Tag: Pen Case

Comparing My Many Pen Cases, Because the Road to Wisdom is Excess

Laura18 Comments

fountain pen cases

I was admiring my new pen case the other day, when I decided to compare it to the other pen case I have.

Okay, stop. I fell victim right there to one of the classic blunders. The most famous is “never get involved in a land war in Asia.” But nearly as well-known is “never check your pen things after you’ve bought something new.”

Because, when I pulled out “the other pen case I have,” I found more than one. I actually found pen case after pen case — a clown car of pen cases. At least one of which I swear I’ve never seen before.

Well. Some might ask “how” or “why.” But in the spirit of the age, I’d rather ask, “How can I rebrand a character flaw into something flattering?”

Oscar Wilde is the man for this: “Moderation is a fatal thing, Lady Hunstanton. Nothing succeeds like excess.”

Or the poet William Blake: “the road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.”

So what if Wilde died in exile after serving prison time, and Blake is synonymous with madness? All that means is that I have the sort of genius in pen-case ownership that isn’t recognized in its own time.

So I shall wisely compare my many pen cases.

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Liz Newton Pen Case

Laura8 Comments

Liz Newton standing pen case velcro desktop wrap

I just got a really nice standup pen case, custom made by Elizabeth Newton, and I want to show you. Because it’s a great case, and it’s a really great value.

Elizabeth hand makes pen wraps and sells them at Liz Newton Designs. Here is a link to her website. I first saw her wraps at the 2017 Chicago Pen Show, but they sold so quickly that I didn’t get one. When she posted a photo of a standup case on Instagram a few days agao, and said they were on sale, I jumped to buy one.

I ordered mine in royal blue and red, the colors of the Chicago Cubs baseball team. A few days later, this beautiful case arrived. It’s called the velcro desktop wrap, and it holds five good-size pens.

Liz Newton standing pen case velcro desktop wrap

The coolest thing is that when you put your pens in the wrap and close it, the case stands up by itself. Wow.

Because many is the morning that I, a human, struggle with that. But here’s this case, made of a soft fabric, in pretty colors, and it stands up on its own. Every single time, without groaning or grabbing its knee or wishing for coffee.

I’m not the most scientific person, but I know how this works. Magic.

Liz Newton standing pen case velcro desktop wrap

I can review this case in two words: It’s awesome. It looks beautiful, and works well. The fabric is attractive and feels nice to the touch: silky rather than stiff or rough. I like that it stands up, because that keeps the pens nib upwards. And I like that it’s easy to open, but also closes securely with the velcro.

Liz Newton standing pen case velcro desktop wrap

And I like how it looks. Go Cubs, Go.

I have a lot of cases, but I probably use pen wraps and pen rolls the most overall, because they are a good combination of light weight and protective. I tend to use pen rolls like this to carry pens in my purse and such, while I save the sturdier cases for when pens need protection from being smushed by a laptop or books or something.

The size of this case seems ideal. Rolled up, it’s compact. But it seems to fit all but the largest pens, and I don’t have pens that large. I know it easily fits pens the size of a Lamy Safari, and a Montblanc LeGrand. I’ve got five pens in there now: Pelikan M600-size pens, a Pelikan M400 size pen, a Montblanc 146 and a Montblanc LeGrand.

Montblanc pens in pen case Liz Newton

In terms of price, it’s a great value, especially now, because Elizabeth is having a promotional sale. The price can vary, depending on whether the fabric you want is regular or a special order. Mine uses a regularly stocked fabric, so it normally costs $20 plus shipping. But because the wrap is on sale right now, mine was $15 plus shipping. Shipping to Chicago cost $3, and took two days.

That’s such a screaming deal, I’m almost embarrassed. A pen wrap that’s hand-crafted and hand-sewn, in the colors you choose, delivered to your door for $18. Even if the case didn’t stand up, that would be a great deal. But. It. Does.

I feel like we all should get one. In fact, I’m thinking of getting another. Maybe blue/yellow, for my alma mater. Maybe brown/light blue, to class things up. Or brown with cream, likewise. Someone suggested orange/black, which would be fun. It could be anything, Even a simple red and pink, for Valentine’s Day, and every day.

The possibilities are endless. But this one is great.

Liz Newton standing pen case velcro desktop wrap

 

Chicago Pen Show 2017 “Haul”

Laura13 Comments

Chicago Pen Show 2017 purchases

We’re supposed to post our pen show pickups, so here are mine from last weekend’s Chicago Pen Show.

Seeing it all splayed out there is daunting. But magnificent. It takes a truck.

What did I buy? Two pens. One new, which is my first Franklin-Christoph. And one vintage, which is my second PFM I. Both pens are blue, which is my favorite color. I also bought five bottles of Papier Plume inks (my first). Three bottles of KWZ Chicago Blue. My first bottle of Robert Oster — Tranquility, recommended by blog readers. And a really cool notebook called the Zequenz roll up journal.

