Tag Archives: fountain pens

Review – Rhodia 3×4.75(5) Staple Bound Pocket Notebook

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Pocket notebooks are something that, it seems to me, are becoming more of a “thing” again. Whether or not it was just me being unable to find them early in the 2000s, or them not existing in large quantities at the time, I don’t know. Still, I seem to find newer, and possibly better, pocket notebooks all the time, like the Rhodia 3×5 48-page 80g notebook I stumbled across at my local bookstore.

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The color of my notebook is black (it can be orange), with orange lettering printed on, making it look like the Rhodia premium pads, but it contains regular, stark white, 80g Rhodia paper. My particular book is a graph ruling in a light purple that is customary for the brand. I quite like it, but prefer a light blue for graphs. The 3×5″ size makes the book small and convenient to put in any pocket. Being a half-inch shorter on either side to a field notes book, I was surprised at the places this book could go that the latter couldn’t. The 48 pages are quite sufficient for making lists, a few sketches, or even a few stories, and about the right length to prevent the destruction of the book by the time it is completed.

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The cover quality is nice. It is thicker than the paper without being cumbersome, and seems tear- and crease-resistant, though I wouldn’t push it. The ink used to print the logo and info on the back is much more heavy-duty than what is used on the pads and holds up without smearing, chipping, or fading for quite some time. The staple binding is a weakness in some cases, being a bending point, but overall causes little damage since the size is so small. And the paper is typical wonderful Rhodia. It is thick and smooth, taking everything from pencils to fountain pens with no problem. It is an absolute pleasure to write on, though with some liquid inks taking time to dry, one has to be careful. If they are looking for speed, a non-liquid pen should be looked into, but even ballpoints feel great on the paper. Bleed-through and feathering are minimal. Show-through is unfortunately common, and tearing is unlikely but possible if the book is going out on an adventure.

Overall, these little notebooks are a great addition to the pocket notebook collection. They are heavy lifters for their size, and the black ones are fairly covert and classic looking. And, of course, they all but disappear in a pocket. A great little book to look into especially if you think Field Notes are just slightly too large.

Collecting Things that Have a Story

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When you collect as many things as I do, you inevitably run into the side of at least one hobby where everyone values the things that are being collected much more than you do. And that isn’t a problem, and this won’t be about that being a problem. These people tend to want things to be pristine, some of them in the package, some of them out. For fountain pens and knives, they’re the people who don’t want anything with an engraving.  For video games and toys, they’re the people that want the item in box, in shrink wrap. And for various other hobbies that I may or may not be involved in, there are different things that are important to the collectors.

Now, obviously I don’t agree with that. I have a video (but I haven’t posted it anywhere) of me opening a brand new Atari 2600 game in the late 2000’s. That would give some people a heart attack. But I just feel that if it’s a video game console or a toy, it was meant to be played with, and if it’s a fountain pen, or knife, or anything else it was meant to be used.

I know I’m not that way with everything. Older notebooks and art supplies I have a hard time using sometimes, because I feel like using them destroys them in a way, and that at least one specimen should be preserved. This applies more to something like a unique pencil and less to something like old paint that just seems wasted if it isn’t used.

It’s hard to find the balance of what to preserve and what to use, especially if you do believe that vintage items were meant to be used. My heart does sink every time I see someone who has an older item and is using it because it’s “cool” to do so and is in the process destroying it. They are well within their rights to do so, but I think that they should be putting at least a little more care into it.

I’m well aware that nothing will last forever, but I do want as many examples as possible of anything to last for as long as possible. That is part of why I invest so much time and money into my collections. I want to see them last, I like them a lot, and keeping them nice is just as important to me as the collection itself.

But what does that say about personal engravings in pens, knives, lighters, jewelry, and tools? Are they ruined even before the collector sees them? I don’t think so. While it is true that I tend to buy items without engravings or personalization, this has more to do with either them being less recognizable (No one would look at a painted Xbox and think it was an Xbox at first glance, and they might think I’m weird for painting one afterwards) or because people would think I stole things. “Hey, why are you using Edward Clavares’ pen?” Not that many people even really look at the engraving, but it could be a concern.

But as for items I won’t carry around: that older knife or fountain pen that should’ve been several hundred dollars that I got for free (that really happened), I like the wear and personalizations. It gives the items a sense of history. It’s even better when I know part of the story. I have a multi-tool with my dad’s name on it, a knife with my brother’s, and I had a notebook with my grandfather’s, but I gave that back to my mother. For all of those items I know part of the story, maybe very little, and I can only imagine the parts before, but having that realistic grounding is nice. I really do love the engravings on such items.

