In news

Black Friday Deals!

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment

Oh, yes. Its that time of year. Black Friday deals and sales. It’s time to take advantage of the best deals from all your favorite pen shops. And it’s time to send links to your friends and loved ones and tell them “buy me this!” for the holidays too.

I thought I’d help you out and round up all The Well-Appointed Desk’s US sponsors who are  participating in the holiday mayhem. Our friends in the Netherlands and Australians call today Thursday. You can bother them on Boxing Day, which we Americans call December 26th.

square_black_friday-_wad_1024

Karas Kustoms:

Karas Kustoms is offering 20% off if you use the coupon code “BLACKFRIDAY”  from 11/26-11/30 (Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday). After that, the coupon code “HAPPYHOLIDAYS” will get 15% off from 12/1-01/01/16. Coupon codes cannot be combined with free shipping options, however, so you may want to do some fancy math to get the best deals!

Goulet Pens:

Goulet Pens are hosting their Thanksgiveaway campaign which has many ways to get great deals and free stuff. Check out all the details here.

JetPens Black FRiday Sales

JetPens:

Oh, good grief! With over 50 sale items, I couldn’t possibly list all the great deal that JetPens is offering for Black Friday here. So, here’s a link to this week’s newsletter. Just forward it to your loved ones marked “Urgent: Christmas Wish List” and let them take it from there.

PenChalet-black_friday_2015

Pen Chalet:

Pen Chalet  will be running a storewide 15% discount plus there will be a bunch of items listed at 40-50% off. For more information, visit their Black Friday sales page.

Anderson Pens Retro 51 Terabyte

Anderson Pens:

If you’re in the Appleton, WI area, you should definitely stop by the store on Friday, if for no other reason than to say hello to Lisa and take her a donut. There will also be lots of in-store specials.

If the shop is a little too far out of the way, Anderson Pens is offering free shipping on orders over $35 Thursday through Monday. And…

  • Buy any refillable ballpoint or rollerball, receive 1 free refill
  • Buy any Pilot fountain pen $20 or more, receive a free 3pk of blue cartridges
  • Buy any Sheaffer fountain pens except VFM, receive a free 5-pk of cartridges. Choose your color and include in your order notes. Color options are : Orange, Pink, Gold, Purple, Black

Finally, don’t forget to pre-order the limited edition Retro 51 Terabyte only available from Anderson Pens.

black-friday-infographic-progressive-savings

Goldspot Pens:

Goldspot Pens is offering an array of deals too including deal so good they require the above infographic. Check out all their great deals here plus a chance to win a Pelikan M205 Amethyst fountain pen.

If you haven’t backed the Baron Fig Squire Kickstarter pen project, there’s just two weeks left!

And finally, I’d like to welcome Fresh Stock Japan back to The Well-Appointed Desk. So glad that they’ve gotten settled into their new digs on the west coast and have fresh stock at Fresh Stock!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving full of good food, good fun and a few great deals! Happy Thanksgiving and happy shopping!

In Link Love

Link Love: No Turkeys

Author AnaPosted on 3 Comments

link-pilgrimPens:

Ink:

Pencils:

Notebooks and Paper:

Planners & Organizers:

Other Interesting Things:

Submit your Link Love art: Be the featured artist on an upcoming Link Love! Just submit an original “Link Love” image. It can be lettering, calligraphy, your own interpretation of Link or anything else you think might relate to the weekly list of pen/pencil-centric blog links. Email your submission to me at chair @ wellappointeddesk.com. Please include any link information you’d like in the image credit (your name, Twitter handle, Instagram, blog, etc). Also include any information about inks, tools, paper, etc used in your creation. Please let me know that I have permission to publish your work in Link Love and that the image is your original piece. Thanks!

In podcast

Pen Addict Podcast Annual Gift Guide Follow-Up

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment

gift guide 2015

I thought I’d provide visuals and some follow-up to a lot of the products that I recommended in the Pen Addict Podcast Gift Guide episode which went live yesterday. There are lots of links in the show notes for everything that Brad and Myke mentioned but I thought I’d include all the inks I didn’t go into detail about last night so that I didn’t bore everyone to tears.

