Weekly Drops: Got Gift Cards to Burn? New TWSBIs, a Roterfaden Restock, and More!

The week between Christmas and New Year’s marks that special time when everyone starts to (1) spend their holiday gift money/gift cards and (2) retailers look to clear out their excess inventory. To that end, everything in the T.G.S. Clearance section will now receive an automatic 25% off at checkout, no coupon code necessary. We’ve also received the latest TWSBI release “Obsidian,” as well as a large Roterfaden restock that has many different sizes in stock in addition to the standard A5! Finally, be sure to check out the latest arrivals from Japan, including special edition releases from Craft Design Technology and Graphilo!

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CDT is a Tokyo and UK-based design house that collaborates with traditional manufacturers such as Pilot, Pentel, and more on their own versions of classic stationery items. These including multi-pens like the Zebra Sharbo and Pilot Frixion 3, a Pentel Sharp Kerry, Camel pencils, writing pads and notebooks, and even leather items. We are constantly adding more as they arrive, so stay tuned.

We will be open in our Nashville store normal hours (1-6pm Friday and 10am-6pm Saturday). Please come by and see us!

1. TWSBI Obsidian Piston Filler. The latest TWSBI acrylic piston filler limited release has landed, and it’s a beautiful pearlescent black acrylic with rose gold trim. We still have a (very) small number of the TWSBI “Kai” release from last year, if you prefer the blue.

2. Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter B5 Size. We’ve restocked on most Roterfaden sizes, but the increasingly popular B5 is the one we’re asked about the most. This will hold B5 notebooks as well as standard composition books.

3. Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter A4 Size. We have a few larger-format A4 Taschenbegleiters in black. We get requests to bring in A4 but it’s definitely a larger portfolio so these restocks tend to be fewer in number.

4. Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter TGS_25. Our store-exclusive A5-slim Roterfaden is still available in grey leather, with either the grey or green elastic. We have a growing selection of A5-Slim notebooks, including newly arrived Graphilo offerings! More on those below.

5. Craft Design Technology Leather Pen/Pencil Cases. These zippered leather cases can hold either pens or pencils, and will age/patina beautifully. Available in either black or brown leather.

6. Craft Design Technology x Pentel Mechanical Pencil. So far, this CDT special edition mechanical pencil that is based on the iconic Pentel Sharp Kerry is a top seller.

7. Craft Design Technology Desk Note Bagasse Notebooks. These landscape-style notebooks feature CDT’s signature green color and fountain pen friendly Bagasse paper, which is made from sugarcane waste and handles most inks extremely well. The Desk Note is available in two sizes and designed to sit beneath a keyboard while you work.

8. Craft Design Technology Notepads. Available in either A5 or A6, with a mint green or natural color, this textured paper is pleasant to write on and features a smaller grid for jotting notes or even drawing.

9. Graphilo A5-Slim Notebooks. The A5 Slim format is becoming increasingly popular, and Graphilo has released these notebooks with lined, grid, blank or “Ciro” (white line) layouts. Each notebook contains 188 pages of fountain pen friendly Graphilo paper.

10. Graphilo Notebooks and Looseleaf Paper. In addition to the A5 Slim format, Graphilo makes notebooks in traditional A5, Square, and A4 sizes, and even has looseleaf sheets available in both A4 and A5.

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New Arrivals: TWSBI Obsidian Fountain Pens, Plus a Roterfaden Restock!

TWSBI’s latest limited edition piston filler has arrived, featuring a pearlescent black acrylic paired with rose gold trim. Like the TWSBI Kai (of which we still have exactly one available), the new TWSBI Obsidian will be available for a limited run. TWSBI releases this particular style approximately once a year, and sometimes less frequently. These pens are available for purchase now and will ship starting today.

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Most Roterfaden Sizes Are Restocked - Please Visit the New Dedicated Roterfaden Shop Page

Unless you’re shopping in person with us today, these won’t arrive in time for Christmas, but we did receive a large restock of Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter covers, including less-common sizes such as B5 and A4, as well as Four-Clip covers. Going forward, Roterfaden products will be listed on their own dedicated section of the shop, since the stock changes frequently and it is easier to maintain this way. Please understand that we are not holding back stock and because the holiday season is busy, we have been unable to respond to inquiries about whether specific sizes and colors are available. If it is not listed on the Roterfaden page or showing as unavailable, we do not currently have it in stock.

