While I was putting together my updated list of "Tier One" and "Tier Two" pens a couple weeks ago, I was struck by how few of my "Tier Ones" I currently had inked. I feel like I've settled into a rut where I've kept well over a dozen pens inked at any given time--most of which are new pens I've inked for review purposes. In fact, I've had so much stuff in the "review queue" that it's been hard to work in those pens that I already know that I like and that I should be writing with on a daily basis. This problem's compounded by a "thing" I have about not wanting to flush perfectly good ink, so unless the pen or ink turns out to be absolutely awful, I'm going to write the pen dry. Needless to say, it takes a LONG time for me to work through the various pens in my rotation, and I'm getting annoyed that some of my favorites have fallen by the wayside.
We'll see whether this sticks, but for now, I'm going to try the following "system," operating on the following principles:
- No more than 10 pens will be inked an any given time.
- All five Tier One pens will be kept inked at all times.
- The remaining five pens will include at least two Tier Two pens, plus three others of my choice, whether that includes other pens from my collection being worked into the rotation or pens I'm reviewing.
- This only applies to fountain pens. I have non-fountain pens, pencils, etc. stashed around my home and office and in my car for whenever the need arises.
This might be the nerdiest thing I've ever written, but I needed to do something. I didn't like the feeling that the idea of testing and using different pens was overriding the joy I should be feeling in using them in the first place. Keeping my "Tier Ones" constantly inked will be an interesting experiment, and it will also give me a chance to see whether or not the Tier One/Tier Two pens list needs to be updated, as certain pens fall out of favor or are replaced by something new.
What about you all? Do any of you have "systems" (however loosely defined) for ensuring your favorite pens and inks get used?
So What's Inked?
For those of you who are curious, here's the current lineup and what each pen is inked with at the moment:
Tier Ones:
- Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black Edition (Callifolio Adrinople)
- Pilot Custom 823 (Montblanc JFK Navy Blue)
- Pilot Custom Heritage 92 (Iroshizuku Yu-Yake)
- Pelikan M800 Burnt Orange (KWZ Brown Pink)
- Bulkfiller Minimalistica (Lamy Dark Lilac)
Tier Twos / Others:
- Lamy 2000 Stainless Steel (KWZ Green Gold)
- Sailor Pro Gear Sky (Bung Box Sapphire)
- Montblanc 146 (Bung Box Blue Black)
- Aurora Optima Nero Perla (Aurora Blue)
- Platinum Chartres Blue Demonstrator (Platinum Blue Black)
As always, thanks for reading!