Sailor ProGear Slim Mini - North America Exclusive

Sailor ProGear Slim Mini - North America Exclusive - It's Back!

We hope everyone is doing well, and is able to find more positive things during this pandemic, whether it's a new hobby or a hobby that you're able to focus more on! We are still so appreciative of everyone who has been supporting our small business. We've been trying to make sure we can do the best we can with our limited staff! We are excited to announce that Sailor is bringing back the ProGear Slim Mini to North America! It’s been almost 10 years since it has been available here, and it has only been produced in Japan in limited quantities since. How exciting to have them back here!




Also known as the “Sapporo Mini”, this adorable mini pro gear comes in six new and modern colors that feature gold trim and a 14k medium fine (MF)  gold nib.

The colors available are: Mustard Yellow, Slate Green, Stellar Blue, Rose Taupe, Blush Pink, and Taupe.

The Professional Gear Slim Mini is just a smaller version of the Professional Gear Slim. When capped, the Slim Mini is 106 mm in length - or 18 mm shorter than the Slim. However, when posted, it is only 11 mm shorter. It’s a great option because it is easy to carry, since it is compact, but is not too far from the normal size of the slim while posted. 

However, due to its shorter size, this pen is not able to use a standard converter, and therefore does not come with one. It only will take the standard Sailor cartridges. Although, you could use a syringe to refill the cartridges with your preferred ink!


We do only have a limited quantity of these, and they are currently up for pre-order right now! Let us know if you have any questions! also Mustard is on backorder but they are on backorder and we should receive it in a month.

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Montblanc Le Petit Prince and the Planet

Montblanc Le Petit Prince and the Planet  Continuing the popular series of Le Petit Prince, Montblanc introduces the third collection of the series: The Planet.  This series is based on the Le Petit Prince written by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and is now focused on the planet that the Le Petit Prince comes from.  The color chosen for this series is inspired by the prince's favorite rose on the planet, which he gave all his love to, even though the Rose did not.

Shop Now THE MEISTERSTUCK COLLECTION - Classique collection   The Meisterstuck collection comes in two sizes, the Classique size (145) and the LeGrand size  (146).  They are available in a ballpoint, rollerball, and fountain pen. This series has a burgundy resin finish, and the fountain pens feature a gold base at the barrel.  The clip has a star on it, symbolizing the star that the "narrator" can lookup when he wants to think about the Le Petit Prince.  The fountain pen has a 14k Gold nib and features engravings of the Prince and the star.  The ballpoint takes the standard Montblanc refills, and the rollerball takes the standard Montblanc rollerball pen refills.

Shop Now THE MEISTERSTUCK LEGRAND COLLECTION:  The Legrand collection is a larger pen than the classique pen. An important thing to note is that the Legrand fountain pens are piston fill only.  The Legrand rollerball takes the Montblanc Legrand rollerball refill, and the Legrand ballpoint takes the regular ballpoint pen refill.  This fountain pen also features the engravings of the Prince and the stars.

Shop Now THE MEISTERSTUCK SOLITAIRE DUO COLLECTION:  The Montblanc Solitaire Duo collection has a metal cap with an engraving of the stars, like the Classique collection.  It also features the 18k gold nib with the engraving of the rose, and can use either cartridge or converter.  The rollerball takes the Montblanc classique refills, and the ballpoint uses the Montblanc ballpoint refills.

Shop Now THE SOLITAIRE COLLECTION: The Solitaire collection of this series is very unique, as they used  European Hornbeam for the body of the pen and also the cap.  European Hornbeam wood is germ, decay, and disease resistant and over time becomes a distinct pen to the writer. The cap features the stars inscribed on the wood, and also features "B612" (the "planet"). The nib is also an 18k nib featuring the beloved rose. The fountain pen comes in the LeGrand sizes, and is a piston filler only. The collection also comes in a LeGrand rollerball and LeGrand ballpoint.

Shop Now The Ink :  The Montblanc Le Petit Prince is complimented nicely by a rose burgundy ink.  The ink is very similar to the Pilot Iroshizuku Yama -Budo ink.  It matches quite perfectly with the pen.  It comes in both the bottle and cartridges.

Shop now The Montblanc Le Petit Prince & The Planet Notebook: The final piece, which makes this collection complete, is the beautiful notebook with B612 engraved and the star.

