We had a lot of product reviews to catch up this week, including a nib and a pen from Schon DSGN, the PLOTTER Narrow I am using daily. We also checked in on a few remaining Top 5 Pens page updates, and I discussed my philosophy on selling pens.
This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:
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(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)
It's been a long time since I've tried the Pilot Juice Gel Pens, and this adorable set of limited-edition Pokémon versions made me think it was time to revisit them. It was a good reminder that these are awesome pens.
My favorite thing about these pens, right off the bat, isn't even the adorable characters--it's the ink. Pilot Juice gel ink is pigment-based, water-resistant, and they can write on shiny surfaces like photographs as well as on paper. When I set down my fountain pens and reach for something clicky, these are the kinds of ink qualities I'm looking for. The pigments are also strong and bold, so even this very fine-pointed .38 mm tip writes a nicely visible line. I have had no issues with skipping or drying out.
My second favorite thing about them is definitely the characters. This Set B features four colors and Pokémon: Black (Pikachu), Leaf Green (Yamper), Red (Piplup), and Violet (Alolan Vulpix). The designs are colorful and charming, and (best of all) designed so that the character is facing you when you hold the pen.
The pen bodies are clear plastic with a click mechanism that matches the color of the ink inside, which makes it easy to select the color you want when the pens are in a case. They have a springy alligator-style clip that can attach to a variety of widths, though they aren't super strong or grippy. The grip section has a rubbery surface that is comfortable to hold. The section unscrews from the body of the pen so that the refill can be replaced as needed.
The price for these sets is $13.50 at JetPens, which isn't cheap for four pens, but it's reasonable for a limited edition set of pen bodies that are also refillable. There is also a Set A of 0.5 mm pens as another option. They're definitely in the "worth it" category for me, which is good, because my kids already stole mine.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)
If there's one thing I can never have enough of, it's A5 notebooks. Lucky for me, that particular size is easy to find in just about any paper quality, cover style, and binding style I could ever want. The A5 size just feels right in most situations, and I think it's great to always have one nearby.
The Bindewerk Linen Flex-Cover Notebook is the latest A5 notebook I've tried, and I'm really impressed with the quality that this hand-bound notebook packs inside.
Bindewerk is a small German company that produces stationery goods. This particular notebook features a soft linen cover that flexes easily like a poly cover on a spiral notebook. The linen is soft to the touch but still has a really great texture that makes it easy to handle. The notebook has rounded corners and zero branding on the exterior. The only branding is at the bottom of the inside back cover, which features a simple Bindewerk logo and "Handmade in Germany" in gray ink.
The notebook is perfect bound, and the stitching/binding feels tight and well-done. It can take some time to break in the binding so that the notebook lays flat without something to weigh it down, but once you've written a few pages of notes, it feels like an old worn notebook that goes with you everywhere. Unlike a lot of other A5 notebooks, this one does not have an elastic closure band or any bookmark tassels. It's minimal, and I love it.
The notebook I have features the grey linen fabric, but there are over a dozen other color options available. Regardless of the color you choose, you get the same linen fabric that I've really come to appreciate in this notebook.
The interior of the notebook is as simple and sparse as the exterior. There are no extra pages for titles and content lists — just 192 pages (96 sheets) of premium paper for you to work with. The pages aren't numbered, and there isn't any additional legends outside of the lines or grids (as in, there aren't any special date or title fields at the top). In my case, I have lined paper in this notebook, but you can also find this with blank or dot grid pages.
The paper is a light cream color and is 90gsm. I've had a lot of notebooks that claimed to be 90gsm that couldn't compete with 80gsm paper, so I've learned to take that number with a grain of salt. In the case of this Bindewerk notebook, the paper is absolutely fantastic. Bindewerk imports the paper from Italy to make their notebooks, and their paper choice is stellar. This paper is smooth, supple, and has a nice amount of feedback when writing. It handles fountain pen inks with aplomb and has almost zero show through on the back side of the page — even with dark, wet inks! I was really impressed by how well this paper behaved.
I've really enjoyed having this notebook on my desk over the past weeks. You can never judge a notebook by its unassuming A5 cover, but in the case of this Bindewerk Linen Flex notebook, it's something I highly recommend trying. At about $25, it's a good price. It's a few bucks more than some of the other large brands, but the price tag is worth the exceptional quality in my mind.
(Orange Art, the US distributor for Bindewerk, 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!
