The Well-Appointed Desk

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Ana ordered 2 sets of Archer and Olive Acrylograph Pens. She reviewed the Warm Fall Color palette here. Today I get to review the Cool Fall Palette.

I should start by saying that my speciality is needle arts, so I know next to nothing about paint pens. This is a set of 10 water based acrylic markers – 8 colors (Cool Fall), plus a white pen and a “blending pen.” While I’m a bit of a dunce at figuring out how to blend (and it looks like Ana didn’t have a lot of success) I did have fun seeing what the colors are.

They don’t come named, but I think they correspond to all the colors of fall leaves – red and orange, green and brown. And there are a few cool blues thrown in there for good measure. In fact, the collection reminds me quite a bit of a crocheted blanket I made last year in an autumn palette.

While these markers worked just fine on my Maruman Mnemosyne paper, I also tried them on black and kraft paper in my Night Sky journal (also from Archer & Olive) with mixed success. Some colors showed up super brightly, while others were paler. Maybe I didn’t press hard enough on the tip to get enough ink flow?

I would say these pens were a middling success, but they were fun to try out!

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by JetPens for the purpose of review. The Acrylograph pens were purchased with Ana’s own funds, and Laura purchased the Night Sky Journal with her own funds. Please see the About page for more details.

In Paper Review

Paper Review: Midori Flash Cards Ducks

AnaJanuary 16, 2023January 13, 20232 Comments

As part of the delightful Cult Pens Japanese Stationery Advent Calendar, I received this rubber ducky-shaped set of flash cards made by Midori (If I was better at planning, this review should have gone up on Friday — National Rubber Duck Day!). They look like something else — maybe a Col-o-ring? So, I thought, what the heck, maybe Midori is about to put me out of business. So, let’s test these cards and find out if I need a “going out of business” sign.

I started testing some of the Diamine Inkvent inks (circa 2021). The funny little shape was a little unusual to use and I probably would need some time to figure out the best way to utilize the space. But then I noticed that the writing looked like it was feathering.

So, I decided maybe I needed to compare these Midori cards to. those, pardon my bias, the gold standard of ink testing cards. Since the Diamine Inkvent inks have specific details on the bottle about the ink qualities, I knew I might be missing some of the nuances of the inks. Garland was listed on the bottle as “shimmer and sheen” and Seize the Night was listed as “standard”.

On the ducky cards, I see the shimmer but the potential sheen does not show at all. On Col-o-ring paper, the poppy pink/red sheen is very visible. Also, the dip pen writing didn’t bleed on the Col-o-ring paper.

The Seize the Night color shows some yellow/greenish sheen on Col-o-ring but just looks like a deep plummy purple on the Midori Ducky paper.

While I had fun trying the ducky cards, I feel safe that people will still prefer Col-o-ring cards, especially if Diamine continues to release the Inkvent calendars that we all wait all year to swatch!

Phew! I was afraid I was going to need to find a new job!

In Planners & Organizers

Planner Hack: Monthly Calendar

AnaJanuary 13, 2023January 13, 20234 Comments

I’m not sure if this tip is a true”hack” or if it’s just a really clever way to jump start your new year’s planner, but here goes…

This tip actually came from an unusual source, a book called The Scent of Lemon & Rosemary by Raechel Henderson, about caring for your home using earth magic. While most of the book isn’t applicable to my lovely readers, Chapter 11 deals with creating your own “Wheel of the Year”.

In this practice, instead of relying entirely on the bog-standard national holiday calendar for your country, or just your work holidays, Ms. Henderson recommends that you fill your planner with holidays and events that are important to you. First, what holidays do you and your family celebrate? Maybe you have specific heritage holidays or religious holidays that are overlooked on regular calendars. Go through an input them on the right days if you’re using a daily planner or add them to the monthly calendar pages. Then add in birthdays and anniversaries for family and friends. Maybe you like to know when the full moons are, those Mercury retrogrades occur, or if any asteroid or stars are particularly visible in the night sky? Google these astrological events and add them on the correct day.

Then, and this is the real jewel of the hack, go find one of those There’s a Day For That calendars and scroll through the months. There’s are hundreds of special observance days for everything from social causes to favorite foods and everything in between.

Are you a lover of donuts? If so, be sure to add National Donut Day to the appropriate page in your planner. It’s on June 2, which is also Leave The Office Early Day, coincidentally. I found all the cat appreciation days (there’s a lot of them!), International Gin & Tonic Day (Oct. 19) and Left Hander’s Day (Aug. 13 — of course its on the 13th! So unlucky!)

As a stationery aficionado, you may want to find National Pencil Day (March 30), Rubber Eraser Day (April 15), Global Handwriting day (Oct. 15) and, of course, Fountain Pen Day (Nov 3 this year).

This is a great way to add dates to your calendar that will remind you that everyday can be special and to help alleviate some of the endless blank pages.

As today is National Rubber Ducky Day, I hope you get a chance to float a rubber duck and bring a little joy into your life. Happy Ducky Day!

What special dates are you going to add to your planner or calendar?

DISCLAIMER: Some items in this post 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

New Pen Show Alert!

Jessica ColesJanuary 12, 2023January 12, 20232 Comments

Until recently, the pen show season is something that I have come to see as consistent, almost “set in stone”. For me, the first pen show of the year is Philadelphia and my last pen show is Chicago. The summer is a blur of pen shows too close together.

