Ticking all the boxes I’ll say this right off the bat: I’ve discovered that I’ve become pretty fond of Aurora. In my time I’ve owned a grey flex Optima, a Duocart, a Talentum Black Ops, an 88 Black Mamba, a Pacifico, an 88 Minerali Amethyst, and my favourite of all, an 88 Nettuno. My experiences … Continue reading Aurora’s Matera and Deserto are gorgeous and (nearly) flawless
reviews
The Onoto Scholar was worth the wait
UPDATE: The Scholar is live on the Onoto website to order. I've been singing the praises of the Onoto Magna for at least three or four years now (Flanders, Shakespeare, Sequoyah, Mammoth...), and still I find that people don't see the value proposition until they've held one. A plastic converter filler with steel nib for … Continue reading The Onoto Scholar was worth the wait
Orange Leatherworks: flawless craft for a premium price
The first thing I should tell you about this three-pen fountain pen case from Orange Leatherworks is that it costs 649 CAD, or about £390. That's before shipping and import duties. This is unashamedly a luxury item, but a luxury item by the purest and least vulgar definition: an item that's made with no expense … Continue reading Orange Leatherworks: flawless craft for a premium price
Silverburl hybrid pens: creative, but with quirks
I dunno about you, but my Facebook feed is absolutely swamped with people pouring epoxy resin on to pieces of wood. Often it's a coffee table. But you can also get phone cases and myrid other objects, large and small, made using this technique. While this 'hybrid' effect is on the verge of being overdone, … Continue reading Silverburl hybrid pens: creative, but with quirks
My take on the Gravitas Pocket Pen
The TL;DR of this review: if you're in the market for a robust and comfortable pocket pen, Gravitas offers an excellent option. But there are a few things you should be aware of. Let's unpack it a little. The Gravitas Pocket Pen has very obvious shared DNA with the rest of the Gravitas range. Conical … Continue reading My take on the Gravitas Pocket Pen
A fine entry indeed: the Gravitas Entry
There's really very little I can think of to criticise about the Gravitas Pens Entry. As I said in this video, comparing several pens from the Gravitas range, these are mature and well thought-out designs that are basically flawless in execution. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGYAvlYULAc With that TL;DR out of the way, let's talk about this model in … Continue reading A fine entry indeed: the Gravitas Entry
Schon’s ‘full size’ fountain pens have that special something
As well as buying several pocket 6 pens over the years, I've somehow accrued two of Schon Dsgn’s full size pens, and they have both ended up becoming real personal favourites in short order. (A note on naming: when Ian first launched this pen model in Ultem, and later PEEK, they carried the name of … Continue reading Schon’s ‘full size’ fountain pens have that special something
You need a Platinum Preppy Wa. Or six.
You know, my last pen purchase cost four figures. You could literally buy 300 Platinum Preppys for the price of that one pen. And there are several very good arguments for why that would be the right thing to do. For as much as I love the TWSBI Eco as an incredible example of value … Continue reading You need a Platinum Preppy Wa. Or six.
Rocking out with the Tibaldi Bamboo Trio
I see plenty of tie-in pens, whether they're sparkly Sailors in the colours of cocktails, or Montegrappas and Duponts shaped like spaceships or buildings. You can buy pens about Elvis, Queen, and of course David Bowie. But as far as I can recall this trio of Tibaldis is the first time I've seen a series … Continue reading Rocking out with the Tibaldi Bamboo Trio
Introducing Pen7 ebonite pens
At time of writing, Pen7 has just a couple of hundred followers on Instagram — so this is a great opportunity for me to do what I enjoy best, which is to put a new maker on your radar. Pen7 is a chap local to me called Dominic. I spotted his work on Instagram before … Continue reading Introducing Pen7 ebonite pens
UK fountain pens 