In Ink Review

Ink Review: Oblation Papers Oregon Marionberry (2025 PNW Pen Show Exclusive 2025)

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
Ink Review: Oblation Papers Oregon Marionberry (2025 PNW Pen Show Exclusive 2025)

Oblation Papers & Press in Portland, OR released a custom ink for the Pacific Northwest Pen Show in collaboration with Anderillium Inks called Oregon Marionberry. Each bottle comes in a small 15ml brown glass bottle with beautiful letterpress labels.

The ink is a burgundy, red-purple with a tiny bit of shading, no sheening and no shimmer.

When writing with a fine dip nib, I saw little-to-no shading and instead got a fairly dark reddish purple, almost red-black color.

I found a few inks in my stash which are in a similar color range: Birmingham Pen Co. Pittsburgh Symphony Framboise (discontinued), J. Herbin Rouge Grenat ($13.81 for 30ml) and 3 Oysters Delicious Red Wine ($16 for 38ml). Both Rouge Grenat and Red Wine are a little bit lighter and show a bit more shading. Rouge Grenat leans a little more red however, while Red Wine is a little more pink than Marionberry. If you had Framboise and need a replacement, I do think Marionberry is quite similar.

At $14 for a 15ml bottle, no matter how pretty, the cost per ml is a bit high but both the ink and the packaging some from small makers who are based in the US so keep that in mind when comparing the prices.

Overall, I found the color a little dark and flat overall with minimal shading but I’m not a huge fan of reddish inks, even burgundy-ish colors so I am definitely biased. The bottles are beautiful and the labels are lovely so even knowing the color isn’t 100% me, I probably still would have picked up a bottle just because its pretty.

Tools:

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge for the purpose of review. Some items were purchased with funds from our amazing Patrons. You can help support this blog by joining our Patreon. Please see the About page for more details.

In Paper Review

Notebook Review: Midori MD A5 Thick Blank

Author AnaPosted on
Notebook Review: Midori MD A5 Thick Blank

I have always been a fan of Midori MD products so when I saw the new MD A5 Notebook featuring Paper Thick ($23.50), I knew I needed to try it out. The MD Paper Thick is listed as 141gsm which puts it into the same category as a lot of the 120gsm (and up) bullet journaling notebooks that are quite popular right now.

I could not find specific information about the paper weight of the standard MD paper or the MD Light but they are both much thinner than the MD Thick.

The Thick notebook include 48 sheets/96 pages which is half the number of pages included in the the standard MD notebook ($15.50)(96 sheets/192 pages).

The binding and covers are the same as the standard notebooks from Midori MD with exposed stitching on the binding and simple, unadorned ivory covers. The only branding is a blind emboss on the cover with the Midori branding information. All other information is included on a slipsheet wrap included in the packaging. The covers are ivory cardstock and designed to fit into a Midori cover.

The paper is a similar creamy, ivory color like the other Midori notebooks. The MD Thick is only available in blank right now but can be purchased in A5 and A5-Square (which is actually 5.7″ square so its not really A5 anything, but I let it go).

In pen testing, I tested a page with my everyday fountain pens, a page with all sorts of felt tip, gel, rollerballs and brush pens and finally some of my highlighters and all of them performs beautifully. There was no feathering or bleeding. I can see the appeal of this paper for anyone who uses a lot of different types of tools and who may want to add lots of brush pens, maybe light ink washes and such.

From the Back:

Back of fountain pen testing page

When I turned the pages, there is almost NO showthrough at all– as I hoped. Which means you can easily use both the front and packs of every page. This means the book really does have 96 pages and not just 48 sheets since you can use both sides efficiently.

Back of gel, rollerball, felt tip, etc writing sample page
Back side of the highlighter page testing

This paper is fascinating and extremely functional. It is Thick but that’s what it says “on the tin” so it lives up to its name. It is more expensive than the standard Midori MD notebook of the same size. Is it worth the extra cost? If you like doing 2-page spread layouts and other decorative treatments in  a bullet journal or are inclined to add paint or other artistic tools, than it may be worth it to you.

Would you purchase a notebook with this paper? Are you curious?

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

In Link Love

Link Love: Strange New Worlds

Author AnaPosted on
Link Love: Strange New Worlds

This month Paramount+ dropped season 3 of Star Trek Strange New Worlds which I have anxiously been awaiting and then followed it up with an announcement about an episode of Season 4 where the characters will appear as Muppets. First, they did a crossover episode with Lower Decks, then an all-musical episode, now Muppets?!?! THIS. This is why I love ST: SNW. 100%.

Then a story dropped in the NY Times about the set design of Sesame Street (full article, gift link here). They mention a Muppet scholar in the article. Who knew that was even a job!??! It’s a muppet-astic week!

Drop a note in the comments and tell me your favorite Sesame Street or Muppet character. I love Beaker, Animal, The Count and Snuffleupagus (that’s how you spell it! I had to Google it to be sure!).

Muppet Links of the Week:

Pens:

Ink:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Other Interesting Things:

Please consider joining our Patreon. Your patronage supports this site and you get cool extras like an exclusive podcast, downloadable calendars, and more. Without you, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you! I can’t thank you enough for reading my pleas.

In Fountain Pen Review

Pelikan Style Fountain Pen

Author Laura CameronPosted on

I’m always game to try a lower-end introductory fountain pen, particularly if I’m familiar with the higher end models the brand produces. All that is to say that when I saw the Pelikan Style Fountain Pen ($34) over at Jet Pens I was in.

I’m a child of the 80’s and I get a kick out of the 5 colors offered – 4 neon and 1 white combined with black. They give the pen a futuristic Tron-like vibe.

