Talking Stationery on YouTube

As part of last year’s St. Jude fundraising, I challenged myself to make a few YouTube videos around various stationery products. It took a while, mainly because I wasn’t sure how I wanted to do it, and honestly, I was a little nervous about it.

Once I decided to just record me being me talking about things I love, I got more comfortable with the concept. If there is one thing I can do, it’s talk about stationery. So, here are a couple of what I’m calling One Take stationery videos. No bells, no whistles, no editing - just good, clean stationery fun. Exactly how I like it.

Here are the links to the two videos, and there are at least two more on the way. Will I do more? Should I do more? Who can say. Let’s see how it goes and I’ll decide from there.

Enjoy!

Talking Stationery: The Pilot Posting (PO) Fountain Pen Nib

Talking Stationery: The Pilot Silvern Fountain Pen

Esterbrook Estie Fountain Pen - Back to the Land Button Fill 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!)

Esterbrook's popularity continues to grow in the pen community, and this series, Back to the Land, gives 110% energy on its retro theme. I honestly don't know how something can be this loud and still be classy at the same time. But it is.

The pen comes in a box with the series name in giant gold foil letters, and the back of the box tells you everything you could ever want to know about the inspiration for the three colors in the set. A pull ribbon opens the box like a drawer.

Inside are a few small extras. Each color comes with a different gift, and this one, Incredible Rock, comes with a car air freshener shaped like the US. That might seem like a super strange thing to receive inside a pen box, if you skipped the novel printed on the outside of the box describing its road trip inspiration.

The pen is held in place with a fuzzy faux-suede magnetic loop that can be removed from the ruler-marked backing and used as a pen clip in your notebook. The magnet clip is quite strong, so it holds securely to most notebook covers, and it holds the pen well without a risk of scratches. It is a bit thick, though, and creates a big lump in the notebook. I do like this concept, though, and it's nice to have useful, functional packaging.

The pen itself is made from smooth resin with gold-colored accents. This Incredible Rock version is an earthy clay brown with a turquoise cap band. It screams southwest 70s retro. But it screams it in a dignified, understated way. The pen is cigar shaped with a nice springy clip. The cap has Esterbrook's delightful spring-seal Cushion Closure, which keeps the pen from drying out. The grip section is smooth and slightly tapered, with a flair at the end to keep your fingers from slipping onto the nib. There is a clear ink window behind the grip section so you can see your ink level.

This is the button filler version of this series, so the end of the pen has a gold-ringed end cap that screws off to reveal a push-button piston fill plunger. So if the design itself wasn't retro enough for you, the filling system takes it up a notch. This system is based on the Parker Piston Vacumatic from the 1940s. To fill the pen, you push in the spring-loaded button, dip the nib in your ink, then release the button so the pen draws in ink. The ink fills a tube inside the pen. The tube is visible through the ink window, but it does not fill the whole inside chamber. It's not as much of an ink tank as I thought it would be, but it's a fun filling system to try, and it still holds more than a standard converter.

My favorite thing about the pen, though, is the nib. I was lucky enough to get this model with a Needlepoint grind, available from Dromgoole’s for an extra $54 (along with other specialty nib grinds like Mini Stub, Journaler, Scribe, Techo, and Fude). If you look closely, you can see the grind to the steel Jowo tip, where some of the gold finish has been removed. It writes very well. It's a nice extra-extra fine line without being too dry or scratchy. It's still not as fine as a Japanese extra fine, but it's dreamy to write with. It's crisp without ever snagging the paper, and the fine lines make the ink supply last longer.

The Back to the Land standard Estie sells for around $175, with the Button Filler edition selling for $225 (plus extra if you want a fancy nib). In today's pen market, that's a very good price. This is a very well-made pen and nothing about it feels cheap. It's all precise and balanced. Esterbrook is making some of the best pens at their price point, and I've enjoyed all the ones I've tried. If you dig a retro road trip, this series might be a winner for you.

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

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February Inks

(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!.)

What started out as an innocent “How many pens do you have inked” question in a group chat, ended up with me suggesting that someone ink up 14 pens with red/pink inks for Valentine’s Day since they were going to be out of town for the first 14 days of February. Of course, it took minimal encouragement for me to consider doing this myself, so here we are!

