Pelikan Edelstein Topaz Review

Pen - Kaweco Sport classic (converted to eyedropper) Medium Nib
Paper - Clairefontaine 90gsm
So as you may know from my past reviews of Edelstine inks, I really like them. This ink is not exactly one that I would have thought I would enjoy. I normally go for higher saturated blues, instead of the more "turquoisey" ones, like Topaz. But this ink really is a good one. It is light and fun, but still easily readable. It was extremly well behaved on Clairefontaine paper, and was very controlable on some cheaper papers as well. It is also capable of having a red sheen, but you really nib to dump it on there for it to be visible. Waterproofs was very poor, which is a trend for this brand, but that doesn't bother me so bad. The only real gripe I have with the ink is its lofty price, but it will definitly not persuade me away from getting a few samples of it every know and then. I would suggest picking up as well, it is a superb ink. And now for the pictures, enjoy :)

Visconti Rembrandt Review

So I had on of my good freinds over on instagram, his username is fountainpens._, to write me up a review of the Rembrandt for everyone. So here it is.

Visconti Rembrandt Review

Initial Thoughts- I was given this pen as a gift and my first thoughts were just amazing and it completely took my breath away! the boxing is the standard Visconti housing with the plastic sleeve then the fake leather box where the cartridge and pen come, along with the glossy brochure!

Score: 10/10

Appearance- I love the nice orange that comes along with some dark spots but it gives the pen character. The section is stainless steel along with the nib. The body is an orange celluloid. The cap features Visconti’s ‘My Pen’ system where you can interchange the Visconti logo with your zodiac sign, a gemstone or whatever else Visconti offers. The cap also includes Visconti’s patented spring- loaded clip with the Visconti emblem.

Score: 10/10

 Weight and Dimensions— Below I pulled up a couple of measurements from an online forum:

Overall size - 140mm x 15mm
Body -  125mm x 13mm
Cap - 65mm x 15mm
Weight- 30g

For me this feels like a perfect match because of the nice width that feels comforting around my hands and after I have finished using it, it doesn’t feel like I’ve just finished using a thin little pen that makes my hands ache! For some people this might be massive.

Score: 9.8/10

Writing Experience — This is a JOY to write with! it always feels like I barely need to apply any pressure to let the ink cascade across the page! This is one of my most expensive pens and it for sure was definitely worth the money! I currently have the Visconti Stainless Steel Fine nib. I have no complaints about it!

Score: 10/10

Filling system — The Rembrandt is a cartridge converter pen and it comes with a converter. it’s pleasant but there is nothing really to say about it!

Score: 9/10

Price and Value — The pen was one hundred GBP but I’m not sure about the USA or Canada or anywhere else. This pen is for sure worth the money!


Overall — Great pen for its value and I would rate it 9.679/ 10.000

And here a few photos he had taken of the pen.

Make sure to check out his instagram and drop him a like for the review!

Pelikan Edelstein Aventurine

This is an extremely surprising ink to me. I picked up a sample of it to add a new color to my collection, and I fell in love. Green pen ink really is shockingly pretty. As far as qualities go, I have seen no feathering on higher end paper (very controlled on cheaper), no bleed through on any kind of paper, the flow is good, the perfect amount of shading for everyday use, drytime was pretty quick, and it may even have a tad bit of sheen in it if you get it in a bigger nib. The only major issue with this ink is the waterproofness, which doesn't exist, and the price which it is just under 30 dollars. There a few very good green inks out there that are half the price of this one, which creates issues to me. Since it is so expensive I won't buy a bottle of it, just 2 or 3 samples every year or so. As you will be able to see, I had a tad bit of smudging in the color patch where you test flow of the ink. And now here are the pictures of how the ink performs, and I also decided to include some pictures of my Anatomy notes I had taken to see how it writes in the real world. 

97₵ 1 Subject Notebook From Walmart Review

First off sorry for the poor titling of the review, but this paper really has no naming or branding on it, so I am doing the best I can and I will add pictures of the cover in the blog. 

