Friday Drops: New Platinum Preppy Wa Edo-Monogatami, Colorverse Colorvent Top 3, and More Viarco!

This week’s Drops post is a bit late, and it’s because I had to spend yesterday listing a bunch of new inventory as it arrived. New arrivals include the latest Platinum Preppy Wa “Modern Maki-e” series, dubbed “Edo-Monogatami” and themed around various aspects of life during Japan’s Edo period. (You may recall that the Taccia Ukiyo-e fountain pen inks reflect Edo period art, so consider whether these pens and inks might be a good match!)

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After a somewhat lengthy wait, we also have the much-anticipated Colorverse “Top 3” inks from the 2024 Colorvent Calendar, and the three colors chosen were Christmas Star, Pulsar Pulse, and Milky Way. You can purchase a set containing three 15ml bottles (one of each color) plus four complementary washi tapes, or you can purchase a standard 65ml bottle of individual colors. Finally, we have the new Lamy AL-Star pens and pencils highlighted in Tuesday’s post, as well as a full Viarco pencil restock.

Another reason why it’s been a bit quiet here recently - in addition to Pen Show travel - is that we are expanding our store! Next week we will be taking over a larger showroom to create dedicated viewing and shopping space (though we will still have our current location as our warehouse, office, and event space, and it will likely be some time before the new space is open.) Come see us this week on Thursday and Friday from 1-6pm, as well as Saturday from 10am-6pm, so you can see all of these and more in-person!

1. Platinum Preppy Wa “Modern Maki-e” Edo-Monogatami Special Editions. All of the most recent Platinum “Modern Maki-e” releases are now available, themed around life in Japan’s Edo period.

2. Colorverse Colorvent “Top 3” Ink Sets and Bottles. We knew it was coming, but Colorverse has finally released the Top 3 inks from the Colorvent Calendar, available either in a set of three 15ml ink bottles with matching washi tape, or as individual 65ml bottles.

3. Lamy AL-Star Dark Dusk and Mint Special Editions. The latest Lamy AL-Star pens and pencils have landed, in two new green and blue colorways.

4. Laurett’s Ebonite Ballpoint Pens and Mechanical Pencils. I picked up several of these Laurett’s machined ebonite ballpoints and mechanical pencils at the D.C. Pen Show after visiting the Laurett’s table. The combination of precision knurling and ebonite is unlike anything I’ve seen before.

5. Archer & Olive Traveler-sized Notebooks. These A5 Slim hardcover notebooks have proven popular so we are likely going to bring in additional sizes, as well as more of the Traveler’s-size notebooks.

6. Viarco Pencil Restock! We spent most of yesterday afternoon listing a half-dozen different varieties of Viarco pencils and accessories, including all of the standard office pencils in HB and B hardnesses as well as the vintage series. Oh, and…

7. Viarco Pencil Caps. Pencil caps are back! These simple metal spring-style pencil caps protect your long-point-sharpened wood pencils in transit. Available in the boxes of 8 or larger packs of 20.

8. Blackwing Volume 140 Pencils. We have some remaining stock of the latest Blackwing Volumes release, inspired by stainless steel cookware and the Maillard Reaction. These are very nice looking pencils, and there are also high-quality recipe cards to pair with the release.

9. Faber-Castell Perfect Pencil. The Perfect Pencil is back! We have the more reasonably priced version, which you won’t be afraid to carry and use as intended, as an everyday sharpener and pencil extender.

10. Faber-Castell Grip Trio Sharpener in New Colors. The Grip Trio pencil sharpener allows you to sharpen standard, jumbo, and colored pencils, and now comes in three new colors.

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And yes, we’ve added to our selection of Bicolor annotation pencils!

New Lamy Safari and AL-Star Pens: Introducing Dark Dusk and Mint!

This year has been a good one for Lamy Safari and AL-Star special releases, especially fans of the midnight blue “Dark Dusk” color that keeps making appearances across multiple color lines. In addition to the “Dark Dusk” and “Sunset” Safaris, Lamy has now released the “Dark Dusk” and “Mint” AL-Stars in fountain pen, rollerball, ballpoint, and mechanical pencil formats!

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The Mint looks good, but Dark Dusk is my favorite. Shown here as a mechanical pencil.

In addition to new AL-Star Formats, the Dark Dusk and Pink color schemes from this year’s Safari releases have now made their way into Lamy’s “econ” ballpoint line, with two new additions now available. Like the Safari and AL-Star, the Lamy econ ballpoint pens take Lamy’s M16-style ballpoint refill, as well as the Uni Jetstream M17 refill. The econ is a relatively recent entry into Lamy’s lineup, and is a great choice for those who prefer a pen with a round section.