Shop now

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Does a hand sanitizer on our hands damage the pens that we use? Does it discolor?

By Ben L.

Anyone who’s purchased a TWSBI Eco has seen the little tag that comes under the clip warning you not to use alcohol based cleaners. But in these dire times when sanitation is paramount, are you putting your pens at risk by potentially exposing them to hand sanitizer?

The reason TWSBI Ecos have that warning tag is because they’re made of polymethyl methacrylate, which is marketed under brand names like Plexiglass and Perspex, and more widely known as acrylic. This is unique among TWSBI’s offerings, as their other models are made of polycarbonate resin that’s more resistant to solvents. However, acrylic is present in other pens, especially those with bodies made from resin blanks turned on a lathe, as the blanks frequently have acrylic as their primary ingredient.

Acrylic is reactive with a handful of polar solvents such as alcohols, and as a result could potentially be damaged by exposure. Conveniently for us, because knowing the resistance of different plastics to solvents is extremely important for knowing when they’re suitable for industrial applications, companies who sell them publish the results of comprehensive testing of their resistance to different solvents. The analysis I looked at assessed the behavior of acrylic with an extremely wide range of solvents and substances potentially encountered in industrial applications such as jet fuel and ozone. Reactivity was ranked on a four tier scale, from E: “30 days of constant exposure with no damage. Plastic may even tolerate chemical for years.” to N: “Not recommended for continuous use. Immediate damage may occur such as severe crazing, cracking, or permeation losses.”

The vast majority of hand sanitizers are alcohol based, with the active ingredients usually being some combination of isopropyl alcohol and ethanol at a concentration of 60 to 95%. At room temperature, isopropyl alcohol’s reactivity with acrylic was rated as the 2nd highest level, F, meaning that there was “Some effect after 7 days of constant exposure to the reagent. Solvents may cause softening, and swelling.”, and ethanol received the same rating.

What does this mean for you when you’re using hand sanitizer around your pens? Practically nothing. The samples tested by the lab were continuously exposed to a high concentration of each alcohol for several days, and unless you’re using so much hand sanitizer it’s dripping on the page as you write, the time your pens will spend in contact with the solvents is on the order of seconds each time you sanitize your hands before picking them up. Effects of excessive exposure to reactive solvents include discoloration, swelling, puffiness, softening, or cracking, so it’s still wise to avoid excessive contact between the acrylic of an Eco and any harmful solvents, but the impact of getting a reasonable amount of hand sanitizer on a pen isn’t big enough to worry about.

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Mother's Day Gift Ideas

I know this is not the way we imagined spending Mother's Day this year, and this might be a sensitive time for some. We hope everyone is doing well and healthy. As a small business we have been working hard with a limited staff in our warehouse, and customer service has been working from home. We’ve been doing our best, and are very appreciative of all the business and support we have been receiving.

This pandemic, however, has not stopped the pen world and the releases for this spring. There’s a lot of new pens featuring pastels and bright, lovely colors that remind me of my own mom.

There are a lot of great options for mom’s this year, and down below we will feature a selection of pens, ink, and paper we think your mom will love. I think this would be an excellent way to show your love to your pen-fanatic moms! Or if your mom has expressed interest in pens, this is a great way to introduce her to the pen community! Definitely a fun, personal, and thoughtful gift.

Don’t forget if you sign up for our newsletter (featured at the bottom of our website on the main page) you can get an extra $5.00 off. We are also giving a red or pink Yak leather pen case with any order over $100 featuring white, pink, red, or purple pens and inks. Please also take into consideration that with current events there may be some shipping delays. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

We hope to see you in store soon! Please check out our Instagram (we do contests!), Facebook, and Youtube page! And if you feel inclined to, another great way to support us, is by leaving us a review on Google! Thank you for the continued support.
1. Waterman Riviera Series ($94.00 - $120.00)

2. Sailor Fairytale Series ($96.00 - $180.00.)

3. Parker Jotter Pastel ($13.00 - $16.50)

4. Lamy Candy Series or pastel? ($16.00 - $29.60)

5. Aurora Ipsilon Seasons - Spring Primavera & Summer Estate ($79.20 - $120.00)

6. Montblanc Marilyn Monroe ($750.00 - $830.00)

7. Taccia Lipstick Ink ($12.00)

8. Bungubox Mother Pink ($50.40)

9. Monteverde sweet life ink set ($72.00)

10. Oberon Journals ($76.00)

11. Write Amethyst  ($12.00)

12. Waterman Allure ($19-$24)

13. Montblanc Bonheur Weekend ($560 - $830). Get it now.

Visit penboutique.com to find more other interesting gifts and attractive offers everyday.


