Giveaway Winner....Pilot Metro Pop.

Thank you to everyone who entered the Giveaway!  It was fun reading all the comments!  And the winner is...

Joanna Mei

I will get in touch with you Joanna to get you your prize!  Thank you again everyone who entered. I look forward to more future blog posts and possibly more future giveaways. 

Pilot Metropolitan Pop Review and Giveaway!

Retro Pop Crimson Wave ('F' nib),  Retro Pop Marigold Flower ('F' nib), and Retro Pop Apple Green Marble ('F' nib)

The snazzy new look of the Pilot Metropolitan - Pop! An exquisite pen that combines color, comfort, and design all in one pen for an affordable pen. Available in Fine and Medium stainless steel nibs. The pen is available in 6 different styles/colors.

Before the Metro Pop's came out, I had the pleasure of writing with a Pilot Metropolitan in Taupe. The Fine nib Pilot Met is a very well built pen that is of medium weight. It looks and feels as thought it should cost $50 or more! Thankfully, it is no where near that in cost.

Comfortable to write with posted or unposted, this pen makes for a great daily user. You can use just about any ink in these pens. With that being said, I do want to put out a disclaimer: I would not suggest using any of the Diamine Glitter inks in these pens. The Diamine Shimmering Seas that I currently have in the Taupe Metro pictured above, has severely clogged the pen and feed to where it will not write. It did this immediately after filling it up with that ink. I was able to squeeze the converter and get some ink out, however it did not solve the problem for long.

The Pilot Metropolitan Pop Fine nib throws down a nice, smooth, consistent line; a line very similar to a Lamy Extra-Fine nib. These pens are fairly easy to clean and use and are great for the beginner fountain pen collector to the experienced enthusiast!They can be purchased for $15 at Pen Chalet (Free shipping on orders of $50 or more).

**And you could be the new owner of a brand new fountain pen!!** I will be giving away a New (of your choice) Pilot Metropolitan Pop Fountain pen. Details are below.

The Giveaway

This giveaway is for ONE Pilot Metropolitan Pop (Winner's choice of available nib sizes and colors). Winner chosen at Random via Rafflecopter. This giveaway is for U.S. residents only. Winner has 7 days after contest has ended to contact me in regards to prize and to provide shipping information. If winner does not contact within the time frame, a new winner will be chosen. To enter, see below: a Rafflecopter giveaway

To come: Diamine Magical Forest vs. J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor.

To feed your hunger for shimmering inks.....

Diamine Magical Forest vs. J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor

To come in the near future. A comparison review of the Diamine Shimmer inks with J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor.

Diamine Blue Lightning Shimmer Ink

With the Lamy Joy 1.1 Italic Nib.

Ink: Diamine Blue Lighting 

(From the Shimmer Collection)

Color(s): Blue

Pens Used: (1) Lamy Joy 1.1 nib &

 (2) Edison Noveau Fine Nib

Paper used: Tomoe River

What a lovely ink this is! Ever since trying the J. Herbin 1670 inks, I have become somewhat addicted to inks with glitter or shimmer. These Diamine Shimmer inks definitely have it! This is the second ink from the collection that I have tried.  However, as the specks of shimmer are not as large as they are with the J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor 1670 ink, this ink has a nice
"glitter" effect. We could compare the J. Herbin inks to the Diamine Shimmer inks, and maybe in a future review I will do that. But the can be summed up in a few words: Price, shimmer, quantity, wetness, ease of use.

So there is a review to look forward too....maybe in the very near future (hint, hint!). Okay, moving on....

With the Lamy Joy 1.1 italic nib.

I purchased a sample vial of this ink from Goulet Pens, about a week ago and inked up two diferent brand pens with two different nib sizes; a Lamy Joy 1.1 italic nib and the Edison Noveau with a Fine nib. In short, this ink performed very well in both pens. Here is what I noticed:

In the Lamy Joy 1.1 Nib:

• The ink seemed lighter in color and appeared (at first) to have less glitter.
• This changed after the ink dried, the glitter could be seen much more visibly!
• Wrote smoothly. 
• Great Flow
• Not a whole lot of shading, but enough to be more than just a plain Jane blue.

