8 is Auspicious

(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!.)

In many Asian cultures, especially in the Chinese culture (of which I am a part), the number 8 is an auspicious/lucky number. The number 8 in Chinese sounds similar to the word prosperity so it is quite common to see the number 8 for personalized license plates, addresses (it’s lucky to have a street address with 8, but 4 is a no-no because it sounds like death), etc. In my case, it’s been 8 years since I got my first fountain pens on May 31, 2017, so let’s take a walk down memory lane to see the early days.

I discovered fountain pens by way of Bullet Journaling so I pulled out my first BuJo to see how this turned into a pen addiction 🙂

First pens (top to bottom): Lamy Safari, Pilot Metropolitan, Platinum Preppy.

One of the spreads in my Leuchtturm 1917 A5 dot grid notebooks shows the beginning of the fall down the rabbit hole. There were many, MANY purchases in rapid succession.

My bullet journal has always been for my personal use and never something I created for social media. Clearly, I did not care about the handwriting in my bullet journal back then (or even now), lol.

This was kind of fun to look back at and see what pens I wanted.

Looking back, I would have no idea that I’d really get into certain pens (TWSBI Eco, Lamy AL-Star, cough cough), or that I’d eventually own quite a few on the list (Pilot Custom 74, VP, Platinum 3776, Visconti Van Gogh), and which ones I put in the “Dream On” column that aren’t on my radar at all, as well some that I ended up getting like the Aurora Optima Nebulosa (I realized I prefer the Optima to the 88) and Pelikan M800 Souveran. I remember adding the Visconti Homo Sapiens Bronze Age because it seemed like that was everyone’s grail pen back then (and still is for some folks), but the black with bronze trim didn’t really excite me (still doesn’t), but everyone else must know something I don’t, right? Wrong! We all like different things, so go ahead and like what you like! It’s also good/fine/normal/natural to like/love some things and having your tastes change over time. It’s a healthy part of any hobby and makes this rabbit hole all the more interesting.

One of the things that drew me into this rabbit hole was not only the cool looking fountain pens, but all the different colors of inks! I had used the Sheaffer calligraphy set when I was a kid, and it came with ink cartridges in 8 colors (blue, blue-black, and black being 3 of them). Not only were there more colors but sheen was becoming a big thing too - Akkerman Shocking Blue, Diamine Majestic Blue, Organics Studio Nitrogen, etc. just looked magical on paper!

My first pen/ink log. I maintained this throughout multiple bullet journals until a couple years ago. Also, goodness gracious, I clearly don’t care how ugly my writing is.

My ink wish list - clearly I am a blue and purple ink fan, but we already knew that. With very few exceptions, I think I own everything on this list, and then some, oops!

Bullet journaling also led me to fountain pens by way of Rock Your Handwriting, where folks posted pictures of their handwriting practice along with their pens and inks. As soon as I got my pens, I started my own journey to improve my handwriting, which used to be really nice from middle school through college, but went to crap after a long career in front of a computer.

One of many Clairefontaine French-ruled notebooks that I used to practice my handwriting daily. This was the prettiest I could make it back in June of 2017.

While I don’t use writing prompts any more, I do still practice my handwriting, still using the same Clairefontaine French-ruled notebooks, only now I’m working on Hamilton lyrics.

Eight years in and I write even more today than I did back then, whether it’s the day’s to-do list in BuJo #11, a packing list for the next pen show, transcribing Italian kids’ books, Meditations in typewriter font, journaling in my TN, or creating my next Currently Inked. I still get excited for new releases, whether they are Kaweco Sports and TWSBI (thank goodness the Precision now comes in Gemini Blue!) or other eye candy. Heck, I even love some non-fountain pens! I love using my pens and inks to learn, remember, be productive, and get thoughts on paper. I still love going to & working at pen shows, making new friends and seeing folks that have since become family. There’s always something new to learn, discover, and try, and I can’t wait to do more. It’s been a wonderful eight years, thank you for being a part of it. Eight more years (and beyond), let’s GO!!

Leonardo Momento Zero Grande 2.0 Guilloche Fountain Pen 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!)

Every now and then I open a new pen and it's a favorite at first sight. The Leonardo Momento Zero Grande 2.0 Guilloche gave me instant heart-eyes when I opened the box. It looks amazing. The texture, the finish, the colors--all perfect. I liked the look of it so much that I actually got nervous, because what if the writing experience didn't live up to the looks? There was no need to worry. This is a fantastic pen.

The body of the pen is a cool-toned blue resin that is subtly etched with a geometric guilloche pattern that resembles ears of grain. Each of the different colors has its own etching pattern. This color is called "indigo," though it looks to me to be more of a slate grey-blue. There is also “Iris” which is dark blue and “Verdigris” which is a sage green. They're all gorgeous. The Indigo is the only one that comes with the ruthenium trim, and the gunmetal grey looks perfect with the moody blue tones. The clip is slim and fairly flexible, with a tiny wheel at the bottom to make the clipping process smoother. The cap and piston knob have metal bands that add a decorative reinforcement to these stress points. Speaking of points, both the top and bottom finials are gently pointed. The overall look is very Art Deco vintage elegance.

