The Bronze Medal Goes To…
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
4M ago
A little bit of history  Having started out as a hard rubber writing device, then become near ubiquitous in its modern plastic incarnation, the Sport has also diversified into a dizzying range of metals in recent years. The aluminium version is still fairly light, but the brass, steel, and silver (yes, it exists, but we can’t afford to review it) versions exude heavyweight confidence – literally. To that collection of cheeky chonksters we can now add one of the earliest metals worked for tools by humans; bronze. An alloy of readily available copper and slightly rarer tin which made Cornwa ..read more
Visit website
I bless the rains down in…
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
6M ago
A little bit of history  When OMAS collapsed, many a tear was shed – and many a huckster worked hard to purloin the brand. Some have occasionally claimed success in doing so, although it never seems to amounts to much more than a lacklustre product with a familiar logo. But the core values of well-turned pens made from classy materials sporting positively aphrodisiacal nibs live on in Scrittura Bolognese. Write Here, in Shrewsbury, have been commissioning special editions from them for a few years now, and this is the first to feature a translucent barrel so that some of the magic is on v ..read more
Visit website
The crafty fox is back!
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
9M ago
A little bit of history  We’ve been tracking the development of Ruth’s Japanese-influenced Tyneside pen project Shibui-North pretty much since its inception, and the results keep tempting us to try things out for ourselves. So when the little Kitsune’s big sibling came along, we had to give it a run! How it looks  Like a medium-sized long-ish pocket pen, which is pretty much what it is. Several hallmarks make it stand out, however: the cut-out ink window, the Hokusai wave inscription on the nib and the geometrically etched barrel imprint. Bland and everyday it certainly ain’t. How i ..read more
Visit website
Collection Fever
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
9M ago
A little bit of history  Every fountain pen fan tries a Sport eventually, often fairly on, and for many of us the convenience of the venerable pocket performer reels us in to the point where different flavours start to appeal too – and Kaweco does a fine job of feeding the frenzy, with colour-matched limited editions like this. The Kaweco Collection serves up both an affordable plastic Sport and a posher aluminium version this time, and luckily we got to try both! How it looks  It looks much like any other Sport but in a pair of rather sophisticated colours, and with ‘Kaweco Collecti ..read more
Visit website
Stipulate Honey
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
1y ago
A little bit of history  Classics fans know that Latin pops up everywhere, and perhaps even more appropriately so when the brand in question is Italian. Stipulae originally sprung from the same root as ‘stubble’, perhaps denoting thin reeds for writing or perhaps, as Mick suggests, the custom of breaking a twig to indicate consent to all the terms of a contract – the stipulations. The third Renaissance was in love with all those retro references, and nowhere more so than Florence, home to this day to a fountain pen brand called Stipula. But its output is hardly ever seen in Blighty; so we ..read more
Visit website
Original Nibster
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
1y ago
A little bit of history  The Kaweco brand has been going for a long old while, and many of their models hark back to designs of a hundred years ago. But just this once, they have echoed familiar themes whilst coming up with something, well, original. Naturally, we had to put it to the test. How it looks  Actually, they came up with two Originals, with very different nib sizes. The smaller version uses the diminutive short #5 060 Bock nib familiar from the Sport and Lilliput models, which unfortunately looks a little stunted in a long pen like this. The larger Original, though, uses a ..read more
Visit website
Notorie A5
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
1y ago
A little bit of history  Designer Donna dreamed, during decidedly difficult Decembers deprived of company, of a new sort of notebook. Our kind of musing, that – and as she had already achieved full mastery of the strange beast known as the spiral binding press and was ready with more than a few ideas about the ideal cover art, it seemed a good time to launch a new stationery brand upon the world. So it proved – and here is the evidence. How it looks  Every edition looks a bit different, but that’s the intention; these are hand-made, not churned out by the hundred in an automated fac ..read more
Visit website
Diamine new Flowers box set
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
1y ago
A little bit of history  OK, relax, we’re not going to relate the whole natural history of flora. Let’s stick to the inks. Diamine released a box set of inks inspired by flowers a few years back, and it was a hit, with shades like Pansy and Cornflower continuing to find new fans even now. So, quite reasonably, Cult Pens thought it would be a good idea to commission a sequel. How it looks  These are packaged in ten square-ish bottles. How it arrives  In a box, naturally enough. This is perhaps a bit predictable, but it’s easier to manage than a flower-pot. Crucially, how it w ..read more
Visit website
Pineider Arco Blue Bee
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
1y ago
A little bit of history  Florence is not as well-known as Bologna for pen production, at least on these shores, but Pineider have been in the game for a century or two. The venerable Florentine brand has, since 1774, supplied popes, princes and heads of state with paper and envelopes for correspondence, as well as the luxury leather cases to carry such materials. Earlier this century the brand went through some torrid times under a new owner, which did not really understand the stationery and related products market, and it nearly closed completely. However, in 2017 new investment and lea ..read more
Visit website
Shibui.North Kibo metal/urushi fountain pen
United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites
by Scribble
1y ago
A little bit of history  The history of urushi pen-making is probably beyond a quick piece on United Inkdom – but Mick has had a go at covering it in his review below! Our focus is perhaps more on the remarkable person trying to bring that tradition to new life on Tyneside. Ruth has studied in Japan and can read the manuals in the original, but she is determined to make something in her own style – and the results are truly extraordinary. How it looks  The Kibo resembles… nothing else on earth. It’s a big hunk of hand-turned metal with urushi finishing which looks like it grew there ..read more
Visit website

Follow United Inkdom | The mother of all fountain pen review sites on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR