Next, her husband expressed interest in learning woodworking. They went from their home in the Pittsburgh area to Philadelphia to visit and play in her father’s home shop. That was enough to lead them to go ahead and get their own lathe and set up a workshop, making rollerballs, ballpoints, and mechanical pencils from kits.
Then came fountain pens. Like many of us who develop a taste for fountain pens, Egleton-Volz was one of those kids who loved stationery and found shopping for school supplies a favorite part of the year. She inherited her love of papers, notebooks, and writing tools from her mother who always encouraged her to keep a journal. Upon acquiring a Rhodia Goalbook, she searched for information online about how people were making use of their Goalbooks and saw lots of people using fountain pens. “The TWSBIs looked like too much drama and I didn’t need another complicated hobby. Eventually, I saw a Pilot Varsity at Michaels and got one out of curiosity.” Having enjoyed it, she stepped up to a LAMY Safari “and one of every size nib,” started watching Goulet Pens videos, and soon had a large collection of fountain pens and inks.
She began making a few fountain pens from kits, but also watched more videos about pen making and soon found the videos by Bob Blanford on how to turn a kitless pen. Although her husband still enjoys making kit pens, the kitless approach appealed to her, and she began acquiring the tools to make them.
At this point, Egleton-Volz’s professional experience came to her aid. “I designed a pen in CAD and then built it.” Her day job is as a manufacturing designer and drafter at a machine shop that makes very large, highly regulated parts and assemblies. “CAD is my bread and butter! It is how I make a living 40 hours per week.” The resulting pen is her Contour model, and the circle from childhood to her own shop was complete.
