Record-smashing attendance for December 2024 meeting!

We had a grand total of 32 VPC members at our December 2024 meeting -- a new attendance record for a regular meeting! 😮 Five newcomers (Alex, Emily, Michelle, Sharon & Stefan) were among those at the meeting, which was held at the Kitsilano branch of the Vancouver Public Library on December 19th. Andrii, Bernie and Joy had attended a get-together at a pen store, but this was their first "regular" meeting.

Our December meeting topics were: Fountain Pens That Remind You of Winter/the Holiday Season (our primary meeting theme) and Newest Pen-Related Acquisitions (which is always our secondary theme). Both Sherman and I snapped some photos during the meeting, so without further ado, here they are!

(~The first three & last seven photos are courtesy of Sherman; the rest are Maja's ~please click on images to enlarge~)

Sherman snapped a quick selfie, but then realized not everyone was in the pic, so he took a couple more....

(Counter-clockwise around the table, from the bottom left): Sherman, Villoo, Paul, Stuart, me (Maja), Lisa, Bernie, (Grant and Jerred are hidden), Esther, Emily, Rebecca, Amy, Sharon, Oliver, Alex, Nathan, Joy, Lyndon, Andrii, David L, Dana, David C. (waving), Anson, Michelle, Yang, Asifa, Phil, Stefan and Vladan. Daryl is seated off to the right side. Christina (not pictured) had to leave early.

Jerred's newest acquisition is this impressive addition to his wonderful Delta fountain pen collection--a bright red Delta 'Gaius Julius Caesar" limited edition fountain pen with sterling silver accents.The pen was made in limited numbers and came with a replica Roman coin. This limited edition fountain pen by Delta was available in three different forms---piston-filler, cartridge/converter-filler, and lever-filler (shown above).

Paul always brings interesting new acquisitions for us to see, like this calligraphy fountain pen made in the U.K...

...and this cool magnetic 'Polar' ballpoint, one of several he bought as Christmas gifts! Paul was kind enough to bring a door prize for our draw -- a nice leather portfolio. I forgot to photograph it, but it was won by Lisa (congratulations, Lisa!)

Above: Stuart's blue Diplomat 'Viper', Sheaffer '100' in the "Friends of Winter" (Pine motif) special edition, and stainless steel Diplomat 'Traveler' fountain pens. The Sheaffer was Stuart's primary meeting theme/topic example, and the two Diplomats are recent acquisitions, both purchased from the Vancouver Pen Shop downtown. Stuart also recently bought a new Graf von Faber-Castell fountain pen (not shown) from the Pen Shop.

Above: Classic modern German fountain pens belonging to two brand-new members--Alex's black Lamy '2000' fountain pen, and Sharon's Faber-Castell "Ambition" below it. The Faber-Castell, along with a Pilot 'Decimo' fountain pen (not in the photo) are among Sharon's favourite daily users, I believe.

That's Nathan's new Nahvalur '365' Plongeur Titanium fountain pen and his clear yellow demonstrator Jinhao '82' fountain pen. Below that is another Jinhao '82' --a rose-coloured example belonging to David L. that he recently acquired.

Nathan has an excellent YouTube channel called 'Doodlebud' in which he reviews pens, nibs, stationery, inks, accessories and things related to pens (laser engravers, ultrasonic cleaners, et al). In one recent video, he used a laser to etch the tipping on the steel nib of a Jinhao '82' to recreate the pencil-like feedback (the tactile and sonic "feel") that you get when using a Sailor gold nib. Nathan repeated the same process with the clear yellow Jinhao '82' shown above ... and he really nailed it, so it was nice to be able to try the pen in person at our meeting :)

Phil came back from Europe with some very nice fountain pens, including the glossy black Monte Rosa (a vintage sub-brand of Montblanc) above. The bottom pen is Nathan's brushed steel Pilot 'MYU", a very cool fountain pen with an integrated nib (the nib and grip section are all one solid piece of metal).

Here's another great pen that Phil recently acquired--a blue Maiora 'Impronte' Capri fountain pen handmade made in Naples, Italy.

The gorgeous swirly purple fountain pen above belongs to lucky owner Joy, and it was recently made for her by our fellow VPC member Anson of Springfield Pens in his workshop. The three fountain pens above it are all Lamys (in holiday colours!) belonging to Asifa--a bright green Lamy 'Safari', and two Lamy 'Studio' fountain pens (in dark green and red).

Asifa likes to ink her pens with matching inks, and the ink she had in her red Lamy 'Studio' above was one she mixed herself and named "Asifa Red". What a lovely shade!

