Link Love: The Gift Guide Season Has Arrived

Link Love: The Gift Guide Season Has Arrived

If you can’t tell by the title of this week’s Link Love, Gift Guide season is upon us. Check out all the cool ideas for gifts and add them to your wish list. Then hopefully, on Friday, you can buy, buy, buy!

On the topic of Gift Guides, keep an eye out for every pen lover’s favorite holiday tradition, the Pen Addict Podcast Gift Guide episode. Brad and Myke have once again allowed me to come in and take over as third host and tease Brad shamelessly. The episode will air on Wednesday, November 29 (next Wednesday) so I’ll remind you again next week but I wanted to make sure you blocked your calendars for another hour of pen gift guide nonsense!

The Gift Guides Are Here!

Pens:

Ink:

Pencils:

Notebooks, Paper & Planners:

Art & Creativity:

Pen Show Recaps:

Other Interesting Things:

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EDC: Thanksgiving Edition

Every time I get ready to take a trip I have to plan out my knitting and what pens I’m going to take with me. This week we’re on the road, heading to Los Angeles to spend Thanksgiving with my family. We haven’t been able to be all together on the west coast since before the panini, so we’re thrilled to join up again.

I have lots and lots of knitting, but had to think about what I wanted to take with me in the pens and stationery category. It’s not one of our adventure trips, so I don’t think I need a journal. But I will be working on a new project that will ultimately be a knitting pattern I publish as a designer, so I do need a good place to take notes as I work.

Ultimately I settled on a tried and true combination for my EDC Thanksgiving Edition:

  • Unicorn Snot Sinclair – This bag is perfect to grab and go. Slots hold 3 pens (more if you don’t care about them touching) and there’s also a place for a pocket notebook. I’ve also added my driver’s license, credit cards and cash when I want it to double as a wallet.
  • Field Notes Lunacy – I’m not a Field Nut, but I do love a good Field Notes book. I pick up editions here and there, when they speak to me, and they’re perfect for jotting down everything I need to remember.

  • TWSBI Diamond Mini AL Grape – I bought this one over the summer and I have to say it is absolutely one of my favorite writers. I’ve always been a fan of the Eco, but the Diamond Mini fits in my hand super well and is totally comfortable for me to write with. Add to that, it always starts no matter how long it’s been sitting.
  • Kaweco AL Sport Vibrant Violet – This is another pen I can’t put down. Everything I said above applies, plus they’re so cute! And I love the metal bodies.
  • Spoke Roady in Purple – Rounding out the purple collection I’ve got the Spoke Roady in purple. I always carry a ball point/gel pen with me when I travel. I don’t know exactly why since I do prefer the fountain pens, but I think it’s just the ease of having a pen that will write on any surface with  no feathering or bleeding. I also think it’s easier to hand over to someone else on the trip if they’re intimidated by a fountain pen.

So that’s it! That’s what I’m carrying. Will you travel this week? What’s are your favorites to take with you when traveling?

Ink Sneak Peek: Inkdependence x Pennonia Borahae

Ink Sneak Peek: Inkdependence x Pennonia Borahae

Once again Mike at Inkdependence has teamed up with Pennonia to create an exclusive ink: Borahae ($13 for a 60ml bottle). I am on a mad kick for purple these days so this sample couldn’t have come at a better time. The ink is a deep rich violet purple with quite a bit of sheen.

Borahae is one sheeny ink!

Inks in order from top to bottom: Pennonia Borahae, Lamy Crystal Azurite, Waterman Tender Purple, Monteverde Mulberry Noir, Taccia Murasaki Purple, Colorverse 53 Haybusa, Diamine Bilberry, and Cross Violet

When compared to similar shades of purple, Borahae stands out as being a lot sheenier than most. While Lamy Azurite has a similar level of sheen, the color hue is different. Azurite is a bluer purple-violet. Borahae has more of a reddish undertone– under all that sheen.

Many of the inks I compared to Borahae, Monteverde Mulberry Noir felt closest but it did not have nearly the amount of sheen that Borahae has. Several of the other colors were brighter and more saturated. Depsite being a deep violet purple, there is something understated and a little dustier about the hue.

You can also add a little bottle of blue shimmer ($9 for 15g bottle) and add as little or a lot to the Borahae to give it a fabulous shine. I think selling the shimmer separate from the ink is a great idea and provides some flexibility to the end user depending on the pen or situation. Sometimes you feel like a little glitter, sometimes you don’t. I hope more companies offer this option.

Exactly how many bottle of purple ink does one person need? (Asking for a “friend”.)

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this post were provided free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

Link Love: Without Comment

Link Love: Without Comment

I’m running late on Link Love so it’s without commentatu this week.

Pens:

Ink:

Pencils:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Other Interesting Things:

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Yarn & Ink: Hot Chocolate and Marshmallows

The days are perfect in Kansas City right now. Chilly mornings and evenings, and glorious 50’s and 60’s during the day. But those freezing mornings do make me want a cup of hot cocoa, which goes perfectly with this week’s knitting! While I found plenty of rich chocolate browns in my ink swatches, I don’t seem to have a perfect milk chocolate color. Hmmmm…

Featuring:

 

Stocking Stuffer Ideas

Stocking Stuffer Ideas

I know this is a little early but with Thanksgiving and the official Black Friday start to holiday shopping just around the corner, I thought it was as good a time as any to talk about how awesome stationery supplies are as stocking stuffers.

Whether you are filling a stocking for a pen collector or your cousin, there is a stationery option of everyone. With washi tapes and stamps, you can find something that aligns with their hobbies or interests. Do they bake? There’s a washi for that! Love cats or dogs? There’s stamps and stickers for that!

If you are participating in a gift exchange or Secret Santa, a mini notebook and a good gel pen would make a great gift.

Mini Notebooks:

A7-sized notebooks are the perfect size for pocket, bag and stocking. The Apica C.D. A7 Ruled Notebook A7 (4-Color Bundle for $7.50) will fill several stockings. Add in one of these Pentel Mattehop 1.0mm Gel Pens ($2.50 each) to make a fun little gift set. There are so many other options but if you’re shopping for a pen friend, you can’t go wrong with a Col-o-ring Ink Testing Book ($12 for 100-sheet pad)!

Washi tapes & Flake Stickers:

It would be impossible to list all the possible options for washi tape and flake stickers but here are a few of my favorite right now. I love the Bande Washi Tape Sticker Roll ($6 per roll and 12 designs to choose from). These are “flake stickers” so they come on a roll like washi tape but are individually die cut designs and there are lots of choices from flowers (shown) to toast and pancakes and snowflakes,  soap bubbles, and more. I think just about anyone would like a roll of these.

King Jim Kitta Washi Tape ($4.55 each and dozens of styles available) are sold in little packets that fit inside a planner pocket or tucked into a backpack pocket. These are small, pre-cut strips of washi tape on peel-away paper so they are easy to use on the go. There are even sticker binders to hold the many, many packets you may collect or give as a gift.

The BGM Washi Tape ($6.50 per roll, lots of designs to choose from, Shooting Star Deep Sky design shown) are painterly and really varied.

Rubber Stamps & Stamp Pads:

I love the Iconic Diary Stamps ($6.40 each, 26 designs available, “Finishing Work” shown above). They are self-inking and have the kookiest line art drawings on each one. They add some humor to anyone’s day-to-day note taking and planning.

MU Clear Splice Stamps (start at $4.40, Whale & Moon set no. 13 shown, don’t forget to add a clear acrylic block, starting at $4.60) are sets of clear acrylic stamps that are stuck to a thin piece of plastic and can be peeled off and attached to an acrylic block to provide stability and stamping. They are less expensive than woodblock or self-inking stamps and store in a smaller space so they are good for travel.

If you are shopping for someone who loves art supplies, the The Daily Grind Series 3: The Art Dept.
(four designs, $11.00 each) are a great option.

If you’re purchasing a rubber stamp. be sure to grab a stamp pad. If you’re looking for water-soluble stamp pads, I recommend the Tsukineko VersaMagic Dew Drop Ink Pad Sets (starting at $11 for a 4-pack, Jewel Box Set shown). For water resistant colors, I recommend Ranger Tim Holz Distress Archival Ink Stamp Pad Mini Kits (Set of 4 for $14.00, multiple different sets available, Kit No. 6 is shown).

What are your favorite stationery goodies to give as a gift? Which of these items do you hope to see in your stocking?

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this post are from affiliate vendors (we receive a small subsidy for any products ordered from some vendors) and other links are self-promotion links to our own shop. Please see the About page for more details.

Link Love: Is it Black Friday Already?

Link Love: Is it Black Friday Already?

Has anyone else noticed the “early Black Friday” sales that have already started? With the state of the economy, inflation and world issues, companies big and small are hoping to boost end-of-year sales. From my own personal experience, as well as my jobby-job, I can tell you that sales for products are down about 20-25% for most businesses. Maybe not in the must-have areas like food and such but all the “little extras” are being postponed or skipped this year and retailers are hoping sales and deals in November and December will help their bottom line.

Black Friday
Is it sale season already?!?!

What’s your plan for the holiday season this year? Are you and your family spending more or less this year? Are you putting more money towards dining, cooking and activities and less to material goods? Are you feeling the pinch financially this year? Leave a comment and let me know how you feel about the state of spending and the earlier-and-earlier “Black Friday” sales.

Gift Guides:

Pens:

Ink:

Pencils:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Other Interesting Things:


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