Personal Obsessions: My Quest for the Perfect Blue Writing Paper

Despite having access to about as wide a range of stationery products as humanly possible, there are still certain things I’ve been looking for over the years that remain elusive. Chief among these is a reliably fountain-pen-friendly blue writing paper. Smythson of Bond Street seems to be the gold standard for many, and their notebooks are indeed gorgeous, but I’ve had trouble locating reviews of their paper from the perspective of a fountain pen user, and in any event the price point makes the paper hard to justify for everyday writing outside of formal correspondence.

G. Lalo Paper comes in 50-sheet tablets. As shown from the picture at the top of the page, shading won’t look the same, but the blue doesn’t distort the ink color as much as I expected. In fact, it gives it a nice vintage look. G. Lalo paper has a laid texture (meaning that it’s not smooth), so if you prefer super-smooth paper you should be aware of this.

Since the past few years saw a steep drop off in my work travel, depriving me of regular opportunities to loot hotel rooms of “low cost” light blue stationery, I’ve been on the lookout for a replacement and have found two options that I enjoy. The first, G. Lalo Vergé de France writing paper, is typically recommended for written correspondence, but I’ve also enjoyed using it as a standard writing tablet, similar to the Midori MD Cotton Paper. While a touch darker than what I originally expected, I’ve been enjoying this as a solid general purpose writing paper, especially since the price point ($14 for a 50-sheet A5 tablet) is fairly reasonable for paper of this quality and the paper is easy to get a hold of, especially now that we stock G. Lalo Paper in our own shop.

The Midori Soft Color A5 Notebooks come in four shades (grey + three pastels) that aren’t so loud they overwhelm your writing. Some people match the notebook to their ink color, but I prefer a bit of contrast.

I discovered the second blue paper option when I was in New York City last week and found myself browsing the back wall at Kinokuniya bookstore off Bryant Park. (For those of you who haven’t visited Kinokuniya, it’s the NYC outpost of the Japanese bookstore that has a massive stationery section in the basement, and the back wall contains nothing but notebooks.) I noticed that they had a couple piles of Midori A5 “Soft Color” notebooks in blue, grey, green, and yellow, priced at $4 each. Seeing that they contained dot grid paper, I figured that was a no-brainer purchase at that price and grabbed one in blue and one in grey. I spent ten minutes jotting in these notebooks in a coffee shop, realized the paper lost none of the excellent qualities of the standard Midori MD Paper, and promptly contacted my distributor to stock all four colors for the shop.

View fullsize

Midori Soft Color Notebook in blue, with dot grid paper. Testing inks are three of my favorite colors from the Laban Greek Mythology series.

View fullsize

Midori Soft Color Notebook in Grey (shown with the blue notebook for contrast). These notebooks are standard A5 so they fit covers like the Lochby Field Journal.

Many people have requested recommendations for colored paper options in the past, but it’s a tricky thing to get right. Often, companies will apply a coating to give the paper its color, which works fine as long as you’re not trying to write with a fountain pen, rollerball, or other liquid ink, since most coated paper isn’t particularly absorbent and the ink tends to never dry. That’s not an issue with either of the two papers shown here. Both G. Lalo and Midori Soft Color dry fairly quickly, and behave essentially like standard white or ivory writing papers. There is a third option - Original Crown Mill - that makes a light blue laid paper I want to try, and yes, I probably will eventually splurge on some Smythson. (“For science.”)

For the time being, however, these two will work fine, and I no longer have to worry about exhausting my dwindling stash of blue notepads. If you’re interested in trying out some of this stationery for yourself, we currently have G. Lalo writing paper and envelopes available for sale in the shop in white, ivory and blue, along with the Midori Soft Color A5 notebooks in blue, grey, green, and yellow.

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

New in the Curated Shop: Three New Ink Lines!

A key project we’ve been working on over the past several weeks is the expansion of our selection of bottled fountain pen inks and other refill options. We recently had not one but THREE lines of bottled fountain pen ink arrive from Laban, J. Herbin, and Nahvalur. To accommodate these additions, we’ve created a separate page for all of the inks and refills, which should have the added benefit of making the store easier to navigate.

View fullsize

These little 10ml bottles of J. Herbin ink are an excellent way to test-drive ink colors before committing to a larger bottle.

J. Herbin Fountain Pen Inks

In today’s super-saturated (pun intended) fountain pen market, there are a lot of ink lines being released, and it’s easy to get lost in an overwhelming selection of brands and colors. Personally, I’ve started defaulting to the classics, and recently rediscovered my love for the Herbin brand - a classic French ink still made in Paris and distributed by the same people who bring us Clairefontaine and Rhodia papers. Herbin inks work well in fountain pens, dip pens, and with brushes. In addition to being versatile, they’re low maintenance and tend to wash out of pens quite easily without staining. We currently carry 16 different colors in both the 10ml and 30ml bottles, priced at $7.50 and $13.95 respectively.

View fullsize

Artemis Navy Blue is a gorgeous dark navy that doesn’t get a lot of attention. I hope to change that.

Laban Green Mythology Ink Series

Combining two of my favorite things in the word - writing and history - I’ve had my eye on this particular product line ever since they were released last year. Laban’s “Greek Mythology” series features a line of ten excellent inks themed around the ancient Greek gods and goddesses, and there’s not a bad one in the bunch. Laban nailed both the packaging and the bottle itself, which holds an ample 50ml of ink. We currently have all colors in stock except for Aphrodite Pink.

View fullsize

Nahvalur’s new “Explorer” line of fountain pen inks.

Nahvalur Explorer Fountain Pen Inks

Finally, fresh off the release of their Pen of the Year, Nahvalur has added four inks to match the colors of the “Original Plus” vacuum-filler fountain pen. Sold in 20ml bottles at $12.95 each, all four of these colors are slightly offbeat variations of green, blue, purple, and gold. The green and the blue are exceptionally nice looking, and all colors are available!

You can visit the entire Inks and Refills page here, and don’t forget to check out the rest of the T.G.S. Curated Shop. The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by shop purchases and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

Sunday Reading for February 12, 2023

1. Endgame: Aurora 88 Big (via A Fleeting Ripple). The Aurora 88 is one of my favorite pens from a design perspective, and I definitely have a couple in my collection. I’ve long coveted one of the large standard black ones with the fluted silver cap….

2. I Swear It’s Not a Junk Drawer! (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). I don’t even want to show you my “junk” drawer. This one is insanely well-organized.

3. The Search for My Next Pocket Pen (via Dapprman). I’m also constantly looking for a great pocket pen to fit my everyday carry small notebook, but substitute “Plotter Mini 5” for Passport Traveler’s Notebook in my case.

4. No-Buy Follow-Up (via From the Pen Cup). There must always be the Pen Show exception!

5. Montegrappa Ortocera (via Figboot on Pens). I love Montegrappa’s zebra celluloid, and now this pen might be the last available pen from this material?

6. Analogue Keeper Logue Book Review (via Blake’s Broadcast). There’s been an increasing number of notebooks using Swedish Munken paper, which on the whole tends to be pretty good with fountain pens.

7. Ink Review #754: Ferris Wheel Press Buttered Popcorn (via Fountain Pen Pharmacist). I’ve written recently about discovery legible yellow inks that are versatile for both highlighting and writing. This one looks like perhaps it’s another candidate? I don’t necessarily find this shade of yellow difficult to read, but perhaps it’s the photos.

8. Ghosts of Planners Past: Daily Planners (via Writing at Large). I’ve personally gone back and forth between daily and weekly planner systems, depending on how busy I’ve been. Currently, I’m using more flexible systems that allow me to switch between the different types of refills and page layouts as I need them.

9. Kokuyo Campus High Grade (MIO) Notebook Review (via Fountain Pen Love). So when I was in NYC last week, I went looking for this version of Kokuyo Campus paper and couldn’t find it. I did, however, pick up some standard Campus looseleaf and was surprised at how well the standard Campus paper held up. I really want to try this version.

10. Planner Review: Trigg Life Mapper (via Well-Appointed Desk). I was somewhat surprised to see that these were still around. I reviewed on a few years ago and found it a bit complex for my needs but overall a nice well-though-out product.

In Case You Missed It…

I was in NYC attending Shoppe Object and NY Now, two of the largest stationery trade shows! You can read more about my adventures at the shows here, and you can read a bit about my travel packing “strategy” here. Overall, it was a great week to get travel moving again in 2023, and I’m looking forward to visiting some pen shows starting next month, when I’ll be in both Baltimore and Little Rock! Finally, I reviewed the much-anticipated Schon DSGN Mono Nib yesterday, as well as offered my thoughts on the Schon DSGN Full-Sized Fountain Pen.

View fullsize

TWSBI Saffron ECO-T Pre-orders are open! The pens should arrive Monday or Tuesday, Fedex depending.

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop - Pen Show Weekend Fountain Pen Promotion!

