Sunday Reads: September 29. 2019

Calligraphy and Lettering with Toronto Pen Company!

Saturday, October 5, 2019
10 am - 1 pm
Paper Plus Cloth
Brush Calligraphy

Saturday, October 12, 2019
10 am - 1 pm
Paper Plus Cloth
Intro to Pointed Pen Calligraphy

Friday, January 17, 2020
9 am - 12 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Handwriting 101 - Improve Your Penmanship

Friday, January 17, 2020
11 am - 12:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Fountain Pens 101

Friday, January 17, 2020
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Inky Messes, Inky Fun

Friday, January 17, 2020
1:30 - 4:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Calligraphy & Lettering with Letters and Textures

Friday, January 17, 2020
4:30 - 5:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pen Play After Class

Saturday, January 18, 2020
9 am - 12 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Introduction to Pointed Pen Calligraphy

Saturday, January 18, 2020
9 am - 10:30 am
Philadelphia Pen Show
Comprehensive Intro to Fountain Pens and their Friends

Saturday, January 18, 2020
11 am - 12:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Fountain Pens 101

Saturday, January 18, 2020
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Inky Messes, Inky Fun

Saturday, January 18, 2020
4:30 - 5:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pen Play After Class

Sunday, January 19, 2020
10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Fountain Pens 101

Sunday, January 19, 2020
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Inky Messes, Inky Fun

Book your nib grind time at the Philly Pen Show!

Stuff I Looked At Elsewhere & Read

• South African Flowers Frozen into Fleeting Arrangements - Colossal.
• Classic Paintings Improved With Mr. Bean - Sad and Useless.
• Photographs of Animals and Architecture are Sliced and Rearranged into Bizarre Collages - Colossal.
• Cats with double chins - Sad and Useless.
• How To Handle A Massive Seaweed Invasion? Yucatán Towns Get Creative - NPR.
• Robin Williams gives voice to a silent killer - The Globe and Mail.
• Some birds are total jerks - Sad and Useless.
• What’s Hiding at the Most Solitary Place on Earth? The Deep Sea - Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell.
• The Lost Words - John Muir Trust.
• Becoming: A Short Timelapse Film Shows a Single Cell Morphing Into a Complete, Complex Living Organism - Open Culture.
• 18 Little Details You Never Noticed About Michael Scott - Buzz Feed.
• Scientists Find Out How Leaping Maggots Leap - NPR.
• Poet Jane Kenyon’s Advice on Writing: Some of the Wisest Words to Create and Live By - Brain Pickings.
• Watch Every Episode of Bob Ross’ The Joy Of Painting Free Online: 403 Episodes Spanning 31 Seasons - Open Culture.

Stuff I Apparently Did This Week

• P.W. Akkerman Simplisties Violet Ink
• Miquel Rius Flexible Cover Notebook
• Esterbrook Estie Tortoise Fountain Pen Review with some Vintage Nibs
• San Francisco International Pen Show 2019

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If you're doing any browsing and shopping, please do check out my sponsors in the sidebar, 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!

Discount codes here!

San Francisco International Pen Show 2019

I am sorry it's late, but here we are with some thoughts, snippets, and a little look at my take-homes from the SF Pen Show! I was probably supposed to put links to things but I can't remember what I said I would link to so if there is something, please just drop a comment and I'll grab it for you. My brain is Swiss cheese.

Esterbrook Estie Tortoise Fountain Pen Review with some Vintage Nibs

Thank you to Vanness Pens and Kenro for providing this cute pen for a review! I think it's a really interesting take, not to sound weird about myself or anything. The reason is Kenro ran into some issues with this pen, which I talk about in this video, and they resolved it in a classy manner. I'm happy about it.

Check out the Esterbrook Estie pens at Vanness Pens
Music: BenSound

Miquel Rius Flexible Cover Notebook

Shop Miquel Rius on Amazon

This blog is part of the Amazon Affiliates program. If you make a purchase using one of our affiliate links, a small commission will be given to this blog. This helps me review more products for you at no added cost to your purchase. Thank you for your support!

