The unusual suspects
The unusual suspects. This week is chock-full of novel pens, nibs and inks.
Four inks are first-timers: Petrichor, 441, Barossa Gilt, and Sea Glass. The same can be said for half of this week’s pens: the ASA, Kaweco, and Franklin-Christoph. The novelty is palpable. Or unusual. Either? Both?
Regardless, my working time this week will be sodden with discussion notes. All six classes have student-led discussions on various texts scheduled. So: detailed notes and quick writing.
This week’s currently inked has three readable accent colors, one in each color family. Further, four nibs are round — providing rapid jotting options in all three color families and in every line width. Ha.
More so: the penvelope is rocking three EF and three M nibs. Both B nibs are narrow writers; the Nakaya by design and the Kaweco due to tight nib tines.
Bring on the discussions.
Grey/Black
TWSBI 580-ALR Prussian Blue (Predator Hybrid, by Nibgrinder). Troublemaker Petrichor. Daily driver. Mr. Bacas’ multitasker grind pairs perfectly with Petrichor’s personality. Grey with moderate shading in EF lines. Detailed notes ahoy. Purple and pink and grey in M lines for headings and larger writing. Task management, lesson plans, reading notes, research conference lists, meeting notes.
Blue/Teal
Monteverde Giant Sequoia Brown (mnml EF). Sailor Ink Studio 441. One of two pen and ink pairings that serve small, precise accent notes. The moderately wet EF is smooth and encourages shading — even in a true EF line width. And 441 pops off the page. Easy skimming. Lesson plans, lecture notes, reading notes, meeting notes, and lists. Perhaps some journaling, too.
Earth Tones
Franklin-Christoph 03 Antique Glass (EF). Troublemaker Sea Glass. The sole matchy-matchy ink pairing in this week’s currently inked. The EF nib keeps Sea Glass a lovely unsaturated green. Just dark enough to contrast Petrichor. Wet enough to write smoothly, even on students’ copy paper. Marking papers, scratch notes, lesson plans, reading notes, and some journaling.
Nakaya Neostandard Heki-tamenuri (B). Kyo-iro Higashiyama Moonlight. This pen is a piece of my heart. As such, I tend to leave this combo in the penvelope during my work day. Evening and morning writing sessions see this combo in my hand. Reliable Japanese B line width, even on absorbent papers. Journaling, reading notes, some scratch notes.
Wild Cards
ASA Brahmaputra Matte Ebonite (M Architect, by Kaigelu). Birmingham Andy Warhol Pop Art Purple. My first week writing with this pen and nib. The Kaigelu nib prefers a specific angle to the page for smooth writing. As such, this pairing requires careful attention to my writing angle. Slow, deliberate accent writing for this combo: lesson plan outlines, lecture notes, journaling and some reading notes.
Kaweco Skyline Sport Iridescent Pearl (B). Robert Oster Barossa Gilt. The compact Sport’s design makes it a welcome pocket carry. The stingy B nib ensures Barossa Gilt dries quickly. The agitator in the cartridge I filled keeps Gilt’s shimmer suspended and unclogged — so far. Gilt’s pale hue is best suited to writing I can take my time reviewing: reading notes, lists, journaling and pocket notes.
