March meeting info (back to Kitsilano!)

MARCH 2026 MEETING INFORMATION:

When: Thursday March 19, 2026

Where: The Branch Meeting Room (in the basement) of the Vancouver Public Library's KITSILANO branch at 2425 Macdonald Street (between Broadway and West 8th) in Vancouver, BC.

Time: 5:00pm - 7:30pm

This month's meeting is just a casual get-together (ie. no "show & tell") where you can chat, buy/sell/trade pens/inks and generally have a good time talking with other pen lovers (while sitting around tables! 😀). Hope you can make it! (and no need to RSVP)

Some photos from our February meeting at the Vancouver Pen Shop

 I was unable to attend the event due to a nasty virus, but by all accounts, our February meeting held at the Vancouver Pen Shop last Saturday (February 21st) was a huge success! 😁 I heard there was lots of food, goody bags and door prizes! Our thanks to Margo, Shannon and all the staff at the store for their hospitality (and generosity)!👏

Luckily, one of our members remembered to snap a few photos during the event, so here they are...

(~ click on images to enlarge~ )

Just found a photo from that evening posted by the store on their Instagram! It's here: https://www.instagram.com/vancouverpenshop/p/DVMckHykhWv/

Thanks again to the Vancouver Pen Shop for being such great hosts! 🙌 😊

Reminder -- meet-up on SATURDAY @ the Van Pen Shop!

(📢 Full details in this post!)

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 563

Today's pen review is courtesy of Christopher, whose write ups about his latest finds have been a staple of these type of blog posts (which we started doing at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic) here on our pen club's website. If you are a member of our pen club, please feel free to submit your own pen-related reviews for posting here :) Now, without further ado, here is Christopher's latest vintage treasure...

He writes: 

"The Parker reintroduced Duofold has always been a favourite in its Sacless Vacumatic filler form. It was my dear old mother's pen of choice and one that I kept shipshape for her for a good many years. Unlike the regular Parker Vacumatics which had been established, Parker really created one of the most beautiful finishes imaginable by simply running the horizontal striping vertically and, at the same time, adding a number of vibrant colours plus pearl. While the colours --which were iridescent-- made them pop, the pearl was the clear transparent Permanite (Lucite plastic produced by Dupont) that allowed the pen user to check the ink level in the pen, and which Parker branded a 'Television' feature. The sum total of this finish was also branded as 'Laidtone' and, as mentioned, stunning. Strangely enough, the matching blind cap cover was the same length for not only the Vacumatic type fillers but also for the much shorter to cover, metal button filler. But what set this Parker pen line apart was the sheer number of different models and makeup options available. There was even the option of a double jewel with some of the sizes at one point in time."

(photo courtesy of Christopher ~ please click on image to enlarge)

"But let us take a look at a Sacless Duofold, which most recently came my way. The finish on my newly acquired pen is a 'Dusty Red and pearl which is smartly offset with 14K Gold filled fittings. Being a Junior model, the cap is appointed with an attractive double banding, while the conically shaped jet-black screw-in jewel secures a Parker split feather arrow clip. This is a Canadian pen well marked with Parker date coding on both the 14K Gold nib and barrel. The former is held in place by a short but adequate grip section, while the jet-black feed is marked 'W' for a wide ink channel, which allows a good stream of ink to get to the paper. The matching blind cap at the end of the barrel is also conical ended, much like the shape of the cap jewel. This blind cap covers a Vacumatic-type plastic button plunger which is amber in colour, but the button end is black. The pen itself is in remarkable condition with crystal clear barrel transparency. It, in turn, posts at just under 6 full inches but caps back to a pocketable 5 inches to stow. I simply love this pen and it will not only be in my suitcase for our annual holiday in Hawaii but end up in my vintage pen collection as a proud trooper. 

Our thanks to Christopher for another nice write up! (and bon voyage, too! 🌞🌴)

Don't forget: our next pen club meeting will be held at the Vancouver Pen Shop on Saturday February 21 at 6:30pm; full meeting information is in the previous blog post!