Victoria's Leather Journal

Happy Chinese New Year!  I know most of you already have 2013 diaries and journals, but I discovered a leather journal recently that can give the Midori Traveler's Notebook a run for its money.  The thing that confused me about is that it's called a Pelle Leather Journal, by Victoria's Journals, but it's not the Pelle Leather Journal you know of in the US, that directly competes against Midori.  From this point for purposes of clarity I'll be referring to it as the VJ.

Regardless of branding, the important thing to me was that the VJ is made of real leather.  I found them in Bestsellers (a National Bookstore branch at the Podium in Ortigas Center), each in their own black box.  I got one in brown.

Each journal fits three 9 x 14cm (roughly 3.5" x 5.5") notebooks: a to-do planner, a lined notebook and a blank notebook.  There are Venzi flexi 2 notebooks (also made by Victoria's Journals, available at National Bookstore) that can be used as refills in case you can't find notebooks to fit.  As for me, I make my own refills, because that means I can choose the paper quality - must be fountain pen ink-friendly!

And this paper is friendly, as long as you don't use a B nib that's an overly wet writer.  There's not much bleedthrough or showthrough at all. Imagine that!  I haven't been buying notebooks in a long time because I don't like spending money and then finding out the paper only takes ballpoint ink.

Here it is, with my Waterman's Ideal No. 3 set.  And below, a comparison shot with my passport-sized Midori:

The feel of the Midori leather is a bit more luxurious.  It takes distressing well.  The Victoria's Journal journal is a little stiffer.  I like the leather clasp that holds the covers together, it doesn't dent the cover as much as the plain elastic does.  Also, the inside elastic fastenings don't require much fiddling with.

I posted this on the Fountain Pen Network-Philippines Facebook page, and sort of caused a shopping frenzy.  Why?  Because compared to the Midori (about USD55) this VJ journal costs only P590 (about USD15)!  My friends and I found out that there are three colors:  Black, Brown and Maroon.  If you want your own and it hasn't been sold out yet, the magic stock number is 103722 at National Bookstore.  Call them and reserve the item, before visiting.

The Midori is made in Thailand.  The VJ  box is marked "Styled in Italy.  Made in PRC."  So yes,  it's made in China, even though they very cleverly try not to point that fact out.  At least every part of it looks well made for the price.

To my friends in the US, the Victoria's Journal site only sells to the trade, I believe.  You'll have to look for the item in your stationery store (although the site indicates they sell this item in the US).   The Pelle Journal that's competing against the Midori (see links above) is a quality product and you can't go wrong with either brand.

Three Pelikan Tortoises

Back in 2009 I was trying to decide on a birthday fountain pen.  I'm a Pelikan fan, and decided that I would save up for a Pelikan M400 White Tortoise with an F nib.  It had just been reintroduced as a regular (and no longer limited production) pen.  Prior to this my Pelikan flock was limited to M200s and M215s.  It's the same size as an M200, only with a 14k two-tone nib. I got it for a good price brand new from a Singapore-based seller, and was delighted to see how pretty it was.  Of course, since it was white, I read up on what inks I could safely use it with.  For this I use low-maintenance blues, greens, browns and blacks (nothing red or purple, to avoid possible staining).  To date it is my prettiest, blingy-est pen.

Last year my friend Hazel was streamlining her collection and put up her Pelikan 400NN Brown Tortoise for sale.  I took a deep breath and immediately went for it.  It's a 1950s model with a brown cap and piston knob.  The tortoise stripes are mostly green, with a few brown glints here and there.  The nib is a soft M, which I had gently stubbed by my friend J. P. so it would write with a bit more character.  At the base of the pen there is an almost invisible imprint "Pelikan 400 Gunther Wagner Germany". The cap clip is a little brassed, but it is a pre-loved pen after all.  I wasn't too worried about maintenance, since the 400NN pretty much had modern parts (no cork to replace on the piston). All it needed was for me to lubricate it, and that was easily done with a bit of silicone grease.

Top: Pelikan 400NN Brown Tortoise Middle: M400 White Tortoise Bottom: M250 Brown Tortoise

Now all I needed was a newer M400/M415 Brown Tortoise.  The chances of finding one at a price I could afford were slim, until my friend Onggie showed me one of his eBay scores.  "Hey, if you get tired of that, will you think of selling it to me?" I joked.  Little did I know that a few months later I'd actually get to own it, at its eBay acquisition price!  Of course when I saw it again, I realized that it was not the M400/M415 I thought it was, but the simpler and equally attractive M250 Brown Tortoise, a pen briefly issued by Levenger in 1997.  I identified it by the cap, which is domed with an engraved logo filled in gold, and has a double cap ring that says "Pelikan Germany".  The M400/M415 should have a double cap ring that says "Pelikan Souveran Germany".  Also, the M250's piston knob does not have a ring, while that of the M400/M415 has a double ring. As with the 400NN, the M250 Brown Tortoise has a brown cap and piston knob. My pen sports an old-style monochrome F nib.

Writing sample. (Click photo to enlarge.)

There is a special edition M600 version of the White Tortoise.  I love the size, but not the price.  The M415 Brown Tortoise, also a special edition,  is out of my budget, as is the much-rumored M800 version.  The M101N Tortoise is lovely and is, alas, out of my reach.  That won't stop me from admiring them, though.

I'm quite happy with my Three Tortoises.

Buying Fountain Pen Inks in Manila

(Waterman inks photo by Cesar Salazar.)

More and more people are growing interested in using fountain pens here in Manila, as evidenced by the growing membership in our pen group Fountain Pen Network-Philippines.  For a long time Parker, Waterman, Cross and Montblanc were the only brands readily available in the local fountain pen market.  Now there are new brands available:  Lamy, Pelikan, Sailor, to name a few.  Waterman,Aurora, Cross and Rotring are now no longer being sold here, while Sheaffer recently reintroduced itself.  The local Pilot distributor sells only school pens, not the fine writing instruments, nor the ink.

I've compiled a list of stores that sell fountain pen inks, in bottles and cartridges as of 2013: (click on links to see directory info)

National Bookstore branches
- Parker, Lamy, Sheaffer, Inoxcrom (cartridges)

Montblanc branches - Makati (632) 813-3739, Powerplant Mall (632) 898-2347, Shangri-la Mall (632) 633-4636, Manila (632) 521-1140, Robinsons Place (632) 551-2095, Ayala Town Center (632) 850-5532

Scribe Writing Essentials - 3/F Eastwood Mall, QC.  (632) 900-0053.
- Herbin, Lamy, Sailor, Pelikan (4001 and Edelstein)

Cutting Edge (Greenbelt 5)
- Waterman

Times Trading
- Lamy

As of this time, there are no local distributors yet for Noodler's, Diamine, Rohrer & Klingner, Aurora, Visconti, De Atramentis, Pilot (regular and Iroshizuku), Platinum and other popular brands of ink.  For these, we resort to buying from eBay or online stores based overseas.