The Well-Appointed Desk

Back in January when I went on a bit of a notebook binge, I picked up a Leuchtturm 1917 Hardcover Notebook Metallic Edition (A5 size, dot grid, $26.00). Honestly the notebook was just plain pretty. And, to my knowledge, I haven’t ever tried a Leuchtturm notebook.

The Leuchtturm 1917 Metallic is a hardcover notebook in A5 size available in Gold, Silver or Copper. I opted for silver. The cover is textured, almost giving it a faux fabric feel, and it’s a bit sparkly, though I don’t see any actual glitter. Inside, the notebook is full of 125 pages of 80gsm paper in dot grid (totally my jam). It also has 2 pages for a table of contents, two silver ribbon bookmarks, an expandable pocket at the back, and an elastic closure.

If I’m being 100% honest, it mostly looks and feels like another notebook that I really love: my well loved and slightly worn Rhodia Goalbook. Both are A5, and feature about the same number of pages, the extras (bookmarks, pockets and elastic). The Rhodia is a softcover whereas this Leuchtturm edition is hardcover, but the weight between the two is virtually the same.

The biggest difference I noticed between the two has to be the paper.

The Leuchtturm paper is a slightly different weight (80gsm vs Rhodia’s 90gsm), but the primary thing I noticed is that it’s toothier, more textured. Rhodia’s paper is super smooth, almost like it’s coated. So as I wrote I noticed that my ink went down on the paper differently. Whereas the ink sort of sits on top of the Rhodia coating and takes a short time to dry, the Leuchtturm paper sort of absorbs the ink a bit more. There’s no feathering or bleeding, and dry time is quicker; it’s just a very different texture.

Do I like it better than my Rhodia? I don’t know! I can definitely feel the difference when I touch the paper, and as I write, but I don’t know which one I prefer. Have you tried both? What do you think?

In Planners & Organizers

Product Review: Iconic Diary Stamps

AnaApril 10, 2023April 9, 20238 Comments

Sometimes, I browse through the new items over at JetPens and find a real quirky treasure. The Iconic Diary Stamps are just that sort of item. These are self-inking stamps that feature very quirky art work. There are 26 different designs available ($6.50 each). I purchased three to try and as soon as they arrived, I knew I would probably decide to order the other designs.

From right to left, these designs are: “I don’t know”, “Save me” and “Lazy”. Clearly, not your average planner stamps!

I tested these on my Stalogy planner paper and depending on how much pressure I apply, the stamps performed light to a little too dark. Lighter pressure seems to be better but I haven’t quite mastered the technique. I think a pencil board under the page I’m working on would help to create a firmer surface on which to stamp.

From the back, there is a bit of show through but no bleed through.

I also tested the stamps on 120 gsm smooth sketchbook paper and got similar stamping results.

Because the paper was thicker and more opaque, there was less show through on the back of the sketchbook paper.

I pretty much love the irreverent style of these stamps and the designs I chose speak to my lackadaisical attitude these days. I might have to pick up a few more of these — maybe the “Cheer Up” and “Don’t Give Up” — I’m not always this bleak.

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 Paper Review

Notebook Review: Nakabayashi Logical Prime B5 Notebooks

AnaApril 7, 2023March 25, 20236 Comments

Another pen show find is the Nakabayashi Logical Prime notebooks. These are softcover notebooks are stitch bound with a bookbinding tape over the stitches to reinforce.

There are a variety of interior paper options (Point, Graph, 7mm Lined and 6mm Lined) and the notebooks can be found around the internet in a variety of sizes. Yoseka Stationery stocks the Logical Prime notebooks in A5 size ($6 each).

The more unusual B5 size (6.9″ x 9.8″ or 176 x 250mm) was picked up from a vendor at a pen show. Which show? Maybe the California Pen Show. Which vendor? Taccia but they don’t list these notebooks on their web site.

B5 Logical Prime notebook with a standard Midori MD A5 notebook on top for size comparison.

