(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)
Knowing that this post is going up on Black Friday meant that I could devote an entire article to a bunch of places that are vying for your post-turkey dollars. Instead, I decided to reflect on and share some of the little (and not so little) things that I’m grateful for this season, and really all year long. These aren’t in any particular order because it’s kind of impossible to rank them so here goes:
Pen Stores - Whether brick and mortar or online only, there are so many wonderful pen stores all around the world that we can shop from. It used to be much harder to buy from other countries and even with the pandemic, many shops still ship worldwide, making it easier than ever to get things that may not be offered in your country.
Ink Miser - Do you know how hard it is to get the last little bit of an ink sample from a vial? Especially when the ink level is below where the nib can get any ink and where the converter is likely to get dropped into the vial? I love that this little Ink Miser makes it easier for me to get the most out of ink samples. And even if there’s plenty of ink in the vial, I put the vial in the Ink Miser, which in turns goes into a holder made from my son’s LEGO pieces (sssh, don’t tell him) and it prevents me from knocking it over even though it’s pretty stable on its own.
Ink Miser with a couple ml of Van Dieman’s Hastings Cave (a really fun shimmer ink).
A sample vial in my Ink Miser inside my LEGO holder.
Fountain Pen Companion - I already waxed poetic (or not so poetic) about how much I love FPC but it really deserves another mention because I use it pretty much every day and often, multiple times a day. Tracking my pen/ink usage as well as my inventory gives this inkophile and pen addict a little more sanity.
Col-O-Ring ink swatch cards - You know what else saves my sanity? Having swatch cards for my inks. II started swatching my inks on these Col-O-Ring Ink Testing Cards shortly after getting my first ink samples 4+ years ago and umpteen rings later, I’m still not done. They’ve held up great (though I did upgrade all my rings to 2” ones so I can put 200 cards per ring) and are super useful at pen meetups and pen shows, and yes, also at my desk, while I figure out what the perfect matchy match ink is going to be.
I make two swatches for each color so I can sort them by brand (which makes them easy to find) and by color (which is great for matching inks to pens).
The top ones are sorted by brand and the bottom are sorted by color. I told you I have a lot of these! Ana, I’m going to need to place another order soon!
I love looking at all these different colors!
Instagram - I know it can be a time sink and who can figure out their algorithm, but I love scrolling through my IG feed, seeing people’s pens/inks/stationery and how they use them. Sometimes I get inspired by posts to do something similar, other times, I just marvel at people’s creativity, humor, handwriting, photography, or collections. The IG pen community has also been very encouraging, helpful and supportive regardless of what pens you write with or how much they cost. I am so grateful to have pen friends scattered all over the world that I hope to meet some day.
Scientists/Medical Professionals/Vaccines/Boosters - Without them, things would be so much worse and it would be longer before I got to see pen friends again. Because of all their efforts, meetups and pen shows are happening again. If you haven’t yet gotten vaccinated/boosted, please do so we can all get this pandemic behind us. And if you have, thank you! ❤️
Pen Shows - I was so lucky to find out that the SF Pen Show was happening just a couple months after I got my first fountain pen. Little did I know that I would get the opportunity to go to more shows after that and even get to work behind the table too. But it’s the pen shows after dark, where folks are gathered around playing with pens, hanging out with pen friends and just enjoying each other’s company, that really make me love pen shows. And being able to go to 3 shows this year after the last 18+ months and seeing my pen friends was really special and truly lifted my spirits.
Zoom - Ok, I know what you’re thinking. Zoom (and others) are the worst and we’re all tired of Zoom meetings. But, they’ve really been a saving grace during this pandemic. I was able to join and meet folks from pen groups in DC, Indiana, Missouri, Colorado, Southern California and yes, even my own local pen posse. Being able to connect with pen people and see their faces and hear their voices was something I really needed. So, while I’d much rather see people in person, I’m so glad this technology exists to keep us connected.
Pilot Metropolitan/Lamy Safari/Platinum Preppy - I will forever be grateful that these were my first fountain pens (yes, they all arrived on the same day) because they were all wonderful pens that I enjoyed from day one and still often have at least one inked up. If I didn’t have such good experiences with them, I might not have fallen down the rabbit hole and only my wallet would be happier for that.
I still use a Metro nearly every day and there is always a Preppy (or Plaisir) inked up and often a Safari too (even though I’m on Team #AlStarAlways).
Ink Samples - I am so glad ink samples are a thing because while I do have a stupid number of bottles, it would be even stupider if ink samples didn’t exist and I had to buy full bottles. I love having samples to try new inks and also making samples for friends too.
Rock Your Handwriting - I had discovered fountain pens after joining a Facebook group called Rock Your Handwriting, where people posted pictures of their handwritten responses to daily prompts. I saw these pretty pens and inks and promptly spent the next two nights reading everything I could and starting my first (of many) order for fountain pens. I probably spent the next two years following the RYH prompts and posting them on Instagram and Facebook. If it wasn’t for RYH, I don’t know if I would have ever discovered FPs and by extension, everything else on this list.
Rock Your Handwriting, Day 1
Yes, your handwriting can change with lots of regular practice! And I have 3 years of doing RYH prompts to thank for that!
Bullet Journaling - Wait a second, what does this have to with pens? Prior to 2017, I had been on a quest to find a planner that had a layout I liked and stumbled upon bullet journaling, which led to a random post about improving your handwriting and as you just read, the rest is history. And yes, I still bullet journal on a regular basis and am extremely unproductive whenever I’ve fallen off the wagon.
Good paper - I am so thankful that there is a plethora of good stationery that is fountain pen-friendly! From Tomoe River to Midori, to Cosmo Air Light, Black n Red/Optik paper, Clairefontaine, Ayush Paper and more, there’s just so much variety out there that one can take advantage of.
The beginnings of a notebook fort (don’t worry, there were many more notebooks after I unpacked more boxes, lol).
Pen Friends - I’ve mentioned them several times throughout this post but this hobby wouldn’t be the same without pen friends. Whether real-life friends or online friends from another state or halfway around the world, I couldn’t imagine feeling the same sense of community without them. Thank you for sharing my excitement of pens/inks/all things stationery, being helpful and supportive, sharing of your knowledge and of yourself in your posts and being a part of this community.
Brad - Without him, I wouldn’t be writing for the Pen Addict, nor would I have ever discovered the Pen Addict Slack and by extension, many of the pen friends I call family. Ok, this one might be one of the bigger things that I’m grateful for. ;-)
Thanks for taking a chance on me, Bossman. Can’t wait to see you at a pen show soon and give you a proper hug to thank you! <3
There’s so much more to be thankful for, not just during this time of year, but all year long when I look around at this amazing community and how lucky I am to have found my way into this rabbit hole. Thank you for being there with me.
(Disclaimer: All products pictured were purchased by my own funds. No compensation was given for including product links or pictures.)