     Being a student I blow through paper like no ones business, and I cannot afford to get 10$ notebooks online every few weeks. Thankfully for everyone I have found a solution! The notebook cost 97₵, and it was actually on sale when I got mine so it was only 50₵, and it has 100 pages of white, college ruled, and perforated sheets of paper. There is no marking that let you know exactly how heavy the paper is, but it feels around 65-75 gsm to me, but that is all from feel. The cover feels quite durable to me and the notebook I bought back in August still is fully intact. It comes with a thick piece of paper in the front of the book with a pocket on both sides of it. While I am sure all of that is very interesting to everyone (not), lets get onto how it actually performs. This paper is absolutely perfect for everyday writing and note taking. There is absolutely NO feathering from anything I could through at it, and while I didn't really have a pen that could really dump it on, a couple of those pens weren't exactly dry. Now on to the other major anti-Fountain Pen Friendly attribute that paper can have, bleed through. Again I would give this paper full marks, no bleeding through at all. Since the paper is relatively thin, there is a bit of show through, but you could still easily use both sides of the sheet without an issue, so you actually get 200 pages :D. The smoothness of the pen can be compared to Rhodia, it gives a little feedback but is still a pleasure to write with. While, of course, there is still a place for papers like Rhodia/Clairefontaine/Tomoe River, being able to get paper that works extremely well for only 50 cents just cannot be beat. 

In the pictures I tried to add not just Fountain Pens but also whatever pens I had next to me, for some variety. And in the word "Thanks" the thing that looks like feathering in the letter "n" is not feathering, the pen just stopped working for a second so I had to rewrite the letter. 

And now for pictures of the writing. 

Pilot Metropolitan

Appearance & Design (1-10) – This pen holds very true to it's name, it does indeed give off a metropolitan/utilitarian vibe to it. The sleek, cigar shaped design looks classic and very pretty stacked next to pens in price categories 10x the little metro.With a multitude of differing designs and finishes, I highly doubt you'll find someone who doesn't find at least one Metro they like. Score: 10/10
Construction & Quality (1-10) – Being in the sub $20 category the quality of the pen may come into question with this pen. With that in mind, I say this pen has flawless construction. The all metal body holds up very well to most everyday nicks and bangs. The good construction gives the pen a feeling of one much more expensive. Score 10/10
Weight & Dimensions (1-10) – This is were issues start to arise for me and this pen. The pen is not large by any means at all. The length comes in at 138mm, which isn't that bad, but the diameter and weight leave something wanting. The Diameter of the body is 13mm and the weight is 26 grams. While these numbers are not exactly bad, with it being made out of a majority of metal I wish it was a little wider and heavier. This is extremely picky of a $15 peen though, so I can't give it to bad of a score. Score 7/10
Nib & Performance (1-10) – Many People also believe that with a pen of this price, there is no way you can get a good nib, thankfully they are wrong. I went with the "medium" nib, I put medium in quotations because this is the finest medium nib I have ever seen, and I have really no complaints. Of course it is not buttery smooth, you will get a tad bit of feedback but it is the feedback that tells you that you're writing something; it is not the scratchy feedback that is annoying. But again issues do arise. The Metro is only available in a Medium and Fine nib, which can be treated as a fine and extra-fine. I am sure many of us out there would wish for Pilot to come out with a broader nib for this pen for those who like to make a statement. Score 7/10 
Filling System & Maintenance (1-10) - This is my biggest gripe with the metro, it's aerometric converter. I know pilot had to save money on this pen, and the fact that you even get a converter at this price point is amazing, but I am not a fan of the converter it came with. It holds a minuscule amount of ink, is hard to fill, and isn't clear so you have no idea how much ink you have. I am sure some people love this little converter, but I am definitely going to upgrade to one of Pilot's other converters in the future. While it is not a good filling system, you at least get something other than a cartridge with this pen, which can't be said about many other pens in the price range (and more expensive ones). Score 6/10 
Cost & Value (1-10) – This pen has a few issues, but I still do not really know how pilot does this for only $15. It really is a good little writer and is undoubtedly worth the low price it is at. Score 10/10 
Conclusion (1-10) - If you do not own this pen I would highly suggest getting one. If you end up not liking it what do you lose? $15 is not a huge risk to take for what you have to gain with the metro. Many believe it is just for new guys to the FP world, but with its low cost, durability, and finer nibs this pen is perfect to use as an EDC. I would say go get one! Final Score 8.333..../10

Now for the pictures!

My Collection

Pens:

Jinhao X-750 

Pilot Metropolitan 

TWSBI Mini

Kaweco Sport Classic 

Waterman Phileas 

Inks: (this is only full bottles of ink, samples do not count, the list would be to large if they did)

Diamine Autumn Oak 

Noodlers X-Feather 

Waterman Absolute Brown 

Any Ideas?

So after a few post onto my blog, and getting my name out there a little, I would love to take some suggestions for things to put on my list to review. In this post if you have any ink/pen/paper/or anything else FP related let me know and I'll see what I can do. Let it be known that I am on a budget, so if anyone is wanting to see a certain review from me, and is willing to send their pen, or ink sample to try out, I would be very interested. Just comment below and I'll get in contact with you. So any ideas at all just throw them down below and I'll see what I can do.