Under Construction (Be Back Oct. 1)
I would prefer to write about everything; what else is there? But one must be selective.
- Edward Abbey
And teasing those things out is quite the process!
And sometimes it takes a rest.
A lot of chaos on my desk, but lots of joy too.
It’s been quite the year for me so far. Beyond the chaos of world politics, I left a toxic job with the intention to change how I live. Journaling, writing, fountain pens, paper… they have really helped me start to clarify what I want that change to look like.
I’ve been thinking a lot about how we, as a modern society, have become pretty much changed to always being available and visible. I was recently poking through some old documents, reading letters from around 1900. The excitement that can still be felt from the page 100 years later of hearing from someone or to share a story. All of the different hands with different pens putting words on the page in their own unique way. I’ve been reading through The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper and I find it so powerful to think about picking up my pen is connecting to around 600+ years of human history. While we all didn’t have the same medium (ancient humans with stone, papyrus, vellum) we all had the same desire - share information and stories. There is a reason receipts and ledgers are some of my favorite historical documents, we aren’t so different from the person buying 10 lbs of flour and waiting days for it to arrive by train or wagon. Writing is so incredibly important to me and these past months have really solidified that for me.
I want to write more about writing, pens, inks, journals, paper, and even take up writing short stories again. But in order to do so, I need to take a step back to plan, write, research, and update this site to reflect what I would like it to be. And because deadlines help, I decided that I will be back Oct. 1st, just in time for spooky season and Inktober.
I’m not going complete radio silence, I will still be on Instagram and you can always email me if you’d like to reach out. I also have some room on my pen pal list, if you’re interested please email me. I am open to pen pals from all around the world.
If you’d like to get an email when I return, please sign up for blog updates here (it’s not a newsletter, it will simply send my newest posts straight to your email) or keep checking back. I am so grateful for all of you and I am looking forward to sharing with you again soon!
If you are interested in supporting my blog while I’m away, you can use my code DIME10 at Atlas Stationers or JA-Dime at Ferris Wheel Press.
Psst… if you’re in the Duluth, MN area I am going to be teaching a few classes on journaling soon! I will be teaching at the Duluth Folk School on August 28 and September 18. I will also be teaching some classes with Duluth Community Education during the fall/winter semester - it’s not available for registration yet, but will be in August!
Currently Inked
Ferris Wheel Press Starlit Stories - Kaweco Sport Iridescent Pearl M CSI - One of FWP’s recent entries and it’s another good one. It’s a blue-black with pink shimmer (it says purple-gold on the box, but it looks pink to me). It’s similar to Diamine Tempest in base color, but with different colored shimmer. It would be a good option for a stealth-fancy ink. The shimmer really only shows when it catches the light. Not my favorite of their recent releases, but it might be the nib I’m using. I’d like to give it a go in a wider nib before deciding I’m just ‘meh’ about it.
Ferris Wheel Press Catnip Cafe - Kaweco Sport Dark Olive BB - On the other hand, I really like this one and I don’t know why. It’s very close to Diamine Velvet Emerald, but greener. It’s hitting as a cheerful pop of color right now and I am really enjoying how it plays with the BB nib. It has shading and just the tiniest halo of sheen on some papers. FWP greens are making me interested in green inks again.
Robert Oster Romeo and Juliet - Kaweco liliput fireblue M - A sample that I got a while back and never tried. This is an ink I would put in the “good for art” category, because when it pools it has a pink undertone which is really interesting. In writing, however, it’s just light blue. Maybe in a gusher of a nib the pink would come through, but it will take more experimentation to know. Pretty color, I just have a lot of light blues just like it.
Teranishi Brilliant Mint - Kaweco liliput copper B - Another sample that I’ve had for a few months. Like all of the Teranishi inks I’ve tried so far it flows great and looks great. Unlike Gentle Green, Night Time Soda, or Antique Black I’m not as wowed by this one. It’s slightly greener than Laban Poseidon.