Monday Miscellany

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bbc news magazine, endpaper, johnston sans, london underground, paperblanks, quill pen

I’m always looking for ways to improve my lettering and this article from Endpaper, the Paperblanks blog, has some great tips. And don’t miss their Peek Inside series, mentioned in the first paragraph.

I really enjoy typefaces and why certain ones appeal, their history, etc. This article from BBC News magazine tells the history of Johnston Sans, the typeface used by the London Underground for their signs, since 1916 (with some enhancements in the 1970s). Imagine going into such detail about how to print a capital E! Lovely. Not so lovely his association with weirdo sex addict Eric Gill but the article’s interesting for sure.

And finally a very cool video on how to make a quill pen. Enjoy!

Monday Miscellany

Tags

buzzfeed, moleskine, postal notebook, the write sort, trina o'gorman

Many thanks to Rita who sent this article from Buzzfeed along. I agree with all 18 things, as I’m sure most if not all of you do too! I love the shot of the to do list with “publish life-changing things” on it – all in a day’s work!

This Moleskine Postal Notebook featured on The Write Sort site is super cool! I agree with Suzie that this would be a great notebook to send home from a trip but it could also be a wonderful ongoing correspondence in a group of friends, each person writing a page then sending it on. Neat!

I enjoyed Trina O’Gorman’s post on Six Ways Keeping a Journal Can Enhance Your Life. She uses her journals and daily journal writing as tools to improve her life as well as the lives of people important to her. And check out her journaling workshops.

Happy journaling everyone!

 

 

Monday Miscellany

Tags

fastcodesign.com, give a girl a journal, jamie ridler studios, joe brown, penucopia, pilot blue black ink, robert fabricant, ronna detrick, terrance weinzierl, thomas r. hall

Some great shots of notebook interiors in this post from fastcodesign.com: 16 Famous Designers Show Us Their Favorite Notebooks. I love Robert Fabricant’s storyboards for meetings and I thought the productivity advice Terrance Weinzierl remembered was hilarious. But I especially love Joe Brown’s essential companion to his Post Its: “…so having a notebook as a backstop is magic.”

If you are a lover of blue black ink, as I am, you will devour this article by Thomas R. Hall on Penucopia. Quite possibly the most exhaustive treatise yet written on Pilot Blue Black ink. Excellent work.

And yet another Give a Girl a Journal video. I can’t help it; I really love this initiative and this video by Ronna Detrick appealed to me because of its simple message. We write; therefore, we are writers. Enjoy.

 

Monday Miscellany

Tags

agnes martin, brainpickings.org, dreamdiggerstudio.com, give a girl a journal, jamie ridler studios, maria popova, purpleclover.com, tracie hanson

I found this article on purpleclover.com really fascinating: 20 Exotic Words That Don’t Exist in English. I think “gokotta” and “komorebi” are beautiful.

An argument for solitude and a definition of inspiration: check out this post on brainpickings.org by Maria Popova about Agnes Martin’s approach to her art and the nature of creativity. Inspiration will strike when the mind is untroubled and often takes us by surprise. And she advises to keep your friends out of your studio, unless they are friends of your art. Interesting woman who was unfamiliar to me before this excellent article.

I wrote about the Give a Girl a Journal initiative in this post, and I wanted to share one of the videos Jamie Ridler has posted in support of the campaign. I have watched them all and really enjoyed this one by Tracie Hanson. Love the journals that she shows. And check out her website: http://dreamdiggerstudio.com/

Monday Miscellany

Tags

endpaper, jenny reich, msn.com, paperblanks, thestar.com

Everyone hits the MSN.com homepage sooner or later. It has articles on every conceivable topic, some helpful and some not. I found a surprise in this article, 9 Things Science Says Your Home Needs If You Want To Be Happy: #5 is a journal! So what we do is one secret to a happy home! We all knew that, didn’t we?

“…the very nature of letters invites a particular closeness.” So says Jenny Reich in her post Why I Won’t Declutter My Treasure Trove of Handwritten Letters for thestar.com. I loved this article, and not just because I’m trying to write about 20 letters this week. I love going through old letters, especially those penned by those no longer with us. Re-reading them is, indeed, listening to a long-ago conversation, at times bittersweet but always heart-warming. Great read.

And something from Endpaper, the Paperblanks blog: 5 Quick Ways to Warm Up Your Mind Before Writing. I like the idea of stretching before writing, just like with exercise. And the images are great – I printed them out for my journal. Enjoy!

 

Monday Miscellany

Tags

edison pen company, goulet pens, jack seliger, miguelrius, notebook stories, randsinrepose.com, the pen and inkwell, the story's story, william hannah, writing instruments daily

Wow. I just watched The Pen and Inkwell’s review of a William Hannah notebook – what beautiful notebooks! I quickly went to the website, subscribed to the newsletter and had a look round. The notebooks are a tiny bit expensive – £95 – but they are stunning. You can choose from a multitude of colours, and paper, and you can even choose the colour of the ink on the paper! And the paper is held in place with discs, much like the ARC notebooks. Beautiful!

