Platinum is one of Japan’s “Big Three” pen companies, but it doesn’t seem to get the same level of attention as the other two, at least in the United States. Despite that, Platinum makes some of our favorite fountain pens.
If you are considering buying a Platinum fountain pen which should you lean towards? Which are sure-fire hits that no one can deny is a great pen? Read on to find out.
There are few writing experiences that are more satisfying than a great gel pen. The right gel pen is buttery smooth, has an ink color that really pops, and is a pleasure to write with on all sorts of different paper. Gel pens are truly one of the best and most versatile ways to write on almost all paper types.
One popular question we get with people who are interested in pen mechanics is: Do any rollerballs use fountain pen ink? The answer is yes, but fewer than you’d expect. Here are a list of some of the top rollerballs that can be filled with fountain pen ink.
Continue reading “Rollerball Pens That Use Fountain Pen Ink”
Think about it, 2020 is just around the corner. The signs are all around you! Maybe that Hobonichi Tech0 Avec half-year journal is already starting to look a little broken in, or your 2019 Hobonichi Cousin is looking a little bit aged. Or, you know, maybe it’s just cooling down (or heating up) a little bit outside, depending on where you live.
It’s August, which means the Hobonichi 2020 lineup is just weeks away.
Continue reading “Hobonichi 2020: Everything You Want To Know”
Neil Gaiman, author of American Gods, Norse Mythology, The Graveyard Book, and many other titles is a dedicated fountain pen user. He’s talked publicly about his love of fountain pens many times, so with some research it wasn’t too hard to figure out what he’s been using over the years. He famously handwrites the first draft of his books using a fountain pen and then later edits them.
Gaiman, in 2012, mentioned that he has had between 40 and 60 pens, so this list will not be in any way complete but we’ll cover the pens he has talked about publicly.
Choosing a fountain pen isn’t always an easy task and a surplus of information can be almost as bad as a total lack of information. With that in mind this guide is designed to help you choose a Sailor fountain pen. Sailor isn’t is common as Pilot, Platinum, and a few other competitors here in the US, but they make some really exceptional pens.
This guide will help you decide the right Sailor fountain pen for any buyer at any price level in 2019. We’ll be focusing on the most popular Sailor lines, with the assumption that if you are looking for something expensive or rare, you probably don’t need a buying guide!
Adult coloring books have moved from being a quirky fad to being a real thing. A real, relaxing, nothing-to-be-embarassed about thing… and we fully endorse them. If you want to relax and do some art, with none of the stress of painting or figuring out what to draw, a coloring book can be the perfect way to zone out and destress.
So what are the best pens and pencils, and whatever else, for your coloring book?
Continue reading “The Best Pens and Pencils for Adult Coloring Books – July 2019”
Picking the best pen is never an easy task, but one thing is clear: there is a big difference between a pen that you will use for a few minutes here and there and one that has to be used for sustained periods of time. Just like when you are running and marathon shoes are different from sprinting shoes, pens for writing a lot tend to be very different than other pens.
The thing with pens though, is that there is no category of pens for extended time periods or distance, so we need to come to our own conclusions.
If you are looking for an excellent family of inks, you can’t go wrong with Akkerman. This is an extensive set of inks and its size and language can make it a bit difficult to navigate… but don’t let that stop you! Akkerman inks are too good not to try. Here is our Akkerman ink review after trying a number of samples and buying a few large bottles of this fountain pen ink.
Moleskine notebooks are excellent and easy to find, but they have notoriously lightweight paper. The company doesn’t say exactly what the weight is, but give most premium notebooks (Clairefontaine, etc.) are in the 90 grams per square meter (gsm) range, Moleskine feels to be about 70 gsm. This number might not feel too light, but it’s under a critical number at which many fountain pens and broad — often even medium — rollerballs will bleed through.
So, with that lightweight, possibly uncoated, paper in mind, what are the best pens for using in Moleskine Classic notebooks?
Continue reading “What Are The Best Pens for Moleskine Notebooks?”
Ever been handed a Tul pen or found one at the office and asked yourself, what kind of pen is this? It happened to me and other people have had the same question. So, what’s the deal with Tul pens?
The German company Schmidt makes some of the world’s best pen refills. Unfortunately it can be difficult to understand which one you need. This guide should help you work through your pen refill problems!