At the beginning of April, I received an email from my friends in the London Pen Club informing me of a brand-new Canadian online store that had just opened for business. It was the web store for Phidon Pens (est. 2008), a brick & mortar pen and stationery store located in Cambridge, Ontario. I'd heard great things about Phidon and its owners (Baldeep & Mano Duggal) from the folks in the LPC, so I didn't hesitate to place an order with them a few days later...
(all photos by Maja ~ please click on images to enlarge)
The items arrived promptly, along with a very nice note, a pre-stamped postcard (not shown) and a complimentary box of Lamy ink cartridges....
First up---a box of lovely Blackwing wooden pencils - Volume 840 ("Surfing")...
(New York Times Sunday crossword puzzles, here I come!! :)
These new pencils are a welcome addition to my Blackwing collection, which I'd talked about in this previous blog post. The pencils in Blackwing's "Volume" series are all limited editions, with a new design released every quarter. The graphite core in the '840' is Balanced (between Soft and Firm), the same type used in the regular (non-limited-edition) Blackwing "Pearl" pencils. There's a story behind every design in the "Volume" series, and the '840' is no different.
From Blackwing's official website:
"The ancient art of surfing arrived on the coast of northern California in 1907, but it wasn’t until surf icon Duke Kahanamoku popularized the sport on the beaches of southern California in the decades that followed that it really took hold.
The Blackwing 840 is a tribute to Duke Kahanamoku and the enlightened lifestyle he helped cultivate through surfing. It features a sea green barrel with a gold foil accent in the shape of the California coastline. It also features our balanced graphite and a gold eraser clip. Duke popularized surfing along California’s 840 mile coast, but the lifestyle left in his wake has influenced people around the world."
Next, we have my new TWSBI '1791 Royal Purple' ink in the new frosted glass 18ml size (and yes, it's as cute as it looks!)... TWSBI's webpage explains the inspiration for the colour: "This color is part of a 6 pack series we created from a book written in 1791 called "Dream of Red Chambers". It's one of China's 4 great classical novels and we picked colors out of the buildings and descriptions within this book for this series of ink."
Last, but certainly not least, my new Lamy 'Safari Candy' Aquamarine fountain pen and Lamy 'Mango' ink... I apologize for the photo quality--I had a hard time capturing the details of this monocolour fountain pen, but I'm sure you're familiar with how a Lamy Safari looks so...lol. This shade of blue-green is lovely and calming (much appreciated in these uncertain times) and I love how all of the parts (except the nib & feed) are the same colour. I chose a Fine nib, but the nibs are very easy to swap out (they just slide onto the feed), should the need or desire arise. As expected, my Safari writes smoothly with no start-up problems or ink-flow issues.
Many thanks to Mano of Phidon Pens for her excellent customer service and generosity!
~Maja
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