Take Care!

- Amber J.

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5 Fantastic Starter Fountain Pens for Under $30

    Hello everyone! I hope everyone is doing okay during this hard time we are going through. I know that we all need a distraction from the news and being stuck in our homes all day. As a small business this is a hard time for us as well, especially for being such a niche business. However, we know we have dedicated and supportive customers who still want to see us thrive. We appreciate all the support whether it’s through buying our products, promoting us, or social media. While our storefront is not open right now, we are still accepting online and over the phone orders. We have a limited amount of people working at the warehouse right now, and some working remotely.


I know a lot of people are looking for new hobbies to get into, or ideas to entertain and keep their children busy, so we will be looking at a selection of starter pens for under $30.00!


1. Platinum Prefounte ($10.00)

   The Prefounte is the sister to the Platinum Preppy, which is also an inexpensive starter fountain pen. It’s offered in a medium and fine nib (which are stainless steel), and comes in a variety of colors: red, blue, orange, and red. It features a slip & seal mechanism that helps keep the ink from drying! This is truly a wonderful starter pen, or an everyday pen you don’t mind just carrying around all day in your bag. It’s also a great pen to start kids on, too!



2. Pilot Kakuno ($10.80)

The Kakuno is such an adorable pen! It comes in three different sizes: extra fine, fine, and medium. However, not every color comes in that size. The clear one comes in all three sizes, the ones with the white bodies come in fine, and the ones with the translucent grey bodies come in medium! The nibs are friction fit though, and are swappable between the Metropolitan, Prera, and Plumix. It can be used with a cartridge or any Pilot converter (which is sold separately if you would like to use bottled ink). Definitely a fun pen to have around!

3. Faber-Castell Grip ($20-$25.00)

The Grip comes in a variety of colors that feature grip like textures on the body of the pen. It also features a soft and comfortable grip, and has a light writing experience. The nib sizes available for this are extra fine, fine, and medium. It’s also recommended for both right handers and left handers! It uses both a cartridge and converter as well. This style of pen is also offered in a finewriter or ballpoint!

4. Lamy Safari ($25-$28)

Lamy Safari’s are one of the most popular starter fountain pens, originating from Germany. They are super easy to use, nib switch friendly, and come in a wide variety of colors! They offer calligraphy nibs to extra fine nibs, which come in silver and black. They do not get damaged easily, at least from my own experience. I would say for this price you really can’t complain. They are always coming out with special editions as well, and never keep you bored with all the new fun and fascinating colors! They also have a sister pen called the AL-Star, which is a little bit more expensive, but is made out of aluminum instead. Of course these both use cartridge or converter (sold separately) as well. (Don’t forget to take a sneak peak at the new Candy collection, too!)

5. TWSBI Eco ($28.99)

The TWSBI Eco is my personal favorite starter fountain pen, and has taken off as a very popular and inexpensive fountain pen for beginners and non beginners. I am a sucker for a demonstrator fountain pen. These are super fun to mix and match different inks to the color of whichever one you choose, and definitely becomes a conversation starter. The nibs range from a 1.1 stub to an extra fine. You can nib switch them but it has to be from an ECO. It also features a piston mechanism to fill it up with ink, which is easy to use and super convenient. I also would recommend these to left handers with an extra fine or fine nib, as the nibs are considered to be more Eastern than Western and write a bit smaller.

I hope everyone found this to be useful, and perhaps will keep you busy and or start a new interest/hobby! Stay safe, healthy, and most importantly -- stay inside.

- Amber

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Taccia Historical Inks & its Importance

Ukiyo-e is a style of Japanese art that was popular from the 17th century through the 19th century. This style of art consisted mostly of kabuki actors, sumo wrestlers, landscapes, floral paintings, historical scenes, folk tales, and more. This was done through woodblock prints and paintings.