Under the twist cap, the grip section is engraved with "Leonardo Italy" and you're greeted with a clear resin ink window, so you can keep track of your ink supply. This is a piston filler pen, so the back end unscrews to move a plunger inside the pen that draws ink in through the nib from a bottle. It is my personal favorite ink filling mechanism, as they tend to hold quite a lot of ink, as this one does, but they can be more difficult to clean. There is no way to disassemble the pen for cleaning, so rinsing ink out is a matter of repeatedly filling the pen with water and releasing it till it runs clear. It takes longer and is less effective than a filling system you can take apart, but it's worth it to me for the higher ink capacity, and I don't like reassembling tiny pen pieces after cleaning. I'm always afraid I'll drop one. So, I prefer this. There's no fear of a precious nib falling down the drain.

They all come with either a Fine nib or a Flex Fine nib. Mine has the Flex Fine, because I like a bouncy writing experience. The nib has its sides cut out to create a narrow neck that flexes when pressure is applied. The flex nib also has "Leonardo elastic" engraved on it. This is very much a modern flex nib, which is to say that it's not super flexy. It can take some light pressure and provide some slight line variation, but it isn't bendy like a vintage flex pen would be. What I love about it is that I can get fine lines when writing, but it still has a softer writing experience, and often flex nibs have better ink flow. This combination is perfect for me when I want a longer writing session. Writing a whole short story in one sitting, but don't want to run out of ink or get hand fatigue? This is your pen. Well, no. This is my pen. But you can have one, too.

The Leonardo Momento Zero Grande 2.0 is available on JetPens for $289, which is perfectly fair. It's a fancy pen and it has a fancy pen price. It is, however, much nicer and more solidly built than some pens that are considerably more expensive. When it comes to measuring cost against quality, I think Leonardo is at the top of the game when it comes to mass-produced pens. All of their pens that I've used have been winners, and this is my favorite one, yet.

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Kolo Tino Brass Fountain Pen Review

The Kolo Tino has been making the rounds on the Stationery Internet™, and yes, I received one too. I’ve had mine in use for the past week, and I’ll say this: it makes for a perfect review product because I have a lot to say about it. Let’s dig in!

The Kolo Tino is designed by Tino Valentinitsch, an industrial designer from Vienna, Austria, in collaboration with Peter Dunn, founder of Kolo. As a brand, Kolo began in 1998, and was acquired by Topdrawer in 2016. Topdrawer is a subsidiary of Itoya, Japan, and has several brick and mortar retail locations around the world. For our purposes, Topdrawer is the distributor of the Kolo lineup, which is why you see the brand being carried by several retailers in our space.

That patina doing work.

The Kolo Tino Brass Fountain Pen is a stunner to look at. This model is small and sleek, featuring a triangular shaped barrel with rounded ridges. The barrel tapers into a torpedo shape on the front, and has aluminum extension on the back for posting the cap. Aesthetically, it looks spectacular, although I do wonder about the left-handed orientation of the stamped Kolo wordmark. If the designer is left-handed and just went for it that would be awesome!

I stopped mid-writing to take a few pics of my grip, and where it hits on the barrel step.

Once uncapped, the Kolo Tino runs into some challenges. The triangular barrel design gives way to a cylindrical, tapered grip section. This leaves quite a drop from the barrel to the section - more on the ridges, less on the flat sides. A traditional writing grip will find its way up the flat sides, but not without some challenge finding comfort in the step down to the grip. The barrel edge in that area is chamfered so it’s not cutting into your hands, but it is still Brass, and noticeable. Non-traditional grips could have more of a challenge in this area.

For me, the only way to grip the pen is to have some part of my fingers over that step down. I could grip lower, but that puts me too close to the nib. I could go higher, above the step, but that puts me too far away.

I could have some #DealWithIt grace in this area of the pen if it was usable unposted. For me, and my very average sized hands, it’s not. The Kolo Tino is too short to clear the cusp of my hand between my thumb and forefinger, making it awkward to write with for more than a short note.

Too short to use uncapped.

When posted, the Brass cap attached to the Brass barrel makes the pen too heavy, and too unbalanced. I also don’t care for the aesthetic of the posting connection, but that’s just a me thing. I’d prefer a more seamless posting.

Better posted, but now unbalanced.

Given the weight of the Brass pen - which checks in at 69 grams - this was always a possibility. That’s why I’m interested in how both the Acrylic and full Aluminum barrels feel in hand. The lighter weight of those models (21g and 27g, respectively,) could make the grip section more passable, and less of an interference.

Comparison (L to R): Kaweco Steel Sport, Kolo Tino Brass, Sailor Pro Gear Mini.

The Kolo Tino is fitted with a Schmidt #5 Steel nib, and uses Short International cartridges, and compatible converters. My Medium nib was perfect out of the box, and nice to use, especially with my selection of Graf von Faber-Castell Viper Green. I nailed the color, I must say.

Priced at $150 for Brass, Aluminum, and Standard Acrylic barrels ($195 for Specialty Acrylic,) the Kolo Tino provides nice value for what it offers. The material and construction are top notch, but that said, will you be able to use it given its extreme grip section? For me, the Brass model is too much of an ask to use over comparable pens. At a minimum, I’d be looking to try before buying to see how it will works for you.

I’ll be doing the same once I can test out an Acrylic barrel, which I hope to in the next couple of months. I think that would be worth a bit of a follow-up to this post and see how it compares. The design of the Kolo Tino interesting enough to see if they iterate on it and make it more of a universal user, instead of a specific fit.

(Topdrawer sent me this pen at no charge for purposes of this review.)

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