My ADHD brain in blog form.
Posted in Fountain Pens
This post is inspired by Angelica Nyqvist‘s video Too Big, Too Repetitive, Ugly Packaging? | Eyeshadow Palette TAG 5000. In that video, they credit Chic Geek with coming up with the idea.
For so long, my main choice for this type of question was my Prisma 88. But now, I have my Analog Notes Precious Petals that remind me of the first bouquet Jim gave me when we were dating.
Posted in Fountain Pens
I came across a fun old post from nikkipans on the makeup side of Instagram, with a tag credited to user jesspanner who either quit Instagram or changed their name. It wasn’t hard to adjust it to work for the fountain pen world.
Because I’ve done “fountain pen tags” for both pens and nibs, it only made sense to make this one about ink! Even more fun, Jim agreed to join the fun and provide his answers as well!
I’ve included swatches for inks we still have; unfortunately, that’s only about 60% of them. I’ve done my best to photoshop the individual ink swatches to look true-to-life, but that’s easier said than done, especially with any color that has red in it.
Posted in Fountain Pens
The Goulet Pen Company posted a Q&A Slice video on YouTube Can These 5 Pens Cover ALL of Your Needs?, with the answer to a question from user Adams1030.
If you had to curate a standard 5-pen collection that in theory would cover almost all of a person’s fountain pen needs, what would that collection be?
The question is interesting, and Drew’s answer was fun. While I wouldn’t be happy with just the five pens I list below — I enjoy variety — I think they would satisfy most of the general pen desires. So, allow me to share my version of the 5-pen collection. My goal was to provide a wide range of writing experiences without breaking the bank on any one pen.
Posted in Fountain Pens
I know, I know, I’m jumping on this bandwagon super late. But, Tom Oddo included his responses in issue 392 of Ink Journal, and this most recent entry for this trend finally made decide to follow suit. If you haven’t seen this tag yet, it originates with Ana from The Well Appointed Desk.
There are many, but I think the most precious is my Bumbledore pen from Stanford Pen Studio.
Posted in Fountain Pens
This post is inspired by Glitter Fallout‘s video FAVORITES THAT HAVE BEEN DETHRONED 💔 Make way for the new! | GlitterFallout. In that video, they credit Samantha March with coming up with the idea.
In working on this post, I surprised myself with how few favorites I’ve abandoned. I expected to have plenty to choose from, but I struggled to get enough for a full post. Whether I’m highly loyal to my favorites, or I’m super picky about what makes it to “favorite” status, I’m not sure, but they equal out to the same thing: a short list.
Posted in Fountain Pens
This post is an answer to the questions in Liane Likes‘ video Part 1: My Fountain Pen Journey, Conversation with seemownay. Liane Likes collaborated with seemownay who posted How many Fountain Pens is enough? Interview with lianelikes Part 2 of Conversation.
I discovered Liane Likes’ video through Ink Journal’s weekly newsletter.
Posted in Fountain Pens
I had a lot of fun with the Pen Resolutions Tag last year, so I’m doing it again this year. I’m also revisiting the resolutions I made last year to see how I did.
This idea was original adapted from Theresa is Dead’s video: OH 2021… | BEAUTY RESOLUTIONS TAG video. The Beauty Resolutions Tag originated with Mel Thompson.
I’ll definitely revisit this again in 2024.
Answer from 2022: Stop putting off pen cleaning. Did I do better? Nope. I keep forgetting to add it to my weekly spread in my notebook. And, if it’s not there, it doesn’t get done.
Answer for 2023: Since remembering to add pen cleaning to my weekly to-do list would get me to clean my pens, I need to get better at doing that. This is, at its core the same resolution I made last year, but I’m taking a different approach to see if I have more success.
Posted in Fountain Pens
I had fun with this tag last year, so I decided to do it again. This idea was originally based on the “New Makeup Releases | THE TAG” video from Angelica Nyqvist.
This tag is about evaluating the releases — in this case pens & inks — from the past year.
