I’m getting ready for some extended time away from my day job, so what better way to kick things off than to take a quick weekend trip to the Dallas Pen Show - a Show I’ve never visited before! In addition to visiting a new show, I get the opportunity to enjoy a pen show as a pen show, without my own table, and spend some time exploring the two ballrooms and many of the vendors there. I’ll have more to report via Instagram and on social media in real time, but there are many independent makers at this show and a very large vintage scene.
The Dallas Show organizers conveniently post the roster of exhibitors next to a large map, so you can see where each are located.
For most of the day yesterday, I assisted at the Vanness Pens table. Dallas is a bit of a unique show in that it’s only two days, with Friday being the longest: 10am to 8pm at night. While it makes for a 12-hour day for most vendors (once you include setup time), the late Friday hours are favorable to attendees who may not be able to get off work in time to attend the show on the first day, and the organizers are adamant that all vendors need to remain open until closing time to accommodate evening shoppers.
My two pickups from the table I was working: a Sailor Pro Gear Mini in Mouette, and a Sailor Kyomachi Legend Blue 1911 Full Size with the gold weighted section.
There was a steady stream of traffic through the morning, a bit of a lull for lunch, and then another rush between 4-6:30 as the after-work crowd arrived. The main draw at the Vanness table were the Nagasawa exclusive collaboration pens, which Vanness is now authorized to carry as Nagasawa’s exclusive U.S. retail partner! These pens include the Kobe Affection Kyomachi Legend Blue series (which comes in King of Pen, 1911 Large, and 1911 Standard sizes), exclusive Pro Gear Slims and Minis in multiple colors, and the Demonstrator Pro Gears and “Profits” (1911s) with black-plated, gold, and antiqued/rose gold trim. Many different models and colors fall into these latter categories, so I won’t link to them all individually but you can check out the full selection of Nagasawa pens here. (You can also check many of them out in person at the Dallas Pen Show, since Vanness brought a TON of these pens.)
I had two nibs ground: I asked Matthew Chen to clean up the broad nib on my Montblanc 149 to give it some more line definition and narrow the stubbish tipping just a bit to make it more usable, and I also had my Pro Gear Mini ground to a mini-architect!
For Saturday, I plan to focus on visiting with friends and possibly checking out some vintage. It’s been a while since I’ve added any vintage pens to my collection, and Dallas also includes a collection of local vendors (including Fountain Pen Revolution!) who don’t typically attend many pen shows. Stay tuned for more show pics!
The store remains open and all orders will ship within the typical 2-3 business day timeframe. Since it’s a pen show weekend, use the coupon code “PENSHOW10” at checkout to take 10% off most orders, with some brands excluded. Many thanks for all your support!
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