Ink in the Edison Noveau Fine Nib:

• The ink started out fairly dark.
• This could be due to the pen and how wet of a writer it may be. 
• The more I wrote with it, the lighter the ink got and started matching what the Lamy Joy was putting out. (See image below)
• Very smooth; and fairly wet.
• More shading than what the Lamy put out.
• Glitter was also more apparent at first, than it was with the Lamy.

For both pens, I noticed that this ink does not seem to clog the pens (at least not as much as the rivals from J. Herbin may. Experiences from pen to pen and nib sizes may differ in results).

Left: Edison Noveau Fine Nib.              Right: Lamy Joy 1.1 Italic Nib

As you can see from the above image, it appears that the Noveau with a Fine nib, produced much more shimmer than the Lamy Joy did. Granted, it did take longer for the glitter to appear when using the Lamy Joy. For myself, I am glad that the ink performs very well in a fine nib since that is what I tend to write with 98% of the time.

With the Edison Noveau Fine nib.

So let's talk price. The shimmer inks are a bit higher cost than the regular Diamine inks. For a 30 ml bottle of the "Normal" Diamine inks, you are looking at approximately $7.00. For an 80ml bottle of regular Diamine ink, it costs $15.00.

If you want a bottle (50ml only option currently) of Diamine Shimmer ink, it will cost $20.00 (penchalet.com)
In price comparison to J.Herbin inks (I know, I said I wouldn't!) it will cost you between $24.00 (at Penchalet) and $26.00 (at Goulet Pens) for a 50ml bottle. So somewhat cheaper!

With the Edison Noveau Fine nib.

With the Edison Noveau fine nib - right at first start up seems to be a bit darker. Lightens up with use.

I definitely look forward to adding a bottle of this ink to my collection! Don't forget to go over to Pen Chalet and check out some of the awesome deals they have on Pens and Ink! Free shipping on orders of $50 or more!

Enter PENJOURNALPASSION to receive an Additional 10% discount!

Other Similar Ink Links:

• Gourmet Pens reviews Diamine Blue Lightning$20.00

TWSBI Eco (White) - Review

Pen: TWSBI Eco Fountain pen

Nib: Extra-Fine

Color: White (Available in Black)

Other Info: Does not take cartridge or converter.

 Has a piston mechanism

Every since getting my first TWSBI pen about 6 months back, I have sort of fallen for the TWSBI brand. Sure they have a few kinks that get me (but every pen I own does, even my favorite Lamy pens). What makes this pen so great (in my opinion) is that it is well made for an affordable price - which is probably how it earned the name Eco. I have had quiet some time to write with this pen, fill it with different inks, clean it several times, tinker with it and therefore am ready to share my experience and thoughts.

So when I first got this pen, the first thing I did was tinker. I tend to like to fill my pens with a needle and syringe - makes less of mess and quick work of things. That was not going to happen with this pen without getting significant air inside the ink reserve. So, I tinkered with it (and learned how important it is to keep that red wrench around). Once I figured it out, I proceeded with filling it up. Noodler's 54th massachussets is currently inked up and looks good in this pen. I did have J.Herbing Emerald of Chivor in anothe TWSBI - a 580AL with a fine nib - and I do NOT suggest using that ink in a TWSBI or anything with a Fine or Extra Fine. It took forever to clean that out, and even when I thought I had it clean, it still wrote with specks of gold for at least a week. Anyhow, moving on......

This pen cleans fairly easy - which is a plus. The nib does not disconnect (that I know of) like a Lamy or some other pens do. Actually, to my knowledge, the nib and feed are connected and not separable. So you do have to flush this several times to get the ink that was once in it, out. But considering what it takes for some other pens - cleaning is a cinch.


The material of this pen is something different too. This pen does not feel cheap. It is lighter than the Diamond 580AL pens. I would say that it is about the size of a TWSBI Classic - except lighter in weight. This pen is also really comfortable to write with.













