In feature

Sticky Note Day: Midori Sticky Paper Secret Cat Pattern

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
Sticky Note Day: Midori Sticky Paper Secret Cat Pattern

Finding sticky notes that I like, that aregood with fountain pens and unique is my newest mission in life. So I was delighted to find the Midori Sticky Note: Secret Cat Pattern ($6.99 for set of  two 10-sheet mini pads).

Printed on each sheet is a cat face and a peachy-colored belly area to write your message. And a yarn ball! It’s like they made these sticky notes just for me!

There is a die cut slot under the cat’s face so the paper can be folded up and tucked under the flap. When folded, there is a fish printed on the back so it looks like the cat has a treat. Printed on the fish is a “To” field so these sticky notes are perfect for passing notes in class or in a meeting.

The flat sheets are approximately 5″ x 2.5″. When folded, the sheet measures about 2.75″ x 2.5″.

An extra treat is the paw print on the back side of the note. This set is beautifully designed and easy to use. The paper is even fairly fountain pen ink friendly though I’m sure gel, rollerball and ballpoint would be perfectly acceptable.

Apple helped me with today’s photo shoot.

The packet includes two small pads with 10 sheets on each pad so they are thin enough to be tucked inside the pocket of your journal or planner.

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.

In feature, news

New Products are in the Shop!

Author AnaPosted on 4 Comments
New Products are in the Shop!

I am so excited to bring in The Creeping Moon to The Well-Appointed Desk Shop. When I saw the products that Megan Wyreweden and Creeping Moon were creating I was blown away! All the products are beautifully illustrated and inspired by antique tomes, D&D, haunted houses and all things spooky and goth.

Whether you are a fan of fantasy novels, spooky movies, D&D or video gaming, there is something in this new collection in the shop to intrigue you.

The B6 sketchbooks and journals are beautifully crafted with foil accents on the covers, ribbon bookmarks and good quality paper. The Botanist watercolor paper is extra thick and remain smooth even with a good deal of wet media and you can use both sides of the paper. The Wanderer and Astronomer Journals both use 120gsm paper (one dot grid and one blank), which works great with a wide variety of tools including fountain pens. There are also journal clips, page markers and a collection of fabulous washi tapes. Find them all under our Creeping Moon Category tag.

I hope you like these new products as much as I do and I’m so happy to share them with you first. If inventory gets depleted, don’t worry, I’ll have more in stock soon! The Creeping Moon products will only be available through our Big Cartel shop. My apologies to any non-US shoppers.

But that’s not all!

I have revised, redesigned and added to many of my current rubber stamp designs and they are now available in much more budget-friendly clear photopolymer stamp sets. There are currently four sets available: (2) 4″x6″ sets that include over 15 stamps on each sheet and (2) 3″x4″ sets with over 6 stamps on each sheet.

4″x6″ sets are $20 each and 3″x4″ sets are $10 each. That’s right! 6 stamps for the price of ONE of my older wood block stamps!!!!

I’m so happy to be able to offer these clear stamps. They stamp beautifully, are easy to store and carry and its no much easier to place clear stamps on your page with our new clear acrylic mounting block. And one mounting block can work with all the stamps in our sets. Blocks are $6 each and include a grid on the block to help with alignment and make it so easy to precisely align your stamp on your paper.

Don’t forget to grab a stamp pad and some stamp cleaner so you’ll be set to stamp your heart out!

For our international customers, clear stamp sets and acrylic blocks are available on our Etsy shop.

Oh, and I even made a video to show how to use clear stamps in case these are new to you.

In Link Love

Link Love: Summer TBR

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Link Love: Summer TBR

Slightly dark humor below but I collect books like I collect everything else I love — obsessively and continuosly which means my TBR pile could probably have its own zip code. How about you?

Tom Gauld for The Guardian (via Causal Optimist).

PS: For folks in the US, don’t forget to grab a Father’s Day card or make plans to celebrate your favorite fathers or father figures this Sunday.

