Karas Kustoms has been innovative in new pen designs, materials, and colors. At the end of 2017, they analyzed their entire product line to find any gaps they needed to fill and found they did not have any products in the “Pocket Pen” market. Taking inspiration from the Space Race as well as mid-century Americana, which has always played a big role in Karas Kustoms, they developed the new Reaktor series. This new affordable product series consists of two lines – the Galaxie and the Starliner. The Galaxie line includes a clipless, smaller ballpoint pen and an XL rollerball pen with a clip. The Starliner line includes a clipless, smaller fountain pen and a XL fountain pen with a clip. This review will be of the Starliner line. Paul from Karas Kustom graciously sent me several of the new pens to review, and I will be running two giveaways – one here and one on my blog, pengeek13.wordpress.com. This giveaway is for a Starliner XL with a blue grip section and medium nib as well as a Galaxie XL rollerball with a blue grip section, both in the silver anodized aluminum finish. The giveaway will run from August 14, 2018 […]
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Image source: The Hollywood Reporter Some of you may have heard of Oliver Sacks, and some of you may have not. He was a British neurologist and author, probably most well-known for his collections of case histories, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and An Anthropologist on Mars. In these books, he describes the cases he has handled about patients struggling to live with all sorts of neurological conditions, from Tourette’s syndrome to autism, Parkinson’s disease, hallucinations, epilepsy, schizophrenia, and so on. Dealing with these patients must have been a great challenge but also a great experience. In particular, the case that gave Oliver Sacks’ famous book its name, the man who mistook his wife for a hat was a patient who suffered from a condition called visual agnosia. This caused him to be unable to interpret the things he sees, even if he had perfect eyesight. When given a rose, he was able to identify the colour and shape, but unable to form a conclusion that it was a rose, until he took a sniff of it. Similarly, he had tried to lift his wife’s head off her shoulders because he had thought that she was the hat that he […]
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Karas Kustoms has really made a name for themselves in the pen community over the last few years. Their innovative designs, materials, and durability have helped build a loyal fan base of their products. Located in Mesa, Arizona, about 20 miles outside of Phoenix, their products are all manufactured in the United States and they control everything from the design to fabrication. Needless to say, their quality standard is pretty high. The review today is of the Karas Kustom Fountain K, but this isn’t the normal Fountain K, this model has been upgraded with a Bock Titanium Flex Nib. This was sent to me for review by the fine folks at Karas Kustoms. I really like the packaging that Karas Kustoms uses. The pen comes in a simple folded cardboard box branded with the Karas Kustoms logo, pictures of their various models, and the phrases “Fully Machined in the USA”, “Quality writing instruments”, and “Dozens of satisfied customers” and their website karaskustoms.com. I am not a huge fan of wasteful over-engineered boxes that take up drawer space, and I like that if I choose to keep the box it takes up little space or if I decide to get rid […]
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This is a review of the Diplomat Excellence A² Skyline Red Fountain Pen. Last year, I had the privilege to review the Diplomat Excellence A Skyline in blue as my first published fountain pen review. Diplomat Pen Company was purchased in 2017, and the new owners have revisited the company’s existing lines to make improvements. I recently met Hillary and Larry Ragland from Points of Distinction, the U.S. importer for Diplomat Pens, at the Baltimore Pen Show. A new and improved version of the Skyline came to the U.S., which they generously sent me to review. The new model is the Skyline Red Excellence A2 in extra-fine with a stainless steel nib. The pen comes in a white box with the black Diplomat logo on the front. Inside is a smaller box with a grey metal sleeve, also with the “Diplomat since 1922” logo. The box contains the pen resting on a Diplomat-branded satin pillow with a converter, two ink cartridges, and service guide. The new red finish is a knock-out. Thin repeating lines of red and darker red make the pen almost shimmer when it catches the light. The new color works well for business settings as well as […]
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Let’s take a look at KWZ Cappuccino, a beautiful creamy coffee brown! Background information KWZ is a new-to-me ink brand, though it’s been on the market since 2012. Konrad Żurawski is the one-man owner and manufacturer: according to his website, he started off trying to improve inks he owned and started making iron gall inks. It used to be that you could only order inks through his website, but luckily, it’s becoming easier to get. KWZ inks are packages in a simple glass bottle. I believe you get 60ml of ink. There’s a sticker on the front with the name of the ink as well as a small swatch, which appear to all be done by hand. The first thing you’ll notice when you open the bottle is that you get a heavy whiff of a vanilla scent, similar to the smell of vanilla extract. If you’re sensitive to smells, this definitely will not be the ink brand for you. The scent dissipates eventually, but my notebook still smells a bit like vanilla if I put my nose to it. Taking a look: the scan KWZ Cappuccino is a brown that leans orange. It reminds me a lot of the color […]