One thing I did notice with this pen is that it does not write well or comfortably with the cap posted. It is way too long (in my opinion) and the cap loosens from the posted position real easily. I prefer to just take the cap off and hold it or set it aside. Thus brings me to another point about the cap - it twists off. I am a fan of pull/pop off caps. Sure I have pens that have twist caps and I love them. But for ease and usability, I prefer a cap that just snaps right off. It has the traditional TWSBI logo on the cap as well. I also noticed that at times, the ink reserve will get some moisture in it. I notice this when I see what looks to be like a foggy window in part of the pen. I blame this mostly on the extreme changes we have in temperature up here. It will go from really cold to warm (often).

The nib write fairly smooth - most of the time. There is a tad bit of scratchiness when writing in an upward stroke. I am hoping that some Mylar paper (or something similar) might fix that.It's not enough to make me stop using the pen though. When long writing is required, this pen is comfortable enough to do the job. The price also makes this pen a great and affordable buy! As it retails for around $28.99 and can be found at most pen dealers. The last thing I noticed was that this pen writes more like a Fine, not an Extra-Fine.

The Platinum Balance - Review

Pen: Platinum Balance

Nib: Fine

Color: Blue with Gold trim. (Available in several other colors)

Ink System: Takes cartridge or converter

Other Info: Comes in several different colors

The Platinum Balance. This is a pen that I have been dying to try for quiet some time now (I know, a shocker for this Lamy lover!). I was able to try this pen with two different inks. Noodler's 54th massachusets and Diamine Shimmer Magical Forest.

I was quiet impressed with this pen. It feels really good to write with alone or capped. Maybe that is why they called it a Balance? Anyhow, the nib is beautiful. It is so smooth with just a hint of feedback - which is how I like it. And the best part...... it has some flex when you write! The nib will flex, which allows for some variation in my writing.

The pen is comfortable to hold for longer periods of time - which you do not always find on many pens. I notice that when I hold the grip section, even after some time, my fingers do not slip. They also do not cramp either. I am able to comfortably and freely write for long periods of time.

It is easy to fill and takes a converter or Platinum Cartridge. This pen is also very easy to clean and flush after each use. It's easy to disassemble and re-assemble. Another plus that I must mention is the cap... yes the cap. A good portion of the pens I have are twist cap. Which isn't  necessarily something that really bothers me one way or another. However, when you are taking lots of notes, it is nice to just pull the cap off and then snap it on when your done. A twist cap might take a few more seconds to put on/take off, but it's so nice to be able to just write. With this pen, I can do so. The cap also fits on the pen nice and snug, which helps to keep the ink from drying. You can also write with the cap on the pen, where it fits snugly.

Overall, I really like this pen and would definitely buy another one in the future. This pen retails for $53, however you can currently purchase this pen at Pen Chalet for $42.40. And if you click the link below you can save an Additional 10% on top of any sale prices(and fast shipping!).

INK: J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor 1670 Review w/ pics ( Part 2) *Updated*

More recent, updated pictures of J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor in a Nemosine Singularity Stub nib. (11.08.2015)

It is time, finally, for the second part of my review of J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor 1670 ink. I briefly reviewed it about a month ago, and was just able to use up what I could in the pen it was in. So, without further ado, here is what remains of my thoughts and opinions on this ink.

Ink: J Herbin Emerald of Chivor

Pen: TWSBI Diamond 580AL Orange

Nib: Fine

Paper: Piccadilly, Tomoe River, and regular copy paper 

(Only one shown was Piccadilly cream paper - my journal).

This ink performed just as good in a pen with a Fine nib, as it did in a Pen with a stub nib. I would have to agree with the consensus that when a larger nib is used, you do tend to see more the different colors better. In a pen with a fine nib, it tends to be more dark green with gold specs. However when you put what you have written under some light, then you see the brilliance in this ink - the red, gold flecks, and beautiful deep green.

My Thoughts & Observations

This ink flows so very smooth from the pen and is heavily saturated (and wet). As long as the ink has not been sitting in the pen for an extended period of time, it starts right back up. Now let's get to the ink and the time it is in the pen....