As noted in this week’s Thursday Drops post, our friends at Anderillium were kind enough to provide us with a huge box of ink samples that they requested we use to run a promotion. Through tomorrow, all purchases of Nahvalur and Opus 88 fountain pens will receive a free 10ml sample bottle of Anderillium ink, and any purchase over $120 will receive two samples. So basically you get some free ink to get your new pen writing immediately! No coupon is necessary and the ink will be added when we pack your order. Speaking of ink, to make the shop more navigable, we’ve introduced an “inks and refills” page, which now includes all bottled fountain pen inks, ink cartridges, and other pen and mechanical pencil refills.

We also received a massive restock of Write Notepads paper products, including two-packs of their excellent writing paper, as well as a fresh shipment of Hightide Sandglasses!

Clairefontaine

Hightide

Lochby

Letter Supplies

Consider Supporting Us Via T.G.S. Patreon!

This year, I’m trying to be more visible and intentional with T.G.S. Patreon and how the support/membership program will expand in 2023 to include not only access to meetups and early gently used sales, but more exclusive content, including the potential return of Digital Divide. So far, I’ve been trying for at least two Patreon posts per month. Patreon support starts as low as $3 per month, and if you pay annually there is a further discount. In addition to purchases from The Curated Shop, Patreon allows us to continue to grow the site without relying on advertisements and affiliate marketing. If you’re interested in meetups and exclusive content, or simply supporting the site, we greatly appreciate your support!

Pen Review: Schon DSGN Full-Sized Fountain Pen and Monoc Nib First Impressions

For a fountain pen that’s been available for a couple of years now, the Schon DSGN Full-Sized Fountain Pen has gone a conspicuously long time without a T.G.S. review. There’s a couple of reasons for that. First, the fountain pen itself, from a purely functional perspective, is fairly similar to the Ultem and Peek “Engineered Plastics” fountain pens, which I’ve already reviewed. Second, I’ve known for several months now that Schon DSGN’s in-house Monoc nib was on the cusp of release, and given that the Full-Sized Fountain Pen serves as the main platform for both Schon DSGN’s wild anodizations and the new nib, I wanted to hold the review until I had samples of each to show you. Here goes!

View fullsize

Each Full-Sized Fountain Pen comes with an emoji. If you visit the Schon DSGN table at a pen show, you might have several to choose from!

The Full-Sized Fountain Pen Is a Perfect Platform to Showcase Different designs

There are certain pen brands that people consider highly collectible. Franklin-Christoph comes to mind, with a lineup of classic shapes made available in different “prototype” finishes at pen shows and limited online events. Schon DSGN has taken a similar approach with the Full-Sized Fountain Pen, using a standard shape and machined aluminum body as a platform for showing off a wide range of anodized finishes that cycle in and out of stock in the same way the Pocket 6 fountain pens do. The Schon DSGN table is a popular stop at pen shows, and I always encourage show attendees to visit the table in person if they can before making a selection online, because many finishes look completely different in person - nearly always for the better - as opposed to viewing them online. Plus you can select your emoji!

View fullsize

While I typically love a matte finish on a metal fountain pen, my latest addition - ‘80s spraypaint-style “Rainbow Sprinkles’ - is growing on me and might just become my favorite!

Currently, I have three Full-Sized Fountain Pens in my collection. If you’ve read my reviews of the Ultem and “Peek-a-Boo” models, you’ll know that I’m a fan of the shape, and especially the hourglass-style section which is insanely comfortable for long writing sessions. These metal pens, however, really show off the skill of Ian Schon and his team. Despite being heavier than the ultra-light Ultem and Peek, you don’t lose any of the comfort or balance in moving to the aluminum body. Some might actually find the heavier body more comfortable to use, even when posted, because the weight adds balance. (Since there’s an o-ring inside the cap, I haven’t noticed any wear from metal-on-metal contact while posting, but post at your own risk.)

View fullsize

Full-Sized Fountain Pen Unposted

View fullsize

Full-Sized Fountain Pen Posted

First Impressions: The Schon DSGN Monoc Nib

Next up: the recently released “Monoc” nib! I’ve had my Monoc for a few weeks now, and have written through a couple of fills, so I feel comfortable offering first impressions. On the whole, this is a tremendous accomplishment by Ian and his team. What they have done is design and manufacture not just a nib, but a complete nib unit - nib + feed + housing - completely in-house, using materials and techniques not commonly used in nib manufacture.

View fullsize

The Monoc is machined from a single piece of Grade 5 titanium, meaning that the nib, collar, housing, and tip are all integrated into a single piece of metal, hence the name “Monoc.” From the Schon DSGN blog:

“The name Monoc being short for Monocoque - mänəˌkōk- French for ‘single shell’, often used in aerospace and racing applications where the structural body and external shell of a vehicle are made from one solid piece.”