P.W. Akkerman Simplisties Violet Ink

To mark our 100 years of existence, PW Akkerman introduced in 2010 his own ink line. This ink’s came in large 150 ml bottles, these large bottles are now completely sold out.
 
Due to the worldwide success of this unique bottle we decided to continue, but now with a smaller sized bottle with a content of ca 60 ml. The new bottles will be available in the same 31 colors as before. 

The Akkerman inks have been given names related to the city The Hague. For example: KoninginneNach-Blauw, Binnenhof Blues, Shocking Blue, Parkpop Purper or/and Rood Haags Pluche.

P.W. Akkerman Simplisties Violet is a beautiful purple and I like it much more than the blue-toned Parkpop Purper. It has the right level of vibrancy to it and it still shows shading. Like most purples, it requires some attention to cleaning but it's certainly not a limiting factor for enjoying this color.

Price:  € 15,00
Where to buy: P.W. Akkerman (a few US retailers also carry this ink but this is the direct source)

Sunday Reads: September 22. 2019

Calligraphy and Lettering with Toronto Pen Company!

Saturday, September 28, 2019
10 am - 1 pm
Paper Plus Cloth
Intro to Pointed Pen Calligraphy

Saturday, October 5, 2019
10 am - 1 pm
Paper Plus Cloth
Brush Calligraphy

Saturday, October 12, 2019
10 am - 1 pm
Paper Plus Cloth
Intro to Pointed Pen Calligraphy

Friday, January 17, 2020
9 am - 12 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Handwriting 101 - Improve Your Penmanship

Friday, January 17, 2020
11 am - 12:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Fountain Pens 101

Friday, January 17, 2020
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Inky Messes, Inky Fun

Friday, January 17, 2020
1:30 - 4:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Calligraphy & Lettering with Letters and Textures

Friday, January 17, 2020
4:30 - 5:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pen Play After Class

Saturday, January 18, 2020
9 am - 12 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Introduction to Pointed Pen Calligraphy

Saturday, January 18, 2020
9 am - 10:30 am
Philadelphia Pen Show
Comprehensive Intro to Fountain Pens and their Friends

Saturday, January 18, 2020
11 am - 12:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Fountain Pens 101

Saturday, January 18, 2020
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Inky Messes, Inky Fun

Saturday, January 18, 2020
4:30 - 5:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pen Play After Class

Sunday, January 19, 2020
10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Pilot Parallel Calligraphy Fountain Pens 101

Sunday, January 19, 2020
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Philadelphia Pen Show
Inky Messes, Inky Fun

Stuff I Looked At Elsewhere & Read

• If Mr. Bean Played Every Role In Hollywood… - Sad and Useless.
• Monsoon V (4K) - Mike Olbinski.
• Brownie roll out cookies - Smitten Kitchen.
• Chocolate banana bread - Shutterbean.
• Sweetened condensed milk buttercream frosting - A Beautiful Mess.
• Baby Barn Owl Hearing Thunder for the First Time - Twisted Sifter.
• The Super Zoom - Pedro3dbh on Vimeo.
• String Theory Explained – What is The True Nature of Reality? - Kurzgesagt In a Nutshell.
• A Rainbow of Light Diffracts Through Hummingbird Wings in Photographs by Christian Spencer - Colossal.
• The Piano Played with 16 Increasing Levels of Complexity: From Easy to Very Complex - Open Culture.
• Funniest animals of 2019 - Sad and Useless.
• Murderous Hippos, Thirsty Birds, and Snoozing Seals are Highly Commended in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition - Colossal.
• Stunning Animals Embroidered by Hand Using Colored and Metallic Thread - Twisted Sifter.
• ICYMI - Leonardo Officina Italiana Furore Smeraldo on SBREBrown.

Stuff I Apparently Did This Week

• P.W. Akkerman Royal Akkermanblauw Ink
• Graf von Faber-Castell Notebook
• Caran d'Ache Léman Grand Bleu Fountain Pen Double Broad Nib
• Montblanc Writer's Edition Homage to Rudyard Kipling Fountain Pen with Notebook & Ink

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If you're doing any browsing and shopping, please do check out my sponsors in the sidebar, 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!

Discount codes here!

Montblanc Writer's Edition Homage to Rudyard Kipling Fountain Pen with Notebook & Ink

Thank you to Appelboom for loaning me this pen for a review. I hope you enjoy seeing the notebook and ink that matches!

You can shop the collection at Appelboom!

Caran d'Ache Léman Grand Bleu Fountain Pen Double Broad Nib

Thank you to Caran d'Ache in Canada for loaning me this pen for a review! This is a sponsored video.

Graf von Faber-Castell Notebook

P.W. Akkerman Royal Akkermanblauw Ink

To mark our 100 years of existence, PW Akkerman introduced in 2010 his own ink line. This ink’s came in large 150 ml bottles, these large bottles are now completely sold out.
 
Due to the worldwide success of this unique bottle we decided to continue, but now with a smaller sized bottle with a content of ca 60 ml. The new bottles will be available in the same 31 colors as before. 

The Akkerman inks have been given names related to the city The Hague. For example: KoninginneNach-Blauw, Binnenhof Blues, Shocking Blue, Parkpop Purper or/and Rood Haags Pluche.

P.W. Akkerman Royal Akkermanblauw is easily one of my favorite, go-to Akkerman inks. It's an easy-to-clean, super well-behaved, classic blue that is just hard to argue with. I used to use it all the time for pen reviews until I ran out of it, but I just want you to know how stellar and classy it is. I love it. Totally worth having a bottle around.

Price:  € 15,00
Where to buy: P.W. Akkerman (a few US retailers also carry this ink but this is the direct source)

Sunday Reads: September 15. 2019

Calligraphy and Lettering Workshops 
with Toronto Pen Company!

Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date on workshops, meetings, new products, and more!

Saturday, September 28, 2019
10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Paper Plus Cloth
Intro to Pointed Pen Calligraphy

Stuff I Looked At Elsewhere & Read

• Salted pretzel s'mores bars - How Sweet Eats.
• Salted caramel pretzel blondies - Smitten Kitchen.
• Praying Mantises, Venus Fly Traps, and Autumn Leaves Crafted From Finely Molded Crepe Paper - Colossal.
• Lion’s Mane Cat Hat Will Turn Your Cat Into Ferocious Lion - Sad and Useless.
• Swirling Vortexes and Ghostly Humans Emerge From Hand-Painted Transparent Sheets by David Spriggs - Colossal.
• Centuries of breeding have reshaped dog brains - National Geographic.
• Clowns are funny, right? Sad and Useless.
• Giant water bugs eat turtles, ducklings, and even snakes - National Geographic.
• A New Modular Paper Organ Allows Users to Build and Tune Their Own Functional Musical Instruments - Colossal.
• Cat Panoramic Photos Gone Hilariously Wrong - Sad and Useless.
• The Egg - A Short Story - Kurzgesagt In a Nutshell.
• Hello darkness my old friend "version two guinea pigs" - YouTube.
• Super-Tasting Science: Find Out If You're a "Supertaster"! - Scientific American.
• Espresso Bundt Cake - Vanilla Bean Blog.

Stuff I Apparently Did This Week

• PW Akkerman Parkpop Purper Ink
• Stationery for Writing Letters - Original Crown Mill Fine Laid Paper
• ASC Gladiatore Medio Arco Bronze Celluloid Fountain Pen
• Lochby Field Journal & EDC Travel Roll - Great Daily Carry Accessories!

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If you're doing any browsing and shopping, please do check out my sponsors in the sidebar, 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!

Discount codes here!