If the pen goes unused for a day, maybe two at max, the ink usually starts right up with no troubles. Let it sit a week, well you might have to dab it a bit on paper to get the ink flowing again or draw some ink down from the converter. In my case, after it sat for a week, that is when I started having issues. The ink would dry and you would have a difficult time getting it to start. I eventually got fed up and removed what was left in the pen and put it in an ink sample vial.

The gold flecks up close

It doesn't end there. I flushed the pen repeatedly with luke warm distilled water. I flushed it once, twice, three times....you get the point. I spent about 15 minutes or so dealing with flushing this pen. When I had thought that it was flushed, I put some Noodlers Burma Road Brown in the pen. The first time I went to write, I had gold speck in my Noodler's ink - likely left over from the J. Herbin ink. I would get a couple sentences down and the gold specs disappeared. The second time I went to use that pen, the same thing happened - more gold flecks in my Noodler's ink.It took a good 3-5 times of separate writing sessions, before the gold specs became very minimal to non-existent.

Overall

• This ink is a bit pricey. At about $26 for a bottle, it definitely is not ink to waste.
• It is beautiful and has lots of character to it.
• Ideal for when you intend to write letters or use it often.
• Do not let it sit in the pen too long with no use
• Flush the pen  really, really good before re-using it.
• Heads up, it is a fairly wet ink, so I would not suggest using it on paper that it will bleed and allow for ghosting.

INK: J. Herbin Emerald of Chivor 1670 - (Part 1)

Brand: J. Herbin

Type: Emerald of Chivor 1670

Cost: $26.00 give or take

Colors: Mostly Blue/Green with some Red and yellows sparkles .

It finally arrived! I ordered my bottle from GouletPens the day they came in stock. Supposedly it went out as fast as it came in, so that must mean that this ink was heavily desired. Therefore, as I have been writing with this ink now for the last 4 or 5 days, I figured it was time to do a review on it.

Pen used: Conklin Duragraph Amber w/ a stub nib 

Paper: Tomoe River and plain copy paper

I have a new favorite ink on my list! J. Herbin Emerald Chivor. Like it says on the bottle, this is a heavily saturated ink.The sheen on this ink, the saturation, the....wow. This ink does impress me!

So let's get down to the nitty gritty...

First off and foremost: it is important to note that this ink should be shaken before being used in a pen, as the gold specs do tend to settle at the bottom of the bottle. I should have taken a picture of this when I started to take pictures for my blog. I looked at the bottom of the bottle, and sure enough, the bottom of the bottle was covered in gold specs. Shake it up, and problem solved!

It is recommended by many that this ink be used in wider nibbed pens (Broads, italics, stubs, etc). I have not tried this ink in a Fine or Medium nib yet, however I hope to do so very soon and will update this post accordingly. I have read/heard, however, that if it is used in a a pen with anything less than a Broad size nib, you will not get as much of the glitter and appeal/shading as you would with a larger nib.

As you can see from above, the photo clearly displays the sheen, glitter, shading, and ... there is red! Yes indeed. This ink reminds me of an oil slick - ya know, right after a nice rain storm, you walk across the parking lot and see all those oil spots with the red, yellow, and greens swirling around in a dark black puddle of oil... Yea, that is what this reminds me of. However, this ink is much more gorgeous and beautiful than the puddle of oil (and you won't smell like oil if you accidentally get some on you).  I think it is amazing the variety of colors that this ink has in it.

How well does it write after not being used for a few days?

This ink performs well in my Conklin Duragraph (stub nib). It starts right up with no fuss. I have not tried cleaning the pen yet, so I cannot say how easy it is to clean this ink from a pen, but that will be happening in the near future.

I am hoping to experiment some more with this ink in the coming week, thus leading to Part 2 of this post. I will test how this ink performs in a more narrow nibbed pen and see how easy (or difficult?) this ink is to clean from pens. Until then, have a wonderful day my fellow pen and journal friends....

