Esterbrook The Travel Journal Workshop Set Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

Two of my favorite things, travel and notebooks, might explain my obsession with traveler's notebooks. I also love Esterbrook, so this Travel Journal Workshop Set from Esterbrook was a must-try. In the end, I found the whole set a little overwhelming. It's the maximalized version of what I usually enjoy in a travel journal, and while it's not quite for me, it would be the perfect gift set for someone just getting started on travel journaling, or a souvenir for a special occasion trip.

The set comes in a charming box that looks like a vintage travel trunk. Inside is everything you could ever imagine needing or wanting for a travel journal. It was a clown car of accessories. They just kept coming. Every time I thought I reached the bottom of the box, I found another envelope. There are: luggage tags, bookmarks, stickers aplenty, attachable pockets, bookmarks, patches, ink stamps, inkpads, a water brush, a set of watercolor paints, washi tape, a nylon storage bag, and the journal itself, which contains two notebook inserts (one lined, one grid), and a clear plastic pocket insert. This is a comprehensive assembly. Someone new to the hobby could instantly have it all. They better love Esterbrook, though, because everything is heavily branded. The design was inspired by Mareike Mert, a popular journaler with a fun, vintage vibe.

The focal point in the center of the debris field is the journal itself. The cover is made from a faux leather. It does feel and smell a bit vinyl-like. For folks who need to avoid leather, it's a good substitute. It's a traditional traveler's notebook design, with elastics that hold the inserts in place, and another elastic band closure. The cover has notches on the front and back that hold the elastic in place. The spine has a blue stripe with white lettering that says ENJOY TRAVEL, so you'd better enjoy it.

The inserts have cardstock covers just waiting to be decorated with stickers and pockets. They have both lined and grid paper. The paper is fountain pen friendly. The pocket insert had a folder side and a card-holder side, so it can carry your tickets, brochures, maps and ephemera.

The nylon bag stores the wealth of accessories well. The bag and journal itself, with all the pockets applied, can carry your travel journal arsenal to the ends of the earth.

If you're thinking of trying travel journaling and you want to test a bit of everything, this is the perfect way to get started. Personally, I've enjoyed collecting my travel journal bits over time, each one specially selected. But there's no denying the value in this box of tools. The whole kit sells on Dromgoole's for $79.95, which is much less than you'd pay for this many accessories individually. The design is cute and the pieces have been selected with care. My favorite is the fountain pen shaped bookmark. Travel season is nearly here, and it's time to get the kit ready to go!

(This product was purchased from Dromgoole’s at regular price.)

Not About Pens, Inks, or Paper

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

I spend a lot of time using my pens, swatching inks so I can pick the perfect match, and writing on different papers, so it’s no surprise that a bulk of my articles would be about pens, inks, and paper. In recent weeks, as I’ve been putting more effort into various projects, like working on my 2024 book journal (oof, I wish that was a typo, but I’m a little behind), I started noticing the non-pen/ink/paper things that have been sparking joy for one reason or another, so that’s what I’ll be writing about today.

Pen Rests

My inked pens are always in a pen binder, ready to be used at my desk, at a meetup, or pen show. But I often have pens that don’t leave the house because I don’t need or want them with me. Some of these pens, like my trusty Pilot Metropolitan and Tombow brush marker, are used every day in my bullet journal, but only to draw and write a date box. Others are used for projects, like my Kaweco/Kakimori for ink swatching, or the hand painted Winnie-the-Pooh Kaweco that stays at home because I don’t want to damage the artwork (scroll towards the end to see the pen). I will also put out pens that I want to ink up next. It’s also handy to have a pen rest in case you need to put your pen down, but don’t want it to roll off the table.

Pen rests by Galen Leather and Toyooka Craft, pen tray by Toyooka Craft.

Standing Pen Pouch

I did not think I needed a standing pen pouch until I saw this adorable boba pen pouch while shopping at bobo design studio. As soon as I got it, I rescued some of my favorite standard pens (which were jammed into cups on my desk) and put them in the pouch. I never take my standard pens with me (except my trusty Parker Jotter which lives in my pen show lanyard), but now I have a place for them when I am out and about!

How cute is this boba pen pouch? The pink “straw” is the tab you pull up when you’re ready to close the pouch.

Unzip the pouch and pull down on the two side tabs to reveal the contents - a variety of Legami, G-2, Frixion, Sarasa, Uni pens! (No Spokes here, they’re too precious to leave the house!)

Washi Accessories

When I first started using washi tape, I would either rip it by hand or use a pair of scissors. Both methods are fine but I found that my rips often would result in a very crooked tear and using scissors was just annoying. At some point, I realized plastic cards, like hotel key cards which I sometimes forget to return, work great as cutters. You can also get inexpensive clips that have a serrated edge that you tear the washi against.

Hotel key card (left) and a washi cutter (right).

But what I am really digging right now are two cassette style washi holders/cutters! As someone born in the 1900s (wow, that’s really painful to type), I especially love the retro aspect of the cassette tape. I really noticed how awesome this was when I put my “day” washi in it - it’s now so much easier to get just the right amount of washi for “Friday” when it’s in a dispenser like this!

