New Arrivals: Yamamoto Fountain Pen Friendly Papers, Viarco Pencils, and TWSBI Preorders!

Lots of news today! First Up: It’s been a long time since we’ve had a dedicated Tomoe River Paper writing pad available for purchase - the availability of this paper has been the subject of much discussion over the past few years - but as of yesterday, we now offer A5 writing pads from Yamamoto Paper containing two different versions: The “New” Sanzen S Tomoe River Paper or the prior version of Tomoe River still made by the Tomoegawa Paper Company. These pads have 200 sheets, and the Yamamoto Bank Paper version has 100. We also have limited availability of the Yamamoto Paper Fountain Pen Friendly Paper Sampler, which features 16 different types of fountain pen friendly Japanese papers, including a handful of which are being discontinued. (For those looking for the heavier 68g Tomoe River Paper, we recently received a restock of Lochby A5 notebooks and pocket notebooks).

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This might be my favorite of the six Viarco pencil designs. I ended up getting one of the half-gross sampler packs.

Viarco Pencils and Pencil Accessories from Portugal

We now have most of the Viarco vintage-inspired wood pencils in stock, in 7 different finishes and retro packaging. Viarco graphite is pleasantly tactile to use and isn’t waxy or smeary - it’s the type of graphite I used to love seeking out in school because it sharpens well and retains a point. These pencils are made in Portugal, in one of the last remaining operative pencil factories in Europe. To go along with your new pencils, why not pick up a NJK long-point sharpener from Japan? To see how this sharpener compares to other options out there, you can check out this post from a few years ago when I first received one from C.W. Pencil Enterprise.

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TWSBI ECO “Dark Sapphire” Pre-Orders

Last but not least, the TWSBI ECO “Dark Sapphire” is in-hand and ready to ship on tomorrow’s release date. We also have additional stock of the TWSBI Diamond 580 ALR in Black, which sold out nearly instantaneously the first time around. The 580 ALR Black will ship out today, with the Dark Sapphire ECOs going out the door tomorrow morning.

Note: We will be traveling for the later part of this week, so if it’s important for you to receive your order this week, please get it in by Wednesday morning so we can ensure it ships out. Many thanks for your support!

New Arrivals: Lamy Notebooks and Yet Another Interesting Paper Ruling!

As part of our never-ending quest to curate the most interesting paper rulings, we’ve added Lamy notebooks to the shop! Available in Hardcover, Softcover, and “Booklet” (Softcover Slim) formats, all of the Lamy A5 notebooks feature Lamy’s proprietary paper ruling, which is a combination of lines, grids, and dots. The slim booklets are perfect for notebook systems like the Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter and the Lochby Field Journal, since you can carry multiple books under one cover. The 90g Italian paper is absorbent, so it dries quickly, and handles most fountain pen inks very well!

Lamy’s signature paper ruling is great for those who like both lined and grid notebooks. You can alternate between the two.

The hardcover and softcover versions are priced at $25, and the three-pack of booklets are priced at $15. In addition to Lamy paper, we’ve also recently restocked on Clairefontaine notebooks and writing pads in most of the formats that we regularly carry. Happy shopping!

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized retailer of Clairefontaine and Lamy products.

California Pen Show Workshop Recap: Paper for Everyday Writing

Many thanks to everyone who came out to see me at the 2024 California Pen Show! We had a great turnout at the “Stationery for Everyday Writing” Workshops on Friday and Saturday, and since I’ve had a couple requests for the names of the paper samples we discussed, I thought I would post them. Just a reminder that the promotional code distributed to workshop attendees (and Patreon members) is valid through February 29, 2024 (end of the month). If you attended the seminar and lost the code or need the details of the promotional offer, please contact me and I will send them to you.

Four of My Favorite Papers for Everyday Writing

• Write Notepads Paper. Relatively inexpensive, absorbent, and available in a wide variety of formats and rulings, Write Notepads paper is among my favorite for everyday writing and notetaking.

• Midori MD Paper. Another excellent Japanese paper that’s cost-effective enough to be used everyday. I especially enjoy their writing pads, which can be used vertically and horizontally (“landscape mode”). MD Paper is used in standard Traveler’s Company refills, and if you’re looking for something slightly more absorbent, you should try the MD Cotton version.