Super 5 Dublin

Super 5 Dublin is definitely different than the many other inks I have tried. It has taken me some time to fiddle with it, write with it, and finally get picture for a review. So let the review commence...

Brand: Super 5

Color/Type: Dublin

Cost:  $27.95 for a 50ml Bottle at Goulet Pen Co.

Pen Used in: Lamy Al-Star Blue/Green Fine point

Paper used: Tomoe River and various other paper types

Color Shades: Green, Moss, Avocado, Swamp.

My experience with this ink has been fairly pleasant. In the sample bottle, it tends to look kind of pasty. That said, I was left a bit hesitant on how it would write.

This ink is free flowing, smooth, and beautiful when it comes out. It dries a bit a lighter than what it starts out as and has decent shading.A fairly light-weight ink.

Dry Time: What I really noticed about this ink was the dry times. This ink  dries impeccably fast! In about 5 seconds, it's 99% dry. It dries fast on just about any type of paper (Tomoe, Staples Tablet, and a Medium to Heavy weight copy paper). I have even been using this ink for my note-taking at work, and I absolutely enjoy using it because it does tend to dry much faster than my other inks.

Feathering: I also noticed that this ink really does not tend to feather very much. Where I did notice some very slight feathering was with light weight copy papers. Not sure if it is just the brand of paper or something else. However, I did not notice any feathering on a Medium/Heavy weight copy paper from Office Max (will have to locate the brand), nor did it feather on the Staples Tablet or Tomoe River paper.

Side Note: I did notice, by mistake, that this ink does not tolerate water very well and bleeds very badly when water is dripped on the ink, even after it has dried for quiet some time.

Price: This ink costs approximately $27.95 for a 50ml bottle of ink. This is right up there with Pilot Iroshizuku and Pelikan Edelstein. My personal opinion, I think that is a bit high for a bottle of ink, especially since it is in a comparable price range to Pilot and Pelikan inks (and a few others).

Here are some images from the web to help assist you in identifying what the color looks like...

via: Goulet Pen Co.

Well, being my first review in a while, it feels good to be back. Between work and family (and the farm) it has been very hard to find time to do what I enjoy - and that is blogging about Pens, Inks, and Journals! Writing is food for the soul! Take care everyone and I look forward to another review in the near future.

A long time gone...

It definitely has been quite some time since I last wrote. Life definitely had a way of keeping ya busy... especially during the summer months! However i wouldn't trade it for anything.

My hopes is that in the near future i can do some ink reviews with the new J.Herbin glass pen I got a while back. What an experience it had been to write with this pen... something new, something fun. 

Hope everyone had been having a wonderful summer!

National Card and Letter writing month.

This is no April Fool's Day joke.

Yup! You heard right. National Card and Letter Writing month! Another chance to write those letters or send out a friendly card. With InCoWriMo still fresh in many minds, it's hard  to believe that there is another month dedicated to writing. However, I am all game for it! I have a stack of cards I look forward to sending to people.

Thank you to 365 Letters for sharing this exciting news! I hope all my fellow fountain pen enthusiasts, letter writers, and journal lovers will consider writing a letter or sending out a card to someone this month.

Special Letters - InCoWriMo (only 4 more days left!!)

Conklin Stylograph Mosiac Red/Brown 'M'. Fringe Alphabet Address Book. Country Stamps. A couple of letters.

What a month is has been! February has been an amazing month for us here!

It has been even more amazing as it is still (only a few days left!) International Correspondence Writing Month (InCoWriMo). I have sent off a decent amount of letters and cards, and have also been blessed to be on the receiving end as well! What a blessing it has been to open up the mailbox and find letters for you (other than bills and such!). It's an amazing feeling to get something that you know someone took the time to sit down and work on. A letter. Not just any plain ol' typed up thing. No. These are handwritten letters. Something even more special than your everyday e-mail. 