Taccia released its first line of inks in 2018, which featured 13 simple primary colors, and they also released their Lipstick line recently, too. The Ukiyo-e series comes in two sets, each featuring four different colors. The Hokusai series is based on the landscape paintings from the artist Hokusai. The other series is based on the artist Sharaku who is famous for his portrait paintings.

Hokusai inks: Benitsuchi, Koiai, Saibimidori, and Fukakihanada

Benitsuchi, which translates to “Red Soil”, is inspired by the red soil of Mt. Fuji in Hokusai’s painting "Fine Wind, Clear Morning". This color is a rich red with orange undertones.

Kauai, which translates to “Dark Blue”, is inspired by the dark blues in his famous painting "The Great Wave off Kanagawa". This color is a dark indigo shade, which could be a useful blue-black.

Saibimidori, which translates to “Rust Green”, is inspired by the greens in his painting "Barrier Town on the Sumida River". This is a dark green with blue undertones, creating what would be like a dark turquoise. 

Fukakihanada, which translates to something like “It’s a deep flower”, is inspired by the light blues in his painting "Kajikazawa in Kai". This is a lighter blue with dark blue undertones. 

Sharaku inks: Kurocha, Akasakura, Koiame, and Natane

Kurocha, which translates to “black tea”, is inspired by Sharaku’s painting “Ōtani Oniji III”. This is deep chocolate or coffee colored ink. 

Akasakura, which translates to “red cherry tree”, is inspired by his painting of "Chikawa Omezo". This is lovely cherry blossom red. 

Koiame, which is dark-yellow brown, is inspired by his painting of "Ichikawa Ebizo IV". This reminds me of a more subtle burnt orange. 

Natane, which translates to “rapeseed”, is inspired by his painting of "Segawa Kikunojo III". This is a bright yellow mustard color. 

Each of these inks come in a beautiful box that represent each artwork it is inspired from, and come in a 40ml glass bottle. I personally love Japanese art, and I think this line of ink is gorgeous and represents the art work well. Depending on the nib size you’re using, and the type of paper you’re using, there are definitely a variety of shades that could be brought out from each ink.

Content Writing By: Amber J

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It seems like distant memory....

Dear Pen Family,                                                                                                                              3/27/2020 Our store is still closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our support staff is working from home, and although we are shipping with very minimal staff at our warehouse, we have so far been able to keep up with orders. Even I'm in the warehouse packing orders, which brings me back to the days when we were just starting out. Thank you very much for your support during this trying time. We are trying our best to get orders out with our reduced staffing and have so far been able to keep up, but please be patient with us if we fall behind.  This is a different time, unlike anything we've ever been through. Our home has become an office, a playground for the kids, and a dinner place. Going out to dinner with family and friends, chatting with customers in the store, and celebrating my team's birthdays feels like a distant memory. However, not everything is bad. We cook more, try new recipes, walk outside almost every day, my daughter bakes something new every day, and we have excellent quality time together. I now try to write every day and encourage my kids to use fountain pens in their daily writing. How are you using this "stay at home" time? Starting today, we'll be putting a surprise gift in every 50th order. If you're the lucky one, be sure to share it on social media and tag us! Stay positive, be humorous, keep social distancing and WRITE MORE! Thank you, sincerely   Leena PS: The emailer is late by a day as I was packing yesterday and was tired after the day and needed a break!

At key-west Florida, right after that, the quarantine was in effect. Good times!

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Further COVID-19 response.

Dear all,

Amazing! Wow and Thank you! These are the only words I can say for the overwhelming support you have shown after we sent out the email detailing our COVID-19 response. The kind words, offers of support, and orders have been encouraging during these trying times. I could not respond to every reply, but please know that I have read them all and taken them to heart.    

We are still operating in a limited capacity.  Our storefront is closed for now due to the order of the Governor and Howard County government to close non-essential businesses.  We are not taking any engraving orders for now since our engraver is off-site. We have divided our team between working remotely and shipping orders, and only essential personnel are coming to the warehouse to work. We are also not taking any shipments received inside our building and are taking some extreme precautions to minimize the risk. 

