The Well-Appointed Desk

Fashionable Friday colors-of-autumn
Inspired by the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, and the last fleeting glimpses of the fall foliage, I thought I’d focus this week’s Fashionable Friday on the colors of Autumn. Gold, orange, russets and browns that make me excited for pumpkin pie and hot cocoa.

Conklin Duragraph Fountain Pen – Amber $44 (via Goulet Pens)
J. Herbin 1670 Anniversary Fountain Pen Ink – 50 ml Bottle – Rouge Hematite $27 (via Jet Pens)
Kaweco Classic Sport Fountain Pen Dark Brown Special Edition £19.99 (via Cult Pens)
Gold Dots Washi Tape by Masté £2.30 (via Fox & Star Stationery)
Gold Ideas Gilded Journal £11.99 (via Fox & Star Stationery)
Aurora Style Fountain Pens in Paprika $60 (via Pen Chalet)
RETRAKT in Copper $95 (via Karas Kustoms)
Fancy Fronds Wall Decor Set $14.99 (via ModCloth)
Rhodia N°12 Pad (via Rhodia)
Noodler’s Habanero (3oz) $12.50 (via Goulet Pens)
The Display $65 (via Clicky Post)
Leuchtturm1917 Pocket Hard Cover Ruled Notebook (3.5 x 6) $12.30 (via European Papers)
Dixon Ticonderoga Pencils $2.90 per dozen (via Dick Blick)
Mobius & Ruppert Brass Pencil Sharpeners $4.46 (via Dick Blick)
Midori Brass Template Bookmark Alphabet $18 (via JetPens)
Midori Brass Bullet Pencil Holder – Gold $21 (via Jet Pens)

In news

Kickstarter: Spark Notebook

AnaNovember 20, 201413 Comments

Just launched today is the Spark Notebook Kickstarter project. The idea behind this notebook is to provide one place for all your planning, ideas and projects in a sophisticated package. The book seems to embody a desire to help get you organized and focused on your project and goals above everything else. And in a really clean, appealing package in the process.

Between the simple black covers are 200 pages that feature:

Yearly Goals & Mission pages
Yearly Theme page
Monthly Overview (6 months)
Monthly Goals (one for each month)
30 Day Challenge (one for each month)
Weekly Inspiration
Weekly Goals to prioritze goals
Weekly Overview
Project Planner
Meeting Notes
Lined pages for notes
20-Blank, perforated pages
Two-page markers
Date-free calendars

The books are 5.75×8.25″ (145 x 210 mm) in size, comparable to a standard Moleskine Large notebook or a Leuchtturm1917 large notebook. The paper inside is 70# white, enough to keep most pens from showing through or bleeding to the reverse side.

Anyone who backs the project will receive access to downloadable PDFs of the page layouts to start using the moment the funding campaign ends, so you can start using the system right away.

For a $25 pledge, you can reserve one notebook. Its a little pricier than the average lined or grid notebook but a lot of additional content is provided within the covers. A pledge of $79 will get you four notebooks to stockpile or share with co-workers, family or friends and reduces the per unit price to be quite competitive with the average Moleskine or Leuchtturm1917 notebook.

I was just thinking it was time to pull all my note taking and project management between two covers. Maybe this is THE solution for me.

Will you back this project?

In Link Love

Link Love: All Caught Up

AnaNovember 20, 20143 Comments

Posts of the Week:
I just received my Field Notes Colors Edition: Ambition and was looking forward to writing and photographing my own review until I saw these two. So, kudos to Josh and Andy for setting the bar REALLY high for reviewing the latest edition.

Field Notes Winter 2014 Ambition Unboxing Video (via Woodclinched)
Field Notes: Ambition (via The Newsprint)

Pens:

Pilot V-Pen Hack (via Write to Me Often)
Vintage Value: The Conklin Duragraph Fountain Pen (Cracked Ice) (via From The Pen Cup)
A.G. Spalding & Bros Bullet Roller (via Pen Addict)

Inks and Refills:

Comparison of D1 Refills (part two!) (via Pens! Paper! Pencils!)
TUL Needle Point .5mm (via Gentleman Stationer)
Ink review: Lamy Coral (via Fountain Pen Physicist)
Anderson Pens’ Fox River Blues (via Inkdependence)

Notebooks and Paper:

Baron Fig Apprentice Pocket Notebooks (via Gourmet Pens)
Kaweco Zequenz A6 Notebook (via My Pen Needs Ink)
Guest post: My Life In A Pocket (via Plannerisms)

Other cool stuff:

Adventures in Stationery: Book Review (via All Things Stationery)
An Interview With Baron Fig (via Tools & Toys)
Making Mail movie is online (via Letter Writers Alliance)
Sealing the Deal, with a Chop (via Penucopia)
Wireless Chargers – Buy This not That (via Office Supply Geek)

In Book Review

Book Review: Kind Regards: The Lost Art of Letter-Writing

AnaNovember 19, 2014November 19, 2014Leave a comment

Kind Regards: The Lost Art of Letter-Writing

While I’ve been under the weather, I’ve been catching up on my back log of reading, including Kind Regards: The Lost Art of Letter-Writing by Liz Williams. Its a pretty book with short pieces about the history of letter writing as well as common references, quotes, books and movies where letters feature prominently and other tidbits about our favorite paper missives.

“Letter writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company.” – Lord Byron

This book is definitely for the letter enthusiast though it will not probing new information on the subject. As a gift to a young person, it might spur them to start writing but does not necessarily provide compelling analysis or deep investigation about the topic. Kind Regards is written in short blubs, often less than a page, which makes it easy to thumb through or read an entry or two over coffee in the morning.

Williams clearly loves the written word and provides enough interesting facts to inspire me to tackle that pile of incoming correspondence again. If you’re looking for a little something to nudge you back on to your letter-writing path, then Kind Regards: The Lost Art of Letter-Writing might be the ticket.

In Ask The Desk

Ask The Desk: Pocket Telephone Books

AnaNovember 16, 2014May 29, 20173 Comments

Looking for 2 7/8 x 4 1/8 pocket address book [ little black book]
Where can I get some ??
Sincerely, Howard

The closest I could find is from Mead or At-A-Glance. The At-A-Glance Pocket Telephone Address Book pages measure 2 1/8″ x 3 1/4″ and retail for $4.09 each. There is a larger At-A-Glance Small Designer Telephone/Address Book that’s page size measures 2 3/4″ x 4 1/4″ and retails for $8.69 each. This book also has tabbed pages with alphabetical tabs for quick look-up.

The Mead Telephone/Address book has pages that measure 2 3/8″ x 3 1/4″ and retail for $2.19 each. Mead also has a slightly larger 3×4″ version of the Mead Telephone Address Book which might be closer to your specifications for $2.49 each.

You might also check with your local office supply store or big box retailer to see if they stock these products. Best of luck on your search.

In Link Love

Link Love: Better Late Than Never

AnaNovember 16, 2014November 16, 20143 Comments

Link Love Link Mascot Sorry for the delay in this week’s Link Love. I came down with a nasty cold this week and missed a couple of prime blogging days as a result. I hope to get all caught up as soon as the NyQuil hangover wears off.

This week’s pen reviews run the gamut from office supply cabinet staples, ballpoints and some higher end fountain pens so there’s something for every price point. Enjoy!

Pens:

Pilot Vanishing Point – Matte Black (via The Finer Point)
Noodler’s Ebonite Konrad (via Gentleman Stationer)
Récife Fountain Pen (via Unroyal Warrant)
Parker 51 (via Alt. Haven)
Bic Atlantis Ballpoint (via A Penchant For Paper)
Zebra Sarasa Clip (via Gentleman Stationer)
Pentel Tradio Fountain Pen (via Write To Me Often)
Parker Jotter (via That One Pen)
Pilot G2 (via Fountain Pen Physicist)
Levenger True Writer Select Fountain Pen (via Pen Addict)

Inks:

J. Herbin 1670 Stormy Grey (via Gourmet Pens)
Diamine Coral (via A Fool With a Pen)
Iroshizuku Murasaki-Shikibu (via Fountain Pen Physicist)
Noodler’s Bad Belted Kingfisher (via Clicky Post)

Pencils:

David Hayward Design Hexagonal Leadholder (via The Pencil Case Blog)
Uni Kuru Toga mechanical pencil (via Pens! Paper! Pencils!)

Paper & Notebooks:

Kaweco Zequenz Notebook (via Gourmet Pens)
EcoQua Pocket Notebooks by Fabriano (via Office Supply Geek)
Blackwing Slate Notebook (via Notebook Stories)
Baron Fig Apprentice Pocket Notebook (via My Pen Needs Ink)
Mini Emergent Task Planner Notebook (via Pen Addict)
Dotgrid Co A5 Notebook (via Pens! Paper! Pencils!)
Free printable planners (via Plannerisms)

Other Interesting Stuff:

Dudek Modern Goods “Divide” (via Woodclinched)
Nib 9-1-1: Nib Tuning by Dan Smith (via From The Pen Cup)
Why Analog? (via The Cramped)
WHAT’S IN YOUR PENCIL CASE?: Poppy Chancellor (via All Things Stationery)
DIY Envelope Glue for Handmade Envelopes (via The Postman’s Knock)
NaNoWriMo – My Analogue Tools (via Pete Denison)
Time Shifting My Web Wanderings (via Modern Stationer)

In news

Diamine 150th Anniversary Ink Collection

AnaNovember 15, 2014Leave a comment

Diamine 150 years ink

In honor of the 150th anniversary of Diamine, eight new ink colors have been announced. The 1864 “Anniversary Collection” features new, triangular-shaped 40ml bottles. All the inks will be available for individual purchase and this collection will not be a limited release. For a full listing of the colors and written samples, check out this post from The Good Captain on the FPGeeks forum. I’m particularly keen on the Regency Blue, Blue-Black, Safari and Silver Fox.

Hopefully theses inks will start shipping in time for holiday stocking stuffing.

Diamine 150th Anniversary Ink Bottles

(via FP Geeks)