First, I had to pick the pens. Thankfully, I already had some inked up! Yes, I’ll admit it’s sorta cheating, lol.

Left to right: Kaweco Sport Carmine; Pelikan Pura P40 Bordeaux; Leonardo Momento Zero Coral; Esterbrook Estie Maraschino; Pelikan M600 Red Tortoiseshell; Platinum 3776 Carnelian; TWSBI 580 AL Pink; TWSBI Eco Pink; Franklin-Christoph 19 Pink/Silver/White proto; Kaweco Sport Blush Pitaya; Retro 51 Sprinkle Ops; Visconti Van Gogh Souvenir de Mauve; TWSBI Eco Pastel Pink.

I used my trusty steel Kakimori dip nib for the swatches and writing samples in the A5 Odyssey Tomoe River notebook.

This Galen Leather exclusive Kaweco Sport Carmine will probably never see another ink besides its namesake, made by Robert Oster.

I’ve had this Pelikan Pura Bordeaux inked up since last year’s Pelikan Hub. It’s inked up with an oldie, but goodie, Diamine Red Dragon.

Leonardo Momento Zero Coral, which is definitely red and not remotely coral, with Robert Oster Red Candy, which is a little lighter in the swatch than irl.

Esterbrook Estie Maraschino looks really good with Monteverde Viva Magenta, which is a bright red and definitely not magenta.

Another one from the Pelikan Hub, the M600 Red Tortoiseshell’s orange/black/red barrel needs a slightly orange leaning red, like Laban Ares Red.

This Platinum 3776 Carnelian looks great with Wearingeul’s Anne of Green Gables, which has a greenish gold sheen with wetter pens.

I haven’t busted this one out in a long time - the TWSBI 580 AL Pink (not to be confused with the ALR Punch Pink). It’s more red than pink, but definitely more pink than red. And that describes both the 580 and the Diamine Cashmere Rose ink.

TWSBI Eco Pink, which is a bright, almost neon, pink - perfect for a bright pink like Akkerman x GourmetPens’ GourmetPens Pink.

One of the weirder inks I own, the Tono & Lims Burma Tourmaline goes down grey, almost green, but it dries in shades of pink and grey.. It goes surprisingly well with the Franklin-Christoph 19 in a pink/white/silver prototype material.

This bubblegum pink Kaweco Sport Blush Pitaya looks great with Inkebara Fairytale Pink.

The Visconti Van Gogh Souvenir du Mauve is pink, not mauve (which has more purple/grey undertones), and its namesake ink is more of a magenta, but Sailor Jentle Peche works well with the darker pink swirls in the material.

The last time I inked up this Retro 51 Sprinkle Ops pen, I put the above Inkebara Fairytale Pink ink in it, but I think it would look good with Wearingeul The Flowers on the Way even if it’s not the best match. It’s also showing up a bit more red in the picture.

Wearingeul x Atlas Stationers Twelfth Night is a great match for the TWSBI Eco Pastel Pink.

All the inks in the lineup (and wishing I put the Burma Tourmaline at the bottom).

After going through the exercise of picking the pens and matching inks, I definitely did NOT ink up everything. I’m nuts, but not that nuts! The Pura, Leonardo, Pelikan, and Platinum were already inked, but I just couldn’t refuse inking up a few more! It’s not inking up 14 red/pink pens, but it’ll have to do!

The final list: Kaweco Sport with Robert Oster Carmine, Pelikan Pura with Diamine Red Dragon, Leonardo Momento Zero with Robert Oster Red Candy, Pelikan M600 Red Tortoishell with Laban Ares Red, Platinum 3776 Carnelian with Wearingeul Anne of Green Gables, TWSBI 580 AL Pink with Diamine Cashmere Rose, TWSBI Eco Pink with Akkerman GourmetPens Pink, and Franklin-Christoph 19 pink/silver/white with Tono & Lims Burma Tourmaline.

Whether you celebrate Valentine’s, Galentine’s, Pal-entine’s, Lunar New Year, or you just wanted to see some red and pink inks, I hope you have a great February (and beyond)!

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!