Recently Ana handed me a few more samples for the “peach files” that I’ve been putting together this year. But the spoiler is that today’s ink isn’t peach at all, it’s pink! I find that particularly confusing, because I assumed Sailor Jentle Pêche meant peach (pêche means peach in French). On the other hand the phrase “a la peche” can also mean to go fishing in French, so maybe this a pink fish color?
Whatever the name means, it’s pink! Pêche is a cool, slightly bluish pink that looks almost dusty. It shades nicely, and maybe there’s a bit of a gold sheen in the darker spots.
It’s beautiful for writing, and I can’t believe I’ve never played with it before. I love pinkish-red inks!
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.
This week I decided to try the Midori Writing Marker Monthly Block Sticky Notes in both the Memo design and Speech Bubble design ($4.90 each set). I loved the die cut shapes and thought they’d be nice additions to my planner and journals. Each set include 15 sheets of 4 different designs (60 sheets total per set).
While the description on JetPens website clearly stated the sticky notes were 22mm x 22mm (less than 1″ square), I didn’t read it thoroughly so I was surprised to discover how TINY the sticky notes were when they arrived. Standard Post-It notes are usually about 3″x3″ (7.6cm x 7.6cm) so the Midori Writing Marker Monthly Block Sticky Notes are much smaller.
Midori Writing Marker Monthly Block Sticky Notes stuck to a full-sized sticky note.
Because the sticky notes are so small, most of the backs are adhesive covered so there can be a bit of residue on the front side of the sticky note. This means the ink friendliness of these sticky notes is iffy at best. Gel pens worked great and since these sticky notes are so small, the fine nibs of the gel pens was advantageous. Ballpoint would probably be adequate as well if it had a fine enough tip.
How small can you write? It will need to be pretty tiny to fit on these tiny sticky notes.
I played with a water-based marker as the sticky note repelled the ink and took an age to dry. After peeling the sticky notes off the stack, they were not particularly sticky.
So, despite being absolutely adorable, I would recommend adding your own adhesive to the back with an adhesive roller or glue stick (temporary or permanent adhesive, depending on your need) and be aware, like so many other sticky notes, these are not fountain pen friendly.
DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by JetPens for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
I’m not a big fan of fireworks. In our neighborhood, we have to play the guessing game: gun shots or fireworks and pets scurry under the bed fearing the worst. Going to community fireworks shows are too crowded and too loud for an introvert like me. So, while other people might love the spectacle, I’ll be cuddled up on my couch watching Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 and eating popcorn. How will you celebrate your freedom to celebrate?
I also wanted to let you all know we are taking a long weekend holiday so this will be the last post for the week and we’ll be back on Monday, July 8. Have a safe and joyful holiday!
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One of the things that I was most excited about at the St. Louis Pen Show was taking a class. While I’ve certainly taken advantage of classes to learn more about fountain pens in the past, I really felt like this year’s offerings were expanded in breadth. One of the ones I took the plunge for was Exploring Creative Journaling, taught by Tom at Sugar Turtle Studio.
Class registration was $65 and included 2 hours of instruction plus supplies to get you started. Tom included a notebook to start creating in (made from a variety of papers). He added a fine liner, stickers, washi tape, and scissors to get you started thinking outside the box. There was also a plastic sheet (I don’t know what this is called but I assume it’s to place between pages so things don’t bleed through or gum up the other side of the page!). And everything came to us in a super fun Rickshaw journaling pouch!
The purpose of the class, according to Tom, was to improve your relationship to journaling. No matter what goals you came in with, he wanted to create an environment where you felt comfortable pushing your own boundaries on what a journal can or should be. He encouraged everyone to keep an open mind and led us through several exercise to show us how many different forms creativity can take.
One of the things I loved most about the class was that he brought tons of examples of his own journals (and those of a few others) to give us ideas on what creative journaling could look like. Many of us in the class are pretty good at writing in a journal, but long to add more visual elements. I hate to say it but I’m not a huge out of the box thinker and I don’t experiment (without getting self conscious) very often. The best way I can explain it is by likening it to how I knit. I almost always start with a pattern. I might modify the pattern a little for personal taste, I usually substitute a different color yarn based on what I have in my stash, and I like to add creative elements, but I’m always starting from something that already exists. So when journaling, I have a hard time throwing caution to the wind and letting it go.
The class was really great. It was relatively small; I believe we had about 15 people. So you could explore your own journaling, while also socializing a bit and seeing how others chose to follow the prompts. Tom was warm and funny, and a great guide through the class. If you like journaling and have the opportunity to take a class with him, I would highly encourage you to do it!