We have holiday hours in the Nashville shop today from 1-6pm, and will be closed to in-person shopping tomorrow (12/23) and Thursday (12/24). We will reopen Friday and Saturday during normal store hours.

Thursday Drops: Last Minute Gifts and Unique New Arrivals! Craft Design Technology, Graphilo, and Musgrave!

Well, it’s the week before Christmas, so if you’re relying on the internet to get you something shipped, mailed, and delivered in time, the best-case scenario is that you roll the dice and you luck out and it arrives on the 23rd or the 24th. There are simply no guarantees at this point. That said, we are here to help you in-person, and we have a ton of cool stuff that’s arrived in-store, including several recent Japan shipments containing Craft Design Technology, Graphilo, and more! If you’re short on ideas, you can check out our Holiday Gift Guide, and most of what we highlight there continues to be in stock.

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These CDT Pentel Sign Pens, featuring a soft brush tip, have been heavily requested by in-store and online customers.

Craft Design Technology is a design house based in Japan and the U.K., best known for partnering with manufacturers on specialized custom versions of classic stationery items such as the Zebra Sharbo Multi Pen, Pentel Sign Pen, Pilot Frixion, and more. I have followed their work for years and am thrilled to be able to offer teir goods directly. As discussed in Tuesday’s post, we’ve also recently added Graphilo to our lineup of specialty Japanese papers, and people seem to be enjoying it because it’s flying out the door. Finally, we’re excited to restock on many of our Musgrave pencils, including the Heritage collection sets that offer a way to try out different Musgrave pencils and also have a cool pencil-themed case and pencil cup.

Our Nashville shop is open this week from 1-6pm on Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-6pm on Saturday. Check the shop page and on our Google profile for hours.

1. Craft Design Technology x Zebra Multifunctional Pen. Years ago, the Zebra Sharbo was the trendy multi pen, known for its D1 gel refills that ran out in approximately 2 hours. Craft Design Technology has partnered with Zebra to release it’s own design in matte black and silver, substituting the gel refills for low-viscosity ballpoints and a .5mm mechanical pencil. For those who find other multi pens too long and clunky, this one is almost perfectly balanced.

2. Craft Design Technology x Pilot Frixion 3 Multi Pen. Yes, the Pilot Frixion comes in a Dr. Grip-style 3-slot multi pen, complete with three different ink options and the Frixion eraser. Available in CDT’s dark green colorway. Refills available separately by individual color or a multi-pack.

3. Craft Design Technology x Pentel Tradio Plastic Fountain Pen. A hybrid between a fountain pen and a fineliner, the Tradio adds a touch of softness to your writing to make it more expressive. Of all the CDT collaborations, the Tradio has been the one I’ve used the most, since the ink dries very quickly and makes an excellent planner pen. Tradio refills available separately.

4. Craft Design Technology Brush Sign Pens. One of the most-requested items is now available! These soft-tip fineliners/markers/brush pens are sold individually in 10 different colors or come in two different assortment packs of 5 or 10 pens.

5. Craft Design Technology Desk Note Notebooks. These landscape-style notebooks are made from bagasse paper, a byproduct of sugarcane processing. Bagasse paper is quite fountain pen friendly, and I’ve found that this particular notebook handles not just fountain pen inks but markers and other writing instruments as well.

6. Kobeha Graphilo Paper. Developed specifically for use with fountain pens, Graphilo has developed a cult following over the years. Available in multiple formats, including A5, Square, and a 188-page A5-Slim (which will work with our Roterfaden TGS_25).

7. Musgrave Heritage Pencil Assortment Pack. These popular pencil assortments have arrived just in time for Christmas, and yes you can reuse the pencil box as a pencil/pen stand or pencil case.

8. Musgrave Highlighter Pencil Set. I can never stock too many highlighter pencils, and these 8-packs contain two of each color in a relatively rare slim barrel design.

9. Musgrave Songwriter Pencils (Including Special Edition Blue Set). The 4B Songwriter pencil sold out nearly immediately when we had it in stock early in the year, and we’ve restocked on both the standard cream version as well as the new special edition Teal Blue set.

10. Musgrave “Tennessee Red” Pencils. The Tennessee Red features the highly aromatic Eastern Red Cedar wood, which used to be a staple of pencil manufacturing until it was abandoned in favor of the more readily available Incense Cedar. A few years back, Musgrave sourced some slats to make the Tennessee Red, and it’s one of the more unique offerings.

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The Craft Design Technology “Desk Note” in Large and Small Size.

