Sunday Reading for September 15, 2024

1. Fude! Magna Carta Urban (via Figboot on Pens). Magna Carta has been getting in on the specialty nib game lately, and the “Urban” model seems like a very nice looking pen.

2. Sailor x Tinteriás Cilantro and Refried Beans (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). I picked up Cilantro at the Chicago Pen Show, and it’s an excellent Sailor green.

3. Relay for St. Jude (2024) (via Olive Octopus). Be sure to follow along on Lisa’s Twitch stream to help support St. Jude!

4. On Using up all the Film, Even the Special Rolls (and Re-Evaluating What Special Stocks I Like) (via Urban Adventure League). A lot of this goes well beyond film, to things like paper, ink, disposable pens. I’ve been using down and/or giving away my own stash over the past year.

5. Pen Show Shopping List (via Line Variation). The Commonwealth Pen Show outside of Boston was this weekend! Hopefully those of you in the area were able to attend.

6. Keeping Nibs Straight (via Rachel’s Reflections). THIS! I need a system to organize my modified nibs, though it’s probably too late for me to keep straight which is which and who did what grind, at least with some pens.

7. Sketching Now Travel Sketching Course: Materials List (via Writing at Large). Hahnemuhle makes excellent sketchbooks.

8. Lochby Quattro Pen Case Review (via Pen Addict - Sarah). Even after all these years, Lochby products remain a huge seller for us.

9. Fountain Pen Review: Rubato Map Nib Fountain Pen (via Well-Appointed Desk). These little Rubato pens really took off after this year’s California Pen Show, and I was glad to see them back in San Francisco.

10. M800 Cream Blue Special Edition (via Pelikan’s Perch). A great looking Pelikan that’s received a lot of attention since it was announced. And the Hub is coming up in a couple of weeks!

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Any refillable fineliner is all kinds of fun to fill and refill.

In Case You Missed It….

This week on the blog I ranked the 2024 Lamy Safari and AL-Star special releases! Check out the post to see which were my two favorites from what I considered to be a very good year. I also tested out the Kakimori Colour Liner fineliner pens, which are lower-cost fineliners that take fountain pen ink.

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Kakimori affiliate brand Object Index has all sorts of interesting stationery items, like this "Modular Marker" that allows you to combine different sections (out of nine options) to form your ideal tool and adjust as your needs may change.

New Arrivals and More in the T.G.S. Curated Shop: TWSBI, Lamy, Kakimori, and Object Index

We’ve added lot of new pens this week, including the TWSBI ECO in Irish Green and Onyx, the new Lamy AL-Stars and Steel Black Safaris, Kakimori pens and notebooks, as well as pens and desk accessories from Kakimori-affiliated Object Index. Check out this week’s Thursday drops for details on these pens and more!

We’ve posted our regular hours for the shop! Be sure to check out this specific page (which is also pinned to the sidebar) for details.

Kakimori Pens

Lamy

Sunderland

Kakimori Notebooks

Check Out T.G.S. Patreon for Breaking news and first access/Special pricing on exclusives (Including the Sunderland Mk1)

If you enjoy our content (whether here on the main website, Instagram, YouTube Channel or elsewhere), and would like early/extra access to shop releases and gently used stationery opportunities, consider supporting us via Patreon. We do our best to remain 100% self-supported without having to rely on third-party advertisers or affiliates. Of course, the number one way to help is to visit our curated retail shop either online (or in person, if you’re in the Nashville area)! If you enjoy in-person and virtual meetups and having access to more personal content, the T.G.S. Patreon includes these as well as access to early shop releases, the quarterly gently used sales, a monthly updates newsletter, and of course our monthly Zoom meetups. Patreon support starts as low as $3 per month, and if you pay annually there is a further discount. This month’s Patreon “special” is an extra bit off the TGS Sunderland Pen.

No matter how you support us - even if just with a comment, recommendation, or encouraging word - we greatly appreciate your readership!

These Are Heady Times for Fineliner Fans: Kakimori Colour Liners

I’ve been very anxious to get my hands on a recent shipment from Kakimori. Not only did we receive more of the brass, stainless, and the new antique brass Kakimori metal nibs, but I was most excited about the Kakimori Colour Liners, which are yet another fillable fineliner option!