Zequenz roll up journal

In terms of gifts, Papier Plume threw in a stick of gold sealing wax, with which I intend to seal my many important proclamations, like “don’t put empty boxes back in the pantry.”

A friend gave me that empty Akkerman bottle. Someone else gave me a leather case (already in use). And I got a pin for a cool fountain pen blog, Of Quill Alchemy, from three amazingly talented students at the University of Chicago who run it.

The best present isn’t up there. It was finally meeting my dear friend Lou. We’ve known each other for years through fountain pens, but only via emails and letters, because we live so far away. Lou was in the area with his wife and brother for a family event, so they hung out with me on Thursday, the show’s first day.

That Thursday also happened to be my birthday. Now, of course turning 29 (once again) doesn’t phase me. I’ve gotten blasé about that, it happens so often. But finally meeting Lou and his family made for the best birthday ever.

pen wrap with opal

Lou made and gave me that gorgeous pen wrap. He knows me, however, so he handed it to me with the caution, “be careful.” The closure is opal. Which … okay, I’m fairly sure I’ll be googling “opal glue” before I turn 29 next year.

Inside, Lou stuck a few bookmarks, to remind me of some very important things. The last was, “remember to write me every once in a while.” He said that with a smile, because we’re both terrible at that. Not that it matters. Friends stay in each other’s hearts.

pen wrap interior

Along those lines, people in the US fountain pen community know that right after the pen show we unexpectedly lost Susan Wirth, a pen show mainstay and a great personality.

We always assume there will be a next time. But of course that’s not always true. So I’m going to try to remember to take more time for myself and other people. Rush around less, hang around more.

Fountain Pen Favorites for May 2016

Laura4 Comments

calendar image

May is always beautiful here and has always been my favorite month. This past week has been especially lovely in the garden, which is suffused with the lemony scent of older roses in bloom. And, yes, there have been pens and inks. Here were my favorites for May.

1. Pelikan M205 Transparent Blue. So you know how sometimes when you really look forward to something, it turns out to be a little disappointing once you actually have it? Well, that didn’t happen with the M205 Blue. I like it even more in person. Oh sure, the nib will never be for me, and the pen’s a little skimpy. But it’s such a pretty blue, and if it were perfect I’d only have to get rid of all my other pens anyway. Win-win, I’d say.

2.Boxing Out. May brought the best box for my Aurora Optimas ever. Not only does that gorgeous thing cradle the little fellows in plush comfort. Not only does it have ten (10!) empty slots that eventually I get to fill. But it also means my Aurora Optimas aren’t in the regular pen case any more, creating the erroneous but deeply satisfying impression that “I haven’t got that many pens after all.”

3. New Pen Evaluation Process. I have finally come up with a workable three-step system to analyze and evaluate matters when I want a new pen. It goes like this: (1) Don’t. (2) Don’t. (3) Don’t.

So far so good.

 

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Photo by Dafne Cholet, Flickr, used under Creative Commons license.

Flurry of Fountain Pens: Pen Group Meetup

Laura7 Comments

fountain pens in case

We had a wonderful group meetup yesterday in advance of the Chicago Pen Show, which is coming up in just a few weeks. We all brought some pens. This kind of meetup is great fun, because it’s not only a nice chance to spend time with nice people, but also a great way to see and try pens you’ve only heard about. Particularly if one of the attendees has a collection to die for, like my friend Dan. That magnificent thing above is his smallest pen case.

So that case holds a bunch of Pelikans, including I think six M800s and three M1000s, plus an 85th Anniversary Aurora and two Nakayas.  But that’s just one of his pen cases. Were there four or five cases? I lost count. Because, dazzled. His collection is like the best pen store ever, except nothing is for sale and everything is inked.

I tried one of his M1000s.  Now, the M800 is too heavy for me, so the M1000 should be a non-starter, being even larger. But I thought the nib on the M1000 was heavenly.  I tried a triple broad.  Which turned out to be not much broader than my Pelikan M605’s extra-fine nib.  (Joking, not joking. Owners of modern Pelikans will understand.)

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A Peek at the Pen Cups

Laura5 Comments

DSC_9614

My pen cup runneth over.  Both of them. And they show what’s going on here for the next week or two.

DSC_9647

I’ve got four Kaweco Sports inked right now.  Three of them contain inks I’m going to be reviewing, or might be reviewing or really thought I’d already have finished reviewing.  Those pens are blue, clear and purple, respectively.

The other is my new AL-Sport.  Which is new.  I am not sure I expressed that clearly enough.  I meant, new!  Well, actually, newest.  Newest!

DSC_9671

Does that photo up above look sufficiently dark and mysterious?  Good.  There are two pens there that I think are going to be pens of the week this very week, so I don’t want to give away too much now.  I hope it’s just like Pretty Little Liars here, in terms of suspense.  So you can tune in tomorrow, when I reveal “A.”