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Tag: Platinum

My 2022 Top TensInstagram 12-30-22. My 2022 Top Tens
December 30, 2022
Rachel
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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 so much 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 PensInstagram 12-29-22
December 29, 2022
Rachel
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Year in Review – 2022 Pens

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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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Ridiculous PensInstagram 12-16-22
December 16, 2022
Rachel
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Ridiculous Pens

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?

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Pen Porn: Platinum Izumo Kurikara-KenInstagram 10-4-22
October 4, 2022
Rachel
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Pen Porn: Platinum Izumo Kurikara-Ken

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 the best pen porn. 😉

I haven’t created a pen porn post on a non-new pen in quite a while. So, today I present to you my glorious Platinum Izumo Kurikara-ken. It depicts a scene of the epic battle between Fudo Myo-o — whose name means the immovable or unshakable one — one of the Five Great Wisdom Kings of Japanese Buddhism, and a threatening dark demon. As the struggle progresses, Fudo Myo-o transforms himself into Kurikara, his own sword, in order to do battle with the demon. When the demon also transforms into a sword, Fudo Myo-o then transforms into a dragon to swallow and destroy him. It is this conclusion that the pen shows.

The platinum izumo kurikara ken
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2022 DC Pen Show, Part 5Instagram image for 2022 DC Pen Show posts
August 15, 2022
Rachel
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2022 DC Pen Show, Part 5

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Pen and Nib Mini Reviews

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 the best pen porn. 😉

Although I purchased and received several non-pen items, I’m only going to review the pens and nib in this post and the Jinji chocolate in a later post. Feel free to jump down to a specific mini review: Analog Notes | Namiki | Platinum | Mayfair Pens | Gravitas Pens | Nahvalur | All in the Nib

Keep Reading2022 DC Pen Show, Part 5
Pens I’ve Gotten Rid OfInstagram 5-20-22
May 20, 2022
Rachel
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Pens I’ve Gotten Rid Of

Posted in Fountain Pens

I don’t remember where the idea for this post originally came from. I may have read something somewhere, it may have just popped into my head one day. I don’t know.

Regardless, in the way I discussed 10 pens in my Would I Buy Them Again Today? post, I chose 10 pens I’ve gotten rid of to discuss why they are no longer in my collection. I’m sure some of my answers will be expected, while others will likely be surprising to some. I hope you enjoy, and that my reasoning may help those who are trying to sell some of their own pens.

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My Pen Collection Part 4Instagram 4-29-22
April 29, 2022
Rachel
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My Pen Collection Part 4

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“Always Inked” Pens

Alright, we’ve made it to the fourth, and final, part in this series, my “always inked” pens! Hold onto your hats, because the really expensive pens are in this grouping. Just keep in mind that I purchased several at steep discounts and received some in exchange for work.

Once again, please use the form at the end of this post to vote for pens you want to see “pen porn” posts about.

I store this group differently than the rest of my pens. These have a display case away from direct light. That way, I can see them when they aren’t in use, and there’s no worry of damage.

Bottom tray of pens
Top Tray of pens
Keep ReadingMy Pen Collection Part 4
One Wasn’t EnoughInstagram 2-17-22
February 18, 2022
Rachel
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One Wasn’t Enough

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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.

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Year in Review – 2021 PensInstagram 1-7-22
January 7, 2022
Rachel
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Year in Review – 2021 Pens

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.

Both last year and in 2019 I wrote about my biggest pen wins and regrets. It was fun to look back on my pens, so I decided to do the same thing this year. However, with my 2021 Top Pens post, I basically already did that. So, I decided to do something I’ve seen in the YouTube makeup world — surprise, surprise — and rank all of my pen purchases.

Note: Some of the pens have already been discussed in recent posts. If a description looks familiar, that’s likely why. Also, 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). And, when all else failed, I linked to my own photos on Instagram.

Keep ReadingYear in Review – 2021 Pens
My 2021 Top PensInstagram 12-24-21
December 24, 2021
Rachel
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My 2021 Top Pens

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.

My planning from last year has paid off. This year, I’m revisiting my 2020 Top Pens and seeing what differences there are in comparison to my 2021 top pens.