I think I may be very late to the party here, but I’ve just discovered Writing Instruments Daily, a “daily publication dedicated to Pens, Paper, Ink and related paraphernalia” published by the Edison Pen Company. What a gem! Today’s issue features, among other great posts, articles about handwriting shared by Goulet Pens and a review of the Miguelrius Boarding Notebook by Notebook Stories. I have subscribed. Have you?

And finally Jack Seliger wrote a very funny and touching post on why he prefers notebooks to anything electronic in this post from 2013 on his site, The Story’s Story. A notebook has never interrupted him with an ad, shown him nude photos, or accidentally deleted anything (except for the occasional plunge in the bath). And the linked article, Sweet Decay, is great too. I especially liked the argument that notebooks don’t waste your time, and that a surviving notebook is a sexy notebook.

Have a great week everyone. Remember to journal. 🙂

Monday Miscellany

Tags

handwriting, ian hedley, pen heaven, pens!paper!pencils!, stationery box, suzie chatterji, the write sort, valentine's day

I love Stationery Box subscriptions. I watched Pocket Full of Vintage’s video on The Write Sort stationery box and I just had to check out her web site. Suzie Chatterji is based in Australia and offers a quarterly offering of a stationery box, and there is no subscription; you just buy a box when you want it. The quality of the items and the originality of thought is amazing. I like this idea because there is no ongoing commitment. Maybe I will treat myself and buy one!

Ian Hedley over on Pens! Paper! Pencils! wrote an interesting post called Journaling With Purpose, in which he describes two of his journaling habits, one old and one new: recording 4 good things about his day no matter what, and answering 3 questions each and every day. How was I creative today? How did I make the world a better place? How did I show those I love that they are loved? Excellent ways to round out your journaling habit.

And finally, from the Pen Heaven blog, reasons why the handwritten note trumps the digital missive every time, and especially for Valentine’s Day.

Until next post, happy writing!

 

Monday Miscellany

Tags

goulet pens, incowrimo 2016, inkycauldron.wordpress.com, journal talk, nathan ohren, susan borkin, write4life

Today is the start of InCoWriMo 2016! As ever I will be participating, starting by tackling my substantial Reply To pile from 2015. Apologies to any pen pals who have been waiting on me; I promise to get to the bottom of the pile this month. Or at least try. Goulet Pens has a wonderful post on this letter writing extravaganza, complete with a link to a list of awesome people to write to. If you want to write to me use the Contact Me button and I will give you my address, and I promise to write back. Eventually!

I listened to a great podcast on write4life.us this week; Nathan interviewed Susan Borkin for an episode of Journal Talk, about her life, influences and new book, The Healing Power of Writing: A Therapist’s Guide to Using Journaling With Clients. What an inspiration! And if you listen to the end there is a bonus for Journal Talk listeners. Well worth listening to! As Susan says, you can’t teach it if you haven’t done the work.

And finally inky cauldron takes us on a tour of her adorable pencil case. Enjoy!

Monday Miscellany

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joe fassler, journaling workshop, solotravelerblog.com, theatlantic.com, travel journal, trina o'gorman

I thought this workshop by Trina O’Gorman was interesting. I like that right at the beginning she tells you to find a notebook you love; otherwise you won’t stick to her program, which is designed to introduce you to journaling basics, and find your own way. Right now she’s offering a discount; the program starts on Feb 7.

I can admit I struggle to keep a travel journal. I think I want to write too much, or to create these wonderful and perfect travel essays that should just come out of my brain ready to publish. So I give up halfway through a vacation and then rarely go back and finish them. I have more luck if I just jot down a few things during the day and write at night, relaxing and reflecting before bed. This article, by Janice at solotravelerblog.com, gives 9 tips for creating a memorable and meaningful record of your journey. I think #3 is good for me to remember, and #9 is one I will include from now on. My thanks go out to Rita, the most fearless solo traveler I know, for sending this to me.

And finally, I loved this article by Joe Fassler from theatlantic.com: How to Write: A Year in Advice from Franzen, King, Hosseini and More. To be perfectly honest I spent more time jumping off to the other articles he refers to, than actually reading the article through to the end. It doesn’t matter because it’s all worth reading. I especially love Hosseini’s tribute to King, two of my favorite authors. Enjoy!

Monday Miscellany

Tags

fastcompany.com, journaling, michael grothaus, moleskine, najowrimo, the well appointed desk

Now here’s an article from fastcompany.com that claims journaling is incredibly beneficial to your overall health. But we all know that, don’t we? 🙂 Seriously though, Michael Grothaus gives 8 tips for starting and/or maintaining a journaling practice that will have long lasting benefits. I think my favourite tip is You Needn’t Be Shakespeare; down that road lies pretentiousness.

This is a fun exercise for your journal: 50 Wide-Ranging Lists for Your Journal from the NaJoWriMo site. Some of them sound like a ton of fun, like #6 (list of cities you’ve slept in for at least one night) and #25 (list of the first sentences of your top ten fave books). Others, like #36 (list of personal secrets) might be best kept to yourself, or in a very secure place.

Moleskine Notebooks can get a bad rap for the quality (or lack thereof) of their paper. The Well-Appointed desk took a second and very deep look at the paper in the Cahier, Volant and standard soft-cover Moleskine notebook and presented the findings in this post. Might surprise you; it did me.

Until next post, happy writing!