The Well-Appointed Desk

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I picked up two cases at Target this week after seeing someone post on YouTube about using these for keeping their planner supplies. Ding! What a great idea! So on my next trip to Target, I went snooping through the cosmetics department and, lo and behold, there were several to choose from.

The small, black-and-green pencil-style case was $9.99 and the larger green case was $14.99. I’d heard these cases were so popular that people were buying them up and reselling on Ebay for twice the retail price so I was thrilled to find them still available at the “going price.” Both pouches are a waxed canvas material on the exterior with gold metal zippers and coordinating zipper pulls of stitched vinyl.

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The small pencil pouch zips all the way across and down the sides about halfway. The whole pouch is lined inside with coordinating nylon. It has a slit pocket inside which is not super handy but would be a good place to slide a pencil sharpener or a packet of leads. The main compartment is a large square shape that holds a lot of tools.

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I think I stuffed it with over 20 pens, including several multi-pens, and there was still room to dig around in it. Unfortunately, the case is a bit short for a new woodcase pencil but machanical pencils fit fine.

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The larger case opens with double zippers and contains an attached, mesh zip pouch in the center. On either side, there are additional pockets. On one side there are three slash pockets and a zip pocket with mesh front on the other side. The inside is lined in navy nylon.

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All the interior seams are covered in nylon so there’s nothing unsightly inside or out. For the price, these are really lovely cases.

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I took the same 20+ pens and filled the center zip pouch. In the zip pocket, I put small items like erasers, washi tape and binder clips.

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In the slash pockets I was able to put a Kaweco AL-Sport, some washi sticker packs and a packet of pencil leads.

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This is what the large case looked like all zipped up. It closed easily and everything feels solid and secure. I suspect I’ll use this as a traveling case, maybe not for everyday use since its about the size of an A5 book when filled but for trips or a specific outing.

The smaller pencil case is overall more diminutive but with plenty of carryin capacity so it may become this year’s everyday pencil case. I’m a bit surprised with myself because I really thought the larger case would be an everyday case. They are both so lovely I’ll find a way to use them regularly. So, the lesson I learned from all this is that good office supplies can be found where you least expect it.

In news

Winner: Word. Memorandum 2015

AnaJanuary 10, 2015January 10, 2015Leave a comment

Word. Memorandum 2015

Time to draw the winner for the Word. Memorandum 2015 giveaway. Thanks to everyone who entered and shared some of their organizational goals for 2015. I love reading all the comments. I wish I had 100 of these to give to each and every one of you.

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That said, our giveaway winner is:

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Congrats, Joshua! I’ll be contacting you via email to arrange shipping!

In Paper Review

Review: Nock Co DotDash Pocket Notebook

AnaJanuary 10, 2015October 28, 2019140 Comments

The big news just before the holidays was the launch of the new NockCo DotDash Pocket Notebooks. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on these. Everything NockCo has done thus far has been excellent and I expected no less from these pocket notebooks.

Inside the front cover is space to include personal information and notes. There’s also a message at the bottom that if the notebook is found, to contact NockCo directly. I’m not entirely sure what NockCo will do but if you include your name and contact info, they might be able to cross-reference with your order history and reunite you with your notebook. So best fill this in!

A set of three books is just $9, each book opens at the top like a reporter pad and features white 50lb paper with the DotDash grid pattern in a light grey color. Each pad is 3.5″x5.5″ and includes 48 pages and bright yellow card stock covers.

The pads will fit easily into NockCo’s Maryapple and Hightower folios with easy access to your notes without removing the pad to write your notes.

On the inside of the back cover is the printing information. These are first editions, for what its worth.

In writing tests, most of the pens I tried wrote well on the smooth stock. There was a little softening on the wider nibbed fountain pens but no true feathering or splining (you know, those shoots of ink caught by the fibers in the paper that often happen in Moleskines?)

From the reverse, there’s some show through mostly with the fountain pen inks. In a flip pad though, the likelihood of writing on the reverse side of the paper is pretty slim. I sort of wish the pages were perforated to make it easier to remove pages.

Overall, I really like these pads. I do hope that there are other colors offered for the covers in the future. The bright yellow is fun but other colors would be fun.

Now…

THE GIVEAWAY: I have an extra set of three DotDash notebooks available to giveaway. Leave a message in the comments and tell me what color covers you’d like to see next (or if you love the yellow ones) to be entered to win.

FINE PRINT: All entries must be submitted by 10pm CST on Tuesday, January 13, 2015. All entries must be submitted at wellappointeddesk.com, not Twitter, Tumblr or Facebook, okay? Winner will be announced on Wednesday. Winner will be selected by random number generator from entries that played by the rules (see above). Please include your email address in the comment form so that I can contact you if you win. I will not save email addresses or sell them to anyone — pinky swear. If winner does not respond within 30 days, I will draw a new giveaway winner. This giveaway is open to all readers.

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

In Fountain Pen Review

Review: Super5 0.5mm Italic Stub Fountain Pen

AnaJanuary 10, 2015May 27, 20176 Comments

super5 fountain pen in black

I recently purchased the new Super5 0.5mm stub nib fountain pen in black on a whim. I have some 0.6mm stub nibs pens from Nemosine and my beloved Esterbrook Falcon is about that width as well so I was looking forward to trying another pen with this diminutive stub. My handwriting is small and being left-handed, any stubs larger than a 1.1mm don’t always make proper contact with the paper for me or cause all my letters to fill in so finding that sweet spot in the stub category is pretty limited. And since the Super5 is just $27.95, how could I not give it a try?

