Whiskers & Paws: February 2014 Edition

Review: @poppin The Main Attraction Silver Pen With Magnetic Cap

What. That title is mind blowing, isn't it? It has so many fancy words, like poppin., attraction, silver, and magnetic. Poppin. is pretty much a world of rainbow stationery p0rn. A huge thank you to Mike from The Clicky Post for sending this fine pen for review (also a lot of stationery p0rn there).

ABOUT

Length: 5.5"
Diameter: 13 mm
Weight: 41g/1.5oz
Fill type: Ballpoint
Price: $16.00USD
Where to buy: Poppin.

PACKAGING

Whoa, this is pretty cool packaging. A slide out box of some solid, thick board of some sort. Inside the box, in a foam bed, the pen is safely nestled. Pretty cool for a ballpoint. It's kind of Apple-esque. I think this box even makes the Keep It? cut...

APPEARANCE

The pen is a thick, blunt rod of a pen. I did not expect it to be so large! I popped it out of its little bed in the box to check it out. The cap is short when compared to the length of the body. The clip is metal as well, matching the body, and is built in. The end has a narrow blunt edge where it is designed for the cap to post. The whole body is shiny and silver. The only writing on the pen is in a light matte white, near the end of the pen, where it says poppin. Overall, it has a nice appearance that I think is appealing.

But this is a pretty big pen.

PERFORMANCE

The Main Attraction silver pen writes well with the refill it was shipped with. It is advertised as a black Swiss-made ink that I assume would suggest it is a premium ballpoint ink. All I can tell you is that it didn't blob, which made me happy. The pen itself is a heavy pen so after awhile, my hand did tire, and it's quite large to hold, though the section design did help my grip, which made holding the pen more comfortable. Once it was posted, it quickly became too heavy for me. It behaved well though.

PROS

• Highly entertaining magnetic cap. 
• Bold tipped ballpoint refill. 
• Ballpoint ink that doesn't blob!
• Design of section holds fingers in place while writing.
• Refillable (of course).

CONS

• Somewhat girthy for smaller hands. 
• Difficult to re-cap because of magnet polarity, unless you are really efficient or have good aim (which I am not, and do not).  
• Top heavy when posted.

OVERALL

This is an interesting pen. I was personally very attracted to the magnetic concept, though I think the $16.00USD is a little bit steep. Nevertheless, it's a pretty fun pen that is cool looking. It writes well - it's great when a ballpoint doesn't blob - but you'd have to decide if it's worth $16.00, of course. Mostly, it was entertaining to play with the magnetic ends.

Thank you again, Mike. I am magnet crazed.

Wordless Wednesday

Giveaway at @Pen_Addict @ClickyPost

The Pen Addict is giving away one of these: The Groove by Dudek Modern Goods! You may recognize Dudek from Mike Dudek, from The Clicky Post! Or you may recognize The Groove from all things awesome. Giveaway closes February 27th, 2014 at 11:59 pm EST. This giveaway is open to US and international readers!! Click here for details!

@AndersonPens Live Video Podcast ... Plus GIVEAWAY! @MonteverdePens

Yeah, I knew that would get your attention. Tune in tonight, Tuesday, February 25th, 2014 at 8 p.m Central where Brian and Lisa will be talking about the upcoming Baltimore Pen Show. Oh. Giveaway. Right! You'll also have the chance to win a Monteverde Jewelria pen during the show! Check out their blog!

Sunday Reads - February 23. 2014

• Homemade chocolate pudding.
• Sea salt, cashew, and milk chocolate chip cookies. 
• GIVEAWAY ROUNDUPS
•  Resor Shop
• Peninkcillin, Monteverde, and JetPens
• Pens! Paper! Pencils! and Pen Habit
• JetPens and Pilot 
• Resor Shop and Midori
• Cuteness level. These aren't new but they're so cute. Dik-diks!
• A Fool With A Pen reviews the Noodler's Ahab. Also check out the Franklin Christoph M40P Fire & Ice as an eyedropper. 
• On being introverted, shared by Mia on Twitter. Thanks Mia. 
• Oh the blue-green Lamy Al-Star is pretty. See it also at Write To Me Often. 
• Ed Jelley reviews the sexy rOtring 800 pencil. Dammit. Don't miss Ed's review of Diamine Ancient Copper either, one of my favourite inks. 
• From The Pen Cup reviews the Monteverde Artista Crystal Wild Stripe fountain pen. It looks like candy. I suppose this would be safe enough to taste. 
• Someone recently asked why anyone would bother carrying a pocket knife (after I posted mine on Instagram). Well, here's a good reason shared by Pencils.com: sharpening your pencil!
• That One Pen reviews the Retro51 Tornado Stealth. I like it. I really think I should just own at least one of each Tornado out there. 
• These Beautiful Pens reviews the very pretty Jinhao 650 Pearl. Le sigh. I fear I may need this one, too. 

Oh, and a happy birthday to our very own SBRE Brown! Have an inktastic, peneriffic day!

What have you been reading this week?

Giveaway at @JetPens @PilotPenUSA

JetPens is giving away a Stipula Vedo fountain pen with a medium nib and a bottle of Pilot ink in blue black. Giveaway is for US residents only. Closes February 26th, 2014 at 5 pm Pacific. Click here for details!

Pen, Ink & Paper P0rn

Pelikan inked with Rohrer & Klingner Alt-Goldgrün

Sailor Jentle Apricot

Giveaway at @ResorShop

Oh the fine folks at Resor Shop are at again... back with another giveaway of a Midori Traveler's Notebook! They are giving away a customized Traveler's Notebook but we don't get to see what it looks like until the winner is announced - so the winner gets to see it. Super cool. Also cruel. But I guess we'll live. This giveaway is open worldwide. Even better. Click here for details!

Giveaway Round Up @Peninkcillin @JetPens @MonteverdePens

Peninkcillin is giving away a bottle of Monteverde Brown fountain pen ink through JetPens. Giveaway closes February 26th, 2014 at midnight PST. US residents only. Click here for details!

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JetPens is giving away a set of scrapbooking supplies! Giveaway is for US residents only, and closes February 24th, 2014 at midnight PST. Click here for details! You could win:

• 3 SP & Company Stamp Store clear stamp sets
• 1 pack of Sakura Gelly Roll Stardust Gel Ink Pens
• 1 pack of Sharpie Standard Marker Pens

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Review: @Sheaffer_Page Sentinel Signature Ballpoint Pen @GoldspotPens

Thank you Sheaffer for sending this Sentinel Signature ballpoint pen for review! There are four finishes available in this series and they are all quite pretty... attack of one-of-everythingitis.

ABOUT

Price: $30.00USD
Where to buy: Goldspot Pens

PACKAGING

The Sentinel Signature ballpoint pen arrived in a classic black Sheaffer box. Inside, it was in a plastic sleeve, nestled on a felt bed. Under the bed, there is a warranty pamphlet for Sheaffer's limited one year warranty. The packaging is simple though quite large for such a slim pen. It does not meet the Keep It? cut though.

APPEARANCE

I found the Sentinel Signature quite striking in its simplicity. The pen is slim but not overly so. Most of the pen is a glossy black, with a chrome tip, and a checkered chrome top, clip, and knocker. The classic Sheaffer White Dot can be found at the top of the clip as well. I think the combination of the glossy black barrel and the understated checkered pattern on the top of the pen is great. It looks really nice.

PERFORMANCE

This ballpoint pen performs quite well. The refill supplied is a Sheaffer "K" ballpoint refill and I was quite pleased with it because it started up right away, did not give any blobbing or smearing issues, and wrote continuously without skipping, at high and low angles.

The tip is a decent size - a true medium. Not too bold, not too fine. It's a good width for every day use.

After a long writing session, I felt the slim profile and fairly light weight of the pen was a little wearing on my hand, because I had to hold it so tightly to keep a good grip on it. Ballpoints, of course, are not generally that ergonomic - at least not the typical ballpoint pen. This one has no grip area or design to cater to long writing sessions, so don't expect to use it extensively. For shorter writing sessions, it is ideal. Otherwise, people with larger hands or long writing sessions will feel the fatigue.

OVERALL

I think Sheaffer has made a nice ballpoint pen here. It's quite attractive and because there are three other finishes available, I think there will be a finish that will be appealing to almost anyone. Personally, a price point of $30.00USD is not too shocking for a nice ballpoint pen, so I would say this is decently priced. The only issue would be whether it is too slim, if you intend to use it for long writing sessions.

I received this pen free of charge for the purposes of this review. I was not compensated monetarily for my review. Everything you've read here is my own opinion. There are no affiliate links in this review.

Giveaway Round Up @JetPens @MonteverdePens @ClickyPost @LamyUSA @PentelofAmerica

Monteverde Pens is giving away an Intima green fountain pen on Facebook! I want. Giveaway ends February 21st, 2014. Click here for details!

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The ever magical Mike of The Clicky Post is giving away an Odin leather pen case and a Lamy Safari rollerball pen on Instagram. Giveaway ends February 22nd, 2014 at noon MST. Click here for details!

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JetPens is having a red giveaway and there will be two winners! Giveaway closes February 21st, 2014 at midnight Pacific. US residents only. Click here for details! You could win (along with a friend maybe):

• Lamy Nexx Fountain Pen - Fine Nib - Coral
• Lamy Fountain Pen Ink Cartridges - Red - Pack of 5

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JetPens is also giving away a Rotring drafting pencil and eraser set to one lucky winner! God I wish it could be me. Giveaway is for US residents only, and closes on February 25th, 2014 at midnight Pacific. Click here for details! You could win:

• 1 Uni Boxy Eraser
• 1 Rotring 600 Drafting Pencil - 0.5 mm - Black Body
• 1 pack of Uni Hi-Uni Hi-Density Pencil Lead - 0.3 mm - HB
• 1 pack of Pentel Stein Enhanced Silica Pencil Lead - 0.5 mm - HB

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Giveaway Round Up @ian_hedley @PenHabit

The very cool Ian of Pens! Paper! Pencils! is holding a very nifty giveaway that is extremely unique (as well as releasing a subscription you can sign up for that is also extremely unique). It's called Inklings! The giveaway is for a Gold Subscription to Inklings, where you get an Inkling every month for a whole year. What's an Inkling? Check it out for yourself! The giveaway closes at 9am GMT on March 1st, 2014 and the winner will be picked randomly. Click here for details!

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Pen Habit is giving away five samples of ink! You even get to pick which samples you want from Matt's current stock (with some totally reasonable stipulations of course). Giveaway closes February 23rd, 2014. Click here for details !

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Wordless Wednesday

Review: @OrganicsStudio Pendleton's Purpillusion @AndersonPens

Thanks to Tyler of Organics Studio for sending this great purple ink over for review - it's pretty awesome, especially in the inkiest form!

ABOUT

Color: Purple
Bottle:  ml
Price: $14.00
Price/ml: $0.40/ml
Where to buy: Anderson Pens

 PROS

• Lovely dark purple, with a bit of a dusty look.
• Well behaved.
  

CONS

• Just a touch dry in italic nibs, which is a shame because it displays a pretty lovely gradient in a flex nib.

OVERALL

I didn't even see this purple, but I knew I wanted it based on it being paired with the famous Pendlteton Brown. What a character! And what a great name - Purpillusion! If you're looking for a well-behaved, nice deep purple ink, here's your ink.

Follow Organics Studio! 
Organics Studio 
Facebook 
Twitter 

This ink was provided free of charge for review purposes. Wasn't paid for my opinion, y'all. I'm completely honest, so all opinions you read here are my own.