Posts of the Week:
I confess the Post of the week was going to self-indulgent and feature Ken Crooker’s very flattering review about the Col-o-ring Ink Testing Books (I swear I did not put him up to writing it!) Instead, I want to point you to some lovely articles over at CW Pencils about the history of pencils and a little behind-thie-scenes about the making of Caroline’s recently released book The Perfect Pencil. If you haven’t purchased the book yet, you can order it directly from CW Pencil Enterprise and have it signed by Caroline too!
- A Moment in Pencil History: Indelible Pencils (via CW Pencil Enterprise News)
- Pencil Prompt: Eraser Pink, Pencil Yellow (via CW Pencil Enterprise News)
- Confessions of a Pencil Lady: Writing a Book About Pencils (via CW Pencil Enterprise News)
Pens:
- Total Beginner’s Guide to Fountain Pens (via JetPens Blog)
- Platinum 3776 Century Nice Lilas (via Pen Addict)
- Wancher Double Compact Crystal (via Write to Me Often)
- Namisu Nova fountain pen (via United Inkdom)
- Sailor 1911 Large Azure Exclusive Fountain Pen Hospital Edition (via Pen Addict)
- Namisu Orion Copper Fountain Pen (via The Pencilcase Blog)
- Epic fail: Using a Faber-Castell Converter in a Super5 Fountain Pen (via Bleistift)
Ink:
- P.W. Akkerman Diep Duinwater Blauw (via Gourmet Pens)
- Montblanc Lucky Orange (via Alt. Haven)
- Private Reserve Green/Black Inks Test (via Fountain Pen Inks & Bleach)
- Private Reserve Blue/Purple Inks Test (via Fountain Pen Inks & Bleach)
- Robert Oster Melon Tea and Fire and Ice (via TSG Tumblr)
- Robert Oster Gold Antiqua (via Anderson Pens Blog)
Pencils:
- Staedtler’s Kakikata Pencils (via Bleistift)
- Nataraj Metallic and Glimo Super Black (via Comfortable Shoes Studio)
- Pencils According to Tessa Sowry (via CW Pencil Enterprise Blog)
Paper, Notebooks & Planners:
- Taroko Design notebooks (via The Clumsy Penman’s Inkfusion Site)
- Col-o-ring Ink Testing Book (via Ken Crooker)
- Denik Layflat Notebook (via No Pen Intended)
- Kickstarter: Tomoe River Hippo (via Fountain Pen Quest)
- How to remember your appointments (via Quo Vadis Blog)
- The Reading Log: Read more with your Bullet Journal (via Tiny Ray of Sunshine)
Art Supplies:
- Daniel Smith New Watercolours 2017 (via Liz Steel)
- Colored Pencil Reviews: Intro (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Colored Pencil Review: Blick Studio (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Colored Pencil Review: Caran d’Ache Pablo (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Colored Pencil Review: Faber-Castell Polychromos (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Colored Pencil Review: Spectrum Noir ColourBlend (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Colored Pencil Review: Caran d’Ache Luminance (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Colored Pencil Review: Derwent Coloursoft (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- I don’t draw, a book. (via Felicita Sala)
Other Interesting Things:
- Kaweco Traveler’s Pen Case (via Write To Me Often)
- Are You Going To The Atlanta Pen Show (via My Pen Needs Ink)
- Tokyo Pen Store Recap (via Hand Over That Pen)
- How to Build a Letter-Writing Habit (via Think.Make.Share.)
- Postal Truck Stickers (via Letter Writers Alliance)
You’re so modest! Your Col-o-ring books are pretty awesome. Question, though: I was flipping through some swabs, must have had some moisture on one of my fingers, and smeared one a little. Happens to me with most papers when using non-water-resistant inks. Do you ever treat your swabs with any sort of sealing spray to prevent that? I figure if I’m going to be flipping these around, non-bulletproof inks may smear from time to time…would be cool to seal it with something to keep that from happening. Any thoughts?
Someone else actually asked if I went back and rewet my samples to see how water resistant they were.
If you wanted to seal samples, you could try an art supply acrylic matte fixative. I recommend doing one swatch as a test and compare to the same color without fixative to see if the color shifts at all. Some fixative sprays can cause colors to yellow. Then leave both samples to sit for a couple weeks and compare again. Be sure to leave samples out of direct sunlight so your inks don’t fade.
Thank you, Ana. I didn’t even think about the fixative potentially causing discoloration. That would be bad. I’ll have to run a test or two and see how it works out. Thanks for the tips!
Thank you very much for the link.
Your links to CW Pencil made me peruse their store, and after some emails with Caitlin, I made my first premium pencil purchase. Her customer service was outstanding, extremely helpful, kind, and prompt. Thanks for sending us to great people like this!