So here goes:

For the fountain pen/ink/paper combo, I recommended the Pilot Retro Pop Metropolitan ($15) line with matching Rhodiarama notebook ($18-$30) and coordinating inks as follows:

coloring books

The adult coloring books that I gushed about are:

If you would like to gift a coloring book to someone, I would recommend pairing it with either a set of good quality colored pencils in a set of 24 or 36. I like Prismacolor Premiers the best but they are a little pricey and can break easily. Crayola makes reasonably priced pencils you can share with your kids, Blick’s house brand Studio pencils are a good quality and many of the higher end brands of artist quality materials make “student” or “academic” grade that are a little less expensive than artist’s quality but richer in color than kid’s colors. If you want to hear me go on for an hour about colored pencils, check out the Erasable podcast on Colored Pencils where the boys let me blabber on about grades of colored pencils if you want more details. Markers are another option to pair with coloring books and Myke, Brad and I unanimously agreed that the Staedtler Triplus Fineliners were and excellent option.

And I absolutely have to add those Keep Fresh Stay Rad postcards to my wishlist now. Wow. Nice pic, Brad!

keepfreshstayrad

Thanks for inviting me onto the show again, gentlemen. Its an honor and privilege. Happy shopping and wish list making, everyone!

 

In Fountain Pen Review

The New Karas Kustoms INK

Author AnaPosted on 2 Comments

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

The first improvement to the Karas Kustoms INK fountain pen is a snazzy wrap, letterpress printed right here in Kansas City by Skylab Letterpress — not that I’m biased or anything. But it is pretty spiffy, isn’t it?

CORRECTION: The premium packaging will only be included with the copper and brass models. I got a special edition because there was a sample wrap in the house thanks to the printer, AKA Skylab Letterpress, AKA my husband.

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

Inside is a stellar anodized INK in olive green. Pictured here with a fabulous autumn-y skein of yarn that my friend Laura picked up in Montana on a recent road trip.

The new version of the INK is available in several other colors as well, of course. These include the silver aluminum, and other anodized finishes — blue, black, brown,  green, gold, grey, orange, pink, red, and violet, as well as solid copper and solid brass, and a tumbled raw aluminum. And of course, the olive green I received.

There is also a clipless model available for an even sleeker look. The INK and the INK Clipless start at $95 with slightly higher prices for brass and copper grip sections or bodies.

This model is accented with the brass grip section and is the best looking though, in my humble opinion. You are welcome to disagree.

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

What I noticed the minute I saw the INK was that the color was a dead ringer for my 1981 Vespa PK125 scooter. But I figured I had to prove it. See?

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

Perfect match.

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

Karas Kustom INK olive green anodized

In writing, the best part of the INK is the new Bock nib. Its super smooth and scaled to match the larger proportions of the INK very well. The whole pen feels smoother between the threads to the grip to the barrel. Overall, the whole pen feels more refined in small, meaningful ways.

Now for whatever reason, I decided to fill the INK with Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses. I guess I’m getting hit with a bit of the Christmas time spirit but the ink flowed smoothly and the pen wrote beautifully. When I started writing with the INK I forgot about the pen and  just focused on what I was writing– my thought and my words. And really, isn’t that what you want from a pen? A really good pen should just melt away and be an extension of your arm, right? Well, the INK did that for me to the point that I had to remind myself I was writing with it for a review. So that’s really the best kind of writing experience.

DISCLAIMER: This item was sent to me free of charge by Karas Kustoms for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In podcast

Tune-in: 3rd-ish Annual Pen Addict Holiday Gift Guide Podcast

Author AnaPosted on 2 Comments

gift-guide2015

Monday afternoon (THAT’S TODAY!)  at 5:30 EST, the Pen Addict podcast will be recording the 4th Annual Holiday Gift Guide Live (but the third time that I’ll be on as co-co-co-host)! So if you’d like to tune in and listen live, pop over to Relay.FM a few minutes before and join in on the chitter chatter. If you can’t make it, you can download the episode later on. It should be episode #182, title TBD. The show notes should include gobs of links and I’ll be sure to post a follow-up here with additional information as well. Sorry for the short notice. Its been such a busy week and I just assume you can all read my mind. You knew this was coming, right?

In feature

Endless Bag Quest

Author AnaPosted on 16 Comments

current bags

Its not just me, right? Besides perpetually questing for the perfect pen, ink, notebook, planner, pencil, ad nauseum, you also are on the perpetual hunt for the perfect bag too?

I have several bags that are pretty close but not perfect. There are occasions where I need something slightly smaller, slightly larger, slightly more rugged or slightly more dressy, etc. Gentlemen in the audience who have fewer requirements, I suspect, and more pockets (“I am only slightly jealous of the amount of pockets sewn into men’s clothing,” she’s says ironically) but I also hear men raise similar ranges of needs so I’m trying not to pigeonhole anyone. Is there a “perfect” bag or can we ever get to one or two perfect bags? One for work, one for travel and maybe one for weekend jaunts?