Vladan acquired several beautiful new fountain pens recently, including the multi-coloured Springfield Pens model above. The pen above it is his new Esterbrook 'Estie' in the "Incredible Rock" colour. That colourway is one of three available in the Esterbrook 'Estie' "Back to the Land" lineup; all three colourways were inspired by colours popular in the 1970s.

Above: Vladan's new Montblanc '146', a fountain pen model we've seen numerous times over the years at our meetings, but one that never fails to impress...

Vladan's father gave him the ringed fountain pen and rollerball set above, but Vladan mentioned that he wasn't sure of the manufacturer's name. After the meeting, I did a bit of detective work, and I think it might be the Minka "Saturn" model. I'm sorry I didn't photograph the fountain pen that Vladan gave his son Stefan (who was also at our December meeting)--a red-striped Pelikan M600---as a graduation present. It's such a great-looking fountain pen (and a wonderful gift!)...

Above: Two fountain pens that definitely remind me of winter--a red & white Lamy 'Joy' calligraphy fountain pen belonging to Asifa, and Sherman's PenBBS '352' in "Snow" acrylic...

Above: My stuff (left to right): Two fountain pens I brought in for our primary theme (Winter/Winter holidays fountain pens) ---a red and white Laban '325' (reviewed here) and a clear Wing Sung '3013' vacuum-filler with Santa's sleigh and reindeer on it, my new Asvine V200 fountain pen with Bock nib (one of my best buys of 2024 --a great writer that feels good in the hand & looks cool), a swirly orange, black and white fountain pen handmade by Anson of Springfield Pens using a polyurethane resin called "Tiger Tail" (I love that pen!). a Retro 51 'Tornado' "Jack" rollerball I bought from Buchan's at our November meeting, and, lastly, Nathan's Jinhao '82', which he generously gave to me after the meeting (thanks, Nathan!).

Above my pen case is another gift from Nathan--a white, 3D-printed nib block he made himself--and beside that is another gift I got that night (I'm so fortunate!) -- an adorable purple "ghost cat" 3D-printed by Amy. Many thanks to Amy and Nathan for their generosity!

Sherman with his PenBBS '352' a very pretty, winter-y looking fountain pen

(it even has beautiful snowflakes engraved on its steel nib!)

Above: Sherman's group photo of all the pens he had with him at our meeting (left to right):

élysée Jewelry (90 Line) Laque Intarsia Bleu BP
élysée Jewelry Classique (70 Line) Laque élysée Schwan Stabilo FP
élysée Design (80 Line) Laque Jade FP
élysée En Vogue Design (80 Line) Laque Jade 14K Nib
élysée Parthenon (10 Line) Laque Classique Red 18K Nib
élysée mini Pen Satiné BP
élysée Classique (70 Line) Satiné GT BP, FP, BP, FP Chrome Nib, Letter Opener
Unknown Brand Gold Electroplated Slim BP (Gift)
Reform Slim Pearl FP (Gift)
PenBBS 492 Year of The Rat Rose Gold FP
PenBBS 352 Acrylic Resin Snow FP Snowflake Pattern Nib
A.T. Cross Sauvage 2020 Year of The Rat Special Edition FP
Pilot Vanishing Point Matte Black FP
Leonardo • Officina Italiana Furore Vancouver Pen Club L.E. Blue Mosaico FP
Leonardo • Officina Italiana Momento Zero Pen Chalet L.E. Blue Hawaii FP
Leonardo • Officina Italiana Momento Zero Pen Chalet L.E. Turquoise-Green FP Stub Nib
S.T. Dupont Classique Laque de Chine FP
Montegrappa Parola Red Resin FP

Above: an elegant Reform "Slim Pearl" fountain pen Sherman got from a generous fellow VPC member...

...along with this slim electroplated rollerball...

We had a voluntary ink swap during the meeting, and these bottled sheen/shimmer inks are what Sherman brought to trade....

...and here are some ink samples that he left with!


Many thanks to everyone who came to our meeting last month, whether you brought anything for our meeting topics or not; you brought yourself and your enthusiasm -- those are the most important things! Special thanks to Sherman for his photos, Paul for his donation of the leather portfolio door prize, and Asifa & Joy for the tasty treats they brought to share with us :)

Thank you also to everyone who came to our meetings and/or get-togethers at pen stores in 2024, and to the Vancouver Pen Shop and Buchan's Kerrisdale Stationery for hosting our August and November meetings last year! Information about our January 2025 meeting will be posted next week, after I confirm the venue booking with the VPL (**UPDATE** January meeting information posted here!)

Until then, wishing you all good things in the New Year! 😊

(~blog post by Maja~)