I also go to garage sales and charity shops a lot. Inside there are all sorts of items which have all sorts of different possible stories associated with them. Especially handmade items, which I always feel bad passing up. I feel like I’m leaving a part of history behind, even if it is poorly constructed history.

That’s why it’s nice to have several pieces in a collection that are personalized to some extent. I feel like I’m both saving history and getting a well-constructed product. Though I won’t seek out a product that has been personalized, having a few shows that these items were used by actual people, not just some other collector who took perfect care of them. And there is something collectable about a thing that has a person’s name on it, especially if it’s an uncommon name. It might be the only one like it in the world.

Really though, I’m just not snobby either way. I know there are some people who would never collect a personalized or even a used item, and there are some people who would only collect those items. And I understand the urge to do both, so I try to meet somewhere in the middle. I like to keep my mind open, and I haven’t yet gotten to the point in my collecting where I only collect a thing here and there that I’m really searching for. I may never get to that point. If you have exactly what you want to collect figured out, I’m glad, and your life is probably a lot more organized than mine. We all see value in different things in any given hobby. Like I’ve said previously, I’m not into buying anything very expensive. And as personalized items usually go for less on the second-hand market, the fact that I like them is just a bonus.

If you asked me why I collect what I do, I’d probably tell you I like to collect things that interest me, and stories interest me. Whether it’s some fictional universe the product is based on, or my personal experiences, or the crazy collection of a guy I met a few times who was a great person and really into all of this stuff, or just some letters on the side of a pen that I can make up a journey around, I like collecting for the story.

Hobby Pen Collecting and its Effects

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I love pens. I collect quite a few of them, of all types. I like ballpoints just fine, but felt tips (technical pens), roller balls, fountain pens, and brush pens are all great. I love the different styles, the differently shaped barrels, the grips, and the different writing styles required to use each one best.

Now, I’m not really here to talk about how much I love collecting and using pens. Instead, I’m going to talk about what effect that has. First off, it makes you seem prepared: I always have a pen with me, and I never have to use the cheap office ballpoints that either have logos on them or are chained to the desk. When anyone needs a pen, I have one, and you’d be surprised how many people still need pens when they don’t have one. I personally think it makes me more prepared, but some people still think it’s weird and unnecessary.

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Fountain pens are the ones that are hardest to explain to people. The writing experience is so smooth and nice, but for the price, people generally see no value in something as expensive (even though some fountain pens cost less than some ballpoints/rollerballs and if you bought one medium priced fountain pen and bottled ink for the rest of your life you’d have spent a lot less money on pens than otherwise.) People think they are archaic, which is funny because they were only really replaced a few decades ago. You hear horror stories all the time of pens leaking and ink explosions, but if your pen functions properly, which the majority of fountain pens do, and it is properly taken care of (this may be an issue), then there should be no problems with ink getting anywhere you don’t want it. But that won’t stop a few strange glances.

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Writing instruments do take up quite a bit of room on my desk, which is currently covered in cans that are filled with pens and pencils. This is a bit excusable for me, because I am a cartoonist and artist, etc., so having a lot of pens is useful. Still, no one uses a Sanford Uni-ball, a Pilot G-2, or a Sharpie pen for a cartooning instrument. Some of my other pens, like my fountain pens, are away in cases, but that’s only because those pens are nicer and more susceptible to the scratches and such that accumulate being with many other pens in a can or rolling around a desk. Still more are in drawers. These I don’t get out as often as I’d like to but I do use them when I remember they exist.

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All this really leads to is my life being surrounded by pens. I have tons, and it is great! When I need a specific pen for a specific job, I have it. If the pen doesn’t matter, there is always one close at hand. There is a certain level of over-specialization that can complicate things from time to time, but I think I’m good enough at streamlining to get away with it.

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Now, is it expensive? Well, it can be, but I’d say I’ve sunk as much or less into pens than any of my other hobbies. Fountain pens can quickly start to really cost you, but I don’t go for the expensive models. And rollerballs are at most a few bucks. The most expensive pens I’d be buying, anyway, are for cartooning and these are Micron Technical pens, which are fantastic even if they wear out quickly.

I don’t know if pens and the amount of them I collect have had a positive or negative effect on my life overall. I believe at the moment that I have incurred nothing negative save a few hundred extra things to keep track of, which is something I enjoy and others might not. Many people do think it’s strange to care so much about what instrument you write with, but many of the people I usually interact with are more artistic and completely understand the need for such developed preferences.

Really, it is a hobby, collecting and writing with pens, and it fills the same space as a hobby even though it doesn’t seem like one in the traditional sense. And like most hobbies it has its detractors and benefactors. To me it isn’t much different than building train sets (something I don’t do) or painting models (something I do do). And, at least for me, I can justify it with always being prepared to write something down.