Caran d’Ache makes, and has made, a wide array of high quality wood pencils. The line spans from everyday, student pencils, to luxury pencils made of unique types of sustainably sourced wood.
It’s not that easy to differentiate from one pencil to the next, despite the obvious care Caran d’Ache has put into these pencil. This article will try to clear things up a little and make sense out of this wonderful line of pencils.
Continue reading “Caran d’Ache Graphite Pencil Guide”
Fountain pen ink doesn’t have to be expensive. Today fountain pens might seem like a luxury product, but let’s not forget that not too long ago they were a standard writing tool used everyday by millions of people worldwide. Those people weren’t using luxury inks with delicate undertones, they were using dependable, affordable fountain pen ink.
Don’t let the marketing hype fool you… those great, cheap inks still exist.
Continue reading “The Cheapest (Good) Fountain Pen Ink”
There are few writing experiences that are more satisfying than a great gel pen. The right gel pen is buttery smooth, has color that really pops, and is a pleasure to write with on nearly any paper. Gel pens are truly one of the best and most versatile ways to write.
But there are many gel pens sold today. While there aren’t many truly bad gel pens left, a few stand out from the rest. We’ve tested dozens of gel pens, and these are our favorites.
Continue reading “The Best Gel Pens of 2022”
The modern ballpoint, which has a long and fascinating history, is still quite relevant. While other pen types have gained popularity and fountain pens have seen a resurgence, ballpoints have gotten much better as well.
Ballpoints are no longer the default writing utensil they once were, but they are still useful and pretty great for writing.
Erasable pens aren’t as common as they should be. These writing instruments have come a long way in recent years and now offer both very good writing experience and legibility, while leaving almost no mark at all on the paper. If you haven’t used an erasable pen recently, you should pick one up soon.
Continue reading “The Best Erasable Pens And Refills of 2022”
Learning about vintage fountain pens is a difficult proposition as the history of pens and the companies behind them is poorly documented and information often comes from a single source when anything was bothered to be written down.
Anyway, some pens have a rich history that is worth digging into, like the Pilot Vanishing Point and, in this case, the Pilot MYU and Murex.
Continue reading “Vintage Pilot Murex and MYU Fountain Pens Untangled”
Do you want a pen that writes with specks of glitter or little sparkles in the ink, but you also demand that it’s a good pen? Then this is the article for you. Read on to see our top-rated glitter gel pens.
Jetstream ballpoint pens are some of the finest writing instruments sold today, but which Jetstream pens are the real winners?
Pentel’s Energel is a legendary set of gel pens and they all very good purchases, but which Energel is the best?
If you are buying a Leuchtturm1917 notebook, you may have some difficulty understanding the company’s size offerings. This article will help simplify your selection process.
Continue reading “Leuchtturm1917 Notebook and Journal Sizes Explained”
If you want a retractable fountain pen, you have to understand that you are diving into a niche within a niche. Only a tiny subset of fountain pens are retractable, so there isn’t as much competition as you’d expect, but this is still a rich and interesting segment of the pen market.
Let’s review today’s top retractable fountain pens.
Continue reading “The Best Retractable Fountain Pens of 2021”
The Rotring 600 is a fine ballpoint pen and one of the most popular writing instruments on Unsharpen.com. The Rotring 800 is a similar pen, and, based on the name, possibly better. But is it better? If you are buying a pen, which should you get?
Continue reading “Rotring 600 vs. Rotring 800 Pen Comparison”
If you are looking for a great fountain pen under $50 you are going to have a lot of options… too many in fact! You might feel the pressure to spend more, but you certainly don’t have to if your goal is simply to get a great, highly usable pen.
This article will run through some of our favorite sub-$50 fountain pens sold today. These are pens we’ve tested, owned, and lived with long enough to form an opinion.
Many people see fountain pens as occasional writing instruments, maybe for doing some before-bed journaling or writing a letter, but that doesn’t have to be the case. The right fountain pen can be a great everyday tool, even if it never approaches the no-nonsense functionality of a ballpoint pen.
Continue reading “How To Choose An Everyday Fountain Pen (And Some Recommendations)”
If you are a fan of the Cornell System then buying a notebook with its specialized formatting can be critical to your note-taking success. But with so many notebooks available, which one should you buy?