A positive Sephora experience - Hello Giggles. This is really nice. In my experience, the Sephora employees have gone above and beyond to help me find what I was looking for without pressuring me, and they have done the same thing - they helped me feel more comfortable about some of the things I was looking to change.
If you're doing any browsing and shopping, please do check out my sponsors in the side bar, because they help make all this possible. Some of these links are affiliate links, which provides me with a small commission but does not add any extra cost to your purchase. Some links are just referral links, but there is no obligation to purchase through any of these links. Your purchases through my links help support this blog and allows me to fulfill review requests. Either way, I appreciate your readership and your support so much, so thank you! Thank you to everyone who supports my weirdness.
A few weeks ago, Eric came to visit us here in Canada! We had a great time adventuring, playing with pens, exploring, adventuring some more, and visiting pen stores (more than once). Here's what we were up to:
An obligatory visit to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, of course. And to Tim Horton's.
Naturally, there was pen time. This is Eric's Franklin-Christoph Pocket 66 with the Franklin-Christoph Philly Pen Show ink.
Lamy Petrol!! We went in a few times to inquire about Lamy Petrol ink bottles. Pretty much the day after Eric left, the ink bottles landed.
We visited Laywines, spent way too much money, and had a great time doing so. And then we went down the street for the best coffee on the planet and hot, freshly baked chocolate chip sea salt cookies. Unreal.
We also visited Wonder Pens! We kept hoping to see Chicken and Super, but we were fortunate to meet other lovely people (but no cats or pups).
I got some stuff.
We went to Pens 'n Pints!! It was so fun to meet new people, see old friends, and fondle pens galore!
Thank you to Massdrop and Wink Pens for sending over one of these glass nib pens for me to play with, check out, and review here for you!
ABOUT
First Edition Pen
Crowd Supply Price $149.00 USD
Write with wine, juice, or tea!
Body material: Glass, plastic
Trim: Metal
Nib: Glass
Filling: Standard international converter
Length (capped): 160.7 mm/6.33"
Length (uncapped): 154.1 mm/6/07"
Length (posted): N/A
Diameter (barrel): 10.2 mm/0.40"
Diameter (section): 8.2 - 9.1 mm/0.32" - 0.36"
Weight (all): 16 g
Weight (cap): 4 g
Weight (body): 12 g
Price: $65 USD
Where to buy: Massdrop - the current drop ended, but if you request, it may come back! However, you can sign up for Massdrop anyway, it's free! Lots of great stuff over there. You can also check out Wink Pens.
The idea of the Wink pen is to allow you to use unusual inks and mediums with this pen.
PACKAGING
The Wink pen is presented in an elegant way. The box is decent and solid. The main component is a black leatherette magnetic box with brushed aluminum sides. It's solid, robust, and definitely protects the somewhat fragile pen inside. The top has the Wink Pens logo in silver on it. The magnetic flap lifts up to reveal a foam padded interior and a super soft lining. Watch out for the very sharp edges of the metal frame!
There is a certificate of authenticity (no. x of 2000), a fragile warning (it has a delicate, handmade borosilicate glass nib), and a satiny white Wink Pens cloth.
The thick white sleeve outside the box is useful because instead of being useless, it actually makes use of the space on the box. This also means there's no floppy little pamphlet inside with instructions. The sleeve contains information on the pen contents, assembly, how to fill the pen, cleaning, warning, and warranty information. I have noticed there are a lot of fragile warnings with this pen - the nib, the glass pen body, be careful! Easy on the pressure applied, basically. And try not to drop it.
APPEARANCE
This is a very long, slim pen with a round, short cap and a round barrel. The finial is flat and chrome with the Wink logo engraved in it. The clip is attached by a metal ring just under the finial. The clip is long, slim, and flares up slightly at the end. It's pretty plain.
The cap, section, and piston turning knob are matte black plastic. The piston turning knob is grooved and conical with a flat top. The section is long with a few threads and a gradual taper towards the nib. When capped, it's obvious how short the cap is relative to the pen's length. It does not even cover the entire section, and it has a blunt ending. The glass barrel is a long slim tube that houses a built-in converter, which is operated by turning the black piston turning knob at the back.
It's not the most beautiful pen ever made in terms of the finishing. It's a little disproportional so it looks a bit funny, but the pen is not about its beauty - it's more about how you use it and what you can do with it.
NIB & PERFORMANCE
These borosilicate glass nibs are individually handmade so they are all a little different. The have grooves and are twisted into a point - the grooves serving as channels for the ink. The nibs are fragile and care must be used with these.
I flushed the pen after spending a few minutes disassembling it (mostly to get the hang of it so I wouldn't break it by accident). The disassembly instructions are a bit comical - basically, take cap off, then separate the parts. No big deal. It's straight forward to take apart, just do so with some care.
I don't have wine or beer but I tried some super steeped tea first. It wasn't steeped enough and came out too dilute. It was difficult to read and it did not feel smooth or lubricated enough. I have seen others use wine, which I imagine would work better because it's much darker! I have also put Winsor & Newton Gold ink in this pen - a very viscous ink with particles - and it was a ton of fun but needed priming to flow best. Ultimately, because there is no feed that can be clogged, and because you can take it apart to thoroughly clean it, you can use all sorts of inks in this.
Fountain pen ink offers an interesting writing experience. The broad angle of the nib is very pleasant and puts down a really nice, juicy line. The ink provided a satisfactory amount of lubrication, so while it was not super smooth, it did not feel like it was dragging across the paper. I did occasionally have to tap the nib to keep the ink going, but that was during longer writing sessions. This nib set up works best with short bursts of writing.
The concept behind the pen is simple but it was well executed to offer a fun writing experience. I'm not an artist but it's still fun to tinker around with different types of inks and styles of writing. Expect longer drying times, of course, and be gentle with the nib. Like all glass, it can chip or break.
The piston converter is a simple set up that works well enough. It's easy to clean and easy to replace.
IN HAND
The clip is nice and springy, and slides on and off pages, pouches, and pockets easily. Personally I wouldn't carry this someplace where a leak could cause an issue, like pockets and on important documents.
The section is quite slim, and though the threads are not a bother, it does not have the most comfortable design!
Unposted, the pen feels really long and skinny, and it is very light. I have to pay attention to how much pressure I use on the nib because it almost feels like I'm holding nothing! The cap cannot be posted. For handlettering fun, this works just fine. I wouldn't and have not used this for extensive writing sessions so the design and balance is suitable.
PROS & CONS
OVERALL
A very neat pen - not new in concept but certainly a more usable modern take on the glass dip pen! It's pretty well done in that it works well, it's a heck of a lot of fun, and from what I understand, the new, reduced price is much more feasible for those looking for a neat writer. It's not necessarily a pen for serious writing, novels, assignments and school, work, etc, but more for exploring different writing mediums and inks, and just having fun!
I received this item 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. Some links are just referral links, but there is no obligation to purchase through any of these links. Your purchases through my links help support this blog and allows me to fulfill review requests. Either way, I appreciate your readership and your support so much, so thank you!
a delicious curation of tools for inkquisitive musings
gourmet pens club podcast
SPONSORS
discount code: FRIEND
discount code: GOURMET10
Support
Help keep the ink flowing! By contributing as little as $1 per month, patrons help me to dedicate more of my time to creating what we both love by helping cover the many costs incurred from my work!
Posts
