The Well-Appointed Desk

Review by Laura Cameron

I love anything cherry blossom themed, and I had never tried Write Notepad & Co.’s notebooks so it was a given that I was going to order the Sakura Spring 2018 Limited Edition notebooks (3 pack pocket-size for $12.99).

Write Sakura

The Sakura limited edition pocket notebook measures 3.75″ x 5″ (9.5 cm x 12.5 cm). The cover art is beautifully printed on 80# coverstock. The Sakura has 48 pages of 70# graph lined paper, printed in Write’s standard blue-green color, and measuring approximately 4mm. The edition is saddle stitched and finished with rose gold staples. As with all Write products, the notebooks are 100% American made.

Write Sakura

I have to say, having never used Write notebooks before, that the paper blew me away. I tested a variety of pens and inks on the paper, and even swabbed it with ink and nothing got through those pages. In my experience, I haven’t found paper like this in most pocket notebooks. The paper is fairly smooth, and none of my inks bled or feathered at all. My only (very minor) complaint is that I think I would prefer dot grid to graph, but that’s just a personal choice.

Write Sakura

As you can see, I enjoy a good themed every day carry, so I’ll be carrying my Sakura notebooks along with my Fahrney’s 2018 Retro 51 Cherry Blossom.

Write Sakura

If you’re interested in the Write Notepad & Co. Sakura notebooks they are a limited edition run, so make sure you don’t miss out.

In Link Love

Link Love: Happy Little Stitches

AnaJune 6, 2018June 6, 20181 Comment

This week I was happy to see that Quo Vadis Blog chose happiness as its theme for journaling this month. Often its described as “gratitude” which I find a bit lofty. Thinking about things that make me happy each day, seem to be a bit more attainable. I also wanted to point out that my co-worker Riga was featured for her Father’s Day card collection this week on Think. Make. Share. We are all super proud of the work we do on our team and extra excited that Riga was recognized for her work on the company blog (file this under “plugging the firm“!). And another local tidbit – the USPS is releasing a WWI stamp commemorating the US officially entering into the conflict that became known as The Great War. The stamp will be issued on July 27th at 11:30am at the World War I Museum here in Kansas City.

Please forgive me, I’m on an embroidery kick right now so the art and creativity links have an embroidery focus.

Fountain Pen Review: Opus 88 Picnic in Green (Fine Nib)

AnaJune 5, 2018June 3, 20184 Comments

The Opus88 Picnic ($99) is a sight to behold. The translucent acrylic ends practically glow. I never thought I’d become someone who went for demonstrator pens but times change. I chose the green model which is a lovely shade of lime.

I don’t know if I mixed up the packaging of the Koloro with the Picnic or if the paper included was the same. The box is the same with magnetic closure, syringe and foam. The syringe is a different color though.

The Picnic, like the Koloro, is an eyedropper filler using the Japanese filling mechanism. With the Koloro, I didn’t quite understand the filling mechanism but thanks to a chat with David of Figboot on Pens in Atlanta. He goes into detail about it in his video review of the Koloro. The twist filler on the back of the pen releases ink from the ink reservoir into the feed. From time to time, you’ll need to release a bit more ink into the feed by untwisting the end cap every now and then and then retightening it. Its a very different way of using a pen but it provides a huge quantity of ink without having it drizzling out of the feed like other eyedropper pens.

I could not resist filling the Picnic with a color coordinating ink. I chose Robert Oster Lemon Grass ($17 for 50ml bottle) which is a very good match.

The Picnic is an all-acrylic pen, so despite being a bit longer than the Koloro, its actually a little bit lighter, even filled with ink.

Weight (filled with ink):

22gms capped
14 gms uncapped

Length:

145mm capped
125mm uncapped
165mm posted

The nib is a JoWo fine nib. I loved the nib on the Koloro so much, I got the same nib on the Picnic. The tines were slightly misaligned but some finger adjusting loosened them up a little. The nib is still not as wet or smooth as the Koloro but its working a lot better. I might have someone look at it in St. Louis to see if I can get it a little more tuned up. Overall though, its writing better than when I originally removed it from the box.

The dryness of the nib is enhanced a bit by the lightness and translucency of the Lemon Grass ink color so it was probably a lot more noticeable than it would of been if I’d been using a darker, more opaque color.

On Rhodia paper, the Picnic can get lovely fine line a well as to show off a little bounce.