Clear cassette from Kuboandlucy Stationery and black cassette from Kaleidocraft.

I’m also very fond of washi tape stands where I can have a few favorite washi on my desk, instead of having to dig through the stash. Right now, the washi tape in this stand is book-themed so I can bring it out when I want to work on my book journal. I’ve also put the whole stand in my bag if I plan to journal away from my desk.

Love this Trash Penda washi stand that I bought from InkyConverters a couple years ago. I don’t see them in her shop right now but I’m hoping they’ll make a comeback!

3D-printed Clickers/Fidgets

I will 100% blame Jaclyn Myers of Kaleidocraft because I’ve never been much for clickers until I saw her table at last year’s Chicago Pen Show. They are fun, silly, cute, and give my hands something to do when I’m feeling anxious or taking a break. They’re just the right amount of whimsy when I need it.

I love my PENS clicker that I bought as part of the St Jude Fundraiser as well as my fountain pen clicker. Both are from Kaleidocraft, yes, there are more, no, I’m not addicted to them, well, maybe I am, and no, this is not an ad, lol.

Ink Vial Holders

I am often swatching samples or making samples, and having a stable vial holder really helps prevent inky accidents. I first started by using an Ink Miser enclosed by LEGO I “borrowed” from the kid (I can use the Ink Miser for filling OR as a vial holder too). Thanks to 3D-printing, there are a lot more products for holding ink vials!

My dog (front left) and Inktopus vial holders from Ink-a-Pet (hat and hook sold separately). Ink Miser in a LEGO holder. I love the cup vial holder from RandomThinks - there are inserts for “coffee” or “green tea”!

Clips

Remember the book journal I keep alluding to? My book journal is currently in a Traveler’s Notebook which does not lay flat. Ditto the TN sticker release insert, as well as my other sticker release book which a friend gave me a few years ago. Clips to the rescue! Whether you use a Chip Clip™ , or other kind of clip, having something that holds your thin books open makes it so much more pleasant to use/write in!

Penco clip holding my sticker release book open, while the Traveler’s Company clip keeps my book journal open.

I’m sure if I looked around some more, I could find more things to talk about, but these were the ones that I’ve been using a lot lately. They’ve been making my life a little bit easier and sparking a little bit of joy. And isn’t that what we could all use a little more of?

(Disclaimer: All products are my own and were bought at regular price.)

The Superior Labor Petite Engineer Bag Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

It is possible that I carry a few notebooks around with me at all times, whether I'm going to work, running errands, or just moving from room to room. And since I'm apparently not allowed to have a pet alpaca in my house, I need handy ways to carry around said notebooks. So I have a house tote, and I know I'm not alone, just for my writing kit. Right now I'm using The Superior Labor Petite Engineer Bag. It's so perfectly suited to this purpose; I think I may have found my ideal writing caddy.

At first glance, I thought, "Oh, that's very tiny," but it is deceptively spacious. I can easily put up to four hardcover A5 notebooks in the bag and still not interfere with the space in the interior pocket, where I keep a few pens. A bottle of ink fits at either end of the main compartment. And stickers, bookmarks, a notepad, or other slim accessories can fit in the exterior slip pocket.

The bag is very well designed and constructed. Even when fully loaded, it feels well-balanced, with handles at the perfect length and thickness. It is made from a rugged heavy-duty canvas from Kurashiki. It is cotton woven on a shuttle loom that creates an especially thick cloth with a tight, lightly textured weave. If you're concerned that I may have fallen down another of my textile rabbit holes on this one, YES I did, and I'm taking you with me. If you're interested, you can read a bit about the history of this fabric making here and here.

The natural cream colored cotton is painted on the bottom with a thick paint that adds structure and strength to the bottom of the bag. There are a variety of paint colors available. The front is also stamped with The Superior Labor logo and "Standard and Strong, we take pride in craftsmanship and never skimp on time and effort, Made in Japan." This is awfully chatty for a bag, but the design of the stamping looks nice. It also kinda feels like my writing bag is shaming me into doing my writing, which is honestly helpful sometimes.

Apart from the canvas body of the bag, the handles and slip pocket are made from thick but flexible vegetable-tanned leather. It is undyed and is already beginning to take on an elegant aged look. All of the straps and pockets are fastened with brass hardware stamped with "The Superior Labor." The brass is also taking on some great character.

From the weaving to the brass casting to the sewing, painting, and washing, the bag is entirely made by hand by Japanese craftspeople, and that care shows in the finished product. This bag will probably outlive me, which is fair, because so will my writing deadlines.

Needless to say, I absolutely love this bag. Due to their laborious construction, they can be a little hard to find available. And they are rather expensive. Dromgoole's often carries them, where this Petite Engineer Bag sells for around $90. Is that a lot for a small bag--yes. I'd argue that this one is worth it, given the materials and craftsmanship. After researching the weaving process, I might even say that's underpriced, considering what many mass-produced, fast-fashion bags cost these days. The Superior Labor does have smaller pouches, as well, along with some fantastic accessories--and some larger tote bags that now reside on my Grail Quest list.

(Brad purchased this product from Dromgoole's at regular price for review purposes.)

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