Rhodia Webnotebook Giveaway

"Rhodia. We are better than Moleskine."

There is your new official slogan Rhodia. You're welcome.

Everyone loves Rhodia, myself included. The paper is wonderfully smooth, and if you can accept the longer ink drying times (the tradeoff for smoothness), Rhodia could be your one and only. I'm not that monogomous in my stationery relationships, but I recommend Rhodia more than any other paper brand on the market.

If you have never used Rhodia before I am here to (hopefully) help you out. I have two Rhodia Webnotebooks of the Black, 5.5" X 8.25", Dot Grid variety courtesy of JetPens to give away. I love this product, and I think you will too. Here is how to enter:

1. Leave one comment on this post anytime between now, and Thursday night at 11:59 PM Eastern Time. You are limited to one entry. This contest is open to US and International readers.

2. For this contest, I will pick two winners at random from the comments section of this post. The comments will be numbered in the order they are received, i.e. the first comment is #1, the second #2, and so on. The Random Integer Generator at random.org will be used to pick the numbers of the winner.

3. The contest winners will be posted on Friday, September 13th. The winners will have one week to email me via the Contact link at the top of the page to claim their prize.

Thanks and good luck!

Chris Reeve Sebenza 21 Review

My friend Tony from Everday Commentary had a great idea a few months ago: Let's swap and review some of our favorite products. He had his eye on my stealth black Pilot Vanishing Point - a great choice for many EDC'ers - and he offered up one of the holy grail knives in his collection - the Chris Reeve Sebenza 21.

I'm not going to lie, I had never heard of the Sebenza before Tony offered it up for review. After some quick Googling I realized how respected and lusted after this knife is. To put it in pen terms, this is the Nakaya of blades. Own a Sebenza and your collection is nearly complete.

I don't own a Nakaya yet but had a loaner in my hands recently (review coming soon). It is a spectacular pen, but there is one area where my comparison between it and the Sebenza falls short, and is possibly unfair: Usability. If and when I own a Nakaya, it will be treated with museum-quality care. The Sebenza, on the other hand, begs to be used.

I carry a pocket knife nearly every day but am hardly an expert in this realm. My daily carry is a choice between a Spyderco Delica 4 and a Victorinox Bantam Alox. The Delica is a combo edge (1/2 plain edge, 1/2 serrated) which helps me cut a wide array of things from cat-5 cables to simple boxes. The Bantam goes with me nearly everywhere else and is unbelievably handy. That is my entire blade arsenal in a nutshell.

When looking at a more serious blade like the Sebenza many other specs come into play, not just "hey, that looks good" which is how I have shopped before. From Tony's perspective, the things he grades on are steel, grind, blade shape, lock, design, fit and finish, deployment method, retention method, grip, and carry. Sounds kind of like a certain pen obsessive we know, doesn't it?

While I can't speak fluently on all of those topics I do know one thing: Put a knife the quality of the Sebenza 21 in your hand and the differences become apparent quickly. The blade alone - I don't know what to say - I've never used anything like this. I could shave with the edge that has been put on this thing. It feels strong with surgical precision. Unbelievably nice.

The handle is very sturdy and fits perfectly in the hand. It has a good weight to it and the balance is spot on with the blade engaged. Being used to the Spyderco hole method of deployment, the thumb stud took some getting used to. A few minutes of dedicated opening and closing had me all set. A strong clip is mandatory for me as well and the Sebenza stuck to my hip like a puppy in a thunderstorm.

So what is a person like me to do? I believe in paying for quality but I haven't been living up to that philosophy in regard to my knife carry. I turned that corner with fountain pens within the last year. Time to step it up with another essential item I carry with me every day.

Ink Links

-- Zebra Z-Mulsion EX Ballpoint Pen Medium (Informal Scribble)

-- Datation of Japanese Pens. II. Pilot Nibs (Crónicas Estilográficas)

-- The Pocket Pencil of Johann Faber (Palimpsest)

-- COMING 9/23/13 - TOPO designs + dp mountain briefcase (doane paper feed)

-- rOtring 600 Ballpoint with Knurled Grip - Pen Review (The Clicky Post)

-- Review: Stipula Calamo Musk Green Ink (Gourmet Pens)

-- De Atramentis Oriental Red – Ink Review (Ed Jelley)

-- Foreign Fountains (Part I) - Scrikss 17 (Ionsomnia)

-- Notebook Review: TWSBI (Rants of The Archer)

-- Lamy Safari Review (Everyday Commentary)

-- Review: Kaweco Liliput EF (The Well-Appointed Desk)

-- The World's Best Website About Pencils (The Atlantic) (Congrats Johnny!!!)

-- Diamine Presidential Blue This is a very lovely (Pens! Paper! Pencils!)

-- Review: Edison Menlo Pump Filler (Fountain Pen Quest)

-- A grab bag of new Moleskine products (Boing Boing)

-- Pelikan 400 NN Fountain Pen / Pelikan 400 NN Dolmakalem (Write to Me Often)

-- Derek Chatwood (The Setup)

-- Tale of a Vandal Pen User: Eyedroppers, Part 1 (Peaceable Writer)

-- Rohrer and Klingner Solferino (East...West...Everywhere)

-- Wow: Sheaffer Taranis (Sleek Chrome) Fountain Pen (From the Pen Cup)

-- Is that a pen in your pocket or… (Leigh Reyes)

-- How I'm using my Midori Traveler's Notebook!! (The Life of The Perpetual Student)

-- Pens I Use In My Arc (Arc It!)

-- Lamy Safari White Medium nib (pensetc)

-- Lamy Tipo Review (Pen&Design)

-- This Is A BIC Collection!! (My Supply Room)