I prefer how the Opus88 Picnic performs on the Hippo Noto paper particularly with the Lemon Grass ink. The slight softness of the paper lets the ink shine a bit more. There’s a lot more shading though I did rinse the nib at one point so the color got a little lighter. The ink has been in the pen for awhile so there was a bit of sediment on the nib. There is a LOT of ink in the reservoir so you really need to be committed to the color and ready to use it regularly.

I still prefer writing with the Koloro over the Picnic only because of the nib performance. Overall, this is a specific issue with the pen I have. Whether this is indicative of the quality control from Opus 88, I doubt as I have heard that other people have been happy with their pens but it is something to consider especially with the finer nib.

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

In Ink Review

Ink Review: Pelikan Edelstein Olivine

Jessica ColesJune 4, 2018June 4, 20185 Comments

Review by Jessica Coles

I was chatting with my friend Ana the other day and told her that I had just finished my first pen review. After asking me if I enjoyed the process of writing up my observations, she mentioned that if I ever wanted to do more reviewing, she would love the help.

I think I might have squealed out loud.

It’s possible that I’m slightly obsessed with pens and inks and paper. It’s also possible that saying “obsessed” is like saying Mount Everest is tall. Total understatement.

Anyway, I’m happy to say that I am now working with The Well-Appointed Desk to bring you more information about pen and stationery related stuff!

To start out the process, Ana sent a bottle of Pelikan ink. For the last several years, Pelikan has released a new gemstone-inspired ink into their Edlestein lineup. The ink for 2018 is Olivine ($23 per 50mL bottle), a slightly dusty green that leans slightly towards yellow.

Pelikan has one of the nicest ink bottles on the market – a beautiful glass bottle that is quite heavy.

When I open up a new ink, the first thing I do is to swab it to see the color as clearly as possible. I use Col-o-ring cards for this – it’s the easiest way to keep all of the ink swabs in a small space since I have a small problem with ink samples (see the above reference to “understatement”).

Olivine is slightly more yellow than Monteverde Jade Noir and not quite as dark as Robert Oster Green at Night, but the color is very close to these inks.

I inked up a TWSBI mini AL gold with a fine nib and started scribbling away on a Rhodia dot pad to see how it behaved.

At first the ink felt very dry. However, as I continued writing, the experience improved. I would still say that Olivine is on the dry side which is in line with my experiences with other inks in the Edlestein line.

I did notice that Olivine goes down on the paper brighter then fades to a darker, slightly dusty green. The dry time is fast – somewhere around 12 seconds. Once it dries, it doesn’t smear. But don’t pour water on it.

I enjoyed this color overall. The dryness bothered me at first, but not enough to stop using it. I do think that Olivine is a great addition to the Edelstein color line, the perfect accompaniment to Smoky Quartz.

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were loaned free of charge by Pelikan for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Ink Review

Ink Review: J. Herbin Orange Indien

Laura CameronJune 4, 2018December 16, 20184 Comments

Review by Laura Cameron

I don’t have too many oranges in my ink collection, so I’m always pleased to test orange inks. Recently I received a bottle of J. Herbin Orange Indien (Pen Chalet, 10ml for $6.00).

J. Herbin Orange Indien

Orange Indien is a nice deep orange, the color of pumpkins and fall.

J. Herbin Orange Indien

It shades, but does not shimmer. In heavy applications it just remains a deep orange, perhaps leaning a bit towards brown. As you can see from where I goofed (added water and then closed the book), it is not water resistant.

J. Herbin Orange Indien

The color reminds me of Indian Summer and the last long autumn days with orange sunsets.

J. Herbin Orange Indien

I find this ink to be a bit on the drier side – it goes down smoothly and dries quickly and doesn’t seem as lubricating as some of the other inks I have tested.

In comparison to the other oranges in my swatch collection, I think Orange Indien stands out. It isn’t nearly as dark or intense as Monteverde Mandarin Orange, nor is it as bright as Mont Blanc Lucky Orange or Sailor Apricot. It’s just a slightly dusty orange, perfectly reminiscent of fall.

J. Herbin Orange Indien

Paper: Crossfield Journal ($24.00) and Maruman Mnemosyne N182A Inspiration Notebook A5 ($10.50)
Pen: Delike Glass Signature Pen ($37.80).
Swatches: Col-o-Ring Ink Testing Book ($10)
Ink: J. Herbin Orange Indien (10ml for $6.00))

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

In photo

Eye Candy: X-Files Pencils

AnaJune 1, 2018May 25, 20185 Comments

Loot Crate had an exclusive set of X-files pencils ($2.80) a few months back that featured quotes from the series. While I am not a subscriber of the pop culture box service, I was informed that it was fairly easy to grab a set on eBay so I scurried over and for less than $10, I scored a MIB set of these nerd-centric pencils. (At the time, I did not know you could go directly to Loot Crate and purchase individual items.)

