Sunday Reading for October 25, 2026

1. Recap: On The Paper Trail LIVE in Nashville (via Well-Appointed Desk). I had to lead with this one, didn’t I? Many thanks to Ana & Bob for joining us in Nashville at our first ever live event.

2. 2026 BunguLA - A Brief Sunday Visit (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). I totally would have gone home with one of those Hachimonjiya original gradient Pilot Decimos.

3. Choosing the Right Work Pen, Part 1 (via Line Variation). The story of my life for many, many years. I finally settled on the Lamy 2000 in its various iterations and carried more than one work pen.

4. Still No NaNo (via Pen Addict - Sarah). I had not known that the official NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) had gone away, but it looks like people are still participating in an unofficial capacity by organizing their own groups!

5. Colorverse Colorvents Past (Part 1) (via Dime Novel Raven). This sounds like a fun experiment - to revisit the inks in the past Colorvent Calendars, even the ones that never made it into the official ink lineup.

6. Wearingeul The Glass Bead Game (via Figboot on Pens). These new Wearingeul fountain pens are getting a lot of attention, as the ink company gets into the pen game.

7. A Look at Semi-Vintage Parker 65 Custom Fountain Pen (via Fountain Pen Blog). The Parker 65 is one of those unfortunately overlooked vintage pens that can be fun to collect (at lower price points) since it came slightly after the “Golden Age” of vintage pens.

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We were all extremely happy with how the event balanced shopping with hangouts, classes, and other experiences!

In Case You Missed It….

This week I have been playing catch-up from last week’s event, as well as this week’s Kaweco DIY experience (probably more on that later - wow, thanks to all of you who turned out!), but I did manage to write some reflections on On The Paper Trail Live in Nashville. As I note in the post, it was a unique experience that had not really been tried before, and we were extremely happy with the results!

Lunar Purple Sports are finally here1

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop

Update: As of Monday, October 26, the latest TWSBI ECO (Jade Jelly + Bronze) is available for Presale, and will ship starting Wednesday 10/28.

We had a bunch of long-awaited new arrivals in the shop this week, including TRAVELER’S Company 2027 diary refills, Kaweco Lunar Sport pens in the new Lunar Shadow Purple and Light Purple finishes, and the Kaweco AL Sport Piston in a gorgeous dark Burgundy! We also have this year’s Diamine Inkvent Calendar in stock (Burgundy edition), as well as limited remaining stock of the 2026 Colorverse Colorvent Calendar. Be sure to check out each week’s Thursday Drops post for additional new arrivals and restocks!

Diamine

Rickshaw

Kakimori

TWSBI

Visit Us on Patreon

If you enjoy our content (whether here on the main website, Instagram, YouTube Channel or elsewhere), and would like early/extra access to shop releases and special promotions, consider supporting us via Patreon. In addition to exclusive content, Discord access, and online meetups, Patreon supporters have access to one or more initial “practice” episodes of “On the Paper Trail” which have not been publicly released.

Thursday Drops: TRAVELER'S Diaries, Lochby Daily Folios, and Kaweco DIY this Weekend!

Many thanks to everyone who attended our event last weekend, but guess what? The Kaweco DIY fun continues this week through close of business on Saturday! Come build a DIY Sport in the special edition “Glow Green,” and shop a range of new arrivals including the newly arrived TRAVELER’S Notebook 2027 Diaries/Planners, the Blackwing Volumes 143 Frida Kahlo pencils, and the Lamy Studio Petrol series. We also have the Lochby Daily Folios in three different sizes, including the large A4, the standard A5, and the small A6. Check out these and more below.

Rickshaw cases are also back in stock, in all of the various Clouds patterns and colors!

We are open this week during normal hours, from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-5pm on Saturday. As I mentioned, we will have the Kaweco DIY machines in the shop during regular hours this week. We hope to see you there!

1. TRAVELER’S Company 2027 Diaries and Planner Refills. This year’s TRAVELER’S Company Diaries and Planner releases have arrived! We have the Standard and Passport size dated planner refills, as well as this year’s accessories including the plastic folders and pencil boards.

2. TRAVELER’S Notebook (Standard) Starter Kits. At long last, TRAVELER’S Notebooks are back in stock! We have standard-size starter kits in Blue, Camel, and Brown. All other colors and sizes remain out of stock at the moment, so please get these while you can.