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New Lamy econ Special Editions

Come see these and more in person! We will be open this week in our Nashville location, from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday and from 10am-6pm Saturday.

Thursday Drops: Laurett's Pens and Pencils, Archer & Olive Notebooks, Plus Diplomat, TWSBI, and Nakabayashi Restocks

We’re back from the D.C. Pen Show and came home to a stack of boxes in our receiving area! As noted on Tuesday, we now have Archer & Olive hardcover A5 slim notebooks, which are the equivalent of a Traveler’s Notebook standard refill in hardback format. We also have freshly arrived Diplomat Viper fountain pens and a full TWSBI restock, including more of the recently released Serpentine Bronze fountain pens.

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Archer & Olive’s paper features a bright white dot grid ruling and is ink-friendly!

But what I’m most excited about today are these “WAKA” ebonite ballpoints and mechanical pencils from Laurett’s, a Japanese precision manufacturer known for their ultra-fine knurling. I visited the Laurett’s table at the D.C. Pen Show and couldn’t resist bringing some of these home with me. If they do well I will add additional colors of ebonite, of which there are plenty!

Come see all this stuff in person! We will be open at our Nashville location this weekend from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-6pm on Saturday.

1. Laurett’s Ballpoint Pens and Mechanical Pencils. Laurett’s Japan is known for precision machining, and offers ebonite and anodized aluminum pens with some of the best knurling I’ve experienced. Limited quantities on these!

2. Archer & Olive A5-Slim Notebooks. We recently learned that people really love TN/A5-slim notebooks, and these hardcover notebooks from Archer & Olive feature 160 gsm dot grid paper that’s ink friendly, with three different cover designs in canvas or vegan leather.

3. Archer & Olive Vinyl Planner Tabs. These planner tabs allow you to organize your planner or notebook by month. Each set contains 24 tabs, with two stickers for each month.

4. Diplomat Viper Fountain Pens. The hooded Diplomat Viper is a unique fountain pen that you can pair with a matching rollerball to create a set (or you can mix and match colors like me). We currently have black, blue, and brown pens available.

5. TWSBI ECO Serpentine Bronze Fountain Pens. Our initial shipment of Serpentine Bronze fountain pens flew off the shelves, but we have more in all nib sizes.

6. Nakabayashi Paper. Nakabayashi offers fountain pen friendly paper in a wide variety of formats, led by the fountain pen friendly Yu-Sari paper in both notebook and looseleaf. Of all the paper we carry, Nakabayashi is our fastest-growing brand.

7. Nakabayashi Shredder Scissors. This unique desk accessory was a longtime favorite, and we’re happy to have more! If you need an easy way to quickly shred a document but don’t have access to a full-size shredder, these scissors offer a portable solution.

8. Uni Style Fit Meister 5 Multi Pens and Gel Refills. A classic conical-tip gel multi pen, the Uni Style Fit is one of those classic pens that has been around for a while but features a wide range of refills in a multitude of different tip sizes.

9. Pilot 4+1 Acroball Multi Pens. Did you know that these Pilot multipens take both Pilot’s excellent Acro Ink refills and will also work with the Uni Style Fit gel refills? They’re incredibly versatile!

10. Faber-Castell Perfect Pencil. The Perfect Pencil is a combination pencil cap/extender/sharpener that ships with one Faber-Castell “B” grade pencil but is compatible with most standard woodcase hex pencils.

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And, yes, we still have Yamamoto Bullet Jotters, plus the refill pads that include the newly released “Meringue” paper and others.

New Arrivals: Archer & Olive Notebooks and Vinyl Planner Tabs

We’ve discovered lately that everyone loves A5 Slim notebooks - and guess what? We have new ones! These hardcover notebooks from Archer & Olive are the same size as A5 Slim products that use the 4.3” x 8.25” dimensions, and feature 144 pages of thick 160 gsm paper that takes fountain pen ink extremely well, with no ghosting, feathering, or bleed-through. In the past, we’ve carried hardcover notebooks with a similar profile, and I’m excited to have found these to add to our curation. Archer & Olive also makes Vinyl Planner Tabs, which are sold in packs of 24 (two of each month per pack) and allow you to divide any notebook or planner into dated sections.

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We currently stock these Archer & Olive notebooks in three different covers, with two canvas and one vegan leather option. We may add additional sizes and colors as more become available. The Vinyl Planner Tabs are currently available for purchase in two different color schemes: “Storybook” and “Wonderstruck”.

We are back from the 2025 D.C. Pen Show and will be open at our Nashville location this weekend from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-6pm on Saturday.

Archer & Olive Vinyl Planner Tabs in the “Storybook” finish.

