Oblation Papers & Press Shop Visit

(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!.)

As soon as I realized I was going to go to the Pacific Northwest Pen Show earlier this year, I made plans to visit the Oblation Papers & Press shop in Portland, even though the show wasn’t nearby. I had a limited amount of time at the shop, but I had heard so many wonderful things about it that I had to go check it out for myself!

The Oblation Papers & Press shop welcomes you to take a seat and enjoy the clickety-clack of a typewriter.

There is a list of events on the outside of the store so you can see what’s coming up next!

I love their display of inks and of course, PENS!!

A closer look at one of the ink cabinets.

What a fun way to show off their inks! I’m also digging the card catalog cabinets below.

Look at those Sailors!

You can find dip pens, cartridges, rubber stamps and stamp pads too.

Wrapping paper, pretty ribbons, candles, and other gifts can be found in this section of the store, as well as pretty much everywhere you look.

Turn around and you’ll find more wrapping paper, cards, notebooks.

Midori paper sets, Zebra Mildliners, clips, keychains, erasers and all the fun things you’d expect from a stationery shop.

I love the variety of stickers that they have throughout the store. This was one of several places where you can find all sorts of stickers!

More stickers!

Look at this colorful display of stickers, notepads, cards, towels and more!

These popup bouquet cards are super cute!

As a letter writer, I love checking out the wax seals and stamps.

Oblation Papers & Press has a nice variety of stationery, pens/inks, cards and gifts, but I love the things that set them apart from most shops. For one, they love vintage typewriters and have them for sale at the store and online. The typewriters are serviced, cleaned/lubricated and ready to go.

Look at these cool vintage typewriters that they have for sale.

Behind these glass doors are several letterpress machines, which are used to make customized stationery for all sorts of occasions like weddings, birth announcements, personalized stationery and more.

I already had a bottle of their Oblation Olive (which is made for them by Papier Plume) but I was excited to see their other bottles, especially their newest release in time for the Northwest Pen Show, Sitka Spruce.

Since I was headed to the pen show that weekend, I kept my haul to a minimum. In addition to the Oblation Olive, which I already had, I picked up their other exclusives, Rose City Rose, Portland Rain and Sitka Spruce. I also couldn’t resist the Bridges of the World washi tape set.

I highly recommend the shop, especially if you have more than 20 minutes to spare because there are so many cool things to check out and look at while you’re there. Next time I hope to play with some typewriters and maybe see their letterpress machine in action, too.

Oblation Papers & Press is located in Portland's Pearl District at 516 NW12th Avenue, Portland OR 97209 and is about 20-25 minute drive from the Portland Airport, depending on traffic. Their store hours are Monday - Saturday from 11am - 6p, and Sunday from 12 - 5pm. They can also be reached by phone at 503-223-1093, by email info@oblationpapers.com and are also on Instagram as Oblation Papers & Press.

---

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!

The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 636 - "Strictly Limited"

LAMY 2000 Pine Green, via Instagram.

If a new pen release is “strictly limited” to 5000 units, is it even limited at all? Myke and I discuss the new LAMY 2000 Pine Green, look at swatches of the upcoming Pilot Iroshizuku inks, and sharpen a few pencils.

Show Notes & Download Links

This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:

Ooni Pizza Ovens: Bring restaurant quality pizza to your home. Discount automatically applied at checkout.

Enigma Stationery: Shop online with code PENADDICT24 for a free gift and discounted shipping on orders of $50 or more.

NaNoWri...No.

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

Writers around the world are experiencing an upset to their November plans. The organization behind the annual National Novel Writing Month is imploding due to its own incompetence, and writers, like myself, who have participated for decades are leaving the community in droves.

The death of NaNoWriMo has been drawn-out, ugly, and depressing for a lot of longtime participants. Arguably, the trouble began, as so much trouble did, in 2020 with the Covid pandemic. That year, it was prohibited for groups to gather for NaNoWriMo sponsored events (for obvious reasons). Municipal Liaisons (who are in charge of regional events) were forbidden from hosting or planning any in-person activities. Which was good! That was a good rule. But a lot of them didn't listen. That led to a lot of liaisons getting fired and banned, resulting in the disassembly of a lot of local chapters. NaNo was in the right, there. But that might have been the last time.

In 2022, scandal broke when NaNoWriMo partnered with a scam artist vanity press called Inkitt, which preyed on ambitious young writers who didn't know they were being scammed. NaNo's endorsement of the company was called out, and eventually an apology was issued, but a lot of damage was done to the good faith people had in them. It was another huge hit to the platform's popularity.

And then 2023 dealt what should have been the final blow. The story broke that a moderator who was in charge of the Young Writers Program forums had been grooming, exploiting, and harassing the children participating in the program. And he hadn't just been doing this himself, but also allowing other internet predators access to those forums in order to groom victims. It's a terrifying, reprehensible thought. And what upset people the most was that this had apparently been happening--and had been reported--for YEARS. NaNoWriMo's initial response was that they knew nothing of these happenings, which fell apart pretty quickly when these very organized young people provided proof that they not only knew, but that the concerns had been repeatedly brushed aside. It was truly a pathetic lack of accountability--an exact demonstration of what not to do. What followed was a mass exodus of both participants and org staff. There didn't seem to be anything left of NaNoWriMo, and it seemed like that might be for the best.

But it's a new year, and as November draws closer, there seems to be room for one more scandal. This time, NaNoWriMo seems determined to finish the job by abandoning literally everything they stand for. The challenge that was based on putting in hours of hard work in order to embrace the creation process has decided to take the stance that it's cool if you just want to use AI bots, tho. Forget the work and discipline, which was the whole point. Forget the creativity, which was also the whole point. Just push a few buttons, and BAM, you'll have a fresh project ready to be exploited by a network of scam artists.

Anyway. This is the time of year when I usually post about what I'm planning to work on for NaNoWriMo. For obvious reasons, that's not happening this year. I was done after last year, seeing how they had ignored the very serious problems in the forums. Last year, they were monsters. This year they're just a joke. I'm actually too mad to be bummed about it.

I'll still be writing, as always. I'll still write with friends, and I'm still going on my annual writing retreat to the lake. We can still make goals and track our progress. But NaNoWriMo is over for good.

---

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!