• Clairefontaine French-Ruled Looseleaf Paper. The multi-lined paper handed out at the workshop was Clairefontaine French-ruled (or “Seyes-ruled”) looseleaf paper in the A4 format. Clairefontaine is often most people’s first experience with fountain-pen friendly paper, and while it’s slower to dry than the other options listed here, it’s also less expensive and more widely available.

• Tomoe River 68gsm Paper. While the long-term availability of this paper is subject to debate, given recent manufacturing changes, it continues to be available from some sources (including the Lochby refills that we sell). 68gsm Tomoe River Paper is still quite thin, though a bit thicker and slightly more absorbent than the lighter-weight 52gsm version so it dries quicker.

For additional fountain pen friendly paper recommendations, check out our post titled “Hierarchies of Fountain Pen Friendly Paper,” which will walk you through these options and more.

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized reseller of the brands we sell, and is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

New Arrivals: Additional Sizes of Nakabayashi Logical Prime Paper; Plus Certain Roterfaden A6 Covers Discontinued So Last Call!

I’ve enjoyed exploring Nakabayashi’s paper offerings over the past year, especially their “Logical Prime” line. Logical Prime paper is relatively lightweight, yet still fountain pen friendly, and is available in a range of formats that include thread and wire-bound notebooks in multiple rulings. As of this week, we have added threadbound Logical Prime notebooks in the B5 size, as well as wirebound Logical Prime books in A4, A5, A6 and A7, the latter of which have a convenient top-bound, reporter-style format. Logical Air Super-Light Notebooks and Yu-Sari Notebooks are both back in stock as well!

Certain Roterfaden A6 (“Small”) Size Taschenbegleiters To Be DiscontINUED

[Updated with Clarification from Roterfaden] This month we received word that Roterfaden is discontinuing certain colors of the Small (A6) Taschenbegleiter covers. We have a handful of A6 Taschenbegleiters still in stock, but I’m not sure what will be available going forward as they intend to downsize this range. Apparently Roterfaden will continue making some version of the small notebook, as well as the refills, but if you’ve had your eye on one of them I wouldn’t wait because I understand the selection will be smaller. Most people buy this cover because it’s compatible with any number of standard-sized notebooks from other brands. (There’s no shortage of A6 options, such as the Itoya Profolio Oasis or the Midori MD notebooks in either standard or MD Light.)

The Gentleman Stationer is supported by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. We greatly appreciate your support!

[Updated] New Arrivals: Nahvalur Nautilus Ruby Koi Fountain Pen, and New Lovina Graphite and Matira Quartz Original Plus Pens!

I’m not sure that we’ve ever had limited run fountain pens sell out quicker than the two Nahvalur “Pen of the Year” models, inspired by the Year of the Rabbit and Year of the Dragon, respectively. Fortunately, Nahvalur appears to be staying at it this year, releasing yet another gorgeous limited run pen in striated red and black German ebonite with red anodized trim that they’ve dubbed “Ruby Koi.” Given my love for anything red and black, but I’m not sure I could pick out a Nautilus color combination that speaks to me personally more than this one, and I hope it sticks around for at least a little while (though probably not since it’s a numbered edition).

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Vintage-style striated German ebonite paired with either a 14k (left) or gold plated (right) nib makes for a gorgeous combination.

As with the Pen of the Year, the Nautilus Ruby Koi is available with both gold-plated stainless steel and 14k gold nib options. These pens are priced at $188 for the steel option and $308 for the gold. As a piston filler, the Nautilus Ruby Koi accepts bottled ink only, and we recently restocked on Nahvalur ink as well.

This material is a gorgeous true red-black ebonite!

Updated: As of 11am Central Time, New Lovina Graphite and Matira Quartz Fountain Pens Are Available!

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This morning, Nahvalur announced the release of two new colors in the “Original Plus” series - Lovina Graphite and Matira Quartz. These are new takes on last year’s limited edition “Lovina Black” and “Matira White” pens - they still have the rose gold trim but the Black and White resins add chatoyance (i.e. some sparkle/shimmer) to the material! It’s a very nice look with lots of depth. These have arrived and are available to ship immediately, priced at $55 each.

Note - for those of you looking for a Lovina Black and Matira White pen (without the chatoyance), we still have a couple left, mostly broad and stub nib sizes.

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized retailer of Nahvalur Pens.