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Let’s take a look at De Atramentis Virgo! Background information I’ve talked about the De Atramentis brand on this blog before, and I don’t have anything else to add to that blurb! But if you’re new to the brand, there’s nothing wrong with an introduction, right? De Atramentis is like the German Noodler’s: it’s owned and operated by one person who makes everything! And just like Noodler’s, De Atramentis has a massive catalog. They have a ton of different colors, some scented, some repackaged as “specialty” inks (like the popular Alexander Hamilton being Aubergine in a different bottle). All De Atramentis inks come in the same bottle so far, and Virgo is no different. It’s a glass bottle with a simple paper label on the front that has the name of the ink. Since Virgo is a specialty ink, it also depicts an illustration of the Virgo constellation. You get 35 ml per bottle. It’s shaped a bit like a spool of thread, with two “rims” on it. Just like De Atramentis Pisces, Virgo comes in the Astrology line. The bottle says “olive green,” and I would pretty much agree. I think it’s a bit less yellow than the color […]
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Welcome to The Baltimore-Washington International Pen Show!!!!! The Annual Baltimore-Washington International Pen Show was held March 2 – 4, 2018, at the Marriott Inner Harbor Camden Yards in Baltimore, MD. The show was run by Bert Oser and his staff from Bertram’s Inkwell of Rockville, MD. This was a new location for this show and it was the perfect venue. There were plenty of restaurant options with nearby parking and attractions if you needed to take a break from the show, but let’s be honest… why would you want to? This was my fourth year attending this show and I brought my father, Terry, with me. You could find everything from vintage to new pens, pencils, inks, papers, writing paraphernalia, classes, and accessories. There were also after-hours events, including a mini concert by Larry Ragland of Points of Distinction (the U.S. Diplomat importer). I want to bring you some of the sights from the show to help you feel like you were there. Arriving at the show… We parked at a nearby parking garage and after a brief but very cold walk, we arrived at the hotel. The hotel staff was very accommodating and helped direct us to the location […]
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My first review is a lovely handmade journal from Central Crafts, a UK-based retailer that offers wonderful handmade gifts, including quirky arts and crafts, albums, journals and of course, stationery, sourced ethically from all over the world. Among their many journals offerings is the Cortona handmade leather-bound one, crafted from fine Italian Spazzolato leather, with exquisite hand-stitched details in contrast piping that goes all the way around the edges. Spazzolato leather is supposed to be the same top grain used in luxury handbags, and these artisan journals are made by a Florentine family business with over half a century’s operation. The cover feels cool, smooth, and supple to the touch, with the “Leatherkind” brand debossed on the back cover and the front cover carrying the On Fountain Pens (OFP) personalization in silver. I love details like that! You know how there are journals that are so nice you almost hesitate to write in it? That’s almost the case with this Cortona journal… I did “feel it up” quite a bit, flipping through and stroking the pages, which are luxuriously thick but not too stiff. Bonus points for the subtle leather scent when you hold it up close! The journal does feel a […]
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Hello, I’m Felicia the calligraphy person, I use pointed pens for calligraphy, and I love colours, so when I was asked to give these inks a try, I said yes! First thoughts: My first impressions are that these inks look beautiful. They are stored in these cylindrical glass bottles with a plastic black screw on cap that opens and closes easily, feels functional, minimalist and clean, in a good size. What I’m often not so keen about as a calligrapher is the neck of the bottle being too small to dip the nib into, and the Elixir ink bottles have a good size, they are nice to hold, open and close, it doesn’t feel or look flimsy. When you open the bottles up, they do have quite a bit of a smell that reminds me of my old Sakura watercolours or paint, and I wonder if it’s the binder that is responsible for the smell. There’s no ingredient list, so I have no idea what goes into the inks. The colours are beautiful too. I was quite struck by how Sunset Siloso looks in the bottle, it’s completely translucent, and I must say I was quite excited at the […]
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Introduction Namisu is a UK based pen manufacturer, and they design pens with minimalistic aesthetics. The Namisu Ixion was their fifth Kickstarter Project, launched in June 2017. There were a choice of three materials for the pen- aluminium, brass and titanium, in increasing order of prices. The pens feature #6 Bock nibs, and by default, they come with a steel nib. Titanium and gold nibs come as add-ons. The filling system is cartridge converter, and it is of the standard international variant. This pen features a faceted, clipless cap, and a cylindrical barrel. I opted for the Blue Aluminium version, with stainless steel finials and grips, alongside with an Extra Fine steel nib. Originally slated for delivery in October 2017, the project was met with many delays, much to the annoyance of many backers. It was only on 3rd March 2018 that I took delivery of my pen, making the wait almost 8 months long. Unpacking the order, the picture below shows the items that I have received- the pen itself, alongside with an additional Extra Fine steel nib (that I intend to use on other pens), as well as a Schmidt K5 converter. The pen by default, does not […]
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