New Arrivals: Introducing Kobeha Graphilo Paper

Like other specialty Japanese papers, Graphilo has developed a reputation as an excellent fountain pen friendly writing paper that has, to date, been somewhat difficult to obtain in the United States. Made by Kobeha, a stationery company located in Kobe, Graphilo was developed specifically for use with fountain pens, much like Nakayabashi developed Yu-Sari. Graphilo is a coated, slightly textured paper with an 81.4gsm paper weight, making it suitable for writing with nearly all fountain pen inks as well as ink-heavy art applications like drawing and some painting.

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Graphilo notebooks offer four different rulings: lined, grid, blank, and “Ciro” (white lines).

I’m most excited about the 188-page “Graphilo Style” A5-Slim notebooks, which are the same size as our own Roterfaden TGS_25 exclusive and the Lochby Voyager Journal. Graphilo paper is also available in stitched softcover notebooks in A5, Square, and A4 formats, as well as A4 and A5 looseleaf sheets and memo pads. All Kobeha Graphilo products are in-stock and available to ship immediately. Visit our Curated Paper section to see the Graphilo line and and more!

This week our Nashville shop will be open normal hours, from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday and from 10am-6pm on Saturday. If you’re looking for gift ideas, be sure to check out the 2025 edition of our Annual Holiday Gift Guide!

Thursday Drops: NJK Long-Point Pencil Sharpeners Are Back, Along with Allex Scissors!

We’ve been awaiting a huge restock of products from Japan, including in-demand items such as the NJK pencil sharpeners and Allex scissors in multiple sizes and finishes. We also have new Tomoe River notebooks and Journals from Karatis, including vegan leather versions with massive page counts, Caran d’Ache pencil restocks, and even a handful of Standard size Traveler’s Notebooks in Olive. (I don’t expect these to last long so get them while you can!)

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We’re getting very close to Christmas and are shipping orders as quickly as we possibly can. Right now, we are within our usual 2-3 business day ship time, but we continue to encourage people to get orders that absolutely need to be delivered by Christmas or New Years in to us as soon as possible to account for any delivery delays. If you’re looking for gift ideas (including any last minute items), be sure to check out our Holiday Gift Guide, which we update every year!

Our Nashville shop is open this week from 1-6pm on Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-5pm on Saturday. (We plan to close an hour early on Saturday due to a personal commitment.) Check the shop page and on our Google profile for hours.

1. NJK Long-Point Pencil Sharpeners. These long-time T.G.S. favorites are imported directly from Osaka, Japan, and come in several different colors. Replacement blades are also available, though all sharpeners ship with a spare blade. You can read about why we enjoy these sharpeners here.

2. Blackwing Volume 21: The Woodworking Pencil. These unique pencils feature a square barrel plus a stained finish that still allows you to see the finger joints on the wood. The pencil is designed to work in standard sharpeners, including the excellent Blackwing sharpeners.

3. Allex S-165 Office Scissors. The classic Allex Scissors available with three different handles and fluorine-coated or stainless steel blades. (Fluorine is a teflon-like coating that helps cut through substances like tape and sticker paper.)

4. Allex Desk Scissors. These standard desk scissors also come in coated or non-coated blades and feature textured metal grips. This is my personal favorite model and use the standard stainless version in my office.

5. Allex Slim 100 Portable Scissors. These compact scissors are a great choice for a portable stationery kit, and available in either a standard stainless or blacked-out fluorine finish.

6. Exacompta Index Cards. These fountain pen friendly index cards come from the same paper mill as Clairefontaine and Rhodia paper, and come in multiple sizes and rulings. These are classic pieces of stationery that we’ve tried to keep in stock as staples.

7. Clairefontaine “My Essentials” A5 Notebooks. These were top sellers when we had them in the shop the first time around, and we finally got around to restocking. We have all cover colors available!

8. Herbin “Shogun” Ink. Way back when we first launched the store, we included this dark grey shimmer ink with an understated look. I’ve never been a huge proponent of shimmer, but it’s growing on me as I expand my range, and Shogun was one of the first that really appealed to me.

9. Lamy Bottled Ink. We have the full line of Lamy bottled ink back in stock, including Petrol, Sepia, and Dark Lilac.

10. Tom’s Studio Fountain Pen Ink. Tom’s Studio recently released several new ink colors, including a Clementine Orange, Espresso, and Sepia. These are warmer colors perfect for autumn and, soon, winter!

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Blackwing Volume 21: The Woodworking Pencil