I know I always say that we could not have been in business for 15 years without your support, but in times like these, my eyes are filled with tears of joy, thinking that I have such amazing, pen loving customers who will always support us! I know pens are not a top priority right now( Some might look at me with "rolling" eyes :-)), but if you consider pens to gift to someone or for yourself whenever an opportunity arises, it will mean a lot to me and my team. 

Stay positive, be humorous,  maintain the 6 feet distance :-)

Thank you,

sincerely

Leena

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COVID -19 Response and Store Closure.

Dear All,

Pen Boutique is carefully monitoring all information available regarding the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). First and foremost, we are committed to minimizing the risk of exposure and transmission of this virus to our customers and employees. We will be making some adjustments to our store and online warehouse center procedures. 

We’ve discussed our concerns with team members and some customers, with options up to and including closing the store if needed. The Howard County Government has declared state of emergency and we are closing our store for next 2 weeks. We had great turnaround from our customers on Saturday, and we appreciate that. 

We do, however have the following precautions:

• Customers coming into the store will have to use hand sanitizer before handling products. We also have the option to wash your hands with soap in the restroom located in our building.
   
• Employees will wipe the handles of cabinets and also use disinfectant on the counters. We regularly do this, but we will be even more careful and judicious. 
   
• If you have a cold, cough, fever or other symptoms, please avoid coming to the store. We will still be here when you get better, and we are always available at www.PenBoutique.com or via phone at (410) 992 3272 (Monday-Friday 9 am-6 pm). 
   
• For our warehouse and online operations, we will be restricting visitors for the next 2 weeks. We are also arranging for employees who can work remotely. 
   
• We are also not having any group meetings, and we will be utilizing a team sharing app to coordinate between our team members remotely. 
   
• We’ve posted a notice in front of our store explaining the hand sanitizing policy. 
   

Again, this is a developing situation, so things may change. We want to be as transparent as possible and are open to suggestions. 
 

Thank you and stay safe,
 

sincerely

Leena. 

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Rickshaw Pen Holders

Hello, everyone! I hope everyone is having a great week! We recently have started selling Rickshaw Pen Holders, which are made in San Francisco. We got a batch late last year, but those sold super quick! We have a ton right now, though!


These pen cases come in a variety of styles and colors. A lot of them feature beautiful and fun artwork such as ink splatters and octopi, which are done by various artists (some being from Instagram!).  They come as solos or enough to fit 6-8 pens!


The material seems super durable, and is completed with a very soft and plush inside to keep your pens comfy, snug, and safe! The bigger pen cases also feature an elastic cord to wrap it all together. These are also machine washable and colorfast!


Check them out online or come in store to feel and see how wonderful and creative these pen holders are!

Content Writing By: Amber J

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Platinum Curidas: Coming Soon

 
The new retractable fountain pen by Platinum, known as the “Curidas”, will be arriving soon! I know everyone is super excited to see how this pen will write and feel. This will be one of the first retractable fountain pens at a lower price point as well, which is also exciting! Even though the bodies of the pen are familiar, there is still a lot to be excited by!

As we all know, one of the common issues people had with the vanishing point was the clip getting in the way, but with the Curidas they have it so it comes with a tool to take off the clip!




The colors it comes in are Gran Red, Abyss Blue, Urban Green, Graphite Smoke, and Prism Crystal. It has three nib options: extra fine, fine, and medium. It takes Platinum cartridges and either the Platinum Converter 500 or 700. The nib is a new nib featuring a stainless steel nib, which is one of the reasons it’s a bit more affordable. It is removable as well.

Platinum Curidas Fountain Pen - Abyss Blue

Platinum Curidas Fountain Pen - Gran Red

Platinum Curidas Fountain Pen - Prism Crystal

Platinum Curidas Fountain Pen - Graphite Smoke

Platinum Curidas Fountain Pen - Urban Green

The bodies are plastic, but the hardware inside is actually metal. It also features a spring inside to operate the retractable part. It’s said that it’s almost similar to the size of the TWSBI Go spring.

The name of the pen is two words combined. “Curious”, which is English, and the Japanese word, “kuridasu”, meaning “to let out”. And we are definitely curious!

They are up for pre-order on our website, and we also welcome you to stop by our store when they arrive! Keep an eye out on our social media to see when they arrive!

Content Writing By: Amber J

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