Some updates

So I thought it was time to do a little update post, because there are quite a few things going on right now!

'Travel kit' giveaway

My blog is now over a month old, and I've been writing a lot of reviews in that time, almost 35!  I thought it would be appropriate to give something back to you guys, because you are the people that made this blog possible in the first place. All those kind words, and a lot of useful tips and help. I definitely had to do something back. And there is no better way to do that, than with a giveaway!

Tombow Havanna 100th anniversary mechanical pencil

Well this is something different! Not only is this a mechanical pencil with a cap, it is also a LIMITED EDITION! The LE Havanna rollerball and pencil series (available in red and silver) is part of Tombow's 100th anniversary celebration.

Field Notes notebooks

These little notebooks are definitely one of the reasons I would love to go to the United States! As they are a smaller American-based company, it is quite hard to get them here in Europe, Luckilly the Internet solves everything, and you can buy them from a lot of different American online shops, including their own Field Notes webshop!

Visconti Van Gogh on sale!

So I found out that Goldspot has a serious amount of Van Gogh pens (old series, like mine) in MIDI size on sale! They are approximately 12.5 centimetres/ 4.9 Inches long, so they are almost one Inch smaller than my pen, which is a Maxi! They are available at a very reasonable price, and in different colours.  So If you want one, and you don't mind the smaller size, I'd suggest you go grab one. They are discontinoud models, so they can be gone forever if you wait too long!

I thought I'd let this now...

Monteverde Invincia 'Stealth black' fountain pen

I've been covering a lot of fountain pens lately, and to be honest, there isn't a single one of those that I don't like! But this Monteverde Incinvia beats them all, on style that is! It might not beat the Lamy Persona if it comes to smooth writing, but of course the Persona is a totally different ballgame, costing 200+ Euros more than this one!

Lamy persona 'Titanium' fountain pen

Things are getting serious now! This is by far the most expensive pen I own, being my only 14k nib fountain pen ( Owww, that's a lie, I actually own a vintage Pelikan with a 14k nib, but I don't really use it!)

Pilot Prera fountain pen

The Pilot Prera is another one of those excellent quality Japanese fountain pens. The nib is very fine, but still very smooth. It comes in a variety of colours, and the price is still very reasonable.

Some special pencils...

These are just some of my woodcased pencils that are somehow a little different than the rest. Some are made from a different material, some have cool designs, some have funny names,...

Oh! and as you can see, because the weather was very good today, I thought I'd leave my white background, and I made some grassy pictures!

From top to bottom: Eberhard Faber Tricki dicki, Kirin pencil , Chinese newspaper pencil, Faber-Castell design all-black, Faber-Castell grip sparkle, Berol Eagle jeans pencil

Monteverde artista fountain pen

I am a big fan of Monteverde pens, I think they do a great job on the making every detail of their pens just right! They make a lot of very traditional looking pens, though they always have that little Monteverde-touch!

5000 views

Yes we did it! Or better said, you guys did it! After a mere 3 weeks we got over 5000 views!!!  

I would like to say thanks to everybody who read my blog so far and of course a huge thanks to all fellow bloggers that introduced me on their own blog! I can't thank you all enough!!! 

I hope you all keep supporting and reading my blog, that would be superb! And if you'd like, subscribe via mail, RSS, blogger,...  I would really appreciate it! 

Now, let's go for the next 5000! 

Caran d'ache fixpencil 77 leadholder

You might have already noticed that I love leadholders, but in the amazing world of leadholders, there is one lead size that I'm especially in love with: 2mm! I think my addiction to 2mm leadholders is based on the fact that these pencils are almost always very long and very thin, which -I think- makes them look very elegant! So while I like my fountain pens to be fat, I like my leadholders to be nice and skinny!

And this one is certainly long and skinny, 16 cm/ 6 and a half Inches long and only 7mm thick (less than 1/4 of an Inch!)