So have I added anything to my journaling since I’ve returned home? Maybe a little? This is the current spread including lots of stickers and some red and blue (patriotic?) ink splotches, which you know I love making (just take an eyedropper with a bit of ink, hold it well above the page and let ‘er rip – use newsprint to keep the work surface from getting to spattered!). I’m also tempted to subscribe to more print magazines. I used to love cutting old magazine up for eye catching images, colors, and articles/headlines of interest. Maybe I’ll go back to my young adult collaging roots?
SHARPIE Creative Markers are water-based acrylic markers and feature a felt brush tip. The set I purchased includes all 12 colors ($17.99) in a standard mass market blister pack.
The packaging is not reusable or functional so be prepared to have a place to store these markers once you’ve had to destroy the packaging to get to them.
The color indications are on the tops of the caps. The pen bodies are slick black. There is a little edge between the cap and barrel that hints at the color but is not as quick a read as the caps. There is a note printed on each pen that says “store horizontally” but the color indication is on the cap so…. WTH? Not the best design to make the pens easy to use.
However, that is pretty much the extent of my gripes.
The pens came pre-primed so I didn’t need to do anything other than uncap the pens to use them. The pens have a note to “shake before using” so going forward, I’ll give them a quick shake before using but know that all the swatches I did were straight out of the package and I’m still thrilled with the results.
My biggest concern with the pens is the felt fabric tip wearing out on rougher or textured paper. So, I would say either be prepared for nib degradation if you use these pens on rough paper or use them on smoother paper only.
As acrylic based markers, these pens include opaque colors that will show up on darker papers which was the first thing I wanted to try.
I was not disappointed! The colors were bright and vivid, even the white is chef’s kiss! The opaque white may be come my new favorite white pen. The tip provides a nice, springy brush tip that’s perfect for lettering and does deposit a lot of paint onto the page which would make it good for painting as well. The paint may take a bit longer to dry than a standard marker so you will want to watch. The paint goes from glossy to a matte finish when its dry.
On plain white (Tomoe River) paper, the colors are bright and the paint looked even more opaque than on the kraft paper. So fun.
The packaging says that these acrylic markers don’t bleed so I flipped the Tomoe River over and the packaging seems pretty accurate. No bleed through. On other papers, I would definitely test before using or put a blotter sheet under the page you’re working on, just in case since these markers do apply a good deal of paint.
Overall, for the price point, these markers definitely hold their own against brands that have been around for awhile like the Posca AND these are brush tips while most other brands are only available with a bullet tip. To that end, the Sharpie Creative Markers are also available with a bullet tip if that’s more your speed. I think I might need a set of those too!
DISCLAIMER: The item 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 a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. Please see the About page for more details.
I can’t believe Monday is July 1. It’s time to look at my planner again and figure out what’s woking, what’s not and what my theme will be for July.
As I edge closer and closer to pen show mayhem (i.e. 4 shows in 10 weeks) my planning and personal logging tends to get pretty splotchy. On days when I am sitting in an airport, I have time to log events and put down any thoughts or memories I want to save. On pen show days, I’m up at dawn and often don’t have a quiet moment until I’m asleep on my feet well past dark. As a result, some pages get filled to the brim while other pages look abandoned. My goal is to carry a few supplies with me to help fill out pages that don’t have as much writing — glue sticks for adding receipts, washi tape to tip-in postcards or other ephemera.
My theme for July is ocean, mermaid, and beach theme. Even though I live in flyover country, I miss the ocean. I will (sort of) see both coasts within the month so there will be a little salt in my hair, even if its just running from the airport and back. I think the tropical flowers, shells, fish and sea creatures will at least provide me with a vicarious taste of salty air and sandy toes.
I’ve been saving all these 3×5 index cards with my colors of the month so that at the end of the year, I’ll be able to see all the pens I did actually use!
More stamps, ink pads and clear blocks can be found in our shop! If I forgot links to anything in the video, please drop a note in the comments and I’ll add it.
I hope you are enjoying these monthly planner set-up and my themes. Please let me know if you want to see an actual “plan with me” video for August and I will make sure my camera is all charged up.
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 a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by JetPens for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
Over the last couple weeks, the pen community has been awash in tales of the new Sailor TUZU fountain pen ($44). I have been anxiously awaiting the arrival stateside of the pen to test it out and see if all the fervor was warranted. The short answer? I’m not sure. But if you’d like to read on, I’ll give you a more detailed, and nuanced opinion.
First, the packaging.
