OnionBrand A5 Leather Notebook Covers in Polished Saddle — I picked up an OnionBrand A5 in Polished Saddle for my planner.

Sunday Reading for June 21, 2026

June 21, 2026

Piper Trading Company Ink Review (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). A first look at some of the Piper Trading Company inks, from the same folks who brought you Franklin-Christoph!
They Made It Smooth, But Is It Good? BIC 4-Color Ballpoint (via Inkdependence). It doesn’t need to be good to still be a classic. :)
Meet Your Maker: James White, Bonecrusher 7 Studios (via Pen Addict - Caroline). I had the pleasure of meeting James and buying a pen from him at this year’s Arkansas Pen Show.
Pilot Custom 845 Deep Blue (via Figboot on Pens). I love my Custom 845 in this dark Prussian Blue color. We will be carrying this one going forward.
Visit to Office Vender Stationery Forest in Sendai, Japan (via Inkredible Colours). That is a well-stocked shop! I also love the imagery of a stationery forest.
The NYT Summer Reading Challenge (via Writing at Large). My own reading has sort of hit a slump and I might need something like this. 10 books through the end of August? We’ll see….
My Stance on AI, with Nuance, I Hope (via Comfortable Shoes Studio). I share nearly all of these viewpoints when it comes to AI and creative work.

On The Paper Trail Episode 10 Bak From Japan

In Case You Missed It….

This week we published Episode 10 of On The Paper Trail, where we discussed all things Japan from our recent trip! We recapped our visits to all the stationery stores, favorite things we brought home, and more. I also published my first mid-year review post yesterday, in which I looked at 5 Favorite Posts from the First Half of 2026.

Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter A5 — In addition to lots of restocks, we have new A5 Roterfadens including this new natural leather version!

This week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop… More Roterfaden and More OnionBrand

All of those A5 Notebook covers you’ve been asking for are now back in stock! We have Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter covers in both A5 and A5 Slim sizes, as well as OnionBrand A5 leather covers in five different finishes. The OnionBrand covers are locally made in Nashville, and use a cord-based system to hold standard A5-sized notebooks. Finally, we have fresh restocks of Tom’s Studio, Anterique, and more! Check out each week’s Thursday Drops post for a full list of restocks and new arrivals.

Come see these and more this week in the Nashville shop during normal hours from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-5pm on Saturday.

OnionBrand

Tom's Studio

Pilot

Uni

How YOu Can Support us further: Visit Us on Patreon

If you enjoy our content (whether here on the main website, Instagram, YouTube Channel or elsewhere), and would like early/extra access to shop releases and special promotions, consider supporting us via Patreon. In addition to exclusive content, Discord access, and online meetups, Patreon supporters have access to one or more initial “practice” episodes of “On the Paper Trail” which have not been publicly released.

Pilot Frixion Ball 3 on Top of Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter A5

Sunday Reading for June 14, 2026

June 14, 2026

Pilot Custom 74 - Ranking the Nibs (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). The Custom 74 is one of the more unfairly overlooked and underrated pens out there. In my book, soft fine-medium for the win.
Travelogue Part 1: Choosing the Tools (via Line Variation). It’s officially the summer travel season, so expect to see a lot of travelogue and EDC-related posts in the coming month!
Triangle Pen Show Report! (via Inkdependence). The Triangle Pen Show is one of the few that I’ve never attended.
Feed Your Creativity and River City Pen Company Live at the Triangle Pen Show (via Feed Your Creativity). More pen show streams! June is becoming an active pen show month.
How to Decorate Your Journal with Gemstones and Crystals (via Inky.Rocks). A cool way to decorate your notebooks, but also it’s fun to hear about how different interests and hobbies intersect.
I Don’t Understand (via Line Variation). Sometime this happens with specific pens and, sometimes, specific materials which are prone to failure.
Hakase Dark Sepia Ink (via UK Fountain Pens). Don’t get me started on the Japanese exclusive sepia inks - those ended up among my favorite inks I was able to obtain.
Don’t Toss It! Mail It! (via From the Pen Cup). As always, Mary has some of the most creative correspondence ideas out there.
Pen Show and Stationery Fest Calendar UPDATED! (via Well-Appointed Desk). Ana maintains one of the most comprehensive pen show calendar pages on the ‘net. If you’re looking for a pen or stationery show in your area, this is where I would start.

Tom's Studio Ori Highlighter Ink Writing Samples

In Case You Missed It…

This week on the blog I reviewed a new product: The Tom’s Studio “Ori” refillable highlighters. Building on their series of “Lumos” and “Wren” refillable fineliners, Tom’s Studio has introduced three nice highlighters that you can use with six different fluorescent inks (all of which have worked really well so far). I also provided my updated thoughts on the Pilot Frixion line of erasable pens, and how I use these in my own everyday carry. Finally, those of you curious about what I brought back from Japan should check out our latest YouTube video, in which I discuss 5 cool things I brought home with me!

Lamy AL-Star Fountain Pens Disco and Roller Skate

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop

New Lamy AL-Stars are here! This year’s second AL-Star Release includes two new colorways: “Disco” and “Roller Skate,” in colors that we find more reminiscent of the 1980s than the 1970s! (Either way, these look good.) We also have a full restock of Tom’s Studio pens, including the new Ori Highlighters, Lumos refillable fineliners, and Wren pocket pens, as well as the full line of Tom’s Studio fountain pen inks.

Finally, Anterique pens and Toyo Steel Boxes are back in an array of new colors! Be sure to check out each week’s Thursday Drops post for a full list of each week’s new arrivals and restocks!

We are open this week from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-5pm on Saturday. You can find details and directions to our Nashville showroom here.

Anterique

Tom's Studio

Toyo Steel

Pilot

How YOu Can Support us further: Visit Us on Patreon

Sunday Reading for June 7, 2026

June 7, 2026

My Top 5 Stationery Favorites for 2026 (So Far) (via Well-Appointed Desk). Ana walks us through her top finds for the year to date.
My Solution to the “I’m Dead, What Happens to My Journals?” Question (via From the Pen Cup). Another perspective that’s different from the usual “Burn them” response.
Halfway Through the Year with a Sterling Ink Common Planner (via Dime Novel Raven). I personally am using the Wonderland222 this year, but the Sterling Ink Common Planner is another that I see heavily recommended.
Every Pencil in the New Blackwing LOTR Set (via dwrdnet). This was a wild idea. So far I have still resisted.
Live from the Triangle Pen Show 2026 (via Inkdependence). The Triangle Pen Show (North Carolina) took place last weekend, and Mike always does his show walkthrough and livestream.
Top 10 Fountain Pen Makers You Should Know (via Figboot on Pens). There are many new makers who have entered the pen world over the past few years it can be difficult to keep up, and videos/posts like this one are helpful keeping track if you’re interested in exploring custom pens.
Sixth Anniversary (via Inkredible Colours). Congratulations on a six-year bloggiversary! Always a huge accomplishment!

Itoya Helvetica Ballpoints Clip Close-Ups — Patreon members know what I’m talking about here…

In Case You Missed It….

I’ve been back from Japan for a week or so now and have had a chance to start going through all of the stationery I brought back! This week I posted an entry in my “Japan Trip Journal” series discussing the inks I found, and I also did a YouTube video on the Top 5 Cool Things I Brought Back from Japan with me! Yesterday I posted a pen review of one of the pens I ended up taking with me on that trip, the Pilot Custom Heritage 92, which is the sole piston filler in Pilot’s lineup and a highly underrated workhorse pen.

Pilot Clip Close Up Custom 845 Urushi Fountain Pen

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop

We had several new arrivals land in the shop this week, including restocks of most TWSBI fountain pens, Diamine Ink, additional nib sizes of the Pilot Custom 845 Urushi and Pilot Custom 912, and additional TRAVELER’S Notebooks. New Anterique pens (the click-cap GP1) arrived, as well as additional colors of their standard click-pens. We’ve also added the last few Summer Clearance Mystery Boxes to the clearance section of the shop, and once these are gone we’re done until the fall. Be sure to check each week’s Thursday drops post for a full list of all new arrivals and restocks.

Our Nashville shop will be open this week normal hours, from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-5pm on Saturday! Please come by and see us in person.

Pilot Pens

TWSBI

Diamine

Anterique

How YOu Can Support us further: Visit Us on Patreon

A display of Glass Pens at Bookstore in Tokyo

Sunday Reading for May 31, 2026

May 31, 2026

9 Years in the Rabbit Hole (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). Happy penversary to Kimberly! I like this exercise of going back and re-inking the pens that first got you into the hobby.
In Memoriam: Platinum Curidas, 2020-2026 (via Pen Addict). I’m honestly surprised the Curidas actually held on this long. It was a decent attempt, but the design never caught on with mainstream fountain pen users.
Michael Schur & Joe Posnanski - Big Fan! (via Figboot on Pens). Not necessarily all pen-related, but this was a cool interview for David to get to do.
Did I Get Lucky? Gentleman Stationer Mystery Boxes! (via dwrdnet). I always have fun putting these together and watching people react to the unboxing. I will do more of these in the future.
I Bought Every Blackwing Pencil So You Don’t Have To (via dwrdnet). I guess the pencil box was successful…. :)
Baran’s Pen Sleeves (via UK Fountain Pens). I’ve not seen these before - I love fabric pen sleeves and rolls, especially from small makers with a story behind them.
Read on Expiration (via Dime Novel Raven). What will happen to all those journals?
My Top 3 3D-Printed Fountain Pens (via SBRE Brown). 3D-printing is never something that’s grabbed me, but you’re starting to see it more and more in the pen space.

Joe's Kakimori Inkstand Workshop Desk — Read more about my visit to the Kakimori Inkstand!

In Case You Missed It…

I’m back from Japan! In the coming week or so I’ll be publishing my trip recaps and sharing my experiences and, of course, all the fun stuff I brought back. I’ve published two recap installments so far, including a pictorial of my trip to Itoya and other shops, as well as a recap of a trip to Kakimori’s Tokyo location that included the custom notebook and custom ink experiences.

OnionBrand A5 Notebook Cover in Olde Walnut — OnionBrand A5 leather notebook cover in Olde Walnut.

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop

There were lot’s of fun arrivals this week, including the new TWSBI ECO Fluorite Purple + Bronze which sold out in under 8 hours and per TWSBI likely won’t be restocked for a month or so. We’ve also restocked on OnionBrand A5 leather notebook covers in a couple of different finishes, including Olde Walnut and Tanner’s Claret, the reddish-brown hue that was so popular in San Francisco. Finally, we have the new Pilot Custom 845 Urushi in Prussian Blue, and it’s a stunner, as well as additional MD Products Dot Grid A5 notebooks, among other items. Be sure to check out each week’s Thursday Drops post for a full list of new arrivals and restocks!

Our Nashville showroom is open regular hours (Thursday and Friday 1-6pm and Saturday 10am-5pm). Come see these and more in person!

Caran d'Ache

Pilot

Midori and MD Products

Uni

How YOu Can Support us further: Visit Us on Patreon

Kakimori Make Your Own Notebook Paper and Cover Setup

Holiday Weekend Reading, May 25, 2026 (Japan Edition!)

May 25, 2026

Visit to Traveler’s Factory Airport, Japan (via Inkredible Colours). Funny how I just stopped in here myself! It’s a fun little place to pick up some unique refills and accessories.
2026 Stationery Park Recap (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). Another stationery event that looks well-attended and well-stocked.
Obsessed with Show Inks: ChiPS 2026 (via Dime Novel Raven). This year’s Chicago Pen Show seemed like an improvement on recent years, as many vendors I spoke to had a good experience. And of course there are all the show inks…
I Tracked Down the Zento Signature Special Edition Only to Swap to a New Ink (via dwrdnet). It’s interesting to read about preferences, because I strongly prefer the Zento refill to the Uni One. You also can’t find these anywhere, including Tokyo.
26 Pens in Under 26 Minutes: My Diplomat Pens Family (via Inkdependence). Diplomat pens are reliable writers, and Mike has quite the collection.
Tour of Papier Plume, New Orleans Stationery and Pen Store (via Feed Your Creativity). Papier Plume is one of my favorite U.S. stationery destinations, and a must-visit if you are ever in New Orleans.
Magna Carta Truflex Gold Nib (via Inky.Rocks). I have seen what these Magna Carta Truflex nibs can do and the results seem impressive. I may try to get my hands on one at an upcoming pen show (D.C. or San Francisco).
TaG Submarine Ballpoint (via Figboot on Pens). These TaG pens have caught my eye more than once. Now I just have to try one.
Dicey Journaling (via From the Pen Cup). More fun journaling ides with Mary! I have a set of these dice and may give this a whirl.
Mini Photo Printer Comparison for Journaling (via Well-Appointed Desk). I took my Canon Ivy with me to Japan, and have generally been pleased given how I use this piece of gear.

Joe's Table Setup from the Kakimori Ink Stand — Just wait until you read my recap of the Kakimori Ink Stand experience!

In Case You Missed It…

I’m in Japan! This past week I haven’t had too much time to post trip updates, other than my Travel Day status update, and a pictorial recap from Days 2 and 3 (where I bought a LOT of stationery right out of the gate). Stay tuned for additional recaps this week, including my visit to Kakimori Tokyo and the custom notebook and custom ink stand experiences.