Pen and Stationary Blog

  • This photo show an Ellington Pens fountain pen sitting on a lined piece of paper. The pen is the Urban Hunter model, featuring a gold colored grip section, clip, nib, can cap bands. The body is a deep teal/green color with black, vertical stripes.

    Ellington Pens — How good are they?

    Fountain pens keep getting more expensive, but Ellington Pens prove that they don’t have to. How good of a deal are they? I keep seeing more news about certain pen makers jacking up prices left and right. It’s made me even more glad to have found Ellington Pens. They have sent me a few to

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  • A matte black Ellington Stealth fountain pen laying with it's cap posted on the rear of the pen, exposing it's black nib. It is sitting on a notebook with blue ink writing done with the pen. behind the pen is an Ellington pen box that the pen came in.

    Ellington Stealth review — Ballin’ on a budget

    The folks at Ellington Pens have said their goal is to provide a luxury pen experience at an affordable price. Have they succeeded with the Ellington Stealth? When Ellington reached out and asked if I’d like to review the Stealth, of course I said yes. Of all their pen designs, it’s one of the ones

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  • A Jinhao Tiandao 1935 fountain pen with its cap off. The nib is facing the camera and the cap is placed above the pen.

    Jinhao Tiandao 1935 review — A big, beautiful pen

    Jinhao has been knocking it out of the park lately. The Jinhao Tiandao 1935 is a unique, large, and interesting offering from them. Let’s see how it holds up. After using my wife’s TWSBI Eco, I decided I wanted to find a similar pen. I came across the Jinhao Tiandao 1935 and loved the look

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  • A Noodler's Konrad Thule fountain pen laying on a notebook featuring writing samples from the pen.

    Noodler’s Konrad review — A flexible fountain pen

    The Noodler’s Konrad was my first pen from the company. I was looking for an affordable flex pen, as I’d never tried one before. Did it meet my expectations? Well, yes. I, like I assume you’re doing, did quite a lot of research before deciding to give it a try. I had also read the

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  • Noodler’s Ahab Review — Flexing Frugally

    Fountain pens with flex nibs are becoming quite desirable again. The Noodler’s Ahab aims to deliver that experience without emptying your pockets. The world of flex nibs can get complicated and expensive. The much coveted “wet noodle” vintage pens seem to be getting harder to find and more expensive when you do. Many modern flex

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  • A photo of a desktop scene. A Majohn A1 fountain pen is sitting on a notebook with writing samples from the pen below it.

    Majohn A1 Review — One click to fall in love

    Want to try out a capless fountain pen but don’t have big money for one? The Majohn A1 may be your best bet to try one out. I was intrigued when I first came across capless fountain pens that had a clicker mechanism like ballpoint pens. My first exposure to them was the Pilot Vanishing

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  • A Pigma Micron setting on a sketchbook

    Pigma Micron Review — Not just for artists!

    Sakura Pigma Micron fineliner pens are much loved in the art world. How are they for those of us who doodle and write, though? This was another pen that came to me courtesy of the JetPens blue-black sampler I ordered last year. It’s one of my top three pens from that selection. The others being

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  • A Marvy Uchida LePen laying on a Kokuyo Biz notebook with handwriting done with the LePen on the page

    Marvy Le Pen — Plastic CAN be fantastic

    The Marvy Le Pen is one of my favorite non-fountain pens. It’s a smooth writing, slim pen that makes for a great every day carry. When I want to switch things up from the fountain pens, this is one of the pens I’m most likely to reach for. I’ve never felt much connection to a

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  • A platinum preppy fountain pen on top of a notebook

    Platinum Preppy — Best beginner fountain pen?

    The Platinum Preppy fountain pen is frequently recommended to new pen pals around the world. Is it the best beginner fountain pen? This pen is responsible for getting me into the world of fountain pens. I ordered a blue-black sampler from Jet Pens, this Preppy was included, and it was all over for me. It

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  • A Maruman Mnemosyne notebook with a cell phone, a swiss army knife, two fountain pens, and a color checker next to it on a table

    Maruman Mnemosyne — A notebook worth noting

    The Maruman Mnemosyne was a wonderful first step into great stationary, for me. It’s a fountain pen friendly notebook worthy of note. When I began my journey into the fountain pen rabbit hole, it quickly became apparent to me that a pen and ink was only half of the important stuff. Great stationary is the

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