Edison Nouveau Premiere 2013 Special Edition

Edison Nouveau Premiere 2013

In Atlanta, I mentioned I’d never tried an Edison pen and when I returned home, my pal Kasey (AKA Punkey) had kindly sent me his Edison Nouveau Premiere to try out. This particular model is the limited edition Macassar Ebonite model that was sold through Goulet Pens in 2013. The coloring reminds me of wood grain in warm coffee and cream swirls. What was most surprising was how light the material was. The ebonite feels different from plastic, both lighter and more rigid. It also has a slightly matte appearance, not a glossy sheen. It made the pen feel warmer.

Edison Nouveau Premiere 2013

Edison Nouveau Premiere 2013

The stock F nib is two-toned and looks good with the pen and the coordinating gold-tone clip. Its a good quality nib and the writing experience was smooth and comfortable albeit a bit wet and wide for me. I would have preferred an EF nib but borrowers can’t be too picky.

Edison Nouveau Premiere 2013

Fountain Pen Weights

Unposted, the Ebonite Premiere weighs just 12gms. That’s lighter than a plastic Kaweco but its a full-sized pen. Even posted, the Premiere is 19gms. Pretty impressive. For me, it was more comfrtable to write witht he pen unposted and its measures 5.125″ unposted. Posted its a whopping 7″ long and a wee bit top heavy.

Edison Nouveau Premiere 2013

I was highly impressed with my whole experience with the Edison Nouveau Premiere. The lightweight ebonite material made a larger pen comfortable, even in my little tiny hands. The craftmanship is impeccable and I am definitely going to be in the market for my own Premiere. Maybe that gorgeous lilac acrylic version currently available at Goulet? I found Mary’s review of last year’s Cherry Blossom edition and the pen is equally lightweight in acrylic. Sweet!


Big thanks to Kasey for letting me try this pen.

The pen was tested on Rhodia Uni Blank No. 18 pad with a 7mm guide sheet underneath and Diamine Twilight blue black ink.

News: Pelle Notebooks and Blackwing Subscriptions

Yafa Monteverde Pelle Journals

Did you know Yafa is listing a Monteverde Pelle refillable journal listed on their site now? Does this mean that Pelle is back in business and working with Monteverde? Exciting news if, like me, you really liked the Pelle version of this popular leather notebook system.

Blackwing Volumes is a new collectible subscription service that provides subscribers with a dozen limited-edition, custom-designed Blackwing pencils, four times a year. Subscribers will receive an additional collector’s pencil, sealed and labeled for archiving, with each set and a guarantee to receive each release, even if they sell out to non-subscribers.

Subscriptions are $99 per year, plus shipping and can be purchased at Pencils.com.

 

The 5-Minute Journal

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Have you heard about the Five-Minute Journal? It is a journal that prompts users to answer five prompts each day. There are only a few lines to answer each prompt so it takes no more time than it would take to eat your breakfast to get started. It seems to be a good option to get started keeping a journal that focuses on positivity and looking forward. The first three prompts can be written early in the day and the last two at the end of the day or the following day.

The Five-Minute Journal has a beautiful fabric cover and looks to be about an A5-ish size. There isn’t a ton of info on paper materials or page count but the book is just $22.95 and includes weekly challenges to keep inspiring you through the life of the book.

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If a paper journal seems too intimidating, there is also an iPhone app to try this technique on the go.

Fashionable Friday: Make More Art

Fashionable Friday: Make More Art

Summer is always gets me in the mood to take an art class or workshop, getting outside and sketching or just spending a leisurely Saturday on the patio with notebook and pen.

This week I decided to invest in one of the very popular Kipling 100 Pen Cases. Kipling is having a sale so I was able to get additional savings on the case. The purchase was inspired by a renewed interest in making art, visual journaling, sketching and painting so of course, I need a way to carry all these tools. So here’s some of the things I’ll carry in my art-making Kipling 100 Case.

