Vanness Pens - Ink Heaven and more!

(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 I mentioned in the Arkansas show recap last week, one of the draws for going to Arkansas was finally going to visit the Vanness Pens shop in Little Rock! I first met Lisa at the 2017 SF Pen Show (my first show!) less than 3 months after getting into pens and I remember buying notebooks and inks (Akkerman #5 Shocking Blue, Organics Studio Nitrogen and Walden Pond) from her. I also remembered thinking, maybe one day I’ll get to visit her store. 6.5 years later, it finally happened!

Vanness Pens has a long history, dating back to the 1930s when Orville Vanness put his name on a shop, where he repaired and sold razors and fountain pens. Orville’s grandson (and Lisa’s husband), Mike, is currently the 3rd generation of Vanness’ to run the shop, with the 4th and 5th generations growing up into the business as well. You can read more about their history and staff on their website.

Vanness Pens is located in Little Rock, Arkansas on Shackleford Road in a warehouse-style complex.

I can’t explain why the occupants sign made me chuckle. Gym, Junk, Pens.

An unassuming entrance, but what lies behind that door?

To the left as you enter, is a long display of pens from Pilot, TWSBI, Opus 88, Visconti and more.

Look at all the goodies!!

A colorful display of Ferris Wheel Press items as well as other stationery.

One of the pens I wanted to buy, but I couldn’t fit it in my luggage. Some Clairefontaine (right), as well as Akkerman inks, Crown Mill and G. Lalo stationery (left) would be more practical!

I really wanted to take this pen home for Pelikan Hub!

To the left of the Akkerman inks, you would find…more ink! Rohrer & Klingner, Lamy, IWI, Van Dieman’s, Octopus, Laban and more.

I’m glad I finally got to see these Wearingeul book marks and metal stickers (the ones in the back rows) in person! I’m only reading eBooks these days, otherwise I would’ve bought a bunch!

Orville Vanness originally started with razor repairs so there is still a variety of shaving tools and accoutrement that is sold in store and on the website!

Pens, paper, and stationery are all wonderful but let’s be real, we all know the biggest reason for me to visit the shop is the INKS!!!! I’m one of those crazy inkophiles who has far too much ink, so behind in swatching and still can’t resist getting more! As of earlier this week, Vanness has over 2900 inks in stock. WHAT?!?!? I don’t think any vendor, in the US or abroad, comes close to this - and if they do, please let me know so I can add them to my stationery travel bucket list.

All of these binders are full of ink swatches! I had so much fun looking through the binders, both for my own purchases as well as helping customers find the perfect inks!

The warehouse behind the shop is where the magic and the hard work happens.

The past store front’s Vanness sign is displayed prominently on the back wall of the warehouse. There are aisles upon aisles of shelving, each with pen boxes, papers, and of course, inks!

Bottles of Diamine, Colorverse and more are on this shelf (the boxes/inks on the floor just came in and they were in the process of unpacking them.)

Just some of the Kobe inks that Vanness stocks. One or two of them may have made it home with me, hehe! (PC:Matthew Chen)

*Bins upon bins of ink samples! And this is just ONE ROW of samples! *

I have bought so many samples from Vanness over the years because they have such a large selection and it was like a dream come true to see it for myself! Wow! For the Diamine Inkvent series, there were different colored bins for 2019 (Blue), 2021 (Red), etc - I thought that was very clever! Bestsellers or latest additions were marked with yellow labels so it was easier for folks to find them. I discovered firsthand how easy it was to find products when I was helping out at the store on Thursday before the show.

Helping out by finding samples for customers.

Speaking of samples, that’s Jasmine in the background making samples - looks like it’s Diamine 150th Anniversary Espresso.

If you don’t have inky spills that make detectives raise an eyebrow, are you really in the ink business?

One of several aisles of paper products - Apica, Midori, Kokuyo and more!

Laser-engraving a pen - don’t worry, I was just watching and taking pictures!

I also got the chance to see one of two laser engraving machines in action. Vanness will only engrave items that were purchased from them (either in store or online), as not all items work well with engraving. It is an option that can be selected during the product selection. There is no additional charge for this service, but engraved items can’t be returned. If you’re not sure if engraving would work on a particular product, definitely reach out to them beforehand.

This was something I had always wanted to have engraved - and the new release meant it was the perfect time for it! Ink not included. ;-)

With increased shipping costs, Vanness no longer sells empty ink bottles, but if you’re at the shop, you can always ask if they have any empties laying around, which they usually do since they are always making samples! (Note: not all brands allow resale or reuse of their bottles, like Akkerman)

Mike likes to be behind the scenes and runs the shipping department - he also signs the packing lists too!

Lisa with Truffle, the guard dog who only barks if you’re not giving him treats.

Truffle takes a much deserved break after a long day of making sure we feed him apples and other healthy treats (sorry, no more peanut butter.)

I spent most of Thursday as well as several other hours at the store and I kept finding things to buy. It was really cool to see the setup in person because the IG videos don’t really do it justice. I didn’t take photos of every single aisle either, so it’s quite a bit bigger than my photos might indicate. If you’re ever in the area, definitely reach out to them to make an appointment to tour the warehouse.

L to R: Kokuyo Campus B5 binder, Clariefontaine lined hardbound notebook (underneath), Van Dieman’s Marilyn and Elizabeth, Inkbara Sand, Little Prince notepad, Italian fairy tale greeting cards, the engraved iroshizuku bottle, Kobe Wind Blue, Cruising Blue and Romanesque Blue, Color Traveler Miyoshi Pione Purple and Ferris Wheel Press Aurorealis. Not pictured are items for future reviews.

You can find Vanness Pens at 5320 S Shackleford Suite F, Little Rock, AR 72204. Their store hours are Thursday-Friday 10:30am-5:30pm Central Time and Saturday 10:30am-4:00pm CT - please check the website for the most up-to-date hours. They can also be reached by phone at +1-501-353-2362 or via email at vannessonline@gmail.com, as well as on Instagram as JustVanness.

(Disclaimer: Items were purchased by me at the store. Additional items, not pictured, were given to me/Brad for future review.)

Vanness Healing Stone Ink Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

There are so many different inks to choose from today, and that's even after you discount any specialty or sub-par options. High quality ink options are abundant, and we are extremely blessed for that. But that doesn't mean we don't want more options to choose from!

One of the more exciting areas of stationery for me is the blossoming ink market. It seems like every time I turn around, there's a new boutique ink formulator that has beautiful inks for sale. The latest boutique ink to cross my desk is from a familiar name, though. Vanness Pens have experimented with custom inks before, but it's never been a full-on product line. Think of it more as special one-off runs. In this case, the ink is called Healing Stone, and it’s no longer for sale. That being said, it serves as a fantastic example for what the Vanness team are capable of when it comes to designing a fantastic fountain pen ink.

Healing Stone is a dark teal ink that reminds me of other inks that I own, but stands out on its own with plenty of unique merit. Comparing it to other swatches of my ink collection, I noticed that it fits a specific gap that doesn't easily compare. It either has more blue or more green than my other similar inks, but it's such a gorgeous color that I'm happy to add it to the collection.

The dark teal color is murky but distinct. It's not close to the black-teal territory at all. This is a solid teal color that exists somewhere on the edges of dark teal without any hint of black. It's a moody but calming color for me. It has plenty of depth, but without feeling cold or mysterious.

The shading of Healing Stone pairs perfectly with the color. There's enough shading to offer plenty of color variation from medium to dark teal, which adds that depth I mentioned. The shading is very apparent when using a wet medium cursive italic (used for the review photos), but it also comes through on finer nibs too. In areas where the ink pools, it still maintains the teal hue instead of taking on a black tone. For me, it has the perfect amount of shading for everyday writing.

What really blew me away about this ink was the dry time. I did the same test several times because I thought I was making mistakes while counting the time. In most cases, the ink was smudge-proof before the ten second mark. I couldn't believe it, hence the repeat tests. Even after five seconds, there isn't a tremendous amount of smudging or smearing. It's an incredible feat!

The ink is very well-behaved. It's well lubricated and glides easily across the page. At the same time, it isn't overly wet, which can cause feathering and bleeding. The only bleeding I've observed with this ink was when I used a watercolor brush to glop ink onto the Rhodia paper for a test. When writing, there have been zero issues. It doesn't even show through on the back of the page as much as I'd expect from a darker ink. Once again, incredible!

In all, I'm really impressed by Healing Stone. It's not my favorite color, but I've enjoyed using it due to the shading variation and crisp lines it achieves. Add in the quick dry time, and it's a complete winner.

I wish I could point you to a link to buy your own bottle of this fantastic ink, but it isn't current for sale. I don't have the details about when/if this in will be available for sale (or what other plans Vanness may have for the ink market), but I hope that this isn't the last we hear from Vanness in terms of interesting inks.

(Vanness Pens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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