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The wicking refill is very similar to that used by Tom's Studio.

I’ve previously written about the Tom’s Studio Lumos, a series of refillable fineliner pens with replaceable/interchangeable tips and absorbent ink reservoirs. Pens like these have been something of a godsend for me, since I’ve always loved the feel of writing with a felt tip/fineliner pen but don’t like being limited by the stock ink colors. Here, you can load up the absorbent cotton “wick” with the fountain pen ink of your choice, paired with your favorite tip style, to create the fineliner pen you’ve always wanted but have never been able to find at a big box store.

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To fill, you place the reservoir in a bottle of ink and allow it to saturate using capillary action. 

While the Kakimori Colour Liners don’t have as many tip options as the Tom’s Studio Lumos, and may not be “refillable” since the tip can’t easily be removed and the refill can’t easily be accessed after the pen is filled, at only $7 they are definitely the most cost-effective option if you’d like to create a custom set of fineliners and markers to have at the ready, or if you’d like to create a set containing all of your favorite inks so that you have them in a non-fountain pen format for travel, etc. Currently, these pens come in .3mm, .5mm, brush, and chisel-marker tips.

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From left, marker tip, brush tip, .3mm, and .5mm writing tips, all paired with four of my favorite Laban Greek Mythology Inks.

To fill the Kakimori Colour Liner pens, you dip the wick into a bottle of fountain pen ink and simply watch it change color (as shown above). Once the reservoir is sufficiently saturated, insert it into the barrel of the pen and fit the barrel plug into the bottom, which will push the reservoir all the way to the base of the pen nib and allow the ink to saturate the tip. Note that Kakimori doesn’t guarantee that you will be able to remove the barrel plug once it’s been inserted. Once the reservoir runs dry, you may not be able to refill the pen, though I am going to try and I’m sure some people have figured out how to do it. That said, the tip may actually wear out before you can use up the ink. These are large reservoirs that hold a LOT of ink, and fineliners don’t use nearly as much ink as fountain pens to write so they tend to last a long time. You should get a lot of mileage out of one of these pens as long as you use reasonable writing pressure and don’t leave it uncapped.

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The four writing tips and refills, uninked. From left, Marker, Brush, .5mm, and .3mm.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

I will guarantee you this: if a company makes a customizable or refillable fineliner, I will buy it for myself and almost certainly stock it for the store. I love these things and consider them to be in the category of “stationery products I’ve always wanted but never thought would actually exist.” If you’re curious about these sorts of pens, but don’t want to take the plunge on one of the fully refillable, interchangeable-tip fineliners like the Tom’s Studio Lumos, the Kakimori Colour Liners are an easy and relatively inexpensive way to experiment. These are available in the shop as of this morning and priced at $7 per pen. I’ve not experimented extensively with inks, but I would imagine these would work well with just about any ink except shimmer inks, due to the size of the particles.

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. In addition to the Colour Liners, we stock Kakimori dip pens and nib holders, as well as clothbound notebooks.

Thursday Drops: New Lamy Safaris, TWSBIs, Sunderlands and More!

**UPDATE: Come see us this weekend as our store is open! Hit the button on the sidebar or follow this link for location and hours!

Much of this week has been spent either shipping out orders or restocking our shelves with the new arrivals showing up every morning! This week we have Lamy AL-Star fountain pens, rollerballs, ballpoints, and mechanical pencils in two new colors, Sage Green and Autumn Pink, both of which feature black trim. We did an overview of these pens and how they fit into the overall scheme of Lamy’s 2024 special edition releases (including talking about our favorites). We also have stock of the new standard Safari release “Steel Black”!

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Yesterday we passed the halfway point of selling through our newly arrived shipment of T.G.S. x Sunderland mk1 machined pens! I love this pen - it’s one of my favorite collaborations that I’ve worked on, and it was our first - and it brings me so much joy to see it go out to so many different readers and customers around the world. Finally, we have a handful of Irish Green + Onyx TWSBI ECO fountain pens in stock and ready to ship. Happy shopping!

