“Efficiency, As I Have Discovered, Is the Enemy of Depth” (via Analog Office). If there were a mission statement/manifesto as to why I enjoy writing by hand and doing most things the long way around, this might be it.
Show Report: Pacific Northwest Pen Show (via Urban Adventure League). I love reading first pen show reports! The Pacific Northwest (Portland) Show is relatively new and growing.
2025 Pacific Northwest Pen Show Recap and Report Card (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). Some of the behind-the-scenes stuff sounds not-so-great. An expensive show to attend, with other administrative challenges that likely make it economically nonviable for many vendors to attend.
2025 St. Louis Pen Show FIRST TIME (via Feed Your Creativity). St. Louis is on the list of pen shows I’ve personally never attended, and maybe that should change next year?
Discover the Magic of the Leonardo Momento Zero Grande 2.0 Dark Hawaii (via dwrdnet). I’ve always been a huge fan of this material, and have one of the original Momento Zero rollerballs.
Stanford Pen Studio Haunted House (via Figboot on Pens). Ok, this one messed with me. Especially the thumbnail image.
Packing Pens and Inks for Long Term Travels (via UK Fountain Pens). I’ve never had to pack ink for a monthlong trip. Two weeks has been my max.
Archer & Olive Beneath the Willows Notebook Review (via Pen Addict - Sarah). Finally, someone is trying to bring back the tall/narrow hardcover notebook!
The Mad Scientist Method of Mixing Your Own Fountain Pen Ink Colors (via Well-Appointed Desk). I’m not a big ink mixer but I love reading about experiments!
I spent most of the week digging into this. Highly recommended. I wish I’d kept a pack of the Field Notes.
In Case You Missed It…
Well, you didn’t miss all THAT much this week, since we were on a much-needed vacation. (It’s been quite the year.) I did publish a retrospective “From the Archives” post that looked at some of my favorite early/underalgorithmed TGS YouTube, and I also published an update on the Summer Pen Show Schedule and D.C. Pen Show details, since we are only two weeks out. Be sure to get D.C. Pickup orders in, and there’s more on that in the full post.
This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop - PLUS A VACATION Weekend PROMO!
We had a lot of new arrivals continue to pile in, and my helpers at home have been busy shipping orders! Roterfaden A5 Taschenbegleiters continue to go to new homes, and we’ve recently added Toyo Steel Boxes as well, which are a favorite stationery storage solution for many. In addition to the standard Yamamoto Ro-Biki notebooks, we now also have the Ro-Biki Passport size notebooks (yes, they fit the Traveler’s Notebook Passport Cover) in more than a dozen different designs.
This weekend (through 11:59pm on Sunday, July 20), we’re running an ink sale! Use the code “INKYVACAY” at checkout to get 10% off most bottled inks and cartridges. Some exclusions apply - see this week’s Thursday Drops post for details.
curated stationery boxes are available!
We have a very small number of the Patreon curated stationery boxes that have been made available to the general readership. We plan to start shipping by the end of the month. 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 special promotions like this one, 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)! The T.G.S. Patreon includes early access and discounts on exclusive shop releases (including the Taschenstift “Violet Tendencies”), the quarterly gently used sales, a monthly updates newsletter, and of course our monthly meetups. Patreon support starts as low as $3 per month, and if you pay annually there is a further discount. As noted above, we’ve recently started a Discord community for all paid Patreon supporters.