Hoo boy its hot here in the Midwest this week. Everything is sweaty, lazy and in search of ice cream, air conditioning or cold brews.
But here in Desk-land, it’s Mermaid Season for me. For my Patrons, this month is Mermaid month for the printable calendars. For everyone else, you can hang out in my kiddie pool and I’ll bring you a yard beer.
Big news in the USPS is the 250 Years of Delivering Stamps stamp sheet which will be available on July 23 and is a connected block of twenty stamps designed by comic book legend Chris Ware. I am going to get as many sheets of this stamp set as I can. So amazing.
While we are on the topic of all things postal, the USPS First Class shipping rates will be increasing on July 13. Thanks to Portland Stamp Company for this handy-dandy graphic.
Pens:
- Meet Your Maker: John Greco, GW Pens (via The Pen Addict)
- Visconti Homo Sapiens Elegance Flashback Review (via Penultimate Dave)
- Review: Conklin 1898 fountain pen – by Ricardo (via Extra Fine Writing)
- M200 Apricot Achat Special Edition Insights (via The Pelikan’s Perch)
Ink:
- Top 5 Green Fountain Pen Inks of 2025 (via BLAKE’S BROADCAST)
- Ink Swatch Wednesday: Birmingham Pen Co Megalodon (via CJs Wunderkammer)
- Pilot Iroshizuku Ku-jaku (via Inkcredible Colours)
- Frankenstein vs. Dracula: A Wearingeul Ink Comparison for the Ages (via Pen Chalet)
Pencils:
- Tombow MONO: A Comprehensive Guide (via JetPens)
Notebooks & Paper:
- Finding the Why – an Update on My 5-year Journal (via Dime Novel Raven)
- Vintage Master-Craft Loose Leaf Notebook (via Notebook Stories)
- Life Stationery Stenographers’ Notebook Review (via The Pen Addict)
Art & Creativity:
- Magasin Sennelier (via Ian Hedley)
- Untangling My Zen (via From the Pen Cup)
- Making My Own Pigments- Carbon Black Paint- Lamp Black (via Comfortable Shoes Studio)
- Portable Neocolor IIs (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Artist Spends Thousands of Hours Creating Detailed Stippling Art (via My Modern Met)
- Botanical Odds and Ends from the current sketchbook (#160) (via Apple-Pine)
- Design Process in Practice at Pratt Manhattan Gallery (via Hyperallergic)
- 20 Years of Ysolda Knitting Patterns: Part 2 (via Ysolda)
- The Hand Lettering 101 eCourse is Here! (via The Postman’s Knock)
- A Free Calligraphy Meditation + Fabulous Worksheet (via The Postman’s Knock)
- Barbara T. Smith’s Experiments in Xerox (via Hyperallergic)
- Meet the Mancunian maximalist pattern maker, Patricia Shea (via Creative Boom)
Other Interesting Things:
- Microrealistic Tattoos Look Like They’re Floating on Top of Skin (via My Modern Met)
- Neptune Sculpture Shows the Roman God Emerging From the Sea (via My Modern Met)
- Surreal Tattoo Art of Beautiful Women With Animal Headpieces (via My Modern Met)
- This “The Simpsons” LEGO Set Takes Fans to Krusty Burger (via My Modern Met)
- USPS To Celebrate 250 Years of Service (via USPS Newsroom)
- 12 Everyday Carry Backpacks That Keep It Compact (Under 22L) (via Carryology)
- Stationery For Your Worst Enemy (via Rachel’s Reflections)
- Collection of memories (via José Naranja)
- 12 Ways to Help Recover Your Joy After Sadness or Loss (via Archer and Olive)
- Pastel Planner supplies (pens, highlighters, washi tape, planner stickers, dot markers etc.) (via All About Planners)
- 2025 Mid-Year Recap: Five Favorite Reviews from the Year So Far (via The Gentleman Stationer)
- Can a typewriter do this? (via The Typewriter Revolution blog)
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