Uuni 2 - For Pizza Addicts Everywhere (Sponsor)

It seems a bit random for a small company making wood-fired pizza ovens to sponsor a pen blog but hear me out:

I believe that if you’re geeky enough to dive this deep into pens, there might be a few amongst you who thrive for perfection when it comes to pizza.

Here’s the Uuni story in a nutshell: I wanted to make great pizzas but couldn’t afford a traditional wood-fired brick oven. You know, the ones that are like $1000 or more and take up huge amounts of space. So I decided to invent and design a new type of wood burning oven that is small, incredibly fast and, most importantly, affordable.

Here are the specs:

• Ready to use in 10 minutes
• Cooks a pizza in 2 minutes or less
• Reaches temperatures of up to 840°F (450°C)
• Weights only about 20 lbs or 9 kg

To really get a picture of what delicious foods you can cook with it, check out more at Uuni.net.

How can you get one for yourself? There are two ways:

1) Order one on our website and get an instant $20 off by using the code PENADDICT at checkout. Easy right? We’ll send it out the next day.

2) Alternatively, you could try and win one. First to list, in the comments, all of the Field Notes editions shown in the photo above (starting from top left to bottom right) wins. Competitions closes on Boxing Day, Friday, December 26th at Midnight eastern. This contest is open only to residents of the US and UK. Good luck!

Update: Here is the answer key and some notes from Kristian:

Hey Brad,

How you doing? Ok, got this far now, here’s the official list:

Expedition

Fire Spotter

Cold Horizons

Cold Horizons

Night Sky

Night Sky

America is Beautiful

Drink Local Ales

Drink Local: Lagers

XOXO 2014 (Or standard)

National Crop

Pitch Black

Pitch Black

Country Fair New York

Day Game

Day Game

Northerly

Northerly

Ambition

Shelterwood

Shelterwood

Including the XOXO is what I feel a little bad about as it’s impossible to tell from a standard so let’s just count that as a standard.

Quite a few thought the Day Game is Balsam Fir. misstcnj got that right but then fell on thinking Night Sky is Raven’s Wing. S/he also got the Dot-graph wrong. Only two participants correctly spotted America is Beautiful.

So, I’m afraid there wasn’t any winners this time :)

Best,

Kristian

Kaweco Liliput Fireblue Fountain Pen Review

Reviewing the Kaweco Liliput Fireblue was a huge challenge, more so than any other pen I can remember. There is so much to discuss with it that even finding a starting place is difficult, but let's give it a shot.

The Fireblue pen came about as a special project from Kaweco CEO Michael Gutberlet. Each steel body Liliput - the first in this material I am aware of - crosses Mr. Gutberlet's desk to be individually tempered with a 600 degree flame to give them their distinctive look. JetPens has a great video showing how these pens come to life:

The colors that result are amazing. I got this pen sight unseen and when I opened the package to see what was inside it was a definite "whoa" moment. The blues, purples, coppers, silvers and nearly every other color of the rainbow had me inspecting every millimeter of this pen. It is fascinating to look at each and every time it is put into use.

Using it is great too, as it is with all of my Liliputs. The size makes it the most portable fountain pen on the market, and the steel body gives it a weight that the standard aluminum doesn't have and is close to the brass model. The nib I use is the bold cursive italic I swap between all of my Kawecos. Its crisp, sharp line is one of my favorites.

Since each Fireblue is hand finished it causes the pens to be somewhat supply constrained. They aren't limited but are a JetPens exclusive and the first batch of 40 or so pens sold out in a matter of hours. That shocked me to be perfectly honest because at nearly $170 this pen is very expensive. This is where my original dilemma comes in. Do you know what kind of awesome pens you can get for that price? It's a long list, and you could even grab multiple pens, and throw in some ink to boot.

So it boils down to this: The Kaweco Liliput Fireblue is pure luxury. Yes, many of the products I talk about that fit that description, but this one especially so. If you want a nice, portable fountain pen, you can grab the aluminum Liliput for $55, or upgrade to the amazing Brass Wave for $83. Is the Fireblue worth more than twice that? More people than I thought believe so. The market doesn't lie.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

Three Questions With Ed Jelley

I forget the first time I ran across Ed Jelley’s blog but I knew he was on to something right away. The style, the quality, the imagery - oh the pics! - all of it is makes for smart and interesting reading. My thanks to Ed for answering Three Questions.

1. What role do analog tools such as pens, pencils, and paper play in your day to day life?

I think that any notes that need to be recorded are best done with pen and paper. I have yet to find any digital note taking app or system that makes more sense / is easier to use than a pen and paper. In addition to work notes, I tend to doodle a lot. I find the process is much more enjoyable with a fountain pen and some nice paper and I find the activity to be a great stress reliever and an even better chance to let your mind go and put some thoughts on paper. On top of that, I write a fountain pen, ink, and paper review blog that a lot of my pen and paper activities are directed towards.

2. What are your favorite products you are currently using?

My favorite products that I have been using recently are the Omas Ogiva Albas that are in for review, the Quo Vadis Habana Journal, and my Nikon Df. The Omas pens are excellent writers, I especially love the standard medium nib. The colors are great and the vintage-inspired body shape is comfortable in the hand and a pleasure to write with. I'm really enjoying the size and construction of the Habana. The cover isn't as thick as that on the Rhodia Webnotebook and the 6.25 x 9.25" size is great to keep on my desk or throw in bag without taking up too much room. I've been using my Nikon Df since early August and I absolutely LOVE it. It looks like an old film camera, but has an incredible full-frame sensor. I usually have a 50mm f/1.4 lens on it. The photos are incredible and I love the classic styling.

3. What post are you the most proud of on your blog?

I'm most proud of my “Buying a Grail Pen” post. I put a lot of thought into it, and I love how the photos came out. I got a ton of positive feedback and I definitely think that it helped a few people realize that something they may have their eye on is not unobtainable. Also, I had a great time doing the podcast with you on how to start blogging. The response was great to that as well and it was super cool to see some new blogs pop up after the show.