Posted in Fountain Pens
Today’s post is somewhat inspired by a YouTube video. “Weird pen collabs” seemed like a fun topic, at least until I realized the only one I could find/think of was the Montegrappa & Harry Potter series. And that’s only weird for what Montegrappa chose to draw inspiration from. The Quidditch pitch, really? But I digress.
So, I modified the idea to ridiculous pens. The pens I chose are either ridiculously bad OR ridiculously good. On the bad side of things you have poor design and pricing. On the good side you have amazing showcase of materials and skill. I’m sure there are many other ridiculous pens I’ve missed, but I tried to go for a variety, and I think I succeeded.
Side note before I begin: I’m not judging the artistry or craftsmanship on the “bad” pens, just the decisions.
Now, let’s start small and work our way up, shall we?
Posted in Fountain Pens
I came across a post a while back where someone was concerned that their nib didn’t have a breather hole. I didn’t bother to comment that a breather hole isn’t necessary for your pen to function because multiple people already had. But, it got me thinking, what other fountain pen myths are there? These are the ones I could think of, with some help from Azizah of Gourmet Pens.
Posted in Personal
It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since I started this blog. I originally considered writing some great retrospective with a side of holy crap, I kept this going for 5 freakin’ years!! But, then I found a tag to do instead. While I haven’t posted consistently for the full 5 years, I am pretty happy that I’ve stuck with it this long. Here’s to another 5!
This post is inspired by Angelica Nyqvist‘s video Well This Has Been Quite The Journey…. In that video, she credits Erica Conger and notyourbasicsteph with coming up with the idea.
Posted in Fountain Pens
This post is inspired by Angelica Nyqvist‘s video But, Would I Buy Them If They Were Released Today?! In that video, they credit Dolly Mama Beauty with coming up with the idea.
The idea behind this post is pretty straightforward: if the below pens were first announced/released today, would I buy them? So, this is different than the more typical, “if my collection disappeared” or, “if this pen got lost” that usually prefaces the “would I buy it again” question. Suspend disbelief for the duration of this post. Imagine that none of the below pens have ever existed in this world before today. And I’ll tell you if I would buy them.
Posted in Fountain Pens, and Reviews
DISCLAIMER UPDATE (6/24/22): TWSBI and Narwhal have released a joint statement which I cover in my most recent TWSBIgate post. While not completely satisfied with TWSBI’s response to the situation, I no longer feel the need to dissuade people from purchasing their products.
DISCLAIMER (5/1/22): Since writing this post, TWSBI has been involved in some unsavory actions, and I am currently boycotting them. For more information, refer to the #twsbigate tag page.
After the fun I had with The Fountain Pens Tag post, I decided to jump on the round 2 version that’s been going around. Except this time I’m just focusing on nibs.
This post is inspired by Heather Austin‘s video THE PALETTE TAG ROUND 2 | ALL ABOUT EYESHADOWS! In that video, she credits Samantha March and Allie Glines with coming up with the idea.
Posted in Fountain Pens
As I mentioned in my survey results post, I was surprised to find that this topic got the most votes. But, ask and you shall receive. This post is inspired by Emily Hanhan‘s video MAKEUP GRUDGES BRANDS, PRODUCTS, & TRENDS I HAVE BEEF WITH! // YES, THIS IS A RANT!
Now, by definition, a grudge is “a persistent feeling of ill will or resentment resulting from a past insult or injury.” However, I don’t necessarily have ill will or resentment towards these brands. Rather, most of them I’ve simply had one or more negative experiences that make me wary or unwilling to purchase more from them. There are only two brands on this list that I would, and have, actively warn people against buying.
Posted in Fountain Pens
DISCLAIMER UPDATE (6/24/22): TWSBI and Narwhal have released a joint statement which I cover in my most recent TWSBIgate post. While not completely satisfied with TWSBI’s response to the situation, I no longer feel the need to dissuade people from purchasing their products.
DISCLAIMER (5/1/22): Since writing this post, TWSBI has been involved in some unsavory actions, and I am currently boycotting them. For more information, refer to the #twsbigate tag page.
