2016 Holiday Gift Guide for Fountain Pen Addicts

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Pen friends in the US are celebrating Thanksgiving this week and the countdown to Black Friday begins!  It got me thinking that a holiday gift guide would be helpful.  This guide is primarily intended for the non-pen person looking for a gift for the fountain pen aficionado, whether newbie or seasoned, in his or her life.

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Currently Inked: November 2016

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October came and went in a flash!  With the Scriptus pen showthis past Sunday and yesterday being Halloween, I didn't have much time to prepare my pen + ink combos for November.  Without further ado, here they are...

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Throwback Thursday: Quick Look at Pilot/Namiki Vanishing Point Raden Water Surface + Pilot Iroshizuku Kon Peki

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For this week’s Throwback I’m revisiting a pen + ink combo from my July line-up.  Some of you will know that the Vanishing Point Raden Galaxy with Medium nib is one of my first fountain pens.  I love the VP but I always felt that the medium nib a bit too wide for my taste.  So when I got the Raden Water Surface, I got the fine nib.  The first thing I did was ink it up with Kon-Peki. 

 

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Currently Inked: Loadout for Weekend Hockey Tournament

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October has been fairly light in terms of travel but duty called. This time the duties as a hockey mom which involved going with my son and his team to the city of Kitchener for a hockey tournament. Originally this was supposed to be a 3 day trip but cut short by the sad reality that our team did not make it into the final day of the tournament. On a positive note, it gave me an opportunity to plan another pen + ink load out.

Apart from my must-bring Hobo and TN, I wanted to bring whatever pens and paper I could fit inside a larger case. The case I had in mind was the A5 sized Lihit Lab Teffa Bag in Bag. I was expecting to travel a lot from rink to rink and I wanted a self-contained writing tool kit that I could bring along.

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Throwback Thursday: Quick Look at Franklin-Christoph Pocket 40 Blue-Violet and Ice + Pilot Iroshizuku Asa Gao

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For this weeks’ Throwback Thursday, we take a look at another pen and ink combination from my July line-up.

Handwritten Review

Pen: Franklin-Christoph Pocket 40 Blue-Violet and Ice 1.1
Ink: Pilot Iroshizuku Asa Gao
Paper: Rhodia No. 16 Grid


 

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Currently Inked: Loadout for Short Cottage Escape

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Last Wednesday, I posted some picturesI took on a recent hike. In fact, I went on a 1 night, 1 day get away trip to the cottage with the family. To be precise, we headed up on Friday night, September 30th. And headed back home on October 1st. I pondered a bit on what pens I should take seeing as I still had a couple of September inked pens to use up and my planned pens for October were only partially inked up. So, I did what any rational pen addict would do for a 1 day trip that starts at the last day of one month and ends on the first day of the next month: I took all pens in sight! 

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Currently Inked: October 2016

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I’m posting my pen & ink line-up a later than originally planned.  I had hoped that a new pen that shipped out at the end of September would have arrived in time to join the October line-up.  I decided to go ahead and post my Currently Inked for October and do an addendum for the new pen.

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Currently Inked: Loadout for Ottawa Conference

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One week after returning from my trip to Philly, I was off to Canada’s capital, Ottawa, for a conference.  I barely unpacked but gave some thought to my pen and stationery carry for this 2 day trip.  Once again, I dipped into my September pen & ink line-up for this outing. This is what I brought.

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Wordless Wednesday: Parade of Fountain Pens in the Early Morn

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One quiet morning at the cottage, the fountain pens came out to play...

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Currently Inked: Loadout for Trip to Philadelphia

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After coming home from my annual family cottage vacation, I barely got my luggage unpacked before repacking for a short trip to Philadelphia.  A few days was for working but there was a little time for sightseeing too. 

Since this would be shorter trip I decided to pack lightly in terms of writing instruments and stationery especially since I was intending NOT to check any baggage.

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Currently Inked: August 2016

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I headed off for my annual family cottage vacation a few days before the end of July. It was a hectic last week before I left so there wasn't time for me to switch to August ink fillings, plus, many of the pens inked up in July were 'not quite' used up.  So, I did what any reasonable pen and ink addict with do in this circumstance...I packed up all my July pens, my planned August pens and all the ink I could find that was in plastic bottles or vials.   These are think pairings I ended up with.

 

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