According to the Nakabayashi Global web site, the Logical Prime notebooks are only available in A5 and B5 sizes though in the US market, you are more likely to find an A5 notebook than the larger B5.

All the internal rulings are in a fine dark green line. At the top or each page is a space for writing a title or description and date.

What’s really interesting about these notebooks is the unusual ruling options (I didn’t get one of the standard grid notebooks because after seeing the Point and Lined, the graph was just ho-hum). The Ruled options, both 6mm and 7mm actually feature two additional light dotted lines between each solid rule creating guides for much smaller increments. There are also dotted vertical lines at the same interval as the ruling so the paper can be used as graph if you want or need it to do so. The multiple horizontal lines would be great if you want to practice your handwriting or calligraphy.

At the top and bottom of the page are dots and tick marks indicating the center of the page, 1/3, 1/4 and so on. If you were wanting to grid something out on a page, these marks will help you maintain consistency from page to page. If you were to use these notebooks for bullet journaling, this would help to divide the page for week-on-two-pages, making a monthly overview calendar, etc.

Reverse side of the writing sample on the Logical Prime 6mm Lined

The paper is a soft cream ivory color, not bright white.

Reverse side of the 7mm lined page. No bleed through or show through.

There is not a huge difference, obviously, between the 6mm and 7mm lined paper but I know folks have clear preferences. When I was testing the paper, I thought I preferred the 7mm lined because I had a little more space but I was really jumping between the margins in a weird way so I think the 6mm is a bit better for my tiny handwriting.

Then there was the Point style which has dots spaced really far apart. On the back cover it says “12x15pt” which I think is 12mm dot grid (approx 9/16″) or thereabouts. That’s some pretty big grid!

I feel like a grid of this scale is a good compromise for someone who might want blank but needs a little guidance.

Did I mention that this paper shows sheen? Probably should have mentioned that sooner. So, good quality paper, unusual ruling options, and its affordable? You should probably stock up now. I don’t think you’ll regret it.

In feature, Ink Review

Ink Review: Troublemaker 2022 New Inks

Jessica ColesApril 6, 2023April 6, 20234 Comments

Troublemaker inks seems to be be everywhere lately – new dealers in the United States and the addition of several new inks as well. I’m showing off a couple of these new inks here – Butterfly Dream and Polar Lights.

Troublemaker packages their ink in 60mL dark plastic bottles. I have found some variation in price, but you can find it at Vanness for $24 (for shimmer inks) or $16.50 (for non shimmer inks).

Now for the inks themselves!

The base ink color for Butterfly Dream is an avocado green of medium saturation while Polar Lights is a dark purple-grey. Each ink shows some shading but nothing dramatic. I’ve seen a touch of sheen in each as well.

The two inks really stand out when the light is at the right angle. Butterfly Dream has a blue/purple shimmer and Polar Lights has a turquoise or green shimmer.

Polar Lights is a darker ink than Robert Oster Sterling Silver, but the two are close.

Polar Lights on Midori MD paper:

Midori MD paper at a different angle:

Polar Lights on Cosmo Air Light 83gsm paper:

Cosmo Air Light paper at a different angle:

And Tomoe River (52gsm TR7) paper:

Tomoe River paper at a different angle:

Butterfly Dream is my favorite of these two inks and is incredibly close to KWZ’s Prairie Green (Galen Leather exclusive ink). Prairie Green has lots of gold shimmer, however, while Butterfly Dream is a blue/purple.

Butterfly Dream on Tomoe River (52gsm TR7) paper:

Tomoe River paper at a different angle:

Butterfly Dream on Midori MD paper:

Midori MD paper at a different angle:

Butterfly Dream on Cosmo Air Light 83gsm paper:

And Cosmo Air Light paper at a different angle:

I have kept a pen (a TWSBI Go pen, medium nib) inked with Butterfly Dream for the past two weeks with no sign of blockage or slow ink flow so far. TWSBIs are a favorite of mine with sparkle inks since the feed has a slightly wider channel than other pen feeds.

What is your take on the new Troublemaker inks? Will these be on your to-buy list?

