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Curious About: Tomoe River, Ecosystem, Paperthinks, Shinola, Seven Seas...


WildingLeather

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Hey guys. The Topic Title pretty much says it all. And yes, I've searched through the forums, but I'm an information hog and need MOAR DATA before I make a decision on where to spend my precious $20. (That might not seem like a lot to users of $250+ pens, but cash is not exactly flowing like water in the Black Crow household). Specifically looking for something that will support a semi/flexi pen (a.k.a. an Ahab), on the relative cheap. And yes, I've seen the reviews of the Rhodia Webnotebook and the Clairefontaine journals etc. I'm scouring in other places.

 

Does anyone know where or whether a lowly end-user can get paper samples from any of these makers? I'd really like to test and see whether particular papers are going to be FP-friendly, esp. with flexi/semiflexi/maybeflexi nib.

 

I know Seven Seas is much-beloved by many and uses Tomoe River paper, but does anyone know if one can just get a few sample sheets to test out? 480 pages and $30 is a BIG leap of faith....

 

Ecosystem--how is the bleed-through? I know it's all recycled paper; does anyone have problems using the back side of the page (the. . . verso, maybe? The back, posterior side. Dammit, why can't books be anterior/posterior or dorsal/ventral or something? :angry: ) for writing?

 

There's a separate Paperthinks thread, but has anybody seen or used an actual notebook from them yet? I haven't found any good reviews online related to FPs.

 

Shinola looks nice, American-made, but it uses 60# stock (which I'm pretty sure is the same thing as 24# copy paper). Has anyone had any successes or failures with this particular brand? I've seen the one thread about it, but do we have any other happy/unhappy customers hiding in the woodworks?

 

Thank you all in advance!

Samantha Wilding - She/Her

Owner, Wilding Leather

Handcrafted Leather Writing Accessories

wildingleather.com

howlforfpn.jpg.47093baedd24ddf347395f0535911675.jpg      tangledantlersforfpn.jpg.c941ac36a4dd251dce9724be97255547.jpg   monsteraforfpn.jpg.fe496936918a19c6221b8e79f974b793.jpg

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You are a GENIUS! They're closed for the day, but when they reopen on Thursday I'll definitely order a sample. Thanks!

Samantha Wilding - She/Her

Owner, Wilding Leather

Handcrafted Leather Writing Accessories

wildingleather.com

howlforfpn.jpg.47093baedd24ddf347395f0535911675.jpg      tangledantlersforfpn.jpg.c941ac36a4dd251dce9724be97255547.jpg   monsteraforfpn.jpg.fe496936918a19c6221b8e79f974b793.jpg

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I emailed the Shinola customer service people asking to order a sample of their paper, and unfortunately they turned me down, saying that they don't carry individual sheets for sampling. Instead they recommended I seek out internet reviews.

 

I also have emails out to TWSBI, Quo Vadis, and the reps for Paperthinks as well, looking for samples, but haven't heard back from them yet. I will keep you all informed!

Samantha Wilding - She/Her

Owner, Wilding Leather

Handcrafted Leather Writing Accessories

wildingleather.com

howlforfpn.jpg.47093baedd24ddf347395f0535911675.jpg      tangledantlersforfpn.jpg.c941ac36a4dd251dce9724be97255547.jpg   monsteraforfpn.jpg.fe496936918a19c6221b8e79f974b793.jpg

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>> Ecosystem--how is the bleed-through? I know it's all recycled paper; does anyone have problems using the back side of the page (the. . . verso, maybe? The back, posterior side. Dammit, why can't books be anterior/posterior or dorsal/ventral or something? :angry: ) for writing?<<

 

Verso and recto. Tradition runs deep in the evolution of the scroll to the codex to the book.

 

Ecosystems seems to be winding down as a business. The site offers far fewer choices than a year ago (it's Dec 2014 as I write this) and the merchandise is on the deep clearnace shelf at my local Barnes and Noble store (Ecosystems was a B&N brand).

I bought a bunch of 'me cheap.

It's good paper but I have no way to predict how your pen/ink will work. I do not use the verso side preferring less dense data and the ease of writing.

I ride a recumbent, I play go, I use Macintosh so of course I use a fountain pen.

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