When you’re shopping to stock a store, you definitely don’t want to focus solely on what other people are carrying. You want to look for the fun and unusual items that are difficult to find elsewhere. By far, the most enjoyment I’ve had in running my little shop over the past few years comes from watching these types of finds catch on and the brands take off. Here are ten of my favorites! You can view these and more in the T.G.S. Curated Shop, and don’t forget to take advantage of the items on the Gently Used page, which can be combined with shop purchases to save on shipping.

The T.G.S. Curated Shop is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

Opus 88 Minty Fountain Pen. You need to reward pen companies when they step outside the box a bit, and I feel like Opus did this with the Minty, particularly the color selections and the decorative banding on the cap and barrel finials. The Minty remains one of my favorite Opus releases from the past couple of years.
Mazzuoli Nobile Italia Ballpoint Pen/Mechanical Pencil. This historical airship-inspired writing instrument features two different options: a Parker-style ballpoint pen refill (three different colors of Schmidt Easyflow 9000 refills are included) or a Schmidt .7mm mechanical pencil insert. The shape is perfectly ergonomic, and comes in four attractive finishes.
Highide Attaché Marbled Fountain Pen. Pocketable fountain pens that post to a full-size writing instrument have become the rage lately, and Japanese stationery company Hightide has released their own contribution. This well-priced cartridge/converter pen features a nice fine nib and comes in several attractive colors.
Kokuyo Mark+ Dual-tone Highlighter. Ever since these arrived, I’ve been carrying a full set of each color in my bag. I’m a serial highlighter, and the ability to emphasize important material by using a darker tone of ink is incredibly useful.
Crayons de la Maison Caran d’Ache, Edition No. 10. The tenth release of Swiss stationer Caran d’Ache’s signature pencil set features four of my favorite finishes: blue, green, and two different natural wood tones.
TWSBI Swipe Fountain Pen in Salmon. The TWSBI Swipe is unique in and of itself, but what makes this particular pen fun is the color. A true pinkish-orange (well, “Salmon”), it sort of evokes the tone of the Opus 88 Minty.
Midori MD A4 Notebooks and Covers. A5 notebooks are everywhere, but A4? They’re a bit harder to come by, especially in bound formats. Not only does the Midori MD notebook come in a blank A4 format, but there are undyed leather and Japanese paper cover options available as well.
Lochby Venture Pouch. Tired of carrying both a stationery pouch AND a traditional zippered, slotted pen case? Lochby’s Venture Pouch combines both into one convenient format.
Midori MD Multi-Year Diaries. While the 5-Year Diary has been popular for a long time, did you know that Midori also makes a whopping 10-year version? If 5 or 10 years is too intimidating, what about the 3-Year Diary?
Midori MD A5 Natural Undyed Leather Sleeve. Most people are familiar with Midori’s natural undyed leather journal covers, but they also make leather pouches and sleeves designed to hold not just an A5 notebooks, but pens and other stationery items.