(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!.)
This is going to be a quick recap because (1) I didn’t get into DC until Saturday 8:30am and (2) I was behind the Franklin-Christoph table both days. If you want to get a more detailed walkthrough of the show, I highly recommend watching Inkdependence’s Friday livestream videos (start with part one.)
The 2021 DC Pen Super Show happened last weekend (August 5-8) and this was my first in-person pen show since Baltimore 2020. I was so ready to see all the pen things but more importantly, see pen friends old and new, and judging by the attendance, I wasn’t the only one! I don’t have numbers for attendance/tables but my guess is that it was about 60-75% of 2019’s show. The aisles felt wide enough to allow decent traffic flow, except the corridor between the two ballrooms was pretty congested all weekend long. People were generally in adherence to the mask rules for the show - I would say at least 90% of vendors and attendees were masked, with masks coming off for eating/drinking and some photos.
Entering the large ballroom. (photo used with permission by Joseph Sokoly - IG:jsokoly)
My view of the large ballroom from the F-C table.
As in prior years, vendors were spread across two ballrooms and a corridor between the two. The smaller ballroom in the front housed many of the maker vendors like Schon DSGN, Goods Made Better, Odyssey Notebooks and Carolina Pen Company as well as other retailers like Xezo, Galen Leather, and Toys from the Attic.
Schon Dsgn’s colorful machined pens. (IG:schon _dsgn)
Penwells by Good Made Better. (IG:goodmadebetter)
Pilot, David Oscarson, Pen World Magazine, Vanness and others lined the way as you made your way between the ballrooms. There were also vendors outside the large ballroom including Narwhal, Taccia, Bertram’s Inkwell and Lemur Ink.
Lisa Vanness and her crew were busy all weekend - look at all that ink! (photo used with permission by Joseph Sokoly - IG:jsokoly)
John Phelan of Lemur Ink in a rare, slow moment in the show.
There was a good variety of large and small vendors ranging from distributors like Kenro (Esterbrook, Montegrappa, Aurora, ystudio, etc.), Coles of London (Visconti and S.T. Dupont) and Yafa (Conklin, Monteverde, Diplomat) to multi-table spreads at Chatterley Luxuries, and Franklin-Christoph (you knew that was coming), to Little Black Rabbit Paperie, Chef Brandon (and his delicious chocolates) and Roses without Thorns, as well as vintage sellers like Paul Erano, Alan Hirsch, Myk Daigle of MaD Mercantile. There were plenty of folks selling modern and vintage pens, lots of paper and inks and I really enjoyed seeing other stationery goods like cards, wax seals, stamps, washi, ephemera and more.
These beautiful Montegrappas were at the Kenro tables. And yes, I’m kicking myself for forgetting to take pictures of their awesome pen show displays and coordinated outfits!
Chatterley Luxuries always have an amazing display of eye candy, including their newly launched in-house brand Chateau.
This newly released Visconti Homo Sapiens, Blue Ultramarine arrived in time for folks to check it out at the Coles of London booth (photo credit: Brain Chu (IG:reddragonpenco).
Friday morning feeding frenzy at the Franklin-Christoph table. (Photo via Franklin-Christoph.)
So much cuteness at Little Black Rabbit Paperie! I may have broken my “no more washi tape” rule!
Day Art Store has a wonderful selection of wax seal stamps, wax beads and more. (IG:dayartstore)
New for the show this year was the online pen show map, created by Alexander Kramer (IG: pen_show_maps), which made it easier for attendees to locate vendors/classrooms/etc. There were also giveaways throughout the show weekend and ink testing stations in the far back hallway with plenty of room and tables to try out lots of ink.
Bob Johnson, the founder of the DC Pen Super Show, passed away last September. His sister Barb and other family members took the helm and really did an admirable job organizing the show and keeping Bob’s legacy alive. I can’t wait to see what the show has in store for us next year.
Monteverde’s 2021 DC Super Show ink “Bob’s Blue Ink”, commemorating Bob Johnson.