Weekly Drops: Uni Style Fit Meister 5, Even More Multi Pen Madness, and the Annual Pen Show Weekend Discount!

The good thing about travel delays (as long as you can snag a place to work) is that you get some site updates done! Yesterday I managed to get the Uni Style Fit Meister 5 Multi Pens listed, along with all the refills in tip sizes ranging from .28mm to .5mm. The Style Fit has been around for so long that many people forget it exists, but it’s one of the best gel multi pens on the market for those who prefer a classic conical tip over a needle-point like the Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto. We also have refills for the Pilot 4+1 Multi Pens with the contoured wood grips, as well as Pilot Acroball D1 refills that will fit the Pilot Legno 2+1 as well as other D1 multi pens like the Lamy 2000, the Lamy ST, CP1, and Logo.

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We also have plenty remaining Yamamoto Bullet Jotters, though we are sold out of the new Canopus paper refills. (We have the other 5 remaining varieties, including Meringue.) I will also have a small number of the jotters at the D.C. Pen Show, assuming I actually manage to get on a plane.

AND, since it’s Pen Show Weekend, take 10% off most orders with “PENSHOW10” at checkout. (Certain brands cannot be discounted so the discount will not apply.) Note: If you are wanting to order a Roterfaden A5, I brought my entire remaining stock with me to the pen show. Be sure to place an order by tomorrow so I can remove it from pen show stock and hold it for shipment upon return.

If you’ve been following my social media, you’ll have heard that I had to miss the first day of the D.C. Pen Show due to flight delays, which ended up with a cancellation/rescheduling of my travel to Friday afternoon. It’s weather-related, so nothing to be done, but it means that my Friday afternoon workshop is cancelled. I should be there all day Saturday and Sunday, fingers crossed! Also, Brick and Mortar shopping in Nashville is closed Friday and Saturday, due to pen show attendance. Shopping available by appointment Tuesday and regular hours next Thursday-Saturday (8/7-8/9).

1. Uni Style Fit Meister 5 Multi-Pen. For those who prefer a conical tip gel pen over a needle-style like the Pilot Hi-Tec-C or the Pentel Energel, the Uni Style Fit is worth checking out. We have multiple color options in the 5-slot “Meister 5”, and 16 different refill color options from which to choose.

2. Pilot 4+1 Multi Pens. Pilot’s low-viscosity “Acro-Ink” is excellent, and should get equal air time as the Uni Jetstream. In addition to the Acroball/Dr. Grip multi pen refills (which we now stock), I understand that people have been able to get Uni Style Fit refills to fit this pen as well, though I’ve not experimented extensively. Stay tuned!

3. Pilot Legno 2+1. The Pilot Legno 2+1 is a three-slot multi pen that has room for two D1 refills and a mechanical pencil. The wood barrel features a contoured shape and comes in three different tones: red, black, brown, and mahogany. This version of the Legno multi pen has become one of my favorites, especially since the red and brown barrels match the Pilot S20 ballpoint and mechanical pencil, allowing you to build a set.

4. Pilot Acroball D1 Refills. We also have Pilot Acroball refills for the Legno 2+1, which are universal D1 size so they will also fit other D1 multi pens we carry.

5. Yamamoto Paper Bullet Jotter. These Bible-sized bullet portfolios hold two pads of specialty paper, which are perfect for stand-alone notetaking or for hole-punching and inclusion in a Bible-sized planner.

6. Yamamoto Paper Bullet Jotter Refill Pads. As with their paper samplers and select looseleaf paper packs, Yamamoto offers an expansive range of different papers that fit the Bullet Jotter, including Soliste, Sheep Clouds Bond, Slight White, Sanzen Tomoe River, and new additions Meringue and Canopus. (Apologies, but Canopus is currently sold out and I am working to get more.)

7. Yamamoto Paper Specialty Japanese Papers (A4 Looseleaf). We received a restock of the Yamamoto A4 looseleaf sample packs, including additional Slight White, Light Force, and Soliste.

8. Maruman Spiral Notebook Basic Notebook (Now with 150-sheet Options!). We now have the 150-sheet versions of the Maruman Basics Spiral Notebook, in both B5 and A5 sizes.

9. Notsu Notecards and Notecard Systems. The popular Notsu notecards are back in stock, including the Centre Rise box sets, packs of 50 loose notecards in multiple formats, and vegan leather notecard holders.

10. Toyo Stainless Steel Boxes. A popular new addition to our desk/office accessories lineup, these steel boxes from Toyo can hold anything from small office supplies like sticky notes and paper clips to small ink bottles. Toyo boxes come in various sizes and stack easily.

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Look at all those Style Fit refills!