Super5 is a relatively new entry into the fountain pen, at least in the US. From the photos on Goulet Pens, the pens look kind of plastic-y but in reality, the pen feel surprisingly sturdy. ON the scale, filled and capped it weighs 24g and 19g uncapped. That’s right between a Lamy AL-Star (22g) and the Lamy Studio (28g) so its a pretty solid pen. It turns out the grip area is metal which gives it solid weighting to the tip. The body and cap are plastic but the clip is also metal. So overall, its not as low-budget as I might have expected.

The clip seems solid and the pen snaps closed tightly with a click. The overall shape is a long tapered bullet which in not unappealing but the plain black with a big logo on the side doesn’t make it my favorite pens to look at. Then again, a Pilot G-2 is a great writer and is an ugly pen. So, looks can be deceiving.

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In writing, I had no issues with this pen at all. I loaded the blue ink cartridge that shipped with the pen (a standard European short cartridge in blue) and started writing. It wrote smoothly with the lightest of touch in all the wonky angles that this lefty uses.

I miswrote that its a 0.6… Super5 = 0.5mm, at least for now. It sort of reminds me of a medium sized nib without the iridium tip roundy-ness. I get a nice mix of thick and thin stokes rather than an overall roundness in a regular medium nib.

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If you’re looking for a new kind of nib at a reasonable price, this is not a pen to be overlooked. Its performance is excellent even if its overall aesthetics wouldn’t win a beauty contest.

In Fashionable Friday

Fashionable Friday: An Apple A Day

AnaJanuary 9, 2015January 9, 2015Leave a comment

FF--Apple-a-Day

Kyokuto French Classic B5 Notebook in Pink $6 (via Jet Pens)
KUM 1-Hole Long Point Sharpener $1.95 (via Pencils.com)
Midori D-Clip Apple Paper Clips – Box of 30 $7.25 (via Jet Pens)
Fisher Space Pen in Red Cherry $20 (via Pen Chalet)
Apple Slice Sticky Note ~~$4.95~~ $3.71 (via Mochi Things)
Faber-Castell GRIP 2001 Pencils $16.45 per dozen (via Pencils.com)
Kaweco Liliput Fountain Pen in Steel 79€ (via Fontoplumo)
Lamy AL-Star Blue-green Fountain Pen (2014 Special Edition) 26.90€ (via Fontoplumo)
Cotton Jersey Pen Case Dark Gray x Gray $10.50 (via Muji US)
Clairefontaine 1951 Collections Le Carnet in Red Coral $4.50 (via Pen Chalet)
Apica CD11 Notebook (A5 7 mm Rule) in Light Blue $1.75 (via Jet Pens)
Stipula Netto Calamo Ink in Dark Red $17.10 (via Pen Chalet)
De Atramentis Apple Blossom Ink $12.95 (via Goulet Pens)
TWSBI Diamond 580 Fountain Pen – Green $50 (via Goulet Pens)

(Inspired by the Vintage Apple Print from Lilipinso 14.90€)

In feature

Pocket Notebooks for the Ladies

AnaJanuary 8, 2015December 31, 20148 Comments

Most of the distinguished gentlemen of the pen blogging community talk about pocket notebooks and the ease of pulling them out of a shirt pocket or back jeans pocket. But what about us ladies who might not have the necessary pockets nor want to carry a book in our rear pockets? The whole idea makes me think, “Stop staring at my Field Notes, jerk!”

So, how do we ladies carry a handy, jot-a-quick-note notebook that does not mean having a bag or purse with us at all times?

After working on a small team of almost all women last year, I discovered the handy convenience of a wrist clutch. The women on my team varied in personal aesthetics but all unanimously embraced the wristlet in various forms.

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From memory, there was a BlueQ tyvek zip pouch with pretty graphics printed on it, two Coach wristlets (one in fabric and one in leather) and a Kate Spade wristlet in stripes. All the specific bags we carried have been discontinued but these images will give you an idea of the general look. The links are to the current offerings from each brand. The prices of these pouches ranged from $7 to about $100 though several were purchased on sale or at outlet stores so I think none of us paid full retail except me. The size was fairly consistent across all four bags — about 5.5″ x 7.5″ with of about 1.5″, give or take a half on inch. In these, we each had enough space to carry a small pocket notebook or a stack of 3×5 index cards along with our cell phones, ID and work badge, credit cards and cash for lunch. I think any lady could find some sort of wrist bag or clutch that suited their personal aesthetics from handmade Etsy designs to high-fashion designer styles.

The key is to find one large enough to hold your absolute essentials but not so large that it becomes a purse. I use my wristlet as my wallet and dump it into my purse/tote/backpack/bag at the end of the day. The wristlet is also handy for quick errands and shopping trips when I don’t want to haul around the whole mess that is my bag.

If your job or daily life requires more hands-free mobility, you might want to consider a small crosssbody bag instead. Its a similar idea to the wristlet but with a strap long enough to position the bag comfortably at your hip. No fanny packs or bumbags, okay? That is not a solution. With crossbody bags, there are as many looks, styles and materials to choose from as you could want from high brow to budget priced. On Etsy, there were over 14K search results for “crossbody bag” so there’s definitely something for everyone.

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I picked two to show the range, one from Kate Spade (over $200) and one from Mochi Things (about $20).

And what are the best pocket notebooks to carry in your new-found wristlet or bag? The same awesome notebooks the boys carry: Field Notes, Word.notebooks and Doane Paper Utility Notebooks, of course.

In Link Love

Link Love: Thank You Nots?

AnaJanuary 7, 2015Leave a comment

Posts of the Week:

Two sides of the Thank You note debate, both from NPR. After sending many gifts to friends and family and hearing nothing, I think a thank you note, even on a postcard, to let the sender know that the gift was received is a good way to guarantee you will get another gift. No thank you note, no more gifts, at least from me.