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were purchased by me for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Link Love

Link Love: Post Pen Show

AnaApril 5, 2023April 5, 2023Leave a comment

Cary Yeager hosting the Pen Show After Dark with Hong Nguyen

Kimberly Lau and a Pen Addict fan watching the giveaway at Pen Show After Dark

Audrey and Mike Matteson making ink selections at the Vanness table

Got to see a couple familiar faces, like this guy. (photo stolen from the Pen Addict Newsletter)

There are two guarantees at any pen show. One: good times will be had. Two: I will pick up Con Crud. Both can be said about the Atlanta Pen Show this year. There was time spent with friends old and new, a bit too much revelry and, on the way home, the distinctive misery of a sore throat and sniffles.

Me and Jesi on Thursday night during set-up

Jesi and I had a great time. We worked at our respective tables (Dromgoole’s for Jesi and Vanness for me), stayed up late drinking and swatching inks and hanging out with folks. Basically, your average pen show. The crowd in Atlanta was still smaller than it was pre-pandemic. Whether this is specifically because people are still hesitant to mingle or because there was not a big Pen Addict podcast event, I cannot say. Could be a little of both.

Friday was a decent crowd but slowed down around 3:30 or so. Saturday had a good steady stream all day despite some particularly rainy weather in the first half of the day. Sunday was pretty slow all day and gave vendors an opportunity to wander a bit, much to the dismay of our wallets.

I felt I had been doing pretty well not buying all the things– until Sunday. Friday, I purchased a lovely double-ended dip pen/pencil from Myk Daigle and a Kaweco AL-Sport from Vanness and had Matthew Chen modify the nib to a Kodachi grind (which I called the “Foccacia” all weekend because I kept forgetting the name. Ask for it by name!) Then Sunday rolled around and we had time to shop and I collected a small pile of inks and notebooks. And then, a vendor walked into our small ballroom and said “Pat forgot he packed this and thought you might like to see it.” The “it” in this scenario is a shop display of Lady Sheaffer Skripserts in tact. Yes, thirteen beautiful pens in a pink flocked display. It’s gorgeous and I couldn’t pass it up. With a little help from a friend, I was able to scrape together enough cash to purchase it and then very carefully carried it on the plane with me for the journey home like the treasure it is. I’ll do a more in-depth post about all the stuff I got at the show at a later date.

The epic Lady Sheaffer Skripsert shop display

Friends also brought us lovely treats throughout the weekend from snack bags with granola bars and candy to homemade jams to beverages to help us get through the last hours of the show each day. People always say that you go to a pen show for the pens but you keep coming back because of the people you meet. It is 100% true. Over the years, the pen community has become like family to me. We share life’s ups and downs, the pen scores and losses and many a laugh. I am delighted to be a part of this diverse, colorful community.

Jesi and I on Monday before heading to the airport

Now, on to the Link Love!

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In Paper Review

Notebook Review: Cortex Sidekick Notepad

Laura CameronApril 4, 2023April 4, 20237 Comments

A week or so ago Ana let me know she was sending me a new keyboard desk pad to try out. You may remember my fondness for desk pads, and my previous reviews of my Ruff House planners and the Original Crown Mill keyboard pad. Despite technology, I love having a place to write down my daily to do list, notes from meetings, etc. So when Ana sent me the Cortex Sidekick Notepad ($39), I was eager to test it out.

The Sidekick Notepad is designed by the one and only Myke Hurley, cohost of the Pen Addict Podcast. According to Cotton Bureau, “Sidekick Notepad is designed to sit comfortably with you and your keyboard. It’s ready and waiting for whatever you‘re working on. Capture all your tasks, action items, notes, and thoughts.”

Let’s get down to it. The Sidekick Notepad is listed as approximately 12″ wide by 7″ tall. (I measured the paper itself as 11.75″ x 6.25″ (30cm x 16cm). The Notepad has a sturdy cardboard backing and a cover made of a paper called “Extract” that is made from recycled coffee cups in London. It has scored edges so it can be folded over the back of the notepad while in use.