  • 100 Pens Printed Case in Dragonfly’s Distress Print $34.99 + 30% off with coupon code (via Kipling USA)
  • Peerless Water Color Complete Edition Book: Each 2.5″x6.5″ film sheet is highly concentrated pure watercolor. The color is coated on one side of a special paper fabric that readily discharges when it comes into contact with water. 15 color sheets and instructions. $14 (via Peerless)
  • Kutsuwa Stad T’Gaal Pencil Sharpener in Green $6.25 (via Jet Pens)
  • Sharpie Water-Based Fine Point Paint Marker in White $2.50 (via Jet Pens)
  • Tombow Mono Adhesive Permanent Tape Runner $4.85 (via Jet Pens)
  • Espresso Guide’ Pocket Washi Tape by Masté £3.50 (via Fox & Star)
  • Kutsuwa Colored Aluminum Pencil Caps, Pack of 4 $2.50 (via Jet Pens)
  • Kaweco Skyline Sport Grey 3.2mm Clutch Pencil $20 (via Goldspot Pens)
  • Noodlers Konrad Brush Pen $20 (via Pen Chalet)
  • MT Dot Blue Washi Tape £2.75 (via Fox & Star)
  • Copic Multiliner SP Refillable Permanent Pen 0.3 mm in Black $9.20 (via Jet Pens)
  • Rifle Paper Co. Composition Pocket Notepad £6.20 (via Fox & Star)
  • Pentel Aquash Waterbrush Bundle $24.50 (via Jet Pens)
  • Medium Gold Binder Clip $5.50 (via Hopscotch London on Etsy)
  • Platinum Bottled Carbon Ink, Waterrpoof and Lightfast $16 (via Pen Chalet)
  • Platinum Carbon Desk Fountain Pen $13.50 (via Jet Pens)
  • Prismacolor Premier Color Pencil 72-Color Set $77 (via Jet Pens)
  • Midori Clear Eraser Dust Mini Cleaner II $7.75 (via Jet Pens)
  • Lamy Joy Special Edition Set in White, comes complete with 3 packs of ink cartridges (black, violet and turquoise) and 3 nib sizes (1.1, 1.5 and 1.9mm. $50.74 (via Fontoplumo)

Ink Review: Noodler’s Purple Wampum

Noodler's Purple Wampum

The last ink my “hunt for the perfect purple” is Noodler’s Purple Wampum. While its not the last possible purple ink I could try, I needed to limit my search or I would go broke. Noodler’s fills their bottles to the absolute top so be sure to open them carefully. Alternately, it means that when you buy Noodler’s ink, you definitely get your money’s worth. The bottle hold 3 oz. which is about 88ml for $12.50. Quite the bargain when compared with other inks.

Noodlers Purple Wampum

One of the first bottled inks I ever bought was Noodler’s Purple which I found too bright and a little garish. Purple Wampum, however, is a deeper, more complex alternative and more of what I had in mind. Its definitely a purple standing firmly between a reddish hue and a bluish hue making it a true purple rather than a blue violet or reddish purple.

Noodlers Purple Wampum

Purple Wampum is probably the closest to the color I was envisioning in my head when I said I was looking for “the perfect purple”. Because the color is a bit wet and dark, there’s not a lot of shading in the writing sample but I was dipping my pen so the color results might be more consistent with the results of a finer nib than the fine italic I was using. It certainly looks lighter in the last few lines with a bit more shading so I think that’s more consistent with the results I suspect I would get with a traditionally filled italic pen.

Noodlers Purple Wampum Diamine Damson ink swab comparison

In my swab sample, there’s a little sheen but in my water tests, there was no hint of other colors in the ink. Its one of the darkest purples I tried but not as dark as the Private Reserve Ebony Purple. Purple Wampum is actually more reddish in comparison to Ebony Purple.

In the end, I’d be hard pressed to choose a favorite among the four purple inks I’ve tried over the last couple weeks. Purple Wampum reminds me of grape juice, Private Reserve Ebony Purple has the most bluish cast and is the darkest, Diamine Damson is the duskiest, and Montblanc Lavender Purple leans furtherest into a reddish purple. So, in the end, the best purple ink is entirely a personal preference. Even I like all of these ink for their subtle variations and will probably discover over time which I like using most in daily writing but they are all great options.


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

News: NPR Loves Paper

Yesterday, NPR published two articles about paper. The first, focused on the continued appeal of the Moleskine notebook in the “digital age” (despite us all knowing the paper quality leaves something to be desired) and another piece about the business of paper and that China makes GMO paper! Who knew?

And today, there is a piece about brick and mortar bookstores. Long live paper!

Link Love: More Friends & More Purple Inks

rp_link-ana1111111.jpgPosts of the Week:

One of my good friends and favorite, super-productive artists, Britton Walters, AKA Nerfect was mentioned on the Field Notes blog: Support Your Local Weirdo! (via Field Notes)

AND

J. Robert Lennon was interviewed for a piece on Marketplace called Pro Tool: Tools of the Professional (via NPR’s Marketplace)

Congrats, guys!

Pens:

Ink:

Paper & Notebooks:

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