Recently Ana asked me if I’d be interested in giving the Soolla Studio Bag ($65.00) a test run to see if she might want to carry them in the shop. I’m a bit of a bag collector, so I was super excited. I selected Aquamarine!
The Studio Bag is sort of the ultimate tool bag for hobbyists (and maybe pros too!). The bag is made out of machine-washable, fast-drying duck canvas for ultimate cleaning abilities. It comes with 30 pockets (“infinite possibilities”) and a lifetime warranty. The site artwork shows it with pottery tools, but I think it could be used for SO many other things.
The bag itself is designed as a rectangle and measures 12″ Wide x 9″ Tall x 7″ Deep making it roomy and perfect for projects. Sturdy webbed handles make it easy to carry, and the bag stands up by itself. I chose to test mine out a few different ways so you could imagine how you might use one.
Knitting
If you didn’t think I was going there, then you don’t know me very well! I’mcurrently working on knitting a tee out of a book. The bag is roomy enough for my 3 skeins of yarn, the book, needles, and all my notions.
I should note that I have made one modification to the bag. The front of the bag was originally divided into 10 very slim pockets. Since my items are wider then slim pottery tools or pens, I carefully picked the stitching out of a couple of the pockets at the front creating slightly larger places to store knitting needles, etc.
Journaling (House purse?)
My second test was using the bag as a journaling go to, or the analog house purse. I shoved all my current planners/journals, plus a selection of gel pens, fountain pens, stencils and other items in there. I didn’t add my sticker book but I could have. Add an e-reader or a dead tree book, and this pouch will hold everything you might want.
Sewing/Quilting
Finally I took the bag for a test drive in holding all the sewing tools and notion I might want to take with me to a sew day, which I have been doing more of recently. It easily holds scissors, snips, a rotary cutter and small ruler, plus all my sewing feet, thread, bobbins, clips and more. I also have a bunch of smaller tins and dividers I might stick in the bottom to keep things more organized. Surprisingly, this may be the peremanent use for this bag. Or I’m going to have to buy a second?
I think this book is amazing and could have SO many uses! What are your thoughts? Do you want Ana to carry them in the shop?
Just after the original Kickstarter launch of the Drillog machined dip nib pens, I was able to test one. I recall really liking the nib but the original shape of the super-short sprial nib holder was not to my liking. It was a little too short and a little too wide. For such an elegant nib design, the nib holder did not have the same elegance. All of this has been updated and changed in the intervening four years since I last had one in hand. The new DRILLOG Classical2 material AL Nib Holder and the even more amazing looking Kodachi Nib are taking the machined, dip pen maker to new levels.
The Classical2 AL Nib Holder (in Nocturne Blue, ¥22,000, approx. $140.15USD) is a smooth cylinder with subtle brass details and the ability to post the cap to increase length and adjust its weight distribution. I love a dip pen with a cap as I frequently travel with my tools and having to wrap a delicate nib in plastic, tubing, towels or other precautions can be fiddly and cumbersome. All hail, capped dip pens!
The Kodachi nib (in Midnight, ¥29,700, approx. $176.46USD) is a titanium, variable-width nib whose design was supervised by master nib artisan Yukio Nagahara. The tip shape is reminiscent of a kodachi (Japanese short sword), and its unique angle allows for a wide variety of line variations. By holding the nib on its side, you can create wide strokes, perfect for swatching inks and creating calligraphic designs. Holding it on its tip, you can create a fine line for writing tests, drawing, details and such.
This nib is so beautiful and so unique looking. Love the look!
In Use:
The Kodachi nib is amazingly smooth. Whether using it on its side or on its very fine tip, it glides on the paper. But its not so slick that I felt like I was ice skating. Especially, if you’re doing calligraphy, you do’t want your nib to be too slick to force you to slow down and write slowly and thoughtfully. And the DRILLOG is exctly that. Its smooth without friction. The DRILLOG Kodachi nib is not as pencil-y feeling as a Sailor 14k F nib which is my benchmark for scratchy-but-good nibs, it’s smoother but not slick. I think its one of the best dip pen experiences I’ve ever had. I love being able to change and adjust the tip for wide or think lines to play, experiment, swatch and more.
I used the absolutely stunning (and kinda matchy-mtchy) Troublemaker Abalone ink. Its a multi-chromatic bluish-violet with purple and turquoise color shifts. It’s one of the earlier multichromatics and remains one of the best.
I only used the DRILLOG Kodachi nib for this swatch card. One pen that does it all!
Compared to other tools:
A portion of the dip pens that I own: glass pens, dip pens, folded nibs, etc.
I have used so many different tools for dip testing inks — the Kakimori and Colorverse Shuttle metal dip nibs, all sorts of glass pens, traditional dip nibs like Zebra G nibs, old Esterbrook dip nibs, folded nibs and Speedball nibs in a wide variety of sizes. I’ve also regularly used the Pilot Iro-Utushi dip nib and the Sailor Hocoro pens. So, if you add up all the money I’ve spent over the years on dip pens, I’ve probably spent several hundreds of dollars on nibs and holders. I 100% admit that the DRILLOG is quite expensive. All the tools I use have been useful but some did not meet with my expectations.