1. Lamy AL-Star Pens in Sage Green and Autumn Pink. Lamy released the second round of 2024 special releases, with two new shades that complement the “Fiery” and “Aquatic” AL-Star pens they released earlier in the year. As I noted in yesterday’s post, I find the Sage Green absolutely stunning and will be adding one to my own collection.

2. Lamy AL-Star Mechanical Pencils in Sage Green and Autumn Pink. One funny thing about the Fiery and Aquatic releases is that Lamy only released a .5mm mechanical pencil in the Aquatic finish.

3. Lamy Safari in New “Steel Black”. I’m not exactly sure how to describe this color, but Lamy’s new release in the standard Safari lineup is almost a black with blue/purple undertones, and distinct from the current matte (“Charcoal”) and gloss black options. We plan to start bringing standard lineup Safaris into the store, and this new one is the first to arrive! Pens and mechanical pencils are all available.

4. Sunderland Machine Works mk1 T.G.S. Exclusive Edition. I’ve almost come to think of this as our “signature pen”, with its bead-blasted matte finish, DLC clip, and dark red section. You can read more about the design of this pen and why I love it here.

5. TWSBI ECO Irish Green + Onyx Fountain Pens. TWSBI finally got around to releasing an ECO with black-plated trim! The combination of the black trim and dark green acrylic almost gives this pen a “stealth” look.

6. TWSBI Precision Ballpoint Pens. The TWSBI Precision “technical ballpoints” simply won’t stay in stock. They take Parker-style refills, including the excellent Jetstream SXR-600. Matching mechanical pencils are also available.

7. Lamy 2000 Pens. Last week we restocked on the Lamy 2000 in all of the various formats, including the fountain pen and the 4 Color Ballpoint Multi Pen that’s so popular.

8. Lamy Vista Pens. Lamy doesn’t make clear Safari demonstrators other than the Vista, but this one’s popularity has endured over the years. We have the fountain pens and the rollerballs back in stock.

9. Mnemosyne x Kleid A6 Spiral Notebooks. Two of my favorite stationery brands collaborated on this A6 Mnemosyne notebook with a green cover and Kleid’s signature 2mm grid ruling!

10. New Mnemosyne Sizes! In addition to the Mnemosyne x Kleid collaboration, we have added additional reporter-style top-bound notepads in both A7 and several B sizes.

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The new Lamy Safari "Steel Black" matte pens and pencil: It's almost got that same purple undertone as Lamy Black ink!

My Personal Ranking of the 2024 Lamy Safaris and AL-Stars

This year, Lamy released not one, but two rounds of special edition Safari and AL-Star pens. Because 2024 marked my first full year as a Lamy retailer carrying all of the special editions (plus now with a dedicated space to have them all easily accessible for comparison), I thought it might be fun to take a look at all of the fountain pens together and discuss my favorites from what seems like an especially busy year for Lamy.

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From left: Pink Cliff, Violet Blackberry, Piña Colada, and Cherry Blossom

Ranking My Favorite 2024 Lamy Safaris

The 2024 Lamy Safari releases kicked off with “Pink Cliff” and “Violet Blackberry” back in February. Featuring dark navy and violet barrels paired with pink and purple grip sections, these two pens marked something of a departure from the recent trend of more traditional releases. While I found the contrast refreshing, I’m sure it wasn’t for everyone. The more recent “Piña Colada” and “Cherry Blossom” hit stores in June, and once again featured two-toned pens but with a completely different look. I’d rank them as follows, in terms of personal preference:

1. Piña Colada. I love yellow pens, feel the color is drastically underutilized across the pen industry, and let it be known that I will buy any Safari with a yellow clip.

2. Pink Cliff. A blue-grey matte barrel offset with an eye-searing pink section? Somehow it works. The matte texture lifts this one over Violet Blackberry for me.

3. Violet Blackberry. Two different shades of purple makes for a great looking Safari, but if given the choice, I’m always going with matte texture over gloss.

4. Cherry Blossom. A really nice looking pink pen, and I definitely dig the red clip, but this shade of cherry blossom pink isn’t really my thing aesthetically. The new “Autumn Pink” AL-Star, on the other hand….

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Four AL-Star fountain pens from left: Fiery, Aquatic, Autumn Pink, and Sage Green.