It has a solid aluminum build. Even the inner lead tube is made out of aluminum, which is pretty uncommon nowadays. Because they used light aluminum instead of brass for the inner parts , the pencil is surprisingly light.
The pushbutton is the only plastic part, which is a little sad, because Caran d'ache actually makes very nice push buttons for their classic ballpoint range, which is basically the same model as this one. So with a little modification, they could easilly make them fit on the fixpencils!

The clip is made from shiny chrome, and even though it looks removable, it isn't! The hexagonal barrel is easy to hold, even though there is no obvious grip section.
Another weird thing: the company name and model name are printed underneath the clip, it's probably done to keep it clean, but it looks a  bit strange!

With the body being made out of Aluminum, which is a soft material, it is a little less sturdy, and it is more susceptible to scratches and scuffs. And because mine didn't come in a box, it was already scuffed and scratched when I received it. As you can see in the picture below, mine had a pretty large scratch near the clip.

To the right of the clip, there is a pretty big scratch!

However the mechanism is very sturdy, and if a part breaks (which probably won't happen!), chances are high you can easilly find a replacement part for it, as they are sold separately.

The lead I used in this one is Faber-castell HB lead. It writes very smooth, but it is a little less dark than Staedtler HB lead.

It might not be the fanciest, or most scratch-proof leadholder you've ever seen. But it performs well, and the interresting size gives it a nice balance when sketching.
This pencil will set you back about 17 Euros/ 22-25 USDollars, which isn't too expensive, but keep in mind that the body will get scratched and scuffed after use.

Worther Shorty 3.2mm leadholder

This little leadholder has impressed me quite a lot. It's just made out of plastic, but to a very high production standard, I think!

Faber-Castell E-motion

This Faber-Castell Emotion fountain pen is actually one of the first 'real' fountain pens I bought, so I've had it for quite a few years now!

Quo Vadis Habanna 'smooth' notebook

I've had it for quite a while, but I never really used it. I tried it today, and I must say this: the 'smooth' in the name of this model isn't a lie!

You asked for it!

In my previous post I asked you guys to let know what you would like to see on this blog. And the very first comment was from Hanna, she said:
"I personally want to see some of your drawings! On your "About" page you mention that you like drawing." 

It's up to you!

I  haven't uploaded a post for some days now, and I must say that I'm having difficulties deciding what to review next! So if you know something you would like to see on this blog, let me know in the comments, and I'll see what I can do!

In the meantime I'm working on some new posts (what else would I be doing!) So expect new things soon!
Also check out my Twitter and Flickr account (the links are on your right) And feel free to subscribe to my blog!

Kaweco AL sport ballpoint pen review

(This is the third out of four Kaweco pen reviews)

I'll keep it short, just like this pen!
I wouldn't reccomend getting one of these, I'm sorry Kaweco! I really like their fountain pens, but that's it, their ballpoint pens aren't my favorite!

Kaweco AL Sport fountain pen review

This is the second Kaweco pen that I'll be reviewing. I bought it on a pen show in Holland, not knowing that a few years later, it would become an extremely popular pen. I didn't even know the brand back then!

Faber-castell Emotion pearwood pencil

I've had this pencil for quite a few years now, and I actually never really liked it very much. untill I recently discovered that the way it is sharpened, can improve it's performance considerably.

Kaweco classic sport fountain pen (transparent version)

I've been a Kaweco fan for a long time now, I already knew them for quite a while when the 'Kaweco hype' started!
I have four Kaweco pens (three fountain pens, and a ballpoint pen)? So I'll also be reviewing the other ones in the next couple of days or weeks! And I'll start off with the classic sport fountain pen.

Retro 51 Tornado stealth black rollerball review

At first, I only liked this pen because of the all-black colour scheme. I wasn't really convinced about the tapered barrel design, and the rollerball refill.
BUT...

Moleskine rollerball refill

-I must say, my expectations for this refill weren't too high, mainly because I only know Parker rollerball refill, and those are horrible!-