This post is inspired by Angelica Nyqvist‘s video One Wasn’t Enough… | Products So Good I Went Back and Bought More!!. In that video, she credits Lauren Mae Beauty with coming up with the idea.
While the idea is pretty straightforward, I’m taking a specific facet of it. I’m not examining all pens I had to have more than one of. Instead, I’m only taking a look at those pens that I purchased more than one of the same model because I loved the way it writes. Maybe later I can share pens I bought more than one of because of the way they look. Would you be interested in that?
Anyway, that’s enough blathering, let’s get to the fun stuff.
Posted in Fountain Pens
DISCLAIMER UPDATE (6/24/22): TWSBI and Narwhal have released a joint statement which I cover in my most recent TWSBIgate post. While not completely satisfied with TWSBI’s response to the situation, I no longer feel the need to dissuade people from purchasing their products.
DISCLAIMER (5/1/22): Since writing this post, TWSBI has been involved in some unsavory actions, and I am currently boycotting them. For more information, refer to the #twsbigate tag page.
Before I dive into this post, I have an announcement. After over two months of twice-a-week or more posting, I’m going to slow down a bit, and only post once a week for a while. I’m trying to give myself some more time for other hobbies, including an embroidery project, ancestry research, and a completely new hobby I want to try, bead weaving. Fountain pen posts will go up on Fridays. Non-fountain pen posts will go up on Tuesdays. Now, on to the pens that got away!
Posted in Fountain Pens
Yep, it’s another adaptation from YouTube; is anyone surprised? Honestly, the YouTube makeup world has some great year-end round-up ideas. This one comes from Angelica Nyqvist‘s video 10 Palettes I ALMOST Bought Recently (but then DIDN’T). But, back to this post. The idea is pretty self-explanatory.
So, what pens did I almost buy, and what kept me from purchasing them?
Posted in Fountain Pens
This is another adaptation from Theresa is Dead, this time, her OH 2021… | BEAUTY RESOLUTIONS TAG video. The Beauty Resolutions Tag originated with Mel Thompson. At first glance, I thought this one wouldn’t require much adaptation. It seemed as though most questions could easily apply to the pen hobby simply by changing one or two words. However, when I sat down to really answer each question, I realized that a lot more work was required. But I digress
I’ll have to revisit this in 2023 and see how I did with these resolutions.
I need to get better about putting off pen cleaning. I used to clean my previous week’s pens when filling the new week’s pens. But that turned a 10-minute activity into a 20+ minute activity, which annoyed me. So, I started cleaning my pens on Mondays, then Tuesdays, and, well, you get the picture. I usually get them cleaned by Wednesday, but a couple of weeks ago, I never got to them and had to clean 10 pens at once.
Posted in Fountain Pens
DISCLAIMER UPDATE (6/24/22): TWSBI and Narwhal have released a joint statement which I cover in my most recent TWSBIgate post. While not completely satisfied with TWSBI’s response to the situation, I no longer feel the need to dissuade people from purchasing their products.
DISCLAIMER (5/1/22): Since writing this post, TWSBI has been involved in some unsavory actions, and I am currently boycotting them. For more information, refer to the #twsbigate tag page.
This post is based on the “New Makeup Releases | THE TAG” video from Angelica Nyqvist. She’s done this tag for several years, and I thought it would be fun to adapt it to the fountain pen world.
This tag is about evaluating the releases — in this case pens & inks — from the past year.
DISCLAIMER UPDATE (6/24/22): TWSBI and Narwhal have released a joint statement which I cover in my most recent TWSBIgate post. While not completely satisfied with TWSBI’s response to the situation, I no longer feel the need to dissuade people from purchasing their products.
DISCLAIMER (5/1/22): Since writing this post, TWSBI has been involved in some unsavory actions, and I am currently boycotting them. For more information, refer to the #twsbigate tag page.
This post is based on the 21 QUESTIONS: Makeup Edition video from Theresa is Dead. According to her video the 21 Questions Makeup Edition idea originated from Allie Glines.
This time, there’s no evaluating yourself. You’re just answering 21 Questions. I’m assuming, based on the description under Allie’s video, that there have been other editions of the 21 Questions tag.