The bags I currently have in circulation are:

I work a corporate, 9-to-5 job and I feel I’ve reached a point where most backpacks look too academic to carry to work. However, I do carry a good deal of stuff with me so I need a decent-sized bag. I like being able to switch between some sort of handle for getting in and out of a car and then use a shoulder strap/cross body strap for the 0.25 mile walk from the parking lot to my desk. Really. It’s a big campus.

Stuff in my bag

Usual contents of daily bag are:

  • pen case (pictured is my favorite LWA member-only pen case)
  • notebook (not pictured, currently XL Moleskine soft cover book)
  • planner (pictured Filofax Personal Original in dark aqua)
  • travel mug/water bottle
  • knitting project (not shown: can be small sock project or whole dang sweater)
  • small cosmetics bag (vintage Girl Scout fabric purchased at Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago)
  • phone
  • ear buds
  • sunglasses
  • business cards (Pantone case)
  • wallet (Coach wristlet)

Moleskine MyCloud bags

I’ve considered one of the Moleskine MyCloud bags ( I know, its crazy talk but I like the subtle exterior and the bright interior colors). They look well-constructed as well. There are an assortment of internal pockets for devices, pens and accesories but I cant’ find many review online so I am having to scrounge information. I have space credits (AKA money in my PayPal account) right now so I’m considering the reporter ($139.95) or the tote ($159.95). I do agree that our bags are our mobile offices and our desks-on-the-go especially when travelling.

Do you have a favorite bag? Or are you, like me, still hunting for the perfect combination of good looks and functionality?

In Fashionable Friday

Vendredi a la Mode: Paris, Je T’aime

Author AnaPosted on 5 Comments

FF-Paris

After the tragedy in Paris last week, I started to think about how much the pen community is inspired and influenced by French culture. From J. Herbin to  Clairefontaine, there does seem to be a love of the French influence.There’s also lots of stationery embellished with the Eiffel Tower and other icons. I, myself, have always wanted to visit France and Paris in particular. So far, the closest I’ve gotten was a short stop at the Charles de Gaulle Airport on my way to Italy. I did get to buy water and an Eiffel Tower trinket and practice speaking to the clerk in French which went okay but my accent must have been bad because she immediately spoke English. I still said “Merci” so all was well.

Anyway, I still want to visit Paris, despite the tragedies this week. I will not be scared away. I want to visit the Louvre and the epic art supply shop, Sennelier. I want to drink coffees in street cafes and watch the people walk by. I want to listen to the French language and try to pick out the few words I know.

  • Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen – Retro Pop Red, Medium $15 (via Goulet Pens)
  • Retro 51 Tornado Classic Lacquer Rollerball in Stainless $25 (via Anderson Pens)
  • Zebra SL-F1 Mini 0.7 mm Ballpoint Pen in White with Black Ink $5 (via JetPens)
  • Ogiva Cocktail Blue Angel 14kt Fine Extra Flessibile Fountain Pen $394.95 (via Goldspot Pens)
  • Kaweco ART Sport Fountain Pen $81 (via Pen Chalet)
  • Palomino Blackwing Pearl Pencils $21.95 per dozen (via Pencils.com)
  • Lamy AL-star ocean blue fountain pen € 26,90 (via Fontoplumo)
  • Kyokuto French Classic Notebook, B5, Ruled in Blue $6 (via JetPens)
  • Dear Maison Eiffel Tower Double-Sided Notebook, A5 (15x21cm) Ruled $6.95 (via Notemaker)
  • Sara Midda’s South of France: A Sketchbook $20.39 (via Amazon)
  • J. Herbin Mini Ink in Bleu Azur (Azure Blue) $4.75 (via JetPens)
  • Galison Paris Magnetic Bookmarks $5.75 (via JetPens)
  • De Atramentis Herbs de Provence (35ml Bottle) $14.95 (via Goulet Pens)
  • G. Lalo Calligraphy Pad A5 in White $15.95 (via Notemaker)
  • Exacompta Basic Journal in Black with Lined Paper and Silver Edge $16 (via Goulet Pens)
  • Paris in Color book $12.18 (via Amazon)

And finally, I have been looking for a way to help those most affected by what happened in Paris and I found this article in the Huffington Post about some crowdfunding campaigns aimed to help the families who lost loved ones in the attacks. The hardest part of reading these stories is seeing the individual faces of innocent people who had no political agenda for being out on a Friday night. If you’d like to help out in other ways, please consider making a donation to the Red Cross or Doctors Without Borders.