I always think of Donna Hay as the Martha Stewart of Australia — fabulous taste, great food, and home decor that makes me feel like I live in a trailer on blocks. So, it should have come as no surprise to me that she would be selling a stunning little box set of pencils in alternating robin’s egg blue and white. How do they write, you ask? I don’t know but they are so pretty do we really care? $14.95/box of 14 (I’m assuming the price is in Aussie dollars).
Several years ago, thanks to the folks over at Pencil Talk, I discovered the Sanford NoBlot. It was, at the time, one of the last available “indelible pencils”. If you’re not familiar with indelible pencils, they were meant to be a sort of permanent pencil; something that couldn’t be erased without leaving a visible mark though there are several theories about why you would want a pencil that did not erase. (Check out a post I wrote several years ago for some of the uses.)
Unfortunately, the Sanford NoBlot Ink Pencil 705, is no longer available for sale so I’ve been on the hunt for other options mostly because the NoBlot don’t smudge very much when I write which is great for a lefty. Pencil Things carries two varieties of graphite-based indelible ink pencils that I decided to test side-by-side with one of my few remaining NoBlots. Both are listed as “copying pencils” (for more information about on the barrels rather than “indelible” though on the site, Pencil Things refers to them both as indelibles.
On the left is the PencilThings.com Select Indelible Ink Pencil DCB3-217. The body of the pencil is a pleasing iridescent metallic blue with white lettering, round barrel. It writes much softer than the Sanford NoBlot and smudges easily. In the far right is the Jolly Copying Pencil B+U 1925 made in Austria. It has a gloss black, round body with gold metallic writing. It writes a little lighter than a NoBlot but the graphite is quite smooth.
Neither the PencilThings Select nor the Jolly Copying have that fabulous turquoise color when wet which was a disappointment.
Of the two, I think I prefer the Jolly Copying Pencil though I’m holding out hope that another box of NoBlots might one day magically appear in my mailbox.
Rue Magazine has a lovely assortment of Workspaces in a gallery, from low key to opulent. I’m not sure I could sit on a paper covered tuffet long-term but it would be a great solution for a desk or workspace in a high traffic area since you could tuck the stool under the table.
With my love for all things vintage, I couldn’t resist purchasing the Kaweco Guilloch 1930. Guilloch is term used to describe the technique of emboss that creates the fine lines on the cap and barrel that look so distinctly Art Deco. Other than the decorative case, the Kaweco Guilloch 1930 is the same internally as any other Kaweco Sport or Ice pen — diminutive in pocket, full sized when cap is posted for writing.
I chose the EF nib and added the gold clip. As other have stated, when compared with the EF nibs of the Japanese fountain pens, the Kawecos in F and EF feel more like a medium nib. I have had other people try out the pen to give me their impression. One comment I’ve heard is that the pen is very lightweight especially when compared to other brands of fountain pens. I find that the clip adds a little bit of weight which helps with the balance. In general, I think women find the Kaweco more comfortable to use than men as a result of the diminutive proportions and light weight, though I know lots of men keep a Kaweco for its excellent “pocketability”.
Every time I use a new Kaweco, I am always amazed at how smooth the nib is. I do find that Kaweco pens need to be primed (scribble for a few loops to get the ink flowing) when they have sat for awhile (a couple hours, a day, a week) but otherwise they write smoothly and they don’t skip or scratch, even on a lefty more apt to drag a pen across the paper (that would be me).
The Kaweco Guilloch 1930 takes standard European-sized ink cartridges and no converter is available for it due to the small size of the barrel. I use empty cartridges and refill them with the ink color of my choice using a pen syringe.
If you are looking for your first fountain pen, a Kaweco is a good option. They are quite reasonably priced and good quality.
I purchased my Kaweco Guilloch 1930 EF from Goulet Pens for $27 + $4 for the gold clip. Diamine Hope Pink ink was also from Goulet Pens. This pen was tested on the Miquelrius medium flexible 300 grid paper book purchased from B+N.
As a left-hander, I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of owning a left-handed pencil sharpener. Over the years, there’s only ever been “the other kind” available so I made do. But thanks to the fine folks at Pencil Things, I was able to purchase my first lefty sharpener. For you right-handers out there, I bet you didn’t know that when a left-hander uses a pencil sharpener, we have to twist the pencil towards us, which is not always a smooth motion and can result in broken or unevenly sharpened pencils. Imagine my surprise and delight to discover that the Lefty Sharpener let me twist “out” for the first time in my life. So much easier motion. I didn’t know what I was missing.
A smoothly sharpened pencil with the Lefty Sharpener. $8.25.
So, in preparation for a big trip, I fell off the bandwagon (again) and bought a new iPad. Yeah, one of those newfangled iPads with the Retina display. This purchase was not made without some trepidation; I had owned one previously and found it too devoted to games and content-consumption and not enough about making, editing, and reviewing content, not to mention iPads are not inexpensive. That said, when I compared the other options available at the moment that would let me watch movies and tv, read books and magazines, and on occasion check my email, twitter or web, there weren’t many options: the Amazon Kindle Fire and the Nook Tablet/Color were about the only other candidates in the running. I KNOW there are other options but as a fairly devoted Apple-user I was not quite ready to go down a fully-Android path.
So, now we come to the crux of my issues. I need a good cover/case for my new gadget as well as a good bag to trek across the globe with.
So far, I’ve been debating upon just getting one of Apple’s stock magnetic Smart Covers as I’ve not seen much in the way of small, reasonably-priced protective covers for the new iPad.
As for other goodies, I did stumble upon the Moop Messenger No.4 for iPad. While slightly out of my price range at $185, it looks lovely. I’m intrigued by the names of their other models as well, including The Letter Bag and The Letter Clutch.
Any suggestions for accessories, apps, cases or bags for our fine readers? Leave them in the comments! Thanks!
Thanks to a tip from Carolee at Good Mail Day, I am now the proud owner of not just a red/blue pencil but a mechanical red/blue pencil. I purchased the Autopoint TwinPoint from PencilThings and was able to choose from an assortment of configurations for this classic looking mechanical pencil. There were several lead sizes to choose from 0.5mm to 1.1mm as well as options in body color (black or cream) and lead colors: red/black, red/blue, red/green.
I purchased the 0.9mm, black body with red/blue, of course. The pencil feels very solid and well-made. The design reminds me of something my Dad had when I was a kid so I am enamored with the looks. The leads are advanced by twisting and there is no wobble in the leads — they are held firmly in place.
The blue looks like a fairly good non-repro shade though I haven’t tested it yet. I found the red to be a bit pinky in color. I wish the red was a bit more of a clear fire-engine red. I still need to test the erasability of the lead colors as well so I’ll definitely have a follow-up on this pencil.
Overall for the price, the quality cannot be beat. I am seriously considering investing in another variety — maybe the thicker 1.1mm leads?
The pen comes with one package of leads in each color selected for $8.49. Additional leads are available for $1.70-$1.80 per pack of 12.