As I said last year, I tend to sell or trade pens that don’t make me happy to own. I’m getting closer to all of my pens being favorites, but I made myself narrow them down to a top 10 and top 20. I kind of cheated with the Always Inked section, but don’t judge me too harshly.

This was so much harder than I expected it to be. I slightly adjusted my judging criteria this year. I did my best to put these pens in order of which ones I’m most disappointed to un-ink (clean out). And so, I give you my top pens as of the end of 2021.

Keep ReadingMy 2021 Top Pens
Capsule Pen CollectionInstagram 10-1-21
October 1, 2021
Rachel
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Capsule Pen Collection

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.

Ink Journal’s September 10th Flex Nib Friday issue included a link to ukfountainpens.com‘s article The Three Pen Collection for £1,000. The idea was based on a series of posts on the watch blog Worn & Wound called the three watch collection for $5,000. UK Fountain Pens adapted the idea to pens, dropped the budget to $1,000 because “watches are much more expensive than pens” — *chortle* some watches are much more expensive than some pens — and limited picks to pens you can go out and buy today.

It’s an easy enough premise. My problem, however, is that the pens I’d choose don’t work out well with the budget provided. So, I gave it some thought and decided to curate two collections, one with the adjusted $1,000 budget and one with the original $5,000 budget. As a note, I did not include taxes when figuring out my choices.

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January 14, 2021
Rachel
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My 2020 Top Pens

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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.

In working on blog posts for the new year, I wanted to revisit last year’s favorite pens, only to realize I hadn’t previously written such a list. So, to have something to revisit next year, I give you my top pens as of the close of 2020.

I tend to sell or trade pens that don’t make me very happy to own. I’m hoping to eventually get to a point where all of my pens are favorites, but I was able to come up with a top 10 and top 20 this year. It was difficult to do, but these are basically the pens you’d have to pry out of my cold, dead hands.

Keep ReadingMy 2020 Top Pens
January 3, 2020
Rachel
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Year in Review – 2019 Pens

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.

I purchased a great deal of pens in 2019. More than I should have. I’m a little embarrassed, actually. Some I adore, others I seriously regret. However, despite regretting some of them later, they have all helped me on my fountain pen journey; they’ve all taught me more about what I do or don’t like.

I figure there isn’t much better a way to welcome a new year than to have a retrospective look at the previous. I’d originally planned to go through all the pens I acquired this past year, including some information about each.

But, after some thought, I don’t think it’s really necessary. Instead, join me in a look back at a selection of my pen purchases of 2019, including my biggest regrets, my favorites, and my best new discoveries.

Keep ReadingYear in Review – 2019 Pens
May 25, 2018
Rachel
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Fountain Pen 101: Where to Start (with Pens)

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Welcome back to Fountain Pen 101, and happy Fountain Pen Friday! This week, I’m taking a look at what I think are the best pens with which to start your fountain pen journey. This one is rather long, but I wanted to give you a good overview of each pen.

If you’ve never touched a fountain pen before, I’d suggest trying out the Platinum Preppy or the Pilot Metropolitan. They are both solid pens, with far more benefits than detriments. Another good pen, although a “step up” price-wise from the Preppy and Metropolitan is the Lamy Safari. It’s another solid pen that’s unlikely to let you down.

EDIT 2/12/2021: Since writing this post, I’ve changed my mind about the Safari being the best “step up” pen. I’m leaving the review below, because it’s not a bad pen by any means. However, there are two pens that, in my opinion, beat it out for top “step up” pen: the TWSBI 580 series and the Kaweco Sport series.

I’m leaving out the disposable Pilot Varsity, because, although inexpensive, it abandons the best parts of fountain pen use: changing inks and re-usability.

I’ll be rating each of the three pen on reliability (in terms of writing), appearance, durability, ink (both the availability of cartridges and the converter quality/style), nibs, and ease of cleaning.

I also took a look at several major retailers to see who offers the best deal for a “starter pack” of pen, pack of cartridges, and a converter. Prices listed below are in US dollars with the total price first, and the price of standard shipping to Maryland, United States — included in the total price — in parentheses.

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