After a too-long hiatus, the Pear Tree Pen Company's ink sample program is back! The inventory of available inks has grown (although I still have to add Omas and Caran d'Ache to the list). Unfortunately, so has the price. It seems that the cost of everything keeps going up, including ink, postage, supplies and now I have to add labor to the mix. I was faced with a choice of charging for shipping/handling and keeping a nominally lower price posted, or to keep shipping free and increase the price. I opted for the latter, but let me know if you all think it should be otherwise. I do listen to your suggestions.
To offset the price increase somewhat, I have decided to add more ink to the vials, so now there should be about 2 ccs of ink for you to all test and play with. I figured that's more than enough to give you a good idea of how the ink will look on different papers and how it will perform in different pens. Again, I'm open to suggestions on this. Despite the price increase, I still think this is one of the best values around - why bother buying a bottle of ink only to find out it's not what you had hoped for?
On another note, I received word from Private Reserve yesterday. The price on Private Reserve Ink is going up, but they are also introducing a new color, Tropical Blue. I hope to get some in the next few weeks. Pelikan has also just informed me that they've raised wholesale prices as well.
Luckily, the price of Sailor fountain pens has held steady. Perhaps as a result, The Sailor Sapporo seems to be selling faster than I can get them in, and I find myself back-ordered on several different nibs, so if you want one, you'd better act fast or call first to see if I have it in stock.
As you know, the Sailor 1911 and 1911M have long been the workhorse pen in the Sailor line, but they have recently been discontinued. Luckily, I managed to secure a nice supply of full-size 1911s and 1911Ms. I've got them in all colors and size nibs (except zoom - I'm told they're on the way). Unlike most closeouts, I suspect the price on these pens is only going to go up, so get them now because once they're gone, well, you know the rest. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Dollar for dollar, Sailor pens are very possibly the best fountain pen you can buy.
Also, if you're interested in some really special pens from Sailor, I managed to secure three Nagahara Limited Edition pens - the Taishi-Tsu "Black Forest" edition, the Sailor Mosaic and a Dragonfly "Tombo." The nibs on these pens are absolutely unbelievable - the Cross-Emperor (with collector), the Cross-slit nib (same as Cross-Emperor, but with no collector), and the Nagahara Naginata nib in medium. These nibs have to be seen to be believed. Remind your loved ones that Father's Day is coming.
Lastly, I have a number of products available for sale that haven't made it on my website. For example, I have some Lamy Persona rollerballs in black titanium oxide with gold trim, as well as a Lamy Persona fountain pen in titanium. It features gold trim and a gold-colored oblique medium nib. If you're interested, email me for pricing and photos. Lamy ballpoint refills are also in stock. Everyone loves Lamy, and a quality pen makes a great graduation gift!
Jac Zagoory pen stands are also in stock. These are really cool. I need to take some of my own photos of these, because Jac, while being a great designer, doesn't seem to grasp the need for this little marketing aid.
I'll do my best to get my site updated soon.
If you don't see what you want on my site, in most cases, I can get it for you, so please don't hesitate to ask.
Let's see - what's coming? New pads and journals from Rhodia, Exacompta and Clairefontaine. More on this when the stuff gets here. But suffice it to say that the Exaclair line has introduced some promising new products and I'm eager to try them out. Simply put, this is the best paper I've ever used.
Thanks for writing!
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Chicago is a No Go!
For personal reasons, I am unable to attend the Chicago Pen Show this weekend as I had originally planned. My feelings about this are mixed. I was really looking forward to the show both to see old friends and, of course, to experience the excitement of the oldest vintage pen show in America. But I admit I am also very eager for a break after the past few weeks - I attended the New England Show a few weeks ago (driving for over 30 hours, much of it in near-blizzard conditions), then worked like a dog to get the Fountain Pen Network Limited Edition pens out this past weekend. All 114 of them!
Undoubtedly, Chicago would have cost me some dough to attend. Since I won't be incurring those expenses, I thought it would be a nice gesture to pass the savings to you, my (hopefully) loyal readers/customers(and those who I hope will become loyal readers/customers).
So I've decided to have a special sale this weekend. For this weekend only, I'm offering a savings of 11.4% off the lowest listed price on my website. A minimum purchase of $20.00 is required to get the discount. Now, 11.4 may seem like an odd amount, but I thought it was fitting given the number of limited edition pens that went out on Monday.
