I thanked my friend who gave me my first fountain pen, the Lamy Safari, but maybe I should have blamed him for starting my addiction, for being like the drug dealer who says “the first one’s free.” Since then, I’ve escalated into pens many, many times as expensive.
— John Skoyles
What set you on a path to better pens, paper, pencils or other office goodie?
(via JetPens Blog)
I have finally gotten around to trying out and reviewing the Rhodia Webnotebook (AKA the Webbie). I held out until I could find the exact model I like: the A5 size, in black with blank paper. Thank you very much.
The notebook has a subtle emboss logo on the leatherette cover but that’s the extent of the outward branding. Inside, the pages are a good quality creamy off-white (I wouldn’t go so far as to call it ivory as its lighter color than ivory, I think). The paper is 90g acid-free, pH neutral so it really is “good quality”. Each book is 96 pages and what I discovered is that I really can use both sides of the paper with 95% of the writing tools I use so that’s lots of writing space. There is also a black satin bookmark which is treated on the end so it won’t fray (this is a big thing with me!) so yeah! The cover also sports the vertical elastic like that other notebook.
The back of notebook includes the requisite pocket to store loose papers.
I tested every pen in my daily carry bag (I know, I carry way more pens day-to-day then I actually need but better to be prepared and all that). For a larger view of these images, click through to Flickr.
This notebook definitely loves all my fountain pens and inks as well as my LePen collection. The fine, fine lines of the Coleto and Uni-Style Fit also worked well on the smooth paper.
I even got the Lamy with 1.1mm calligraphy stub on the paper with no issues with show-through or bleeding. Quite impressive.
From the back, no show-through at all. I didn’t test out a Sharpie because I didn’t have one handy but I so rarely use them in my day-to-day notes that it didn’t seem necessary. I address boxes with Shapries, I don’t take notes with them. I love using it with my new Kaweco Student EF fountain pen.
I had been hesitant to purchase the Rhodia Webbie because it is a pricier notebook than others ($32) but it clearly is worth the investment. I have never been able to use both sides of a sheet of Moleskine paper so I will get considerably more mileage out of a Webbie than the old Moleskine.
So.. I thought I’d share. Want to win a Rhodia Webnotebook? I have an unopened, brand new A5 blank webbie to give away. Leave a comment below and tell me what pen you will pair with your new webbie to qualify to win.
FINE PRINT: All entries must be submitted by 10pm CST on Friday, September 21, 2012. All entries must be submitted at wellappointeddesk.com, not Twitter, Tumblr or Facebook, okay? Winner will be announced on Tuesday. Winner will be select 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. Shipping via USPS first class is covered. Additional shipping options or insurance will have to be paid by the winner. We are generous but we’re not made of money.
(Thanks to JetPens for sponsoring this giveaway. Please support our sponsors and tell them “The Well-Appointed Desk sent me!“)
PPS: The mug shown above is from the fine folks at Folded Pigs, its the skull and crossed utensils tea cup.
This is the desk inside Amie Weitzman’s New England cottage. The desk is from Ikea though it looks to me to be two small bookcases with a piece of wood painted to match as the worktop.
The thing I like best is that instead of an inspiration board, bulletin board or artwork above the desk is the view out the window — the ever-changing view full of its own kind of inspiration.
(via Design*Sponge)
Y’all remember the Life of a Pencil tote bag? If a tote bag is not your speed, maybe you’d prefer the The Life of a Pencil limited edition print instead? $30
(via timeasleyon etsy)
As clearly indicated by this graph, happiness can be dramatically increased with greater quantities of stationery and office goods. Now you know.
(via Present and Correct)
I made a decision in the great debate between the Kaweco Student and the Kaweco Allrounder and I chose the Student model. The Student is $50 cheaper than the Allrounder and I wasn’t sure if I was going to like a full-sized Kaweco. My hands are very small and the lightweight quality and size of the Kaweco Classic/Sport/Ice designs are comfortable and easy to use. But I really wanted to try a ful-sized fountain pen from Kaweco in order to accommodate a converter and boy, am I ever glad I did.
The Kaweco Student comes in a lovely tin box with a great vintage logo on the box (much more posh than the cardboard boxes the Sport/Classic/Ice pens come in). The first thing I noticed is that its much weightier the Student is compared to the less expensive Kawecos. The grip area is a heavy chrome material — I think its actually metal, not just chromed plastic but I don’t want to scratch my pen to verify it.
The pen has chrome silver accents on the cap and a silver chrome clip bulit-in. On the clip, the classic Kaweco logo is engraved into it. I love the look.
The big deal, of course is that this is a Kaweco model that can accomodate a standard small converter. This makes this a more convenient method for expanding your ink options. Alternately, you can also fit two cartridges into the body so you have a back-up handy.
I noticed that the Kaweco Student, for a full-sized pen, is not too large. Its just a little bit bigger than my vintage Esterbrook. Its not like upgrading to a BIG man-hands fountain pen but it does feel like a bigger, classic PEN.
Compared to other pens in the same price range, the Student is closest in size to the Pilot Prera though its a bit heavier than the Prera.
Weight comparison:
Pricewise, these pens are fairly competitive as well. Obviously, the Kaweco Sport is the least expensive (depending on the model between $20-$25) and the Lamy Studio is the most expensive (again, depending on the website one can be had for $75-$100). The Pilot Prera, the TWSBI and the Kaweco Student are all about $60. Each offers different features and options that account for their price but I felt they were good for size, weight and price comparison.
Unlike the cheaper Kaweco models, the Student ships with a silver nib rather than the gold tone. I was worried it wouldn’t be as smooth on paper but it writes just as smoothly and has the exact same embellishments on the nib.
I loaded my Kaweco Student with a Kaweco Turquoise ink cartridge and have been writing with it for about a week or so. The look and feel of it are really nice so I’ve been keeping it on my desk at work as my go-to pen, trying to get some real world miles on it.
So far, it writes beautifully and I have fewer (if any) needs to “prime” the pen before using it. Priming is a term used to describe the need to run a few scratches or scribbles on paper in order to get the ink to flow. This is something that I have to do occasionally with the less expensive Kawecos but the Student doesn’t seem to need to be primed as regularly, if at all.
The Student model can be used with the cap posted on the end of the pen or unposted since it is long enough to be held comfortably in the hand. I find it more comfortable to use unposted as it is much weightier with the cap posted but if you prefer a heavier pen, the cap stays in place nicely, no wobbling.
I purchased the pen with the EF nib which is, for me, the sweet spot for Kaweco though I don’t notice a huge difference between the F and EF nibs. Compared to the Prera F nib though, the Kaweco EF is broader. Other websites have discussed in detail the difference between Japanese and European nib sizes so I won’t dwell on this but I did want to mention it if you are familiar with one and not the other.
Overall, the Student is a good upgrade to the compact Sport/Classic/Ice/Liliput models. While I love how compact the smaller model Kawecos are and the lower price for such great quality, the larger Student model is a beautiful looking pen that looks and feels more luxurious. Am I saying that the Student should be your next purchase? Maybe. If you’re looking for a reasonably-priced, nice-quality, classic-almost-vintage-looking, full-sized fountain pen, then yes.
Hopefully, I’ve covered everything but if you have any questions, please leave them in the comments section.
