in addition to the major Caran d’Ache restock from a couple of weeks ago, in which favorites like the 849 Black Code, the 849 Original, and more were added back to the shop.

Caran D'Ache Chromatics Ink Bottle — The Caran d’Ache ink bottle is slightly angled to make filling easier.

The Caran d’Ache Chromatics series features unique and vibrant colors. Favorites include “Infinite Grey”, which has purple undertones and looks almost silver in some light when it dries. “Divine Pink” reminds me of a slightly darker Iroshizuku Yama-Budo, and “Delicate Green” is a very legible grass green suitable for everyday writing. Caran d’Ache Chromatics inks are available now, priced at $35 for a 50ml bottle.

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized retailer of all brands sold, including Caran d’Ache. Many thanks for your support!