Inside are 60 sheets of Munken Lynx paper in a natural white color. There is a box for the Date at the top of the notepad and 2/3 of the pad has a dot grid where you can take notes, doodle, draw diagrams or the like. On the right 1/3 of the notepad is list where you can add and check off items.

I put the paper through its paces with fountain pens, fountain pen ink, brush pens, gel pens, fine liners and of course, Sharpies. The Sharpies always fail the test, but everything else didn’t show through, bleed or feather. Even the ink swab (which I did with cotton swabs) didn’t bleed through. You can see some distortion where the liquid was, but I wouldn’t expect a desk pad to be waterproof anyway (even though it might end up seeing some coffee).

Each sheet is perforated on the top meaning when you’re done, tear it off and start again on a fresh page.

I wanted to take a brief moment to compare the pad to a few others that I have tried.

Functionally speaking, the Sidekick Notepad is more or less the same size as my Ruff House planners. The format is different (the Ruff House planners have weekly undated planning pages) whereas the Sidekick is a bit more freeform. However, they are roughly the same size and weight, which I know does work for me.

The Original Crown Hill keyboard pad is more what I think of as something to keep right under my keyboard and handy for notes. It is much wider and thinner – it measure a whopping 16.5″ x 3.5″ (42cm x 9cm) and is a more convenient alternative if what you want is a notebook right under your keyboard.

The Sidekick won’t fulfill quite the same function as my daily planner, but I do think that it will be a useful addition to keep next to my computer, along with my planner, but better for notes in meetings, random thoughts, etc. With 60 pages, it’s likely to last for a while, though I suppose that depends on how active my days are and how many notes I really take.

I do like the paper – it is nice and smooth, and will handle any pen that I grab at my desk (I rarely use Sharpies so that’s not really a concern) and I think I’ll enjoy using it. The only question I have in my mind is whether I would continue to buy a notebook I just use for jotting down notes at $40. I should say, I don’t think it’s overpriced since it uses premium paper, recycled materials and is imported to the US from London. But if I were to use a page a day, a Sidekick would last me only 2 months so I’d have to decide if I’m enough of a devotee to keep going back for more. Let’s see how I feel after a few months and I’ll report back!

In Paper Review

Notebook Review: Plotter 03 Plain Card Size

AnaApril 3, 2023March 25, 2023Leave a comment

Another sample that I picked up at the California Pen Show from the Plotter/Traveler’s table was a Plotter Plain 003 Card Size Refill Memo Pad ($4.50 each). This tiny little glue bound pad with wraparound paper cover is just 2.1″ × 3.6″ (55mm X 91mm) which is just a tiny bit wider than a standard US business card (usually 2″ x 3.5″). Each sheet is punched with 3 holes to fit into your Plotter cover (or similar style ring binder).

Each Refill Memo Pad contains 80 sheets of DP paper, “DP paper” is an abbreviation for “Designphil Pocketbook paper”. The note on the Plotter USA web site says this paper is specially designed but isn’t specific as to whom it is specially designed. Is it just for the Plotter product line? Is it paper made especially to be used across all the DesignPhil products? Regardless, the paper is a cream color with a nice tooth.

Bob, the printmaker and paper genius, said “it has a lovely eggshell finish. Though some might call it an antique finish.” Thanks, paper genius for the detailed info. The DP Paper is 60gsm so it is thin and lightweight but maintains the properties we love about Japanese paper. It’s fountain pen friendly and shows sheen beautifully.

From the back of the sheet, there is no show though or bleedthrough. The paper held up beautifully. And due to their small size, these little sheets would be perfect for lists, to-dos and other notes. I think I might carry this tiny little pad in my pocket at pen shows for pen testing and notes. Often folks will ask for the name of an ink or other item we don’t have at the show so it would be nice to write it down on a sheet of paper smell enough to fit in their pocket or into their journal later.

Just for scale, I put the test sheet next to a Col-o-ring. The Plotter card size is a bit wider and a bit shorter than a Col-o-ring but it will give you a sense of scale.

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

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