3. Blackwing Volumes 143: The Frida Kahlo Pencil. The latest Blackwing Volumes pencil release has arrived in the shop, and this one is a tribute to artist Frida Kahlo.

4. Lamy Studio Petrol Fountain Pens, Rollerballs, and Ballpoints. Lamy’s latest release is a matte dark teal Studio fountain pen, dubbed “Petrol,” and yes we have the matching ink back in stock!

5. Lochby Daily Folios. This much awaited addition to the Lochby lineup combines a portfolio with a higher-capacity pen case for added functionality. The Daily Folio is available in A4, A5, and A6 sizes.

6. Lochby Field Binders. A favorite from this past weekend’s event, the Lochby Field Binder is a more rugged take on the classic 6-ring binder. Each binder ships with 50 sheets of Tomoe River 68g paper.

7. Tono & Lims T.G.S. Exclusive Inks. We have a small number of bottles of the T.G.S.-exclusive Tono & Lims inks, Classic Burgundy and Black Shimmer, back in stock. These will likely not last.

8. Kakimori Glass Nibs. Many of you have asked about my newfound fascination with glass pens, and this Kakimori nib is an excellent take on the writing experience since it’s a replaceable glass nib that you can swap in and out of standard nib holders.

9. Kakimori Metal Nibs. In addition to the glass nibs, we have additional conical metal nibs in brass, stainless steel, and copper, as well as the standard pen nib.

10. Kakimori Notebooks. Kakimori has released a fresh season of their fabric-covered A5 notebooks, with new colors and patterns. There are some gorgeous striped fabrics available this time around.

And for today’s “One More Thing,” we have the Fred & Friends Food Erasers from the last TGS Curated Box “New Discoveries”.

Running Our First Stationery Event: A Retrospective on the "On The Paper Trail Live in Nashville" Weekend!

It’s time for a report on our On The Paper Trail Live in Nashville event, which took place this past weekend in my hometown of Franklin (outside of Nashville, for those not from the area). While event organization can be a nervewracking experience, it's also incredibly satisfying when things go right, and this past weekend turned out to be a success.

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We had ink and paper samples on the table for swatching throughout the weekend.

So what was On The Paper Trail, Live in Nashville? This event wasn't intended as a "pen show" or a "stationery fest," but rather more of an extended weekend meetup, "mini-con", or even a conference. While we had five vendors - Vanness Pens, The Gentleman Stationer, Kaleidocraft Prints, Butler Stationery, The Well-Appointed Desk/Skylab Letterpress, and Tri-Star Studios (Scott Lewis, an independent penmaker) - the focus was intended to be on the ongoing classes and demonstrations throughout the event space. We also deliberately kept attendance below capacity to offer a more relaxed experience for both vendors and attendees. Each vendor was different enough that there wasn't much duplication at all among our respective offerings, and we managed to cover a pretty broad range of stationery. Bill Pearcy of Pilot Pens also was there with a full set of tester fountain pens, so that attendees could try all the various Pilot specialty nibs.

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The event also went well beyond pens and traditional stationery items! For example, on Friday night Derek Deweese of dwrdnet hosted a type-in, with over a dozen different typewriters available for attendees to try. During the day on Saturday, Lisa at OliveOctopusInk ran an ink painting seminar and demonstration in the main hotel space, and as you can see from the picture above it cleared out the ballroom - which was exactly what we wanted! On Saturday night, Kaleidocraft prints sponsored a washi swap and social, where attendees could trade washi tape and learn how to use it. People hung around after hours, and there was always a group journaling or trading pens and inks in the hotel common area, like pen shows used to be.

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Throughout the weekend, Lisa Vanness, Ana Reinert, and I taught classes, some of which were paid and some of which were free. Ana taught her popular stamp carving and Gamify Your Life Seminars, Lisa taught journaling for mental health, and I ran three sessions on notebook systems (my current obsession/area of interest). Everyone's classes were well-attended, and if there was one drawback to the location it was that classroom space was a bit tight. Given how friendly and laid back the hotel staff was, however, we're looking at ways we can adapt to hopefully run the event in the same space next year. Many thanks to everyone who came out! We enjoyed meeting all of you and hope to see you in the future, either back in Nashville or perhaps in additional locations….

For news and updates on future events, or simply to keep up with the On The Paper Trail Community, consider giving the podcast a listen! We are up to 18 episodes at the moment, and our next episode will include a brief event recap.

