Green is extra fine with me
Closing out a school year involves a lot of meetings. Each meeting creates waves of tasks that need to be handled — all while the countdown to graduation rapidly ticks down. The wide variety of tasks — from grading late projects to calling homes to ensure each graduate has the right supports for them to finish their pathway to every graduation requirement. List-filled chaos.
Narrow, controlled lines work best for detail-driven meeting notes. This week’s kit sports four true EF nibs: the Franklin-Christoph, Montblanc, Narwhal, and Kaweco.
Reverse writing with the Sailor Zoom and Kaigelu Architect add another two EF-width lines. Six options total for detailed notes. Stacked.
I’m also channeling spring-esque colorways. Two blue pens and three teal.
And four of seven inks are green or teal: Eau de Nil, Hisoku, Brane, and November Rain.
The lone true B nib remains in the weekly kit because of November Rain’s strong sheen. Sheen is fantastic for scanning lecture notes at a distance. Sheen is your friend whenever you need to stand steps away from where your notes sit during a presentation. Shiny.
Green, fine, and shiny.
Grey/Black
Franklin-Christoph 03 Antique Glass (EF). Pilot Iroshizuku Kiri-same. The final drops of my beloved Kiri-same ink. The round EF nib, moderate feed, and strong shading ink combine to make writing in my absorbent work bullet journal enjoyable. The week’s daily driver. Task management, meeting notes, lesson plans, Hobonichi planning, reading notes.
Blue/Teal
Montblanc 146 Le Petit Prince and Fox (EF). Sailor Ink Studio 441. A true EF line and a bright, searing blue ink. A tailor-made pair for detailed accent notes. Especially on student papers and in brainstorm sessions. I also expect to bring this pair for accenting meeting notes. And some princely journaling.
Sailor Pro Gear Blue Train (Z). Kyo-no-oto Hisoku. I write large, quick letters during meetings — especially with students and parents. My focus stays on the conversation, not my notepad. A wide, round, forgiving nib that writes at many angles is key. And a true EF line on reverse side of the Zoom nib for detailed notes. This is my meeting pen. Also: journaling, lesson plans, and reading notes.
ASA Brahmaputra Matte Black (M Architect, by Kaigelu). Diamine Eau de Nil. This pairing has grown wetter — and smoother — over the last few weeks. The sharp architect grind shows off strong ribbons of line variation. Careful, thoughtful forms of writing let me focus on sticking to the Kaigelu’s proper writing angle: about 40 degrees from table level. Journaling, letter drafting, two birthday cards, and lesson plans.
Earth Tones
Narwhal Schuylkill Chromis Teal (EF). Colorverse Brane, glistening. The titanium Bock nib and Brane combine to write well on my Rhodia Goalbook’s paper. Brane shades and halos on coated papers like Tomoe River. And the large Narwhal is comfortable during long writing sessions. Journaling, teaching reflections, and drafting my end of year letters to my classes.
TWSBI 580-AL Turquoise (B). Diamine November Rain. November Rain offers up the strongest, most consistent sheen in this week’s palette. As such, this pair is well-suited to lecture notes, meeting prep, and lesson plans. The notes I most commonly reference while at odd angles and/or steps away from my notebook. Also journaling.
Wild Cards
Kaweco Skyline Sport Iridescent Pearl (EF). Pilot Iroshizuku Yama-budo. My primary pocket carry — a duty the Sport was designed to fulfill. Yama-Budo also offers a non-red ink for marking students’ papers. And I have 32 more 3-5 page papers on Heian Japan left to grade. Pocket notes, grading, accent meeting notes, and journaling.