If I had the DRILLOG to start with, I would not necessarily want or need any of the others– at least for the types of writing, swatching and lettering that I do. I might still use or keep a few other tools but I feel like the DRILLOG solves so many problems for me.
Final Impressions:
For my configuration, the total cost was about $317 (depending on exchange rates, fees, etc). It is definitely a luxury dip pen. But it lives up to the price. It is the smoothest dip pen tool I have ever used with the most variation. And its rainbow colored!
If I had it to do over, I probably would have gotten one of the Classical2 Ti Gradient Nib Holders (in the matching Twilight) that better matches the gradient nib — just to be all matchy-matchy. The Ti Gradient holders are considerably more expensive (¥38,500, approx. $245.26USD) so I realize that I went with the AL holder as a cost saving measure but I can dream.
The fine point is very fine, probably comparable to a 0.5mm which may be too fine for some people. The standard silver-tone DRILLOG nib is comparable to the 0.7mm which may be better for someone looking for a wider tip. And if you don’t need the wide strokes, the standard gradient DRILLOG nib is just the 0.5mm size.
Since DRILLOG will be in attendance at both the upcoming DC and SF Pen Shows, I wanted to get this up so folks can consider if they want to visit the DRILLOG table at these shows. Being able to see these pens in person and even get to test drive them is the best way to decide if this is worth it for you.
I sample inks all the time. I’m such an ink nerd, I manufacture the Col-o-ring and related products. Saying that, I know that I am more inclined to get a lot of use out of this tool. But if you love inks, dip pens or calligraphic tools, the DRILLOG Kodachi nib is worth considering.
DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by DRILLOG for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
I have been super happy with my Aura Estelle B6 Magnet Daily Planner that when the company reached out to me last week asking if I’d be interested in sharing my love for Aura Estelle planners I said “Yes, please and thank you!”
The advantage of the Undated versions is that you can start with these ASAP. If you are starting back to school or just want to jumpstart your planner journal, these will get you going. Or you can hoard them for the start of the 2027 calendar year.
Example of the monthly page spread in both Aura Estelle Magnet planners (this is from a dated version of the planner). Both planners in this giveaway are undated.
Both planners include a Yearly Overview (2 pages), Year Goals (2 pages), Monthly Calendar (2 pages x 12), and Blank Pages (2 pages x 12) after the monthly overview calendar.
Weekly and Daily Page layout in the Aura Estelle Magnet Daily UndatedSample layout in the daily pages in the Aura Estelle Magnet Daily
The Daily Planner then includes a Weekly page and seven Daily pages (x 53) with 30 blank pages in the back.
Weekly spread in the Aura Estelle Magnet Weekly Horizontal UndatedSample layout in the Aura Estelle Magnet Weekly HorizontalSample layout in the Aura Estelle Magnet Weekly Horizontal
The Weekly Horizontal alternately includes the Weekly page with one Grid page (x 53) and 124 blank pages in the back for journaling and notetaking.
Both books feature soft leatherette covers, stitched spine, 3.81mm grid on classic 52gsm Tomoe River paper. The Weekly Horizontal Undated has a deep red cover and the Daily Undated has a traditional black cover.
I will also include an assortment of Date Dots and Typewriter Days sticker sheets to embellish your new planner (additional $30 value).
TO ENTER:Leave a comment below and be sure to tell us if you want the Weekly Undated or Daily Undated and why. Play along and type in something. It makes reading through entries more interesting for me, okay? One entry per person. One planner option per person.
If you have never entered a giveaway or commented on the site before, your comment must be manually approved by our highly-trained staff of monkeys before it will appear on the site. Our monkeys are unpaid and under-caffeinated so don’t stress if your comment does not appear right away. Give the monkeys time.
FINE PRINT: All entries must be submitted by 10pm CST on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. All entries must be submitted at wellappointeddesk.com, not Instagram, Tumblr or Facebook, okay? Winners 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 actual 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 5 days, I will draw a new giveaway winner. Shipping via USPS 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. US and APO/AFO only, sorry.
DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Aura Estelle for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
We love Kawecos as much as anyone so check out the JetPens Blog comprehensive guide to the Kaweco Sport this week. I am really loving the new colors they are doing like the Lunar Sport collection and the newest Marble Ocean Collection. The Marble OCean 100% goes with my mermaid vibe this month!
Check out our Patreon where you can get inspiration, gossip and free printables that include a biweekly podcast and more. Your patronage supports this site. Without them, and without you, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!
Thanks to a wonderful Redditor, Ana and I were able to update the Pen Show Calendar with a few new offerings, mostly under the paper and planner category (scroll down below the first list which is all Fountain Pen Shows.)
As always, if we’ve missed your event, hit us up and we’ll get a link on the page!
Thank you all for entering the Daigo Tea & Diary Time giveaway. I’ve been making note of funny quotes or things that happen every day since I started with the weekly/weekend version and I’m loving it. But without further ado…
The winner of the morning version is Paula:
And the winner of the evening is Marjorie:
I’ve already contacted both under separate cover and will mail those out this week!