To get yourself this discount, all you have to do is enter NoGo2007 as a coupon code in the appropriate box on my website. Remember, I take PayPal, AmEx, MasterCard, Visa and Discover.
Although I can't go to Chicago, I'll be there in spirit. Now, go and save yourselves some cash at my web store!
Undoubtedly, Chicago would have cost me some dough to attend. Since I won't be incurring those expenses, I thought it would be a nice gesture to pass the savings to you, my (hopefully) loyal readers/customers(and those who I hope will become loyal readers/customers).
So I've decided to have a special sale this weekend. For this weekend only, I'm offering a savings of 11.4% off the lowest listed price on my website. A minimum purchase of $20.00 is required to get the discount. Now, 11.4 may seem like an odd amount, but I thought it was fitting given the number of limited edition pens that went out on Monday.
To get yourself this discount, all you have to do is enter NoGo2007 as a coupon code in the appropriate box on my website. Remember, I take PayPal, AmEx, MasterCard, Visa and Discover.
Although I can't go to Chicago, I'll be there in spirit. Now, go and save yourselves some cash at my web store!
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
The Load Out
I just got back from Boston, and boy are my feet tired!
I wanted to say thank you to everyone of you who came by and said hello while we were at the New England Pen Show. There were a lot of familiar faces, and lots of new ones, too. It was wonderful being able to put a face with the name (and to hear all of the delightful New England accents!). In fact, I actually had the pleasure of meeting what just may be my sole blog subscriber. And you know who you are!
As I reported earlier, I got into Boston (Woburn, actually) on Friday afternoon. Within a few hours of unpacking, I was on my way to Newton to have dinner with some distant relatives who heard I was in town and wouldn't take no for an answer. Which, as it turned out, was lucky for me, because the food was excellent and the conversation, like the wine, seemed never to stop flowing.
The next day, I groggily woke up and got ready for the show. Unfortunately, in my haste to leave Michigan the day before, I forgot to bring my own home-roasted coffee and had to make do with the swill from Folger's that was "compliments" of the hotel. Yecch!
Craig and I made it to the show shortly after 8 am and began setting up our tables. Ron Zorn and Richard Binder were the only ones there, so we chatted for a bit while Craig did all the heavy lifting (ain't it grand being the boss?). This seemed like a good time for Ron to repair some pens for me as well, so I had him work on a few for me - a Parker "51", an Esterbrook, a Vacumatic and a Skyline all needed varying degrees of restoration. If you've never done business with Ron, you owe it to yourself to do so - he's not only an excellent pen repair person, but he is a true gentleman. Visit Ron's site at www.mainstreeetpens.com
Saturday was mostly trading amongst other dealers. Since I sell new pens, this meant that my tables were unnervingly slow on the financial side. But this also gave me the opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet new ones. A couple of notables were Susan Wirth and her assistants Neville and Ian. Ian graciously agreed to pull guard duty so the vendors wouldn't have to break down Saturday night and set up again on Sunday. Thanks, Ian! Ian is an accomplished blogger in his own right, so check out his stuff at http://danandsteveshow.com.
I also got to meet Krysta and Artur from the New England Pen People and Off the Bench Furniture (www.offthebenchfurniture.com). Art is a furniture maker who has recently started offering outstanding hand-made pen chests. Not only does he offer some "stock" pieces, but he'll do custom work to accommodate any of your pen needs, from a desk top case holding 10 pens, to a stand-alone chest that can hold a thousand of them. His workmanship was top notch and I was really impressed by a couple of his designs. You never know, I may just start offering them for sale at the Pear Tree Pen Company!
Also on Saturday, I had the pleasure of meeting one of my customers who flew in from California, ostensibly to show his son some college in New York, but I know he was really there for the fountain pens.
Saturday night, all of the pen folks were gathering for a group dinner, but I had another social obligation that prevented me from attending. We headed out to Framingham for dinner at Legal Seafood, while the rest of the group went elsewhere.
Sunday came and we started all over. When the doors opened at 10 am, it was chaos - a wonderful, exciting chaos, but chaos nonetheless. I didn't sit down until at least 4 or 5 pm. Many lucky people walked away with fantastic deals on pens such as the Sailor Sapporo, Lamy 2000, or Visconti Van Gogh, or on paper from Clairefontaine, Exacompta and Rhodia. Bottled fountain pen ink from Diamine and Omas was also extremely popular.
As I said, we were busy. Really busy. In fact, we were the last table to break down and people were still trying to buy paper, pens and ink while Craig loaded up the van for our long trip home (again, that boss thing!).
Driving out of Boston on Sunday was relatively easy until we hit the Berkshires - the rain started before we left the city, but up at that altitude, the temperature dropped pretty quickly and the roads started to get icy. We pushed on for a while before we finally decided to call it a night somewhere around Utica, New York. The next morning, we woke up to about a foot of snow on the ground and all we had on our feet were sandals (we tend to pack lightly at pen shows). We drove on through near blizzard conditions until the storm finally broke west of Rochester, New York. After that, it was smooth sailing.
It is good to be home, but now I have to unpack the van and fill the multitude of orders that came in while I was away. And get ready for the Chicago show in two weeks.
See you there!
James P.
I wanted to say thank you to everyone of you who came by and said hello while we were at the New England Pen Show. There were a lot of familiar faces, and lots of new ones, too. It was wonderful being able to put a face with the name (and to hear all of the delightful New England accents!). In fact, I actually had the pleasure of meeting what just may be my sole blog subscriber. And you know who you are!
As I reported earlier, I got into Boston (Woburn, actually) on Friday afternoon. Within a few hours of unpacking, I was on my way to Newton to have dinner with some distant relatives who heard I was in town and wouldn't take no for an answer. Which, as it turned out, was lucky for me, because the food was excellent and the conversation, like the wine, seemed never to stop flowing.
The next day, I groggily woke up and got ready for the show. Unfortunately, in my haste to leave Michigan the day before, I forgot to bring my own home-roasted coffee and had to make do with the swill from Folger's that was "compliments" of the hotel. Yecch!
Craig and I made it to the show shortly after 8 am and began setting up our tables. Ron Zorn and Richard Binder were the only ones there, so we chatted for a bit while Craig did all the heavy lifting (ain't it grand being the boss?). This seemed like a good time for Ron to repair some pens for me as well, so I had him work on a few for me - a Parker "51", an Esterbrook, a Vacumatic and a Skyline all needed varying degrees of restoration. If you've never done business with Ron, you owe it to yourself to do so - he's not only an excellent pen repair person, but he is a true gentleman. Visit Ron's site at www.mainstreeetpens.com
Saturday was mostly trading amongst other dealers. Since I sell new pens, this meant that my tables were unnervingly slow on the financial side. But this also gave me the opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet new ones. A couple of notables were Susan Wirth and her assistants Neville and Ian. Ian graciously agreed to pull guard duty so the vendors wouldn't have to break down Saturday night and set up again on Sunday. Thanks, Ian! Ian is an accomplished blogger in his own right, so check out his stuff at http://danandsteveshow.com.
I also got to meet Krysta and Artur from the New England Pen People and Off the Bench Furniture (www.offthebenchfurniture.com). Art is a furniture maker who has recently started offering outstanding hand-made pen chests. Not only does he offer some "stock" pieces, but he'll do custom work to accommodate any of your pen needs, from a desk top case holding 10 pens, to a stand-alone chest that can hold a thousand of them. His workmanship was top notch and I was really impressed by a couple of his designs. You never know, I may just start offering them for sale at the Pear Tree Pen Company!
Also on Saturday, I had the pleasure of meeting one of my customers who flew in from California, ostensibly to show his son some college in New York, but I know he was really there for the fountain pens.
Saturday night, all of the pen folks were gathering for a group dinner, but I had another social obligation that prevented me from attending. We headed out to Framingham for dinner at Legal Seafood, while the rest of the group went elsewhere.
Sunday came and we started all over. When the doors opened at 10 am, it was chaos - a wonderful, exciting chaos, but chaos nonetheless. I didn't sit down until at least 4 or 5 pm. Many lucky people walked away with fantastic deals on pens such as the Sailor Sapporo, Lamy 2000, or Visconti Van Gogh, or on paper from Clairefontaine, Exacompta and Rhodia. Bottled fountain pen ink from Diamine and Omas was also extremely popular.
As I said, we were busy. Really busy. In fact, we were the last table to break down and people were still trying to buy paper, pens and ink while Craig loaded up the van for our long trip home (again, that boss thing!).
Driving out of Boston on Sunday was relatively easy until we hit the Berkshires - the rain started before we left the city, but up at that altitude, the temperature dropped pretty quickly and the roads started to get icy. We pushed on for a while before we finally decided to call it a night somewhere around Utica, New York. The next morning, we woke up to about a foot of snow on the ground and all we had on our feet were sandals (we tend to pack lightly at pen shows). We drove on through near blizzard conditions until the storm finally broke west of Rochester, New York. After that, it was smooth sailing.
It is good to be home, but now I have to unpack the van and fill the multitude of orders that came in while I was away. And get ready for the Chicago show in two weeks.
See you there!
James P.
Monday, April 09, 2007
Oh! Mas!
Because you keep asking, here's a sneak peak at the new line of writing instruments I'll be debuting at the New England Pen Show. Omas Inks are now available at the Pear Tree Pen Company as well.
Weekend In New England
I'm off to the New England Pen Show this week. The Pen Show is being held at the Somerville Holiday Inn (30 Washington Street, Somerville, MA) on Saturday April 14 and Sunday April 15, 2007. I'm looking forward to it now that the stress of finding a place to stay has been lifted. I was surprised to find that the hotel had filled up so early!
I've always been fond of the New England Pen Show, since it was the first pen show I ever attended. It's large enough to have a nice selection and variety, yet small enough that you can really get a chance to talk to the exhibitors and try out the merchandise. It looks like it's going to be yet another great show.
This year, my setup has expanded, and I'll have two tables full of lots of new and exciting stuf. I'm bringing with me a fleet of Sailors, including the new Sailor Sapporos and Sapporo Minis, as well as several Kings of Pen and the discontinued Nagahara Limited Editions with the Nagahara nibs. If my luck holds up, I'll have a few of the new Black Diamond Waterman Edsons to debut as well.
Unlike my trip to Columbus, this time I actually prepared in advance and have a whole gaggle of Pelikanos and Pelikano Juniors for the young and young at heart.
And, for something a little out of the ordinary for me, I just received a shipment of pen holders and crystal inkwells from Jac Zagoory designs. The pen stands are pewter, and are made in the U.S.A. They're a really nice way to keep your favorite pen handy when you're at your desk.
So stop by, bring your kids and bring your Visa card, because I won't take no for an answer (but I will take American Express!)
James P.
I've always been fond of the New England Pen Show, since it was the first pen show I ever attended. It's large enough to have a nice selection and variety, yet small enough that you can really get a chance to talk to the exhibitors and try out the merchandise. It looks like it's going to be yet another great show.
This year, my setup has expanded, and I'll have two tables full of lots of new and exciting stuf. I'm bringing with me a fleet of Sailors, including the new Sailor Sapporos and Sapporo Minis, as well as several Kings of Pen and the discontinued Nagahara Limited Editions with the Nagahara nibs. If my luck holds up, I'll have a few of the new Black Diamond Waterman Edsons to debut as well.
Unlike my trip to Columbus, this time I actually prepared in advance and have a whole gaggle of Pelikanos and Pelikano Juniors for the young and young at heart.
And, for something a little out of the ordinary for me, I just received a shipment of pen holders and crystal inkwells from Jac Zagoory designs. The pen stands are pewter, and are made in the U.S.A. They're a really nice way to keep your favorite pen handy when you're at your desk.
So stop by, bring your kids and bring your Visa card, because I won't take no for an answer (but I will take American Express!)
James P.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
New Pens from Parker & Waterman
I just learned of two pens that are going to be released on April 1, 2007 from Parker and Waterman. The first is a new shade of Waterman Edson, the Diamond Black Edson. If the pictures are a true representation, this is one beautiful pen, with a gorgeous classic black barrel coupled with platinum-plated cap and trim, and a luscious inlaid rhodium-plated 18K gold nib. As seen here:
Not to be outdone, Parker will relaunch a new Duofold in pearl and black and which features a two-tone 18K gold nib. Here's a quick and dirty image:
From what I understand, the pearl and black Duofold was discontinued several years ago as material supplies dwindled and none of the available substitutes were up to snuff. Apparently, Parker has resolved that problem, and the new Duofold is, to my eye, absolutely gorgeous. I have wanted one for a long time, but none of the checked patterns really did anything for me. Not this one - this goes on my "Must Have" list right away!
MSRP for the Edson is $1,000, and the Duofold Centennial Edition's MSRP is $500. The Duofold will also be available in the International size, priced at $450. The only stock nibs available are fine and medium, but I've been fortunate enough to work out an arrangement with a phenomenal nibmeister, Greg Minuskin, who offers his services to Pear Tree Pen Company customers at a reduced rate.
If anyone is dying to be the first on their block to sport one of these new pens, as an authorized dealer of Parker and Waterman, I would be happy to help you out. Send me an email at Sales@PearTreePens.com and I'll give you an unbelievable price.
Thanks for looking!
Not to be outdone, Parker will relaunch a new Duofold in pearl and black and which features a two-tone 18K gold nib. Here's a quick and dirty image:
From what I understand, the pearl and black Duofold was discontinued several years ago as material supplies dwindled and none of the available substitutes were up to snuff. Apparently, Parker has resolved that problem, and the new Duofold is, to my eye, absolutely gorgeous. I have wanted one for a long time, but none of the checked patterns really did anything for me. Not this one - this goes on my "Must Have" list right away!
MSRP for the Edson is $1,000, and the Duofold Centennial Edition's MSRP is $500. The Duofold will also be available in the International size, priced at $450. The only stock nibs available are fine and medium, but I've been fortunate enough to work out an arrangement with a phenomenal nibmeister, Greg Minuskin, who offers his services to Pear Tree Pen Company customers at a reduced rate.
If anyone is dying to be the first on their block to sport one of these new pens, as an authorized dealer of Parker and Waterman, I would be happy to help you out. Send me an email at Sales@PearTreePens.com and I'll give you an unbelievable price.
Thanks for looking!
James P.
Friday, March 09, 2007
Ink Sample Program Temporarily Suspended
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Fountain Pen Community,
As many of you know, I recently took a holiday that required me to be out of the "shop" for a little over a week. When I got back home, I couldn't believe the volume of orders I had waiting for me. I was, and continue to be, overwhelmed by the support and encouragement I receive from the fountain pen community, especially those on this forum.
The success and growth of the Pear Tree Pen Company over the past year has been completely unexpected (although not unwelcome). One of the linchpins of that success has been the Pear Tree Pen Company Ink Sample Program. Due to the tremendous popularity of that program, however, I have begun to fall behind in fulfilling orders. This, I believe, is unfair to those who are in the "queue," and is a disappointment to me, because I cannot provide you, my customers, with the level of service you deserve, and which I demand of myself.
Some of you may not be aware that I am a one-person shop, and as much as I enjoy the Pear Tree Pen Company, it is not my primary occupation and does not come close to paying the bills. So, in order for me to regain a degree of sanity and to process the orders I've received on a timely basis, I find it necessary to temporarily suspend sales of ink samples. Sales of ink, pens and other items in the store will, of course, continue as before. All pending orders for samples will be filled - I have just stopped taking new orders as of today.
I expect this hiatus to last approximately one week, perhaps two. But rest assured, the Pear Tree Pen Company Ink Sample Program will be back.
Again, I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this may cause, but thank you all for your support and understanding during this time.
With much appreciation,
James Partridge
As many of you know, I recently took a holiday that required me to be out of the "shop" for a little over a week. When I got back home, I couldn't believe the volume of orders I had waiting for me. I was, and continue to be, overwhelmed by the support and encouragement I receive from the fountain pen community, especially those on this forum.
The success and growth of the Pear Tree Pen Company over the past year has been completely unexpected (although not unwelcome). One of the linchpins of that success has been the Pear Tree Pen Company Ink Sample Program. Due to the tremendous popularity of that program, however, I have begun to fall behind in fulfilling orders. This, I believe, is unfair to those who are in the "queue," and is a disappointment to me, because I cannot provide you, my customers, with the level of service you deserve, and which I demand of myself.
Some of you may not be aware that I am a one-person shop, and as much as I enjoy the Pear Tree Pen Company, it is not my primary occupation and does not come close to paying the bills. So, in order for me to regain a degree of sanity and to process the orders I've received on a timely basis, I find it necessary to temporarily suspend sales of ink samples. Sales of ink, pens and other items in the store will, of course, continue as before. All pending orders for samples will be filled - I have just stopped taking new orders as of today.
I expect this hiatus to last approximately one week, perhaps two. But rest assured, the Pear Tree Pen Company Ink Sample Program will be back.
Again, I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this may cause, but thank you all for your support and understanding during this time.
With much appreciation,
James Partridge
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