Popular Pens for Particular Purpose (Plus Personal, Peculiar and Playful Picks ) - Photo Playback inc: new note & new pics

Dear Scribblers

I thought I would post all the photos from my Popular Pens for Particular Purpose (Plus Personal, Peculiar and Playful Picks) series in one place so you can see all my favourite pens in one place. There's a new note and an extra picture along the way. As an extra treat, if you read all the way to the bottom, there's a further new photo I didn't post about my other pens. 

My older Balmain set, and my everyday Uni-ball gel pen for use in my Filofax. 

My other Filofax pen, Ted Baker stylus pen.

The Stylus Pen in use. 

Smythson wafer diary and  matching ladies pen.

Smythson jotter and silver pen. Additional note, that I didn't mention in my previous post: This leather jotter was a special release for Concorde! I remembered the pen did come with the cover, and has Concorde logo engraved on it. 

My favourite journal pens, which are also my oldest (black and white) and newest (Balmain - duck egg blue.)

My Chanel pencil case, general pens and stationery, plus the digital pen wallet. 

IRISNotes2 Executive digital pen. 

Bargain Asda supermarket notebook and file organiser, with colour ink and gel pens. 

New mini 'Passport' notebook with hotel freebies, promotional, memorable and sci-fi fantasy pens. 

Close-up of my Harry Potter, Doctor Who and Star Trek pens. 

Here's the photo I haven't posted before, in my previous post, I wrote: I have further pens and pencils in my collection which are important and I use regularly in crafting, such as: charcoal drawing pencils, a variety of Sakura gelly roll pens, Whispers Strokes and Permanents coloured double ended felt tips, and various coloured drawing and watercolour pencils. I thought you might like to see some of them. 

I hope you've enjoyed this series. I'll be back soon to show you some of my favourite stationery extras, along with those technology ephemera that's used along side my photo, iPad and computer. 

Enjoy writing and crafting wherever you are!

Happy Scribing!

Important Notes

1. Please note that I am not connected to any company mentioned in this post. I do not receive any products, funding or gifting from these businesses. All products shown have been bought by me, or gifts from family or friends. I mention the items because I like them or have my own private opinion about them. It's just little old me talking about ma stuff! ;-)

2. If you would like to see more of anything in this series, please write a comment below, or 'like' and leave a comment by my 'Popular Pens' Instagram photo, letting me know what you would like me to post photos and write about. 

3. If you like what you read, don't forget to bookmark this site, and please share it with your friends. 

4. You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram - @TheCraftyScribe which I update regularly with all things crafty, scribbling, beauty, fashion, the cats, sci-fi, fantasy, and the ephemera of 42*................... *42 = Life, The Universe and Everything!

Notable Notebooks Part 4 of 5 - When a Notebook isn't a Notebook (Brought to you by The Rosetta Stone, and guest appearance by Crystal Skull!)

Dear Scribblers

Welcome to the penultimate day of 'Notable Notebooks' (Four of Five):

A five day series:

1: My Ultimate Quality Favourites 

2: The Organiser

3: My Newest Arrivals

4: When a Notebook isn't a Notebook

5: Used, Loved, Never to be Thrown away

Please read the important note at the bottom of the page. 

The next two are slightly different from the normal notebooks that I've discussed in parts one to three. Please take a look if you haven't read them yet. 

Whenever I go to museums, art galleries, stately homes and such like, I always like to pick a useful souvenir, and as you probably worked out, that's usually a notebook and pen. Last year, we went to the Pompeii and Herculaneum exhibition at the British Museum, which was fantastic. Afterwards, as I perused the many gift kiosks, I was overwhelmed by the pen selection, but there wasn't a single notebook in celebration of the exhibition. I was so disappointed. So I hunted further, I found a few standard books from the 'Paperblanks' company, but I could buy those anywhere. I wanted something connected to the museum. At last, I found this - http://www.britishmuseumshoponline.org/invt/cmcs38200/?ref=searchzone

The Rosetta Stone plain paper notebook. It has a press-stud fastening on the smooth well-made material-wrapped cover with the stone's script printed all over the front and back. The bonus feature of this book is that once the pages are full, the bound sheets can slip out of the cover and be replaced. I may find a lined pad to use inside, although as you'll see tomorrow, I sometimes enjoy the freedom of a blank page!

Whenever we go to the British Museum, I have to wander the Ancient Egyptian room to soak in the atmosphere and energy, and spend a few minutes in front of a certain display, as I love the history of language and the Rosetta Stone. If you've never heard of it, I urge you to Go-Go-Google it, after you've finished here of, of course! (There's also a must need to go visit the Crystal Skull... but that's another story!)

Side note 1: I wish the British Museum offered more notebooks, for an academic institute, you would think it was a 'no-brainer!' Do they think people no longer write? Good job someone wrote in three languages, otherwise the Rosetta Stone would not exist!