The pen body, snap cap and clip are all sturdy plastic, with the bonus of a black textured slightly rubberized grip. The only detractor on this one that I can find is it’s only available in a medium nib – no choices there. The pen comes with one standard international long cartridge, but you can also use short cartridges or converters. It also has two ink windows so you can keep tabs on when you’re running low.

In terms of sizing, this pen is not small, nor is it large. (How Goldilocks of me!) I compared it to other Pelikans I own. It’s somewhere between the Pelikan Twist models (old and new) and I think it fits in there well. It is somewhat bigger than my M205. Lengthwise it comes in at 14cm/5.5″ in length and it’s lightweight at 16g.

Here’s a quick comparison with my other birds:

L to R: Pelikan M205 Apatite, Pelikan Style, Pelikan Twist (vintage), Pelikan Twist (new edition)

In terms of writing experience, I enjoyed this one. The medium steel nib is stiff, but juicy in terms of writing. If you like a broader line and a slightly wetter experience, this one would work well for you. I have to say that it felt quite a bit like the Twist pens, but the addition of the rubberized grip and the fact that it’s not angled like the newer Twist made it much more comfortable to hold in my hand. I definitely prefer this one to the new angular Twist, but I think it might even be a bit more comfortable and substantive than the retro Twist, which I did enjoy.

You’re definitely not getting the fine tuned experience of the more expensive Pelikan models, but I think the Style is perfectly comparable to the TWSBI Eco and the Lamy Safari.

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

In Ink Review

Ink Review: Sailor 50 States: Wyoming (possibly the perfect green)

Author AnaPosted on
Ink Review: Sailor 50 States: Wyoming (possibly the perfect green)

If you’ve been following The Well-Appointed Desk for awhile, you might have noticed that green is my favorite color, particularly chartreuse, yellow-greens. However, over the years, I’ve found that chartreuse colors are challenging in fountain pen inks. They either get too bright or too light. Not dingy enough for me, nor do they hit the perfect olive-y juice color that I love.

So, when I stumbled upon Sailor 50 States Wyoming ink ($20 per 20ml bottle), I think I found my perfect green.

In writing, the color is a bit lighter when writing but darkens as it dries. The ink is Sailor so its smooth, easy to use and dries in a reasonable amount of time.

The above inks are my current collection of “close enough” yellow-greens. Pen BBS #342 Matcha Ice Cream (no longer available) has been my go-to but, as you can see, with the glass pen (comparable to a fine or medium nib pen), it looks to be a lovely olive-y color. Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku Rin, the glass pen sample is a bit grass green. Van Dieman’s Encore Maestro is a little too yellow-y and J. Herbin Vert Olive is a little too light — and even lighter when writing (it also dries down a little darker than when wet but its still too light in fine pens). As you can see, the closest competitor is Pen BBS #342 which is a little darker. Sailor Wyoming is a little yellower but has a little lower saturation than Chiku Rin and Maestro.

So, in the end, I’ll need to do a few more writing tests but I do think Wyoming is a great option. If it works, I’m gonna end up buying multiple bottles!

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Dromgoole’s for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In feature

Hey, DC! Reminder: Sign up for Pen Show Workshops

Author AnaPosted on
Hey, DC! Reminder: Sign up for Pen Show Workshops

Hey, gang!

I’m not very good about self-promotion but I wanted to make sure that anyone who might want to attend one of the upcoming DC Pen Show workshops, knows about them.

You can sign up now so I know how many kits to bring (or if you’re signing up for someone else’ workshop, THEY know how many kits to pack).

There’s only a few days left to sign up for workshops — the DC Pen Show starts NEXT FRIDAY — that’s just one week from now! I am panicking that I won’t have everything ready in time but I can’t make more time so I’ll do the best I can to have all my wits about me and, hopefully, I won’t forget anything.

Workshops I’m teaching in DC:

These workshops are also available in SF and the links above will take you to the general sign up page. I’d love to see you all. Thanks!

In Ink Review

Ink Review: Diamine Medusa’s Gaze (Dromgoole’s Exclusive)

Author AnaPosted on
Ink Review: Diamine Medusa’s Gaze (Dromgoole’s Exclusive)

Dromgoole’s collaborated with Diamine to create two inks: Bleu Horse and Medusa’s Gaze ($24). They are both shimmery jewels but I decided to grab a bottle of Medusa’s Gaze to start because I liked the name. I buy nail polish with the same logic.

The shimmer particles can be seen in the bottom of the bottle. It doesn’t look like there’s a ton of shimmer but enough to be visible in the deep blue color of the ink. There is a reddish sheen plus the gold glitter so this ink is the “sauce, sprinkles and whipped cream” of ink.

Above is an image of the ink when light hits it. Its easier to see the red sheen and gold sparkle.

When water is added, the blue tone is easier to see. When writing, however, the color is quite a dark blue-black. The bling is hidden without bright sunlight or a wide nib. It writes very smoothly.

I don’t have a lot of dark blues with shimmer but was able to find a couple comparable options. Both of the colors I found were from the Van Dieman’s Encore line: Madam Butterfly and Marriage of Figaro. Figaro has more of a purple sheen and Madam Butterfly is more purplish overall. But both Van Dieman’s inks have the same deep tone as Medusa’s Gaze.

Another view of the swatch and lettering.

Overall, Meduas’s Gaze adds an interesting color to my collection. Diamine makes great inks so its easy to add another one to my collection. And the name is excellent.

I might need Bleu Horse too.

Tools:

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Dromgoole’s for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.