I remember watching X-Files in the 90s with rapt enthusiasm. In the age before Netflix, waiting for weekly broadcasts of this curiously weird show so epic. Twin Peaks and X-Files pretty much ushered in the new era of niche, weird TV. We were cultish with our devotion to it but as you have already guessed by now, I am a great big nerd.

As for these pencils, I love the quotes and the packaging. I wish the pencils had been hex yellow pencils instead of round which would have been more authentic though. Even the photo on the package shows Mulder carefully lining up his pencils which are hex barrels. And they sure would have looked nice foil stamped rather than printed. Oh, well. I guess I can’t have everything.

I might ask CW Pencils to make me a custom set for my own use that is actually on hex barrels and foil stamped… to be the perfect set.

In Paper Review

Notebook Review: Rhodia Goalbook

Laura CameronMay 31, 2018December 16, 20183 Comments

Review by Laura Cameron

Earlier this year Ana asked me if I would be interested in reviewing a Rhodia Goalbook (Rhodia, $25.95). I was still in my quest to try all things violet in 2018 so I requested one in the Purple colorway.

The Rhodia Goalbook is a soft-side leather planner organized a bit like a bullet journal. Mine is a lovely dark purple color, with orange accents (elastic band, front pages, and ribbons).

Rhodia Goalbook

The Goalbook measures 5.8″ by 8.3″ (14.8 cm x 21 cm) and contains 120 dot-grid numbered pages, as well as a table of contents and some calendar pages. The paper itself is 90 gsm ivory brush vellum paper made in Étival-Clairefontaine, France. As I mentioned, there are two orange ribbons, and the end papers also contain an envelope at the back of the book.

The beginning of the book is very slightly structured towards organization. The cover page contains a place for contact information, followed by several pages listed as “contenu | contents.” I think this will be super useful to call out specific items on specific pages I might want to remember.

Rhodia Goalbook

Next there are calendars in two formats. One is a perpetual calendar that lists the months and days in columns. These would be useful for noting big events or occasions (birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, etc). The next calendar is set up in blank thirds for each month. Here you could track in more detail things that might happen throughout your year.

Rhodia Goalbook

After that, the remainder of the book is lovely dot grid numbered pages for you to record anything and everything.

Rhodia Goalbook

The paper in this book is lovely and performs well. The paper is very smooth, and I enjoyed writing on it using a variety of instruments and inks. There was no feathering or bleeding, and only a bit of ghosting on the darkest, most saturated inks.

Rhodia Goalbook

While I wasn’t sure initially how I would use the Goalbook, it has quickly become my purse staple. As you might remember, at the beginning of the year I purchased a Hobonichi Techo A5 planner to use. While I did use it for a while, the two big problems I had with it were its size and paper. The Hobonichi is hefty, adding a lot of weight to my purse. In contrast, the Goalbook is very light and portable. The leather cover seems fairly sturdy and obviates the need for an additional cover, whereas I put the Hobonichi in a Chic Sparrow cover that I love, but adds even more weight to it.

As for the paper, I really love Tomoe River paper, but the weight used in the Hobonichi is so thin and transparent that I find it distracting to write on the back sides of pages when I can clearly see the writing from the front side. While I can accept that in a notebook (like the Nanami Crossfield), not being able to write on half the days nicely doesn’t work in a daily planner. In contrast, the Rhodia paper is thicker and with so little ghosting makes me want to use every page in the book.

I’m not really a bullet journal person, but I am a person who somewhat obsessively makes lists. I’ve started making a new list each week, moving open items from the previous week to the new list (yeah I don’t sound like a bullet journaler do I?). I’ve also started keeping longer term lists going: knitting projects to consider, upcoming reviews for The Desk, deadlines for longer term projects, and on and on. Those lists I can record on my table of contents and find them easily.

So I have to say that the Rhodia Goalbook is definitely a win for me and at approximately $26 seems like an excellent investment to combat my aging (ever more forgetful) brain.

Rhodia

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were sent to us free of charge by Rhodia Drive for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

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