Author: Rachel

Review – Unmentionable

January 17, 2023

Rachel

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Review – Unmentionable

Posted in Book Blogger

Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady’s Guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners

by Therese Oneill

Genres: 19th Century World History, Etiquette, Victorian Era
Release Date: October 25, 2016
Pages: 309
Purchase from: Amazon

My Rating: ★★★★★

View ratings overview

☆☆☆☆☆ – Did not finish
★☆☆☆☆ – Hated it
★★☆☆☆ – Disliked it
★★★☆☆ – Okay
★★★★☆ – Liked it
★★★★★ – Loved it
Read the full explanation of my book rating system.

Have you ever wished you could live in an earlier, more romantic era? Ladies, welcome to the 19th century, where there’s arsenic in your face cream, a pot of cold pee sits under your bed, and all of your underwear is crotchless. (Why? Shush, dear. A lady doesn’t question.)

Unmentionable is your hilarious, illustrated, scandalously honest (yet never crass) guide to the secrets of Victorian womanhood, giving you detailed advice on: What to wear Where to relieve yourself How to conceal your loathsome addiction to menstruating What to expect on your wedding night How to be the perfect Victorian wife Why masturbating will kill you And more!

Irresistibly charming, laugh-out-loud funny, and featuring nearly 200 images from Victorian publications, Unmentionable will inspire a whole new level of respect for Elizabeth Bennett, Scarlet O’Hara, Jane Eyre, and all of our great, great grandmothers. (And it just might leave you feeling ecstatically grateful to live in an age of pants, super absorbency tampons, epidurals, anti-depressants, and not dying of the syphilis your husband brought home.)

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Athena: Who Adopted Whom?

January 13, 2023

Rachel

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Athena: Who Adopted Whom?

Posted in Cat

Before I get started I want to note that, for the rest of January, Fridays will be “Feline Friday” as I share the Athena posts I have planned. Also, be aware that this post is rather long. It covers from November 2019 when we first met Athena up to October of 2022.

Alright, yes, my title for this post leans toward cliché, but it’s true. Athena definitely adopted us as her humans before we officially adopted her into our family. But, for you to understand, I have to look back a few years, to November of 2019.

We were in our garage when “MEOW! MEOW!”

“Oh, hello little one!” Jim spotted the adorable little furball first. “How are you?”

“MEOW!” The kitten couldn’t have been more than 6 months old. It was all black and puffed up, sitting next to the downspout by the garage door.

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Review – In Default of Heirs Male

January 11, 2023

Rachel

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Review – In Default of Heirs Male

Posted in Book Blogger

In Default of Heirs Male

by Jann Rowland

Genres: Classic Romance, Historical Regency Fiction, Regency Historical Romance
Release Date: May 19, 2021
Pages: 366
Purchase from: Amazon

My Rating: ★★★★☆

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Longbourn estate in Hertfordshire, home of the Bennet family, is entailed. Armed with this unfortunate knowledge, the females of the family have long lived with the threat of eviction from their beloved home should Mr. Bennet pass away before his time.

When the unthinkable happens, the Bennet ladies prepare to leave their home as the heir arrives to take control of his inheritance. Salvation comes, however, by the most surprising of news: Mrs. Bennet is with child.

While waiting for the child to be born, Elizabeth takes control over the estate, determined to save as much as possible in the brief season she has been given. Fortunately, the Netherfield party arrives, and the attentions of the new master of the estate bring them all to hope that Jane, at least, will achieve her heart’s desire.

But little does Elizabeth know she is also the subject of a gentleman’s interest, for Mr. Darcy sees her as an excellent woman who is eager to uphold the trust with which her father favored her. Despite his feelings, Elizabeth is slow to understand the love that might be within her grasp, as she struggles with her duty under the specter of the heir, who believes the Bennets have cheated him of his inheritance and will do whatever he can to ensure he gets what he believes is his.

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Pen Porn: Benu Talisman Ice and Snow

January 9, 2023

Rachel

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Pen Porn: Benu Talisman Ice and Snow

Posted in Fountain Pens

Disclaimer: I take no responsibility for pen envy or impulse purchases resulting from viewing this post.

Per usual, you can click on the images to view them larger. I do my best to provide you with high-quality pen porn. 😉

I stumbled upon the Ice and Snow on Instagram. Although I thought I had finished with pen purchases for 2022, I had to have it. Between my love of winter and collecting the Talisman series pens that have shaped confetti — like the Wild Rose, Shooting Star, and Four Leaf Clover — there was no way I wasn’t going to pick one up.

As with other Talisman model pens, the Ice and Snow has its inspiration added to the material of the pen. This time, it’s Snow Quartz. According to the pamphlet that came with it, “snow quartz has an uplifting and kind energy and is typically used during challenging moments in life, when everything seems dark and grim.”

Rachel

Blog Review – 2022

Posted in Random Reflections

I’ve enjoyed these past two weeks of looking back at 2022 and looking forward to 2023. I’ll likely keep this same set of posts for future years, although perhaps not in the same order.

