New Premium Hardcover Notebooks From The Paper Mind (Sponsor)

The Paper Mind has released two new fountain pen friendly hardcover notebooks: The Passepied Cream Notebook and The Cosmo Air Light Notebook. And, for readers of The Pen Addict, are offering a special discount code. Read on!

Both A5 size notebooks feature beautiful Japanese linen hardcovers with stitched lay-flat bindings, 176 pages, and a pink blotter sheet. Available in blank and 7mm rule page styles.

The Passepied Hardcover Notebook contains an extremely smooth uncoated paper. Made by the hundred-year-old Hokuetsu-Kishu Paper Company, Passepied Cream was designed as a book paper with an extremely pleasant hand and a high opacity. This special ultra-smooth paper is a delight to write on and is fantastic with most types of pens, including fountain pens.

The Cosmo Air Light Hardcover Notebook features a unique micro-coated paper with a pleasing texture. There is no better paper for showing off shimmering, sheening, and shading inks. Your inks will achieve their full potential with maximum pop and sparkle.

The Paper Mind is offering 10% off to The Pen Addict readers with code TPA10.

My thanks to The Paper Mind for sponsoring The Pen Addict this week.

Sakura Craft Lab 002 Gel Pen Review

My first go-round with Sakura’s premium gel ink pen products, the Craft Lab 005, was positive from a personal usage perspective, but there were a litany of reasons, all laid out in the linked piece, why I would hesitate to recommend it. That said, I felt good enough about it to go ahead and buy-in to the product lineup once again, this time with the Sakura Craft Lab 002 Gel Pen.

The premise of the 002 is essentially the same as with the 005: unique design elements, fun colors, premium price. I’d even call this ultra-premium from a manufacturer more known for it’s $2 gel ink pens and markers.

This is a basic, cylindrical-shape pen barrel. It features a brass underbarrel, with an opaque acrylic outer layer designed to allow the color to shine through. And the colors are bright! I went with what may be the brightest, in Yellow, but they do offer a few basics, like Black and White, if searing Orange isn’t your thing.

The knock mechanism is a 180 degree twist to extend and retract the refill. It looks nice, and feels solid to use. It, and the nose cone, are exposed color, outside of the acrylic overlay on the barrel, which makes the color stand out even more.

Unlike the 005, which shipped with an interesting Sepia Black 0.5 mm gel ink refill, the 002 uses a basic Black 0.5 mm. I would have liked to have seen one of the other Black+ inks that Sakura offers ship with it, but they are available separately.

The refill is a good jumping off point to say that buying a Sakura Craft Labs pen is expensive from the jump, and the ongoing expense of buying refills sends the true cost of the pen exponentially higher. Not only are these low-capacity gel ink refills (compared to the standard gel ink pen refills,) they cost $4.15 each. At $45, you are making a commitment to the pen, and that means the refills, too. That’s something to consider in advance.

If I were to compare my 005 to the 002, I would take the 005 every time, and it’s not particularly close. It is $3 more expensive, and “only” has a plastic barrel, but the shape and feel of it are superior-especially the grip taper. The 002 is good in its own right, but there is only room for one of these on my desk … for now.

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

---

Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!

Misfill, Notebook Systems Edition

Each week in Refill, the Pen Addict Members newsletter, I publish Ink Links as part of the additional content you receive for being a member. And each week, after 10 to 15 links, plus my added commentary on each, I'm left with many great items I want to share. Enter Misfill. Here are this weeks links:

— Guide to Notebook Systems, Part I: What Is a Notebook System / System Techo? (The Gentleman Stationer)

— Contest: WIN A Pelikan M205 Apatite Fountain Pen & Ink Set (The Pelikan's Perch)

— last of the summer blues: inkebara petrol dark & sea green (a fleeting ripple)

— Vinta Mulberry on Midori MD (Inkcredible Colours)

— Limited Pens Korea x Leonardo Officina Italiana Momento Magico Pink Salt Fountain Pen (Gourmet Pens)

— Mini Pocket Notebook Comparison Review (Blake's Broadcast)

— What Are the Qualities of a Good Reviewer? (SBREBrown)

— A day late and a couple dollars short (mnmlscholar)

— Product Review: Ryan McGinness 2023 Calendar To-Do List Pad (The Well-Appointed Desk)

— Weekly Update: Pre-Dawn Running, Ducks, Books and Fountain Pens (Writing at Large)

— A London walk in a time of national mourning. (Fountain pen blog)

— Video-Review: Lamy 2000 Rollerball Pen (Scrively)

Want to catch the rest, plus extra articles, reviews, commentary, discounts, and more? Try out a Pen Addict Membership for only $5 per month!