2026 California Pen Show Recap (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). An epic recap of last week’s California Pen Show, which was a great one! Kimberly managed to get pictures of nearly everyone there and I’m not sure this recap can be topped.
California Pen Show 2026 Recap (via Well-Appointed Desk). Ana was also behind the table at CAPS 2026 and has her own show recap!
On Finding that Third Place Yet Again (via Urban Adventure League). People often ask why I decided to open a physical location. A big part of it was that I felt the city needed another kind of third place.
You Pays Yer $$, You Take Yer Chances (via Inkdependence). There’s a lot of stationery “mystery boxes” out there, at various price points, and this is a product category that’s hard to scale well because as the scope gets bigger you have to appeal to so many different customers, all of whom have different preferences.
Living on the Edge with the Santini Safety 1920 (via Figboot on Pens). I’ve always been fascinated by safety fillers as a mechanism and am always excited when I see people introduce new takes.
House Totes for Notebooks and Pens (via Notebook Stories). Do you have a bag or a tote that you use to carry your stuff around the house? I don’t move around much at home (I tend to work in my office above the garage), but I do like to use tote bags to keep all of my stuff in one place so it’s easy to locate.
Living in the In-Between (via From the Pen Cup). Stationery is a great escape for the more challenging moments. Mary always has great reflections.
Nib Wetting Tool Overview and Use (via SBRE Brown). I would proceed slowly and carefully with any sort of tool like this.
In Case You Missed It….
This week we released Episode 4 of On The Paper Trail, which recapped our trip to the 2026 California Pen Show. While you can listen on your favorite podcast app, the YouTube Episode contains bonus footage of a show walkthrough and vendor visits. Upon my return I finally was able to get back to some content, and I posted a review of the Pentel Sign Pen, which is a classic piece of Japanese stationery that I unfortunately only recently discovered despite it being available since 1963.
We now carry Galen Leather in our shop! Single Pen sleeves and more!
This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop
We returned from the 2026 California Pen Show with lots of new products to share (and many more in the works). Top of the the list were additional Waka ebonite ballpoints from Laurett’s, one of my favorite Japanese makers who I make a point to visit every time I have a chance. Oh, and did I mention that T.G.S. is now an authorized retailer of Galen Leather? We have a selection of pen cases and notebook covers currently available, and will build out our selection further in the coming months. Finally, the recently released Blackwing Pen arrived, along with a huge Kaweco restock that included most metal Sport and Liliput pens, including the Kolibri!
Normal store hours this week in the Nashville Shop, from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-6pm on Saturday. Come see us in person!
How to Support T.G.S. and Our Various Projects
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, consider supporting us via Patreon. The T.G.S. Patreon includes early access and discounts on exclusive shop releases, a monthly updates newsletter, and of course our monthly meetups. As of this morning, ALL Patreon supporters (including non-paying free members) have access to one or more initial “practice” episodes of “On the Paper Trail” which have not been publicly released.