Pens:

Ink:

Pencils:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Other Interesting Things:

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In photo

Help me choose an ink color for my new pen!

Author Laura CameronPosted on 15 Comments

Ana’s gorgeous post got me hook, line and sinker and I just had to have the Esterbrook x Bungubox Kachofugetsu Flower Fountain Pen. It arrived yesterday and I was faced with a big decision: what to ink it with? As it turns out, I don’t know if I have the right ink!

I decided that I wanted the ink to be pink, and I’d like it to be legible. My first thought was Sailor Sakura Mori, but that is more peach and the Kachofugetsu Flower design is pink leaning lilac or purple. So here are my choices:

What do you think I should choose? I’m leaning towards Robert Oster Dusky Pink, but maybe there’s an ink I don’t have that I need. What would you choose?

In Pencil Review

When The Product Isn’t What You Expected

Author AnaPosted on 9 Comments
When The Product Isn’t What You Expected

Some of the hardest reviews to write are the products that don’t work, or don’t work for me. Sadly, the Metacil ($10.25, available in multiple color options) (which is a horrible name for a product so I should have known better) is just such a product.

When I purchased the Metacil, I didn’t read the fine print. I thought it was a mechanical pencil with a leather pencil cap. It turns out, its actually one of those metal pencil-like pencils where the tip cannot be sharpened. Its just scratching metal onto paper in order to use it.

So, I decided to try to figure out what the description on the back of the package says.

Here’s what Google Translate came up with:

“What is metal pencil?
The lead is made of a special lead containing graphite and metal, which causes extremely little wear on the lead, allowing you to continue writing for long periods of time without chipping.

  • Hands don’t get dirty easily
  • Can be erased with an eraser
  • Not easily smeared with water or water-based markers
  • There is no need to cut back, and your concentration continues.
  • Depending on the type of eraser, it may be difficult to erase.

Writable distance: Approximately 16km
Density: Equivalent to 2H pencil (compared to our company)
*Darkness varies depending on the type of paper.

please note

  • The cap does not necessarily prevent the core from breaking. It’s not a thing.
  • Pencil sharpener (manual and electric) Do not use it. It may cause damage or malfunction.
  • The tip may break or chip due to being dropped or writing with excessive pressure. This may occur. In that case, please stop using it.
  • There are some types of paper that cannot be written on, such as printed paper and coated paper.
  • Please do not use it for anything other than writing or drawing.
  • Please be careful as the tip is sharp. Do not disassemble or modify. Doing so may cause damage.
  • Do not place it in direct sunlight, fire, or high temperatures.
  • Please keep out of reach of children to prevent them from accidentally putting it in their mouth or licking it.”

I really liked the look of the leather pencil cap and may be the one thing I will keep  using even after this review. Its a snug fit on this pencil and makes me wonder why more people aren’t making fabric caps like this.

Now, let’s talk about how this “pencil” writes. Pretty much, it doesn’t. And it’s scratchy. I had to apply an excess of pressure just to get this to write in the above sample. And its really light.

I pressed even harder and this was as dark as I could get the marks. And erasing is out of the question so what is the point?

So, to say I was frustrated is an understatement. I have used one of those mark-marking, non-graphite pencils in the past and they are always a disappointment. Why do companies keep trying to reinvent the pencil?

I am glad, at least, I got the pencil cap.

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.

In Planners & Organizers

Planner Status: May to June Set-Up

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
Planner Status: May to June Set-Up

For June, my theme for my daily planning and journaling pages is Roses and Honeysuckle. I had tons of stickers and washi tape with roses but I had to actually research online to find out what honeysuckle flowers look like. I found a few plants in the Botanist’s Sticker Anthology that are probably honeysuckle or close enough for my purposes.

My rationale for the theme is that roses and honeysuckle are associated with the birth month of June and since its the month of my birth, I figured I’d embrace it. I considered doing the gems and anything else I could find but decided I might be setting an unnecessarily complicated precedent so I settled on the flowers. I already know my theme for July will be different so I’m glad I just went with a flower theme this month.