As someone who often helps retailers sell pens, this is the absolute worst packaging. The exterior hints at what color and shape the pen in but does not provide potential customers with any clear understanding of what is inside the packaging. While I don’t like plastic clamshell packaging like the Platinum Prefounte, it is considerably more effective in conveying the content of the package. And the ribbon? Its fiddly, it will get damaged and dirty and, just why?!!?
The outside does not indicate what is actually inside the pouch/box. The last thing a retailer wants is for potential customers to open every package to see what’s inside: fountain pen, rollerball, nib size, color? Its an honest travesty.
Inside is yet another box with an instruction sheet written in English and Japanese.
Finally, inside the box is the pen and two cartridges wrapped in cellophane. Sheesh.
Now, about the actual pen:
The pen itself is an opaque plastic with a plastic-coated clip in contrasting color. There is one model available (navy) which features a translucent barrel but all the other colors are a solid plastic.
The color of the clip matches the grip section. And this is where things are particularly unique. Sailor developed the grip section to be movable since it features a soft triangular shape to allow users to adjust where the divots align for a more confortable writing experience.
In order to access the grip section to move it around, you must unscrew the bareel from the grip section and twist down the silver metal ring to allow the grip section to rotate. Once you have it positioned where its most comfortable for you, twist the ring back up towardsd the nib to secure the grip section.
The TUZU comes with a converter!
This method is not super convenient for making repeated adjustments since the whole pen needs to be disassembled to rotate the grip. Though I suspect once you get it aligned where is most comfrotable, it probably won’t need to be adjusted again. But the initial adjustments are pretty fiddly.
The aspect that was most notable to me was that Sailor is not using the same nibs its used on previous sub-$100 pens. The nib shape is reminiscent of a Lamy Safari nib or the nib on the Platinum Prefounte.
Also, the TUZU features a snap cap which, as far as I know, makes it unique in the Sailor line-up. I don’t think they have any other snap cap pens.
Compared to other pens:
I wanted to compare the Sailor TUZU to the Platinum Prefounte ($11) which is a similar pen though the price is notably different and a Sailor Pro Gear Slim which is its next relative. While I suspect Sailor does not want to make a $44 pen that rivals their flagship 14k nib pen, it should feel like its in the same family. I’ve tried other Sailor “school pens” and they are not up to Sailor’s high standards at all.
When comparing the nibs, there is a similarity in shape between the Sailor TUZU and the Prefounte with the more modern asthetics and straight edges where it folds into the grip. The TUZU nib is larger than the Platinum though both have odd slit and breather holes. The breather hole in the Platinum is just an etched circle and not an actual hole while the Sailor TUZU has an actual hole but the slit in the nib stops before it reaches the breather hole.Weird, right?
When comparing the sizes, the TUZU is notably larger overall. Both capped and uncapped, the Platinum Prefounte and TUZU are similar in overall length but the TUZU is wider. Posted, the TUZU is much longer.
When comparing the overall weights, the TUZU was the heaviest at 21 gm with the converter filled. The Prefounte weighs 13 gm with a cartridge and the Pro Gear Slim weighs 20 gm with the converter filled. None are particularly heavy and considering the large overall size of the TUZU, the weight is quite minimal making it feel light in the hand.
In writing:
I tested the FINE nib which is consistent with my preferences for Sailor pens in general. The nib is fine and has a similar bit of feedback on Tomoe River paper that the Pro Gear Slim has…. but it’s different. As a steel nib, it just feels a bit more feedback-y, like a pencil. I wouldn’t necessarily go so far as to say “scratchy” just not as smooth as more expensive pens. Or as smooth as the cheaper Platinum Prefounte.
I was always a little ho-hum on the Prefounte when it was released. It’s a slightly more upscale version of the Preppy and still doesn’t ship with a converter but when put head-to-head with the TUZU in the same relative nib size, the Prefounte is considerably smoother.
And when unfairly compared with the Pro Gear Slim and it’s 14K nib, the TUZU line does not have as much character and line variation.
My final opinion:
I don’t know what I was hoping to get out of the TUZU. The aesthetic is pleasing, the color of the mint green is 100% in my wheelhouse. The pen writes adequately well. I like the snap cap and I’m delighted that Sailor includes a converter with the pen.
Do I think its worth $44 when you can get an equal- or better-performing budget pen from Pilot (in the Metropolitan) or Platinum (with the Preppy or Prefounte)? Not really. If you’re looking for an entry level fountain pen, there are a lot of other options in a similar price point or lower — even the Lamy Safari is less expensive. And if you’re hoping to capture the magic of Sailor’s higher end pens in a cheaper model, this is still not it, IMHO.
Were you thinking about purchasing one? Do you still want to try one?
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