— Schon DSGN

There have been several attempts at similar nibs, most famously the Parker T1, Pilot Myu, and Pilot Murex, which remain coveted items among rare pen enthusiasts. Though not exactly the same (the Monoc is a nib unit that technically isn’t integrated into the pen body itself, and can be swapped into any JoWo-compatible pen), these nibs all offer the same extremely tactile, direct feel that is hard to describe and, at least with the Monoc, is derived from the fact that you are writing on the nib itself and not separate tipping material welded to the nib. Made from Grade 5 titanium, the Monoc is not a “springy” titanium nib like the Bock nibs that are so widely available; I find it quite stiff and you won’t get line variation via additional pressure. So why choose this material? Again, let’s look at what Schon DSGN said in their announcement post:

“With our unique approach of machining the nib from solid stock, we opted to utilize the properties of the Grade 5 titanium to create an integrated nib tip rather than welding additional tipping material onto the nib. This integrated nib tip allows for closer control of the geometry of the tip and writing surface, while the titanium offers a soft graphite-like quality that is a great writing experience. To achieve this specific writing quality, each nib is hand finished, assembled, ground, and tested to ensure it is ready for use. Due to the additional nib tip thickness of our design, the Monoc Nib is very friendly to customization as well. While some traditional fountain pen users may be uncomfortable with the idea of an integrated titanium tip, we feel the Grade 5 Titanium we use offers plenty of durability which negates the need for harder tipping material.”

— Schon DSGN

View fullsize

Schon DSGN Amber Ultem feed (featuring turquoise ink), with the Star emoji to signal that it’s from the first batch of Monoc nibs. I believe each run will have a different symbol.

There’s a lot to unpack here. First, obviously a LOT of work has gone into the design and manufacture of this nib, from the shape of the nib unit itself to the “geometry” of the tipping. If you look closely at the tip of your Monoc, you’ll notice that it’s been carefully shaped into a slightly upturned writing surface that to the naked eye appears almost architect-like. You can’t do this via machining - each nib has to be hand finished via a process that involves grinding, tuning, and polishing, which of course increases both manufacturing time and the overall cost. Recognizing that the pen enthusiast willing to shell out $400+ on a nib like this one might also prefer to have the nib ground, Schon DSGN apparently took this into account when engineering the thickness of the tip.

View fullsize

A close up of the Monoc’s tip. You can see how well-polished it is, and the work that went into shaping the Grade 5 titanium.

The second point relates to durability. Titanium is softer than other metals (like iridium) typically used to tip fountain pens. That means eventually it will wear down, but the rate at which Grade 5 titanium - more durable than most - will actually wear remains to be seen. Someone who purchases the Monoc as their only fountain pen and writes with it for hours every day over a period of years might find this something to consider. That said, I find it hard to believe that this pen’s target audience - hard core fountain pen fans who likely have multiple pens they are using at any given time - will use this nib enough to have to worry about the titanium tip degrading. But again, we will have to see. The Monoc is an experimental design that likely will go through many iterations in the next year or two, based on real world user feedback.

A writing sample, showing a medium to fine-medium line with Laban Poseidon Blue on Midori MD Cotton paper.

Personally, I’ve enjoyed writing with my Monoc nib. The purchase was a no-brainer for me, ever since I first had the chance to write with this pen at the 2022 D.C. Pen Show. Currently, only one nib size is available, and I would call mine a fine-medium, understanding that the exact tip size and line width will vary slightly given that these nibs are hand-tuned. Schon DSGN made the decision to use an ultem feed as opposed to plastic or ebonite, an interesting choice from both an engineering and a design perspective. Of course I opted for amber ultem, since I’m a fan of transparent feeds. So far, the nib and feed have functioned well with the inks I’ve tried, writing what I would consider a medium-wet line. I’ve heard other reports of Monoc nibs writing wider and wetter than mine, but I’ve also been using somewhat drier turquoise inks so I’ll need to report back, which I plan to do anyway after a longer period with this nib in rotation.

View fullsize

Rainbow Sprinkles + Schon DSGN Monoc Titanium Nib with rainbow lettering.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

I consider Schon DSGN to be one of the more innovative penmakers working today, pushing the envelope in terms of what can be done in literally every aspect of pen making, whether it’s the design of the pen body, the design of the nib, or materials and anodized finishes. While their pens aren’t inexpensive, I personally consider them an insanely good value given the quality and the work that goes into them.

View fullsize

The Monoc (center) shown with two different Steel No. 6 JoWo nibs. The Monoc’s slimmer, tubular design transforms the look of the Full-Sized Fountain Pen.

