News from Pen-Land

Ok, so it's been a while since I've blogged about pens, I know. I'm getting back into pen-gear, though. Here's what's been going on:

1) Have you checked out the Piccadilly notebooks at Borders? I'm a huge fan of the Moleskine ones, but the price is hefty. So I was in heaven when I saw these in the discount section of my local Borders. For half the price of the Moleskine, I thought it was worth a shot. And it was! This blog features an excellent review and comparison of the two notebooks. So, has anyone else tried it yet? What do you think?

2) I was in England a few weeks ago and stocked up on some fabulous Muji pens. They have these great new gel pens that are cap-less. So you can get the satisfying clicky sensation. I bought several, but the bad news is that my cats went crazy and decided to attack the bag that the muji pens were stored in, thus putting them in the middle of a kitty battle that they couldn't win. They still write just fine - a testament to their durability - but the teeth marks around the sides are kind of distracting... bummer :(

That's the news for now. More soon!

Muji (and the art of minimalism)

I'm journaling in a Muji notebook. I'm a big fan of Muji stuff. I stock up on the pens when I'm in the UK (89p each - even with a crappy dollar, that's still a great deal). And the notebooks are awesome. All minimalist and unpretentious, with narrow lines (or unruled if you prefer). I get them in the A5 size, which is just perfect for me to journal in for about 3 weeks to a month, depending on my religiousness in journaling. And that's a perfect time for me because I get all ADD and sick of my notebook after then. Plus, they're lightweight so they don't add to the already-considerable weight in my tote bag.

But the coolest thing ever is that Muji has this deal where you build your own pen. You pick the casing, the ink type, and the colo(u)r, and presto-chango, you have a unique super-dooper pen.

I think this is a brilliant exercise in pen-creativity, and I'm a big fan. I just wish they had a store in Los Angeles. I'm very sad that I have to go to Carnaby Street or New York or Tokyo to get them. It's not right that pens of this caliber should be kept from us Angelenos. I know we aren't the most literary set, but dammit, we need to write, too.