As I’ve established in previous months this year, I went through some of my washi tapes, sticker books and loose bits and pulled out a few sheets that directly related to my theme so that I had curated a small assortment in advance of the month to make the act of jazzing up my pages easy and fun and not an occasion for analysis paralysis. Pick a theme, pick some stickers, go! Next month, I pick a new theme. I’m forcing myself to be more decisive. Life’s too short to waffle.

My pen selections are remarkably similar to May. I swapped out onne or two that didn’t really get used and added in a couple different ones but mostly, my pens and inks remained consistent. It meant I didn’t have to clean out my pens and that I was pretty happy with my choices last month.

The Pen List:

The Supply List:

As I continue to use up my stash of washi tape most are no longer available or are so old I don’t remember when or where they were purchased them. If you are looking for new sources for washi,  I recommend MT brand above all others but I’ve been known to buy small sets of themed tape from Amazon or any of the many many options available from JetPens.

While the list doesn’t look like I have pared back my materials, I try to be choosy about how many elements I add and use each month. I don’t want to overwhelm myself or make anything too complicated.

My advice if you are starting out is to pick a couple rolls of washi tape, ONE sticker book or sticker pack and some method to add a calendar of your choice — whether that is a sticker sheet, labels or a stamp. Add in one or two pens or markers and call it good. Less is more. You can always glue in papers, ephemera and other bits throughout the month as you find them, even press in a flower, clover or other bit to add to your personal story.

Okay, you want a video walkthrough? Here it is:

Intro and outro music for the above video  by Miyagisama from Pixabay

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by JetPens for the purpose of review. This post also includes 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.

In Fountain Pen Review

Fountain Pen Review: Sailor Pro Gear Slim Follow The Mermaid

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
Fountain Pen Review: Sailor Pro Gear Slim Follow The Mermaid

As the prices for some of the limited edition Sailors have come down over the last few months, I was finally able to snag one of the Follow The Mermaid models for $200. I was debating between the Storm Over the Ocean and the Follow the Mermaid designs and with only a $36 price difference between the Slim versions, the deciding factor ended up being my nail polish color choice last week.

Unfortunately, the polish didn’t last until this week but I did manage to snag a Kuromi Pen Case ($25) which (strangely) ended up being a perfect match and perfectly fit into my Hello Kitty Island Adventure game life.

The pen is a wonderful mix-up of translucent aqua, misty lavender purple with glitter and seashell white end caps. The silver hardware and two-tone nib add the required bling for a mermaid princess.

Like all the other Sailor Pro Gear Slim fountain pens, this pen features a 14K nib and I got the HF nib which I’ve determined is my favorite Sailor nib. I love, love, love this nib and its the nib I use to compare all other nibs. Not to mention I love that Sailor 14K nibs are smooth but also provides a little friction, like a perfect pencil. Maybe that’s why I love the Sailor 14K nibs so much? The eversharp pencil but ink?

The next challenge was choosing just the right ink color to pair with this stunning pen. Even with my massively pared down ink collection, I found seven strong candidates: three aqua/teals — one with purple shimmer! — two purple/violets and two purply-grey colors.

Honestly, I could swap out inks in this pen for the rest of the year and be a happy little mermaid queen.

Which one would you pick?

I picked the VanDieman’s Underwater Parrot Fish ($17) because the name was appropriately aquatic and the color included shimmer that coordinated with the pen as well, even though the fine nib only shows those particles ever now and again. Its a perfect match to the cap color so even if the shimmer doesn’t show, the color is still super-aquatic and summery.

I am looking forward to trying a couple of the other color matches in the coming months. I think the Follow The Mermaid will make its way to the top of favorite pen list for sure.

Are you a Mermaid or a Storm Chaser? Which of the limited edition Sailor pens would you purchase?

DISCLAIMER: 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.