In photo

Eye Candy: Vintage Mont Blanc Meisterstück 149

Author Laura CameronPosted on 3 Comments

There’s this famous story in my family. Of how my grandfather took my grandmother, my father and my uncle to Europe in the 1950s. While there, he stopped in several different stores to try out Mont Blanc pens. And he dithered and hemmed and hawed and decided he needed a Meisterstück 149 and purchased it before coming home.

Then he got home and filled it up with ink, and promptly decided it was too big to be comfortable writing with it. So he put it back in the box and there it stayed.

Sometime in the late 1990s or early 2000s he remembered he had it, and decided to pass it down to my father. My father inked it up, found that the nib leaked, and sent it off for repairs. This particular pen, purchased so long ago, has a lifetime warranty. Oh and he also decided that it was WAY to big to be comfortable to write with.

This weekend, my father brought out the pen and handed it down to me – the third generation. I’m not even going to ink it up because I know without a doubt it’s too large for me to use. But it is in great shape (do you see that case – it’s amazing!) and I won’t be letting this piece of history go for a good long time – and  hopefully to a fourth generation of fountain pen users.

In feature

Find Those Black Friday Deals!

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
Find Those Black Friday Deals!

Black Friday really started early this year and you’ve already been inundated with email, targeted ads and more with offers for discounts, sales and special offers.

So, once again, rather than list all the potential deals, I recommend shopping with your favorite indie shops, small makers and creators. The economy is tougher this year than many anticipated. Check your Etsy faves, shop with those favorite online retailers that don’t own a fleet of their own trucks and support small businesses in your community. They are the ones who will be most grateful for the business.

Ways you can support your favorite small businesses and indie creators:

Sign up for email newsletters

Go to your favorite sites (pen related or not) and sign up for their email newsletter today. Many online shops are offering rolling sales starting yesterday. So to get all the details and when exactly the best deals will happen, sign up for newsletters.

You don’t have to stay subscribed forever but if you want to get the specifics for each shop, this is the best way to do it.

If you’re already subscribed, build a filter so all newsletter funnel into one folder. Depending on your email app, the method to do this will vary but it’s 30 minutes or less to set this up and is a great way to get all the shop newsletters in one place and out of your inbox.

Follow your favorite shops on social media

If you do use social media, be sure you’re following your favorite shops. Often, they will post about sales, discounts and other deals. You can just search for them on Instagram or Facebook to see if they are posting about special deals, events, etc.

Forward deals to Friends & Family

If you are looking to help a friend or family member know what to get you for the holidays, forward a newsletter and/or your wishlist.

Tell them you read The Well-Appointed Desk

Finally, it helps us if you tell shops you heard about them or read about a product here on The Well-Appointed Desk. Just add it to the comments with your order, if there is that option. Thanks!

Shop The Well-Appointed Desk

And in the spirit of deals,  I am once again offering my 20% off deal for Black Friday. This applies to all in-stock merchandise and orders will ship on “shipping Tuesday” (that’s the day after Cyber Monday). The discount code is THANKS and will be good through Monday, November 27, 2023 on both Big Cartel and Etsy. If you want to order anything from our sister company, Skylab Letterpress, drop us an email and we can combine orders to reduce shipping costs.

In Link Love

Link Love: The Gift Guide Season Has Arrived

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
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:

Thanks for being a reader of the Well-Appointed Desk. You can show your support by clicking on the links to our sponsors and affiliates or join our Patreon. Without you we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!

In photo

EDC: Thanksgiving Edition

Author Laura CameronPosted on 3 Comments

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?

In Ink Review

Ink Sneak Peek: Inkdependence x Pennonia Borahae

Author AnaPosted on 6 Comments
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.

In Link Love

Link Love: Without Comment

Author AnaPosted on 1 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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