A Schon DSGN Full-Sized Fountain Pen with a standard JoWo nib (not the Monoc) will run you $195, well within the current range of reasonableness for products from a smaller, independent manufacturer. On the Monoc, cost will present an issue for many people. For the initial launch, Schon DSGN has priced the Monoc at $400 USD, which includes not just the nib but a matte black Full-Sized Fountain Pen. (You can change the pen color to a finish of your choice for an extra $100.) That’s a lot of money, sure, but for what it is, I don’t consider this product “expensive.” There are plenty of companies out there trying to push the $400-500 envelope with less innovative pens (including some with generic JoWo or Bock nibs), so this price point for a completely in-house titanium nib actually strikes me as fairly reasonable, especially when you factor in the work involved on each individual piece and the fact that the nibs are currently made to order. The Monoc represents the kind of innovation that I’m happy to support.

Note: I purchased the Monoc nib and Schon DSGN pens featured in this review with my own funds. Pens can be purchased directly through the Schon DSGN website. Please be aware that the Monoc nib is a “made-to-order” product. These nibs are assembled and hand-tuned in small batches, by a small team, so if you place an order you are committing to purchase one, with a 15% cancellation fee if you change your mind. This is plainly disclosed on the order page.

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. This post does not contain paid affiliate links or advertising.

Thursday Drops: A Special Pen Show Promotion

If you’re in Los Angeles this coming weekend (or if you’re simply on the West Coast), please be sure to visit the California Pen Show in its inaugural year! While we won’t be attending this year due to previous commitments, we will be at the upcoming Baltimore Washington Pen Show and the Arkansas Pen Show next month. Stay tuned for more details on exactly what we’ll have with us and how we’ll be set up.

The TWSBI ECO-T Saffron Yellow is currently available for purchase!

Even though we’re not attending this weekend’s show, we’re running a special promotion! All purchases of Nahvalur and Opus 88 fountain pens will receive a free sample bottle of Anderillium Ink, courtesy of our friends at Anderillium. The bottle of ink will be automatically added to your package when your order is shipped, so there’s no need to use a coupon code. Purchases over $120, such as a Nahvalur Nautilus or an Opus 88 Minty, qualify for two ink samples. Finally, the TWSBI ECO-T Saffron is available for pre-order. The pens are on their way to me and should ship later this week.

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized retailer of all products in the T.G.S. Curated Shop.

1. Nahvalur Pen of the Year: “Year of the Rabbit” Nautilus. We have exactly ONE of these limited edition pens left in stock. They’ve sold incredibly well, and there’s been a lot of interest in Nahvalur’s new 14k gold nib.

2. Nahvalur Nautilus Black Ebonite Fountain Pens. We now have the Nautilus fountain pen in classic black ebonite, featuring either antiqued brass or black trim. (We also have one remaining Stylophora Berry limited edition.)

3. Nahvalur “Explorer” Bottled Ink. Nahvalur recently released a new ink lineup in colors matching their Original Plus fountain pens. Stay tuned for some additional ink swatches!

4. TWSBI ECO-T Jade Rose Gold Ink Sets. We have a handful of the ECO-T pen and ink sets in stock, and I love the way the Jade works with the rose gold trim.

5. TWSBI Vac700R Iris Fountain Pen. We have fresh stock of the Vac700R in the iridescent “Iris” finish. I traveled with vacuum-filler fountain pens this past week, and if you find yourself on airplanes on in circumstances where the temperature and air pressure change rapidly, a vacuum-filler or Japanese-style eyedropper with a shutoff valve can protect you from inky messes in your bag.

6. Midori MD A5 Natural Goat Leather Sleeve. Looking for a gorgeous natural leather A5 pouch that will patina beautifully as it ages? Check this one out, as well as our other Midori natural leather covers designed to fit any of the Midori MD Notebooks.

7. Letter Writing Supplies in our “InCoWriMo” Section! It’s International Correspondence Writing Month, or “InCoWriMo,” and we’ve pulled together all of the various letter and writing supplies into one section of the paper shop.

8. WMS & Co. Hand Stamps. We stock WMS & Co stamps ranging from a customizable self-inking desktop stamp perfect for making your own letterhead or personalizing your library, to these “philosophical” wooden handstamps certain to liven up your interoffice mail!

9. WMS & Co. To Do and Calendar Notepads. Some of our most popular desktop writing accessories, the WMS & Co. undated calendar pads come in both full-size and keyboard layout, and the "Next” to-do lists are a new addition. I find the paper to work quite well with most fountain pens.

10. Traveler’s Company Dated Calendar Refills 25% Off! I just have a handful left, and it’s not too late to start your 2023 planner and still get nearly the full benefit of your planner.