Inventory Reduction Summer Sale, Plus a Lochby Restock!

I mentioned briefly on Tuesday’s post that I need to clear out some old inventory in order to make room for some other projects I’m working on, including possibly bringing back the T.G.S. Special Edition Penwell and another run of Sunderland mk1 pens! Today’s post has all the details.

To start, take 10% off your entire order using the coupon code “SUMMER”, subject to the exclusions set forth below. This discount will be in addition to any clearance markdowns, and all orders over $75 still ship free.

Items with Clearance Pricing

The following items are on clearance, meaning that they likely won’t return to the store once they’re sold. That’s not because they aren’t great products - they are - it’s just that a variety of factors go into deciding whether to stock something. This includes the cost of obtaining it, the speed at which the inventory moves, the space necessary to store it, the cost of having it shipped to me, and the cost/time involved in packing/shipping the product and getting it to you. 10% discount applies on top of clearance pricing.

1. Caran d’Ache 849 Fountain Pens.

2. Caran d’Ache Ecridor Racing Ballpoints and Pencils.

3. Remaining Dated Planners (Traveler’s Company) and Planner Stickers (Midori). Marked down to 50% off.

4. Hightide 5-minute and 3-minute Sandglasses.

5. WMS & Co. Rubber Stamps (including some “cheeky” ones that remain).

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Last call for Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Edition No. 4!

Discontinued Items

Certain items, including limited editions are set to be discontinued or already have been discontinued by the manufacturer. Depending on demand and stock, some have been marked down to “clearance” pricing, some have not, but these are all eligible for 10% off + the free shipping threshold.

1. Soumkine Notebooks. Sadly, it doesn’t look like Soumkine is going to continue making their fabulous hardcover planners. Once these are gone, they’re gone. I’ve marked down remaining colors on clearance.

2. Caran d’Ache x Nespresso Edition 4 Pencils. Caran d’Ache just issued a “last call” notice for retail stock, indicating that these are about to go away. I’ve marked down my remaining stock slightly.

3. Caran d’Ache “Claim Your Style” Ballpoints Edition No. 3. I only have a handful remaining from last year’s run, and I have yet to decide whether I bring in the next season (not do I know when they’ll be available). Remaining stock has been marked down.

4. Kokuyo PERPANEP Notebooks. I’ve heard that these notebooks will be discontinued, but haven’t had confirmation. The paper is very, very good, and remaining stock is marked down.

5. Caran d’Ache Infinite 888 Ballpoint Pens and .7mm Mechanical Pencils. The pencils have been discontinued, so what’s left is absolutely it, but I likely won’t bring the pens back either once this batch is gone because I enjoyed selling them as a set.

6. Midori MD 70th Anniversary Fountain Pens and Ink Sets. I have a few of these left in stock, in blue and orange. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

7. Midori MD 70th Anniversary MD Notebook Light Special Set. I only have a couple of these remaining in stock. Like the fountain pen sets, they’re special editions and I won’t pick up another run.

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All Lochby cases are back in stock!

Exclusions

The only brands excluded from the 10% off sale are TWSBI and Lochby. Lochby has also been restocked, with Field Journals, Quattro Four-Pen Cases, Pocket Journals, Tool Rolls, and all the Tomoe River 68gsm notebooks currently available for purchase!

The Gentleman Stationer Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

In Praise of Perforated Pages: The Nebula Note "Casual Note" Notebook

Colorverse Ink, with their numerous “seasons” of ink and interesting colors, have established themselves as a stalwart in the ink world, and it was only a matter of time before they turned to paper. Featuring 120 pages of ink-friendly, 90gsm paper, Colorverse’s “Nebula Note Casual Note” notebook offers yet another excellent fountain pen friendly option. The notebook shown here features a durable twin-ring spiral binding, a fairly sturdy kraft/cardstock cover, three different ruling options, and - wait for it - PERFORATED PAGES.

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The perforations tear easily and cleanly.

I sometimes feel like I’m shouting into the void with paper companies and perforations. For those of us with day jobs that require us to be able to organize, file, and, yes, sometimes destroy specific pieces of notes or writing, perforations are key. (Unless you’re one of those strange people who loves picking paper scraps out of a spiral binding. Anyone who used a Mead notebook in high school knows what I’m talking about.) Currently, this “Casual Note” notebook and the Maruman Mnemosyne series are my perforated options of choice.