Side note 2: Whatever happened to stickers? Up until a few years back, whenever you went into a museum/gallery (etc) gift shop, you would be able to buy a sticker with the name/logo of the place. Sometimes they would say things like "I've been to ___ insert place name here____" Great for scrapbooking! Nowadays - nothing! I even ask, only to have shop assistant blank faces staring back at me. Does anyone else miss these? Just a meandering thought!

The other book isn't really a book. It's a file of to-do list sheets and post-it notes, which was picked up at a bargain price from the forever-giving TK Maxx. I love the home section, and the handbags, and the skincare, and the...

Off the ramble, back on the topic. I love the quotes and the very crafting on-trend look. It's designed by a US company called Pela Studio for http://www.tricoastaldesign.com/ 

I never realised how incredibly useful this was going to turn out to be. I keep it with me, adding to-dos as I go, crossing stuff off as completed. Then adding the still-to-do sheets to my Filofax. The smallest post-its are used to add notes to my diary section, as needed. To be honest, I've been using this more than my Filofax inserted pages. I almost feel that this, along with my diary, would be enough, but I do need more space for expanding writing ideas. This is where the lined pages in the organiser works, or you could just use a separate notebook for that. As I said, I'm changing my own process as I go along. You've got to keep it easy and quick, otherwise you spend all your time organising rather on the job at hand. At the moment, this book does that for most tasks, and it's lasting ages too. I haven't run out of any section yet. (Disclosure: I took the photo not long after I bought it, and it's had a couple of months use since.)

Please pop along tomorrow to read part five, the last instalment, of 'Notable Notebooks' - Used, Loved, Never to be Thrown away. 

Happy Scribing!

Important Notes

1. Please note that I am not connected to any company mentioned in this post. I do not receive any products, funding or gifting from these businesses. All products shown have been bought by me, or gifts from family or friends. I mention the items because I like them or have my own private opinion about them. It's just little old me talking about ma stuff! ;-)

2. If you would like to see more of anything in this series, I'll even tell you about the Crystal Skull experience, or if you have a story about museum stickers, please write a comment below, or 'like' and leave a comment by my Notable Notebooks Instagram photo, letting me know what you would like me to post photos and write about. 

3. If you like what you read, don't forget to bookmark this site, and please share it with your friends. 

4. You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram - @TheCraftyScribe which I update regularly with all things crafty, scribbling, beauty, fashion, the cats, sci-fi, fantasy, and the ephemera of 42*................... *42 = Life, The Universe and Everything!

Notable Notebooks Part 3 of 5 - My Newest Arrivals... (and what's the plural of TARDIS?)

Dear Scribblers

Welcome to today's instalment of 'Notable Notebooks' (Three of Five):

A five day series:

1: My Ultimate Quality Favourites 

2: The Organiser

3: My Newest Arrivals

4: When a Notebook isn't a Notebook

5: Used, Loved, Never to be Thrown away

Please read the important note at the bottom of the page. 

We've covered Smythson and Filofax on the previous two days, please go back and read those if you've just found yourself on my blog today. Now it's time for some of my other notebooks to take a turn in the spotlight. If you are anything like me, as a writer or crafter, you love notebooks and find it difficult to walk pass that siren singing to you from their shop shelf, so I bet you have quite a collection, and many more than are shown here... I know I do! These are just my favourites, either new starlet on the block or much loved celebrity. Here's my latest ones:

If you don't know it yet, you probably will do, as my long term sci-fi and fantasy nerdness often seeps into posts. Yes, I was one of those going to Star Trek conventions in the mid 1990s, before geek was chic. Along with Star Trek and Buffy and Angel and Hercules/Zena and Supernatural and The X-Files and The Walking Dead and The Game of Thrones and The Originals and Agents of Shield and  Supernatural* and... I'd better stop, there's many, many more to add and don't get me started on books and films! Where was I? Oh, yes, along with all of these, my love of the weird began this strange little girl (me!) and an instant fascination of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and... Doctor Who! Of course! So I had to have a T.A.R.D.I.S notebook, didn't I? It's an official BBC product and it's lined with a little T.A.R.D.I.S on the bottom outside corner of each page. I like that it's spiral bound, so you can fold back the cover and write without restrictions. (I like T.A.R.D.I.S's... T.A.R.D.I.Ss... T.A.R.D.I.S'sss... what is the plural? I know it isn't T.A.R.D.I as that would just be Time and Relative Dimension In! Anyway, I like 'em and this book is part of my notebook collection and my slowly budding T.A.R.D.I.S collection - I have 5.)

The dotty book, at the back of the picture, was part of a birthday gift from a lovely friend. It's from Debenhams - the Frost French Floozie range, they make knickers! It reminds me of the size and feel of an old school exercise book. I also like the title on the front, