In Link Love

Link Love: Stinktober

Author AnaPosted on 7 Comments
Link Love: Stinktober

It was brought to my attention earlier this week by one of the many products who have planned sponsorships with Inktober/Jake Parker that there is a scandal brewing around the founder and creator of Inktober. Another artist and author, Alphonso Dunn, has accused Parker of plagiarizing his book Pen & Ink Drawing which was published in 2015 in creating his drawing book Inktober All Year Long which is due to be published this year by Chronicle Books. (New development: Chronicle Books is postponing release of the book to clear up concern about this issue).

There is a post by Teoh on Parka Blogs that sums up the situation fairly succinctly and the comments have ongoing updates and a range of opinions. While I don’t condone plagiarism, I am also weary of cancel culture. Do I think it’s possible that Parker might have seen or been influenced by Dunn’s book? Yes. Is it also possible that, as both artists share their process and techniques online, the waters have become murky as to who might have influenced who and when? Yes.

I don’t think Inktober, which has become such a great creative endeavor for so many people (myself included), should be abandoned nor do I think all the businesses who have partnered with Parker should be punished and be left with unsold Inktober merchandise this year (of all years) because the creative community wants to make a stand against plagiarism. Parker, if he was paid for his relationship with other companies, already got his cut. So, ArtSnacks and Viviva and all the other companies are the ones who will be out money if people cancel their Inktober orders now. Who is really being punished for Parker’s alleged misdeeds?

Adorable Ollie

Okay, I’m hopping off my virtual soap box and getting back to the things we really enjoy, pens, inks, funny cat links (Ollie insisted on it and seriously, after the year we’ve had, cute cats are just what we need.)

Pens:

Pencils:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

COVID-19/Pandemic-Related:

Black Lives Matter:

Cat-Related (because Ollie made me do it):

Other Interesting Things:

We all need each other. Please support our sponsors and affiliates. They help keep this blog going. Without them, we would not have products to review or a server to house our content. Your patronage of their shops, services and products will let them know you appreciate their support of the pen community. Without them, and without you, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!

In Paper Review

Notebook Review: Clairefontaine Flying Spirit A5 Sewn Spine Notebook- White, Lined

Author Laura CameronPosted on Leave a comment

Recently I saw Mike from Inkdependence talk about the Clairefontaine Flying Spirit notebooks, and I wanted to try one! I selected the Clairefontaine Flying Spirit A5 Sewn Spine Notebook in White with lined paper ($8.95 at Vanness). 

I know this notebook isn’t new, but I love Clairefontaine paper and the whimsical flight illustrations appealed to me. When I received mine I had gotten the Astronaut on the cover.

The Flying Spirit notebooks are A5, 14.8 x 21cm and have 48 sheets (96 pages) of 90gsm ivory paper. The Cover, which is actually 3 panels (the third to be used as a book mark), is made from cardstock. While the Flying Spirit collection does have a blank sketchbook, most have lined paper (brown and black covers available as well). The notebook has a sewn binding in a gold thread that matches the foil logo and illustration on the front cover.

The third panel on the cover gives some brief information on Clairefontaine and notes that the paper is acid free and sourced from sustainable forests.

So let’s get to the paper.

The paper itself is super smooth and I used fountain pens, pencils, gel inks and fine liners with no trouble at all. There was a bit of ghosting on the reverse side, but no bleed through with anything I used. The lines are 5/16″ or .8cm wide, which is a bit wide for me, but perfectly serviceable. In general, I don’t mind ivory colored paper, though I admit it looks a little odd against the bright white cover.

Overall this is a fun little notebook. I suspect it will become a place to jot down knitting design ideas since I can tuck labels and other items into pages with the added third panel to keep them safe.

DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided to us free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Fountain Pen Review

Pen Review: Pen Boutique Exclusive Sailor 1911 Kagero Green (MF Nib)

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Pen Review: Pen Boutique Exclusive Sailor 1911 Kagero Green (MF Nib)

To celebrate their 15th anniversary, Pen Boutique worked with Sailor and Itoya to develop an exclusive design for the 1911 Kagero Green ($220). The owner of Pen Boutique, Leena, is an avid hiker and decided to let nature be her inspiration in choosing the theme and colors for the pen. The name and color is Kagero green which is Japanese for mayflies. This exclusive edition is limited to just 200 pens across the regular and large models.

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green

The pen is really lovely. The translucent olive green body is accented with gold hardware and a 14k gold nib (the 1911 Large features a 21k nib). The pen ships in standard Sailor packaging including the navy blue box with white paper sleeve and ships with two cartridges and a converter.

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green nib close up

I’ve gone into more detail about the 1911 pen in past reviews.  That review includes all the weights and measurements and comparisons to some common pens. If you are not familiar with Sailor pens, Unsharpen has a Buying Guide that’s quite handy.

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green compared to other Sailor pens

The only other “1911” I own is actually a ProColor with a 21k and it’s also the only other Sailor I own with gold hardware. As you can see, the 1911 and ProColor pens on the far right are all the same size. The 1911 has the ring around the bottom and wider rings around the cap. The six pens to the left are all Sailor Pro Gear Slims and then the last pen on the left is a Pro Gear Sapporo Mini.

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green nib close up

The photo above shows the H-MF (14k) and H-F (21k) nibs. I don’t know if the engraving between the nibs is always different. I bought this nib after-market (obviously, Pro Color pens don’t come with 21k nibs!) but I wanted to be able to show that in a photo, its almost impossible to tell a MF from a F nib. I even thought they were both MF until I saw the macro photo.

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green writing sample

So, in my writing sample, I even did a comparison with the 21k nib thinking the nibs were the same width. The 21k looks like is writes wider. This could be an optical illusion of the ink being darker or that the ink in the 21k is wetter. Whatever the case, they are still pretty similar overall.

The MF nib in the 1911 regular is quite fine. It’s comparable to most European and American EF nibs for sure. I have a TWSBI with an EF which is much wider than this. The 14k nib of the 1911 regular has a bit more feedback than my comparable 21k MF nib. So, if you can afford to upgrade to a 1911 Large with the 21k nib, I highly recommend it, especially if you prefer really fine nibs.

Pen Boutique recommends matching Sailor Waka- Uguisu ($13.50 for 20ml) with the pen but I matched it with the new Robert Oster Australis Tea ($17 for 50ml). I think they are both pretty comparable. Sailor inks are probably a bit wetter where Robert Oster’s tend to run a little drier. Otherwise, I think the results are pretty similar.

 

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green in matching Yak Leather sleeve

Pen Boutique is also stocking a matching Yak Leather pen sleeve in Olive Green ($15.99)  which coordinates perfectly with the Sailor Kagero Green 1911.

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green in matching Yak Leather sleeve

Sailor 1911 Kagero Green in matching Yak Leather sleeve

The Kagero Green 1911 is definitely a pen to give me FOMO. Despite the photo above of my Sailor pen collection, green is my favorite color and the shade of green that the Kagero Green embodies is that “right shade”. Do I wish the hardware was silver? Yes. Do I wish there was glitter in the body color? Of course I do, I’m part crow. All that aside, this is a gorgeous pen and if I had the cheddar I’d go for the 1911 Large ($312) with the 21k nib in a hot second.

PS: The Crabby Pen Holder ($9.97) is also available from Pen Boutique.

Tools:

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by Pen Boutique for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In DIY

DIY: Pen Flush as Stamp Cleaner

Author Jaclyn MyersPosted on 12 Comments
DIY: Pen Flush as Stamp Cleaner

Back in July, Ana posted a practical, adorable recipe for DIY pen flush. As soon as I read the post, I had a follow-up request. The post specifically said to label your pen flush- and once I saw the charming illustrations, I knew no other label would suffice. A few weeks later, a new pen flush sticker pack was immediately added to my shopping cart.

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It arrived in perfect timing because I had been meaning to try a suggestion I received from the Desk ladies about cleaning stamps. Thanks to our fearless leader’s seemingly endless creativity and talent, a lot of new rubber stamps have been added to my collection recently.

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And while we are on the topic, have I mentioned that these are some really good stamps? Obviously, the designs speak for themselves- but the quality of the stamps is also exceptional. If you haven’t checked them out yet- I highly recommend them. Ana even has a few new ones I haven’t gotten my hands on yet… “Don’t Drink the Ink” stamps, a “Maker” series, and lab beakers. Something for everyone. Or in my case, all the somethings.

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With all these new stamps around, I was curious how the other Deskettes cleaned their stamps after use. I had an old stamp cleaning pad that really wasn’t cutting it. Sponges were suggested as an option, and maybe even trying pen flush. I decided to search out necessary supplies for DIY pen flush, standard non-stamp sponges, and a few stamp-specific cleaning supplies for comparison sake—time for a show-down.

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I decided to purchase two stamp specific supplies: a Ranger branded stamp cleaning pad, and a StazOn branded cleaning solution. The cost was about $15 for the pair.

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For the test shown above- the first impression on the paper is the newly inked stamp, and each print after it represents one application of cleaning solution and a single run across the cleaning pad stamp before being re-stamped onto the paper. It took several applications and a little bit of elbow grease with the stamp cleaning pad, but by the time I got to my fifth round, the stamp was nearly clean. Definitely an improvement over my old stamp cleaning pad and water.

Time to break out the big container of Scotch-Brite sponges I purchased for less than 0.75 cents a sponge and see if they could match the results of the Ranger stamp counterparts.

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The nice thing about these sponges compared to the fancy stamp-specific one is that both sides are usable. There’s the firmer cleaning pad on one side- which has a similar texture to the Ranger cleaning pad, and a soft spongy side on the reverse that can be used for soaking with pen flush and pressing the stamp into for cleaning.

Basic cleaning supplies and a jar I already had on hand, and it was off to the races.

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The same basic principle for this test- although I applied the pen flush directly to the sponge and then simply pressed the stamp into the sponge a single time in between each imprint on the paper.

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Needless to say, I was a little shocked by how significant the difference was. Even better, the cheaper DIY option is, the better of the two! It really only took one or two stamps into the sponge to get it 90% clean. Impressive! At the end of the cleaning above, I ran the stamp across the cleaning pad side of the stamps a few times and pressed it into a second stamp that had been soaked with just water. It looked almost brand new.

While I was stamping, I also pulled out all the black ink pads I owned to test for differences. I tried four ink pads: Ranger Archival Ink, Versafine Pigment Ink, StazOn Solvent Ink, and ColorBox Archival Dye.

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Out of the four, I would definitely suggest either the Ranger or the Versafine- both options apply the perfect amount of ink to the stamp and provide clean lines on the paper.  The StazOn produced lines that were a little less clean and the ColorBox…

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… a little bit overkill, to say the least. I suddenly remembered what prompted me to ask about stamp cleaning the first place!

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On the left is the stamp I used for all the testing above after cleaning with my DIY supplies at the end of the night. On the right, we have the stamp I was using before I purchased and made my new cleaning supplies (I haven’t tried cleaning this original one with my new supplies yet). To be fair, I’ve definitely used the old one more than the new one- but I don’t think I ever got that original one as clean as my new one… even after a single use.

Your weekend to-do list:

  1. Purchase stamps and stickers from the Well-Appointed-Desk shop.
  2. Make your own DIY pen flush.
  3. Find or purchase a regular, non-fancy, non-stamp branded sponge.
  4. Stamp a few ink swabs, a letter, or anything else that needs some inky flair.
  5. Clean your stamps and your pens?

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DISCLAIMER: Some items in this review include affiliate links. The Well-Appointed Desk is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. Please see the About page for more details.

 

In feature, Ink Review

Ink Review: Lennon Tool Bar Spring

Author Jessica ColesPosted on Leave a comment
Ink Review: Lennon Tool Bar Spring

By Jessica Coles

Spring seems far away at the moment – around my home we are already feeling hints of autumn in the air. Many of us didn’t even get to experience much spring this year, or at least didn’t experience much of spring while outdoors. So opening up a bottle of ink from Lennon Tool Bar called Spring. Thank you to Alex at Shigure Inks for sending a bottle of this ink for review!

 

Spring is a bright, well-saturated sky blue that makes me smile.

To give a better idea of how Spring fits in with other inks, I compared the color, but I photographed in full sunlight to keep with the sunny thoughts! The color is close to Diamine Aqua Lagoon (which was actually my first purchase of a bottle of ink!) but in writing, Spring is noticeably lighter.

 

This light turquoise, or perhaps cyan, has lovely shading and takes a while to dry on Tomoe River paper – nearly 1 minute.

As for writing, I find that Spring behaves the same as other Lennon Tool Bar inks that I have used – a wet flow but not lubricated. The flow is similar to J. Herbin inks or Callifolio and are very easy to clean.

In a cursive italic nib, the ink behaved beautifully – no bleeding and no feathering.

Spring can be found at Shigure Inks at $24 for 30mL or you can pick up a sample by selecting “Ink Samples Order Form” from the Inks dropdown menu. Don’t forget there is free shipping once you reach $40 in your order.

DISCLAIMER:  Some items in this review were provided free for the purpose of this review. All other items were purchased by me. Except for the Col-o-ring which was provided to me by a wonderful person who pays me to write blogs by keeping me supplied with Col-o-rings and now Dippers as well. Please see the About page for more details.

In feature

Link Love: No Comment

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Link Love: No Comment

Pens:

Ink:

Pencils:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Black Lives Matter:

Coronavirus/COVID-19-related:

Other Interesting Things:

We all need each other. Please support our sponsors and affiliates. They help keep this blog going. Without them, we would not have products to review or a server to house our content. Your patronage of their shops, services and products will let them know you appreciate their support of the pen community. Without them, and without you, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!

In Fountain Pen Review

Eye Candy: Dip Nib Pen

Author Laura CameronPosted on 1 Comment

Last year at the Arkansas Pen Show (it feels like ages ago!) I purchased a dip nib pen second hand from one of the vintage sellers. It came in a Papier Plume box, though I don’t see it available on their site now.

Lately I’ve had fun playing with the pen. I do use a dip pen to swatch new inks, but I use a glass nib (technically acrylic) along with interchangeable mobs in various sizes (extra fine through extra broad).

Overall, I think I prefer the glass nib because it holds so much more ink, but I do get some fun line variation with this one.