(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!.)
I was so excited when Kaweco announced that they would be releasing a special DIY (Do It Yourself) Kaweco but it would only be available at in-store events. I kept seeing events popping up at vendors at times/places that I couldn’t attend so I thought I’d just have to hunt for a used one down the road. Thankfully, the stars and schedules aligned and I was able to make the trek to Flax Pen to Paper this past weekend and assemble my own Kaweco! Spoiler alert: this article contains pictures of the DIY process, so if you’re planning to get one done and you don’t wanna see what’s involved, scroll to the bottom and look at the haul instead 🙂
I love the signage for the DIY event as well as Custom Nib Studio and Saiko Stationery!
Ryan Finnegan of Saiko Stationery also did a pop-up at the store! I was good and didn’t buy any washi tape but I might have picked up some other stuff…
After the first rush of customers, I was able to start working on my DIY Kaweco! I’m so excited!
This big box is shipped to the vendors around the world who had signed up to participate in the DIY event.
The various pen parts are inside, including different nib units, grips, etc.
Here are the parts for my pen (not including the box and sticker.)
I put the inner cap onto the metal post thingy (yes, that’s the technical term and I’m sticking to it, lol) and then put the cap on top of that. The inner cap helps prevent evaporation.
Time for the finial to go on the cap!
Voila!
Time for the nib to go into the pen!
That was easy!
*All done! *
All of the steps were very easy to follow (especially since Ryan walked me through it!) and the machine was also very easy to use - no significant strength required! I did not keep any of the packaging as there was nothing highlighting that this was a DIY Kaweco, other than the silver engraving on the pen cap itself. It does not come with a converter.
Gena Salorino of Custom Nib Studio was on hand to work their magic on folks’ pens, including my newly created Kaweco!
Can you believe that, all this time, I only wrote on their sample pad and never in my notebook? Oops 😃 Glad I finally took my own advice!
Gena ground the broad Kaweco nib to a Cursive Italic and I inked it up with Robert Oster Napa.
In addition to the DIY Kaweco, I couldn’t escape the store without buying these goodies from Flax and Saiko Stationery.
I couldn’t choose between the different packs of stickers from Saiko Stationery, so I got several! Also love the wine “juice box” sticker from Flax and underneath is a Bellroy Lite Sacoche, the link is for Black, but mine is Clay.
I also bought some Uni-ball One P and F gel pens, a PLOTTER Bible-size Fastener Case, Midori metallic transfer stickers and some awesome cards.
I had a great time at the event! Aside from assembling my very own Kaweco, it was so fun meeting people and chatting with them while they shopped or tried Gena’s tester pens (highly recommend, even if you’re not getting anything done). Thank you to Flax Pen to Paper for hosting this event, to Ryan for helping me with the Kaweco (and bringing some super cute Saiko Stationery goods) and to Gena for making the nib extra special! I believe the Kaweco box of goodness will be making its way to the next stop soon (though I was unable to find a list on the Kaweco website), but if you have the opportunity to assemble a Kaweco at your local pen store, I highly recommend the experience!
(Disclaimer: All products and nib services were purchased by me at Flax Pen to Paper.)