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I experienced no feathering with the Nebula Note paper, and since it’s textured and slightly absorbent, fairly quick dry times.

As one would expect from an ink company, Nebula Note notebooks features very good paper. I would compare the feel to a thicker, slightly more textured 68gsm Tomoe River. Colorverse markets this paper as “ink proof,” meaning that you’re supposed to be able to use it to write and swatch inks. I can’t dispute their characterization - I really pushed this paper scribbling with fairly wet pens and a sharp needlepoint and couldn’t get the paper to bleed.

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Zero bleed-through, and not much show through even with darker inks. You can easily use both sides of a page.

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Here you can see the texture. If you’re not a fan of toothy paper, you may not enjoy the writing experience, but I found it tactile without being “scratchy”.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

My overall opinion is that this is excellent paper, and I wish that more spiral notebooks featured perforated pages like this one. While things are getting better, those “ink proof” spiral notebooks that are also practical enough to use at work remain few and far between, and I’ve been tearing through this one fast enough that I’ll probably look to pick up a few more at the D.C. Pen Show in August.

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Some people may not like the “nebula” hologram on the cover, but I think it sets off my Platinum Karakusa (shown in the top photo) nicely!

You can purchase the Colorverse Nebula Note Casual Note from our friends at Vanness Pens, priced at $15. The Casual Note comes in three different rulings: dot grid, lined, and blank. The cover pictured here is called “oil green”, but other options exist, as well as additional notebooks that I look forward to trying out in the future.

This notebook was sent to me by Luxury Brands, the Colorverse U.S. distributor, free of charge for review purposes. I was not compensated for this review. This post does NOT contain affiliate links.

From the Curated Shop: Favorite Pens for Reading

Whenever I go on vacation in the summer, or even when I’m just lounging around here at home, I like to read outside (weather permitting). If I’m reading nonfiction, I tend to be a relatively “active” reader, meaning that I enjoy highlighting/underlining passages, entering marginalia and jotting down notecards that I sometimes store in a library pocket before I transcribe them to a commonplace book. I generally have a specific set of pens that I use as “reading companions,” mainly lightweight ballpoints and/or pencils that I can clip to the cover or tuck between the pages unobtrusively. It’s a major category that I’ve elected to stock in the shop, and since I know so many of you are avid readers, I thought I’d share my favorites here. If there are any “bookmark-style” or other annotation-appropriate pens that you enjoy and think that we should consider stocking, please drop us a line or leave a comment below!

[UPDATE: I’ve been reviewing my stock and it’s time to do a summer clearance! Take 10% off almost everything in the store using the coupon code SUMMER - automatically applied at checkout - and some items have been placed on deep discount already. Excludes TWSBI and Lochby! Sale Ends at 11:59pm on July 5.]

The Gentleman Stationer Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands shown here.

1. Traveler’s Company Brass Ballpoint Pen. My favorite pen for reading and annotation went with me to the beach this month and added to it’s patina. Lightweight and featuring a needle-tip hybrid ballpoint/gel refill, I consider this the perfect pen for marginalia and annotation. (We also sell the refills.)

2. Pokka Pens. While the tip isn’t as small as the needle-point on the Traveler’s Company Brass Ballpoint Pen, the Pokka Pen is extraordinarily light, and when paired with the optional clip, makes for an awesome pen to clip to the cover.

3. CW&T Pen-Type C. Fans of the Hi-Tec-C gel pen will want to consider this flat titanium “bookmark pen,” which gives you the CW&T writing experience at the $50 price point. Personally, I clip the pen to the front cover as opposed to using it as a true bookmark. (It’s also a useful pen to slip into the PVC pouch on a Traveler’s Notebook.)

4. Caran d’Ache Bicolor Annotation Pencils. The perfect companion for those of us who like to highlight or annotate in colored pencil. The standard graphite is relatively firm, so you don’t need to sharpen often, and it’s still dark enough to remain legible.

5. Mazzuoli Nobile ITALIA. A unique writing instrument that I haven’t written about in a whlle, this ergonomic ballpoint from Mazzuoli ships with three different ballpoint refills and a .7mm mechanical pencil insert. I have the “Aviation Blue” version with the mechanical pencil, and it makes for a great portable writing companion.

Pen Review: Kakimori Brass Dip Nib

Kakimori’s round metal dip nibs have been among the more difficult-to-obtain stationery items this past year. Following the hype that was the Drillog Kickstarter, interest in dip nibs that could be used to easily sample inks and do calligraphy exploded, and Kakimori has come up with one of the best everyday options, at least in my opinion. (It’s also a LOT less expensive than the Drillog.)

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Just use the side of the brass nib to lay out a thick line (or fill in your Inkyconverters ink stamps)!

So what makes this dip nib so good? For starters, it’s versatile. By varying the angle of the dip pen, you can also vary the line thickness - something that’s difficult to do with your average inexpensive dip nib or cheap glass pen. For example, writing with the broad side of the Kakimori nib offers you the ability to easily swab ink samples into your notebook and add a line of handwriting, using the same pen. And if you want to swatch multiple inks quickly, all you’ll need to do is rinse the pen with water and wipe the nib off.

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You can actually get a pretty fine line with the tip of the Kakimori.

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You should note that this dip nib does not fit into every holder. I’m not sure what “size” it is, but none of the holders I had at my house worked, so I ordered this Sakura wood holder from Kakimori. It’s quite nice looking, and I look forward to getting some ink stains on the natural wood handle!

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I’m close to declaring the Kakimori Brass Dip Nib to be the perfect ink sampling tool!

Takeaways and Where to Buy

If you’re looking for a dip nib for ink swatching, lettering, art, or just for general writing purposes, then you should definitely consider picking up the Kakimori Brass Nib. As of 2024, we carry the Kakimori metal nibs (in both brass and stainless steel) in our own shop. At $55, these nibs are not inexpensive, but they should last a long time.

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

Thursday Drops: Fountain Pen Friendly Paper and Landscape-Style Notebooks

One of my favorite developments in the pen community over the past several years has been the proliferation of the “landscape-style” notebook and notepads, particularly since this design allows you to work with a notebook below your keyboard. We carry fountain pen friendly, landscape-style notebooks in a variety of formats, including lined, grid, blank, and even a weekly undated planner. I’m currently using a combination of the WMS & Co. Planner Desk Pads and Midori MD Writing Pads for most of my own everyday writing!

For more on fountain pen friendly paper brands, and suggestions on high-quality paper in general, be sure to check out this page, which is periodically updated. The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

1. Write Notepads Landscape Notebook. The original landscape-style spiral notebook that we first started carrying three years ago. Available in a lined format, with six different color options. (Pro Tip: If you prefer a dot grid ruling, the standard Write Notepads Spiral Notebook can simply be turned sideways and used in landscape format.)

2. Write Notepads Weekly Planner. Track or plan out your week on two pages, with no dates so that you can use the “calendar” as often or as infrequently as you need. Featuring the same excellent fountain pen friendly paper as all Write Notepads products!

3. Maruman Mnemosyne Notebooks. We recently brought in more of Maruman’s excellent Mnemosyne line, and not only is the paper exceptionally fountain pen friendly, but the grid-ruled notebooks come in landscape format.

4. Midori MD Paper Pads. Both the A4 and A5 Midori MD writing pads can be used in landscape mode, and the pads even come bound on two sides for maximum durability.

5. Traveler’s Company Spiral Ring Notebooks. The B6 version of this notebook contains 100 sheets/200 pages of blank Midori MD paper in landscape format.

6. WMS & Co. Planner Desk Pads. Another exceptionally handy option for those of us who enjoy an undated planner or a scratch pad that’s organized in a weekly layout. The paper is quite good, and these desk pads come in both full-size and a slimmer format specifically intended for under-keyboard use.

7. WMS & Co. Standard Desk Pads. These larger blank desk pads and notepads contain up to 285 pages of thick writing paper, perfect for jotting notes or brainstorming. (Note that the colored paper is more appropriate for pencils and non-fountain pens, as it’s coated.)

8. Life “Noble Note” Writing Pads. While not a landscape-style writing pad, we don’t do enough to promote this excellent brand of Japanese paper, which comes in thick 100-page writing pads in three different rulings/formats.

9. Clairefontaine French-Ruled Looseleaf Sheets. We still have limited stock of French-ruled paper in these looseleaf booklets, which I find incredibly versatile for notetaking, drafting, and even letter-writing.

10. Soumkine “Oh My 307” Universal Planners. We still have stock of the Soumkine Hardcover Planners, which look like they may be discontinued (at least for now) as part of the brand’s redesign. If you’re a fan of long, skinny format planners or journals, give this one a try.