Ranking My Favorite 2024 Lamy AL-Stars

1. Sage Green. This one’s simply beautiful. I love the transparent green section and the tone of the barrel goes well with the black clip and nib. There’s not much more to say here other than this pen looks really good.

2. Aquatic. Same as above. While the fountain pen is shown here for demonstrative purposes, I’ve been using the .5mm Aquatic AL-Star mechanical pencil, as I’ve tried to explore different formats of popular models that I’d previously only used as fountain pens.

3. Autumn Pink. I have a thing for muted pastel shades, and while the Sage Green is definitely my favorite, Autumn Pink is a somewhat unique take on a color (pink) that’s hard to pull off. I expect both of these particular AL-Star pens to do well.

4. Fiery. What? This is T.G.S. and the red pen with the black clip comes in last place? First of all, it’s really not last place since this was a darn good batch of AL-Stars. For me it comes down to the red being slightly too pink for my personal preference, and the muted pink of “Autumn Pink” being slightly more interesting to look at. But again, these are all great looking pens.

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The two winners, at least for me.

So What Are My Personal 2024 Favorites overall?

If I had to pick two pens from the 2024 releases, I would choose the Piña Colada Safari and the Sage Green AL-Star. I definitely felt a bit of a disconnect between the Pink Cliff/Violet Blackberry and Piña Colada/Cherry Blossom Safari releases - there really wasn’t a consistent theme other than all four pens feature contrasting sections and barrels - but at the end of the day the yellow on the Piña Colada pushed it over the top. Sage Green takes first place out of the AL-Star releases, as I really love this color. (Tom’s Studio uses a similar “Sage” aluminum in both their fountain pens and the Lumos series.) I had a more difficult time choosing, however, as I enjoyed most of this year’s AL-Star colors.

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Takeaways and Where to Buy

Every year I look forward to Lamy’s announcement of their special editions, and while I’m probably on “Team Safari” in terms of which pen shape/model I prefer to use on a regular basis, it’s close, and this time the AL-Star won the design battle. After years of different blue tones and very light neutral colors, Lamy built on the success of Lilac and Petrol and took the AL-Star in a different direction with brighter shades that work well in brushed aluminum. The matching clear sections and black trim look sharp, and I’ll likely choose one of each color to keep in a different format (i.e., a Sage Green fountain pen, Aquatic mechanical pencil, Fiery rollerball, and Autumn Pink ballpoint). Viewing the Fiery and Aquatic releases alongside Sage and Autumn Pink also makes me consider them differently, as I personally think they look better as part of a four-pen set than as a somewhat staid red/blue release.

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We have all of the Lamy Safaris and AL-Star’s in stock at our shop, along with curated selections from Lamy’s regular lineup. I was also pleased to see that Lamy decided to release a mechanical pencil in both the Sage Green and Autumn Pink this time around. You can check them out online or in person, as our physical store will be open this weekend!

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

New Arrivals: TWSBI ECO Irish Green + Onyx Fountain Pens Are Here, Plus Official Store Hours!

TWSBI’s latest release, an ECO fountain pen in Irish Green acrylic with new onyx black plated trim, has arrived and is shipping! TWSBI has really experimented with their trim this year, including not only the new onyx black but also bronze and additional rose gold models. The Irish Green + Onyx is the first black-trim pen I believe TWSBI has done. Get yours now, or browse the rest of the TWSBI lineup!

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Initial Store Hours Are Set!

I’m happy to announce that this week, the shop is open with official hours! To start, we will be open Fridays from 1-7pm, and Saturdays from 11am-6pm. Tuesdays and Thursdays will be by appointment, and Sunday and Monday we will be closed. Outside of the regular Friday-Saturday hours, please reach out through the “Contact” form on the site and I will get in touch to set a time when you can visit. Eventually we will have an online appointment system and/or a telephone number, and hopefully additional open days as we get established.

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Just look for the tower in our commercial complex. Most Nashvillians can spot this from I-65. To see exactly where we are located in the complex,

A Short Video showing exactly how to find us in our complex. We are located in Suite 113, to the right of the building behind the old Picture Frame Warehouse location (which is now Flex Alarms).

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