But the pen show circuit does change. Slowly. The St. Louis pen show is only 4 or 5 years old, the Colorado show has been going about 10 years. In 2022, Orlando hosted a new pen show as well. This year, we have another newcomer to the group – the California pen show.

Wait, you say, doesn’t California already have a pen show, or two? The LA pen show in February and the San Francisco pen show in August.

The LA pen show, previously scheduled for the weekend nearest to Valentine’s Day (which could be good or bad), will not take place in 2023. The new California pen show will ensure that February (and LA) is not devoid of pen friends and retailers. Taking place February 9-12, this new event will be at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott and has two ticket options – $25 for two days or $69 for the VIP pass (both available for purchase online). The dealer tables have been sold out since the show was announced with 81 dealers.

The other California pen show, scheduled in August is the San Francisco Pen Show and will continue as scheduled.

Should you attend the new California Pen Show? Well, readers, both myself (Jesi) and Ana (of pink hair fame) will be working at the Dromgoole’s table for this show. That’s how you know it will be a great weekend! The schedule does not yet detail classes or events outside of the pen show proper, but you can be sure there will be plenty of visiting and sharing of pens at the hotel bar in the evenings.

For more Pen Show details, don’t forget to refer to our Pen Show Schedule!

In Link Love

Link Love: (fill in the blank) of the Year?

AnaJanuary 11, 2023January 11, 20231 Comment

Which color will be your color of the year? Or your pen of the year? Or your word of the year?

Pelikan’s Rose Quartz or Pantone’s Viva Magenta are head-to-head as the pen community’s color of the year. Right? How similar are they? We will have to wait and see. IT appears that Rose Quartz might be a bit dustier pink. But who knows? Is Pelikan “on trend”? Hmmmm….

I enjoy a special product each year but I’m not sure the logic behind the choices being made for each of them. Lamy has released one, two, or more Safari of the Year each year and their own ink color. Kaweco seems to roll out a new Sport or four each year. This trend has been going on so long that Brad and I have had buttons made to show your support for which Safari or AL-Star (or even Kaweco) you think is the winner.

What’s your take on the “_____ of the Year” trends? Do you look forward to these new products? Any guesses for the Lamy or Kaweco pens of the year?

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In Planners & Organizers

Black Owned Planner and Stationery Companies

Laura CameronJanuary 10, 2023January 9, 20234 Comments

Just before the new year I stumbled on a great Twitter thread compiling black owned planner and stationery companies. I browsed a number of them, and bought from a few. But I thought I’d share a few on the list today with you!

Greer Chicago Planners Greer Chicago – Ana gave this one a thumbs up as she has shopped there both in person and online and loves it. Greeting cards, stationery, notebooks, planners and more!

Cloth and Paper– In addition to gorgeous planning supplies with a modern aesthetic, I really love the idea of Cloth and Paper’s subscription boxes full of planning and stationery products.

Arrivista – It’s no secret that I love bright color and lots of it. I was taken with these notebooks that go along with the Arrivista planners.

Aya Paper Co. – Do you like to shop sustainable? These greeting cards look gorgeous and are made from recycled paper produced locally with on eco-friendly packaging. I love their page on sustainability.

But seriously, check out the rest of the list!

In Fountain Pen Review

Fountain Pen Review: Pilot Cavalier

AnaJanuary 9, 2023January 9, 20231 Comment

The Pilot Cavalier is an unusual fountain pen. It is a slender, metal barrel, snap cap that retails for about $36 (up to $58 for the marbled exterior finish).

The Cavalier line is only available in a Fine or Medium nib but does feature a snap cap and the interior of the pen is large enough to support a converter though the pen only ships with a cartridge.

The nib in different in shape compared to other lower-priced Pilot pens like the Preppy, Prera or Metropolitan. The nib shape is more similar to the nibs used in the E95 line except the Cavalier nib is a steel nib and the E95 is a gold nib.

I really appreciate the silver tone hardware on this pen, I think it accents the subtle pink shimmer barrel nicely. All the colors of the Cavalier at $36 feature silver hardware but the higher priced marbled designs feature gold tone hardware.

On paper like Rhodia, the Cavalier is a crisp fine nib. Over the past few weeks, I’ve tried the pen with various inks and papers and the line width will vary a bit depending on the wetness of the ink or the absorbency of the paper. I find on Stalogy, depending on my ink selection, the line width can skew wider. If you prefer a fine line, with the Cavalier, I recommend seeking out drier inks.

The Cavalier is a relatively light pen weighing in a 18gms capped and filled and just 10gms uncapped. That’s considerably lighter than it’s bigger brother, the Metropolitan.

(From left to right: Sailor Pro Gear Slim, Pilot Cavalier, vintage Platinum pocket pen, Kaweco Special FP, Caran d’Ache 849 and Lamy AL-Star.)

As you can see from the side-by-side comparison images above, the Pilot Cavalier is the most slender of the pens shown and I specifically chose a few pens that I consider to be the slimmer in my collection. With the added convenience of the snap cap, the cavalier is a great journal pen. It fits easily under a notebook elastic or tucked into the pen holder in many planners.

The cap posts for those who are curious.

In general, I am a sucker for small slender pens. There are not a lot available on the market so when I do find one, I am often willing to purchase it. The Cavalier is no exception. The combination of the slim barrel and snap cap puts this pen in my sweet spot for a daily writer. It’s perfect for those short everyday notes, lists and meetings when you need a pen that is quick to use and easily portable. The metal barrel makes the Cavalier feel comparable to the Metropolitan line in terms of build quality in a smaller package and with a unique nib shape.

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.

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