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With some new accessories for my camera on order, I am hoping to really get  back into my photography. Especially since spring is here. The first Robin of the season showed up today. Granted it gets in the low 20's and even the teens at night sometimes. The day time usually is in the mid to high 40's right now. No more snow, which means springtime flowers should be popping up here really soon! With some Macro lenses on the way (hoping they are the correct kind) I should be able to take some better photos of my pens, inks, and such for reviews!

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There are some things that I will be looking forward to in the near future with this blog! I will be re-vamping some stuff, doing a giveaway (s), and changing/adding some more things. So keep a look out for some new things coming up! I hope everyone is having a wonderful February and keep your pen to the paper! Take care.

InCoWriMo month! Write Away!

We are halfway through InCoWriMo month! I have sent out a few letters, but would love to send out more letters to people! I came across this website link from Rhodia Drive that has people wanting to send/receive letters this year and meet new people! I too am on this list and would love to meet some new people and make some new friends! So send me an email if you would like my mailing address and I will be glad to reply!

Happy InCoWriMo everyone!

TWSBI Diamond 580 AL - Orange

My first TWSBI pen! It is about time! And to be honest, I like what I have experienced so far… Now onto the review.

Brand: TWSBI

Model: Diamond 580 AL

Nib: Fine

Color: Demonstrator & Orange

Material: Resin and Aluminum body parts

Cost: $60.00 (TWSBI website)

It took me forever to finally purchase this pen. I read some good reviews on the TWSBI pens, and some bad ones - mainly about the nibs. I dillied and dallied, and would get on the verge of wanting the pen, and then something else turned me away. I finally came to the conclusion that most people who have GREAT experiences with items, often do not write reviews. However, when a person has a fairly negative experience with an item or service, they are not slow to throw it all over social media and write negative reviews. So thus, I jumped on the item.  And boy what an experience it has been.

A little bit about the pen:

• Comfortable to hold

• Nice size ( about the same length - capped - as a Lamy Safari, however it is a tad bit wider than a Safari)

• Weight - Heavier than a Lamy Safari, just a tad bit heavier than  Conklin Duragraph, and about the same weight as a Lamy Studio.

• Feels very durable; thus I am not too fearful of dropping it

• Disassembles ( and re-assembles) VERY easily for easy and fast cleaning 

• Fairly smooth writer. Not butter, but pretty close. 

• Nib has some flex to it, which is nice

• It is a 7 on the scale for wetness performance (from 1 being dry to 10 being very wet)

• A very tiny bit of scratch to it depending on the type of paper you are using. Piccadilly paper is fairly absorbent so thus this pen produces a thicker line and is a tiny bit scratchy on this paper, where as Clairefontaine gets a thinner lines and much smoother performance.

Looks HORRIBLE posted! Actually, it doesn't really post well....period.

Yea, this pen does NOT post. You can try, it might stay on for a few moments. However, then the pen becomes completely imbalanced and is horrible to write with (way too long!). So I suggest just keeping the cap close by.

Cap is smokey colored... Not exactly sure why

As you can see, the cap is kind of gray or smokey colored. Not exactly sure why, as it sort of hides the nib while it is capped. Then there is one other thing that I noticed about the pen. I am not sure if this was just manufacturer error, bad quality assurance, or just maybe a trademark? Below you will see what I am talking about.

Arrow - pointing towards what looks to be a streak of orange paint on the resin part

So my only really negative complaint about this is pictured above (see arrow). It appears to be a paint streak on the resin part of the converter nob - which is not seen anywhere else and only there. As you can see, the mark is not even and looks like it might have been an error. Now I know that TWSBI was having some QA issues a while back with other TWSBI pens of theirs - cracks in the caps or other areas of the pen...and these were brand new never inked pens. My understanding is that the issue was fixed. Not sure what this one is. But it is not enough to make me want to return the pen for a new one, as it does not seem to affect how the pen works or operates. Just looks funny. More character to the pen I suppose.

 So if you are looking for a nice, sturdy, and affordable daily writer fountain pen, then this pen is a great canidate!

 From Around the Web:

•  Another Review - from Pen.Paper.Ink.Letter on a TWSBI Diamond 580AL

Via: Goulet Pens