Like with yesterday’s Goodreads reading challenge post, I haven’t ever dedicated a post to my blog stats. So today, I’m fixing that oversight.

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2022 Goodreads Reading Challenge

January 5, 2023

Rachel

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2022 Goodreads Reading Challenge

Posted in Book Blogger

While I’ve meant to, I’ve never actually written a post about my Goodreads Reading Challenge activity. I’ve actively taken part in the challenge every year since 2018. Generally, I’ve been conservative with my goal. In 2022, I went fairly easy on myself, setting a goal of only 36 books.

Since I haven’t looked back at my reading in previous years — on my blog, at least — I want to provide a brief overview of the previous years’ challenges, too. After all, while I know many of my readers are here for the fountain pen posts, 32% of my blog content is related to books.

If you’re interested in what I thought of the books I read, you can take a look at my book review posts, or my Reviewed list on Goodreads. I don’t always review the books I read, and, even for those I do, they aren’t guaranteed to make it on here.

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Pen Resolutions Tag 2023

January 4, 2023

Rachel

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Pen Resolutions Tag 2023

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 originally 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.

1. What is something you do regularly in your pen routine that you will try to stop?

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.

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My Current Pen Wish List — Jan. 2023

Instagram 1-3-23. My Current Pen Wish List

January 3, 2023

Rachel

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My Current Pen Wish List — Jan. 2023

Posted in Fountain Pens

Once again, it’s time to revisit my wish list. I’ve bought some pens, decided against others, and found new pens I want.

I’ve kept the two-tier list structure: “Tier One” that I’m actively looking to acquire, and “Tier Two” that I’d pick up if there’s a good deal, or if the stars align perfectly.

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Reviewing My 2022 Purchasing Habits

January 2, 2023

Rachel

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Reviewing My 2022 Purchasing Habits

Posted in Fountain Pens

As should have been obvious in my Pen Collection post, 2022 did not go as I’d planned. My stated goal was to limit my pen purchases to 24 pens. I failed in that. Miserably.

However, I sold 17 pens last year, and none of them was purchased in 2022. So at least I’m keeping up my streak of zero same-year sales.

While I disposed of more pens in 2022 than 2021 (14), my purchasing skyrocketed from 42 in 2021 to 54 in 2022. That puts last year as the second highest purchasing rate since I started collecting. It also had the second highest net collection increase : 37.

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Athena: First Week of Treatment

January 1, 2023

Rachel

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Athena: First Week of Treatment

Posted in Cat

When I wrote in my fundraiser post that I’m planning some posts on Athena’s story up to her diagnosis, and updates on her progress, I intended to start with her life before her illness. However, given the timing, it seemed prudent to provide an update on her first week of treatment. My next post will be about her life pre-diagnosis. If you’re interested in that, subscribe to my blog (link below) or bookmark her tag page.

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My Pen Collection – End of 2022

Instagram 12-31-22. My Pen Collection - 2023. Whole Collection | Currently Owned Pens.

December 31, 2022

Rachel

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My Pen Collection – End of 2022

Posted in Fountain Pens

Another year, another overview of my collection. I really enjoyed the Google Data Studio approach I used last year, so I went with that again this year. There are four pages again, and, while I’ve embedded the report below, there’s a good chance it will be easier for you to view it directly in Data Studio.

Rachel

My 2022 Top Tens

Posted in Fountain Pens

Once again, I’m sharing my current top pens. I took a somewhat different approach this year, so that I actually choose a top 10. I’m judging my pens based on appearance and the way they write. So I have two different top ten lists. Because of this, I won’t be comparing to last year’s top pens, which ended up being a top 28.

This was just as hard as I expected it to be. I’m fortunate enough to have an absolutely fabulous pen collection, so narrowing it down to my favorites grows increasingly difficult each year.

But without further preamble, enjoy my top 10 pens of 2022 by appearance and by nibs.

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Year in Review – 2022 Pens

December 29, 2022

Rachel

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Year in Review – 2022 Pens

Posted in Fountain Pens, and Non-Fountain Pens

While it was difficult to do last year, ranking my pen purchases was a useful exercise. So, I decided to do it again. I have to say, I’m embarrassed by the long list of pens I purchased this year. I was hoping to buy less pens this year, not more. But I’ll discuss that in another post.

I realize that this is a long block of text. But, if I added a photo of each pen, it would take absolutely forever to get through. So, for pens that I’ve already discussed in a dedicated post, I’ve linked to that post (and the photos contained therein). For the rest, where possible, I linked to an Instagram photo from the pen maker or store they collaborated with. When that wasn’t possible, I linked to a good photo on Instagram (consider following those fine folks) or one of my own Instagram posts.

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2022 New Pen Releases, The Tag

December 28, 2022

Rachel

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2022 New Pen Releases, The Tag

Posted in Fountain Pens, Ink, and Non-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.

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Fundraiser for Athena

December 27, 2022

Rachel

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Fundraiser for Athena

Posted in Cat

As I mentioned in my post on Saturday, our formerly outdoor girl has just been diagnosed with FIP. She will need 81 more daily injections — as of this morning — of a fairly new, and rather expensive, medication. The total volume of medication she’ll need over the course of treatment will depend on how much weight she regains.

As of yesterday morning, she’s 6.4 lbs — she’s a rather small cat, and she’s still underweight — up from a horrifying 5.7 lbs at her lowest. Our goal is to get her back up to between 8 and 9 lbs. We don’t currently know exactly what her dose per injection will be as her weight goes up.

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25 Days of Dupes 2022 Wrap-Up

25 days of dupes 2022 Instagram share image.

December 27, 2022

Rachel

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25 Days of Dupes 2022 Wrap-Up

Posted in Ink

I hope you’ve enjoyed this series. If you were unable to purchase the Inkvent Calendar, then this likely helped settle your mind about experiencing the colors. I’m sure that these 2022 colors will eventually be released individually, so hopefully this series helped you decide which ones — if any — to get.

Comparing the Inkvent Calendars

I found this year’s Inkvent calendar disappointing. There were only two inks I couldn’t match perfectly, and I’m certain it comes down to not having the right ink, as opposed to those colors being super unique. This year’s calendar was released later than last year’s, and I didn’t have the time to place additional orders trying to find perfect ink matches.

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25 Days of Dupes 2022 – Week 4

December 26, 2022

Rachel

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25 Days of Dupes 2022 – Week 4

Posted in Ink

Hello, welcome to the fourth post of 25 Days of Dupes 2022. Below you’ll find the inks for days 19-25. If you have a suggestion for a possible dupe, let me know in the comments, and I’ll add it to the wrap up post.

Some reminders:

The first image for each ink shows the inkvent ink and what I feel is the best match, swatched on Tomoe River paper.
The second image for each ink shows the inkvent ink and the different inks I tried matching it to, swatched on Iroful paper.
I swatched ink with a small paintbrush, and wrote with a Zebra G dip nib in the first image.
I can’t guarantee that the color you see on your screen will be true to life. However, with all the dupes on the same page, you’ll see how the colors look in relation to each other, which is the main point of these posts.
I’m not attempting to dupe the special properties of the inks (sheen, shimmer, scent).

Enjoy, and happy inking!

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Pens for Sale for Athena

December 24, 2022

Rachel

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Pens for Sale for Athena

Posted in Cat, and Fountain Pens

Update 12/27/22: Thank you so much to those who have purchased pens! It’s truly appreciated.

I’ve had some pens for sale at Bertram’s Inkwell for a little while. I appreciate how easy Bert makes his consignment process. Under normal circumstances, I’m in no hurry to sell pens. They sell when they sell. That said, we’ve had something come up.

Athena’s Story

If you follow me on Instagram, then you’ve likely seen posts of our “outdoor” girl, Athena. She was once a feral kitten, and came to us for help when she was about 6 months old. She was outside our garage, meowing at us. And she never really left.

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My 2022 Brand “Discoveries”

December 23, 2022

Rachel

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My 2022 Brand “Discoveries”

Posted in Fountain Pens

While I didn’t quite buy from 15 new-to-me brands like last year, I did purchase from 9. Now, when I say new-to-me, I don’t mean I’ve never heard of them, just that I’d never before purchased a pen made by that brand.

Nearly all of them are indie brands, which makes me happy as I like supporting indie brands. And my interest continues to be piqued by indie brands more than mainstream brands.

Anyway, let’s start with mainstream brands to get that out of the way, then jump into the indie brands. FYI: The lists are in alphabetical order.

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Review – Her Sisterly Love

December 21, 2022

Rachel

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Review – Her Sisterly Love

Posted in Book Blogger

Her Sisterly Love

by Lucy Marin

Genres: Regency Fiction
Release Date: January 24, 2022
Pages: 188
Purchase from: Amazon

My Rating: ★★★★☆

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AT THE TENDER AGE OF TWELVE, Elizabeth Bennet vowed to protect her younger sisters from her parents’ neglect, brought on by their increasingly combative marriage. Jane is her partner in this endeavour—until her attention is diverted by the arrival of a handsome new neighbour, Mr Bingley. With him is his friend, Mr Darcy, who Elizabeth first dismisses as taciturn and rude. But as she gets to know him, other feelings arise—ones destined to end in heartbreak because of her promise to remain with her sisters.

SOON AFTER ARRIVING at Netherfield, Fitzwilliam Darcy finds himself intrigued by one of the local young ladies. There is something about Elizabeth Bennet’s kindliness that draws him to her, and as he learns more about her, his admiration grows. First determined to forget her, he soon wants more than anything to win her heart and her hand in marriage. But will the very thing that draws him to her be the thing that forever keeps them apart?

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