New Arrivals: TRAVELER'S Notebook 2027 Diaries/Planners, Stickers, and Accessories, Plus the Lamy Studio Petrol!

At long last, the 2027 dated TRAVELER’S Notebook special edition planner/diary refills and other exclusive accessories have arrived. As per the usual, standard size comes in Monthly, Weekly Vertical, and Weekly + Memo, while the Passport Size comes in monthly and weekly. TRAVELER’S has also released a new set of stickers that allow you to customize your planner, as well as the pencil boards and clear folders, both with new artwork featuring this year’s theme. These are available now, both in-store and online!

We also finally received our shipment of Lamy Studio Petrol fountain pens, rollerballs, and ballpoints. our initial shipment was “misdirected,” so it took a bit to finally receive these but they are here. This matte finish is a gorgeous dark teal, and yes we have the Lamy Petrol ink to match!

Come visit us in person at our Nashville shop this week from 1-6pm Thursday and Friday, and from 10am-5pm on Saturday. This week we will also be hosting the Kaweco DIY event during normal store hours Thursday-Saturday. We hope to see you there!

Sunday Reading for October 18, 2026

1. SPD: Sad Pen Day (via Pen Addict - Kimberly). If you are every testing out a pen at a pen club, show, or store, please turn the cap first to unscrew. Don’t pull!

2. First Look at Sunlit Steel: Duluth Shop Exclusive (via Dime Novel Raven). I love it when store/shop exclusives have special meaning, especially when they relate to local landmarks.

3. The Gentleman Stationer New Discoveries Box: What’s Inside? (via dwrdnet). Derek unpacks our latest Patreon box (and this time enough were left over to briefly hit the main site). We have a lot of fun assembling these.

4. The London Autumn Pen Show, 2026: My Haul (via Fountain Pen Blog). I love seeing a Waterman Laureate, my first nice fountain pen.

5. London Pen Show Autumn 2026 (via UK Fountain Pens). London apparently moved to a two-day format this year, which is a first. I personally am becoming a fan of shorter, smaller shows.

6. Checking In: An Inktober Update (via From The Pen Cup). Are you all participating in this year’s Inktober challenge? Pick a creative challenge each morning during the month of October!

7. Doomscrolling Alternatives (via Well-Appointed Desk). Most of us in this space are looking to spend less time online. Ana has a great list of alternative suggestions.

In Case You Missed It…

If it’s been quiet around here content-wise, it’s because we’ve been busy running our inaugural On The Paper Trail Live event, which was held this weekend in the Nashville area! You can hear about the details on our most recent podcast episode, which we timed to coincide with the event. This week’s episode also discusses Fountain Pen Terminology, including a deep dive into pen parts and basic pen problems

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If you come visit either us or Vanness in-store, you may be able to score an exclusive limited edition On the Paper Trail Onionbrand Leather Notebook Cover or Good Made Better Jester Fountain Pen.

This Week in the T.G.S. Curated Shop

This has been a whirlwind of a weekend! We had the Kaweco DIY machines on-site at T.G.S. Nashville on Thursday, and at the On The Paper Trail Event on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We also have a full restock of Roterfaden in all sizes, including the TGS_25 A5 Slim version, which has been restocked in all colors. The much-awaited Lochby Daily Folios have arrived, as well as additional stock of the Lochby Field Sling and Field Sling Plus. Finally, Kakimori, Soolla, and our exclusive Rickshaw Bagworks designs return! Be sure to check out each Weekly Drops post for a full list of new arrivals and restocks.

We will be open this week in the TGS Nashville Shop during our normal hours, from 1-6pm on Thursday and Friday and from 10am-5pm on Saturday. We hope to run the Kaweco DIY event all three days, though how long it goes may depend on supply as we are running low on pens after unprecedented demand. I have requested a nib restock from Kaweco and will post updates as I have them.

Lochby

Kakimori

Soolla

Rickshaw

Visit Us on Patreon

If you enjoy our content (whether here on the main website, Instagram, YouTube Channel or elsewhere), and would like early/extra access to shop releases and special promotions, consider supporting us via Patreon. In addition to exclusive content, Discord access, and online meetups, Patreon supporters have access to one or more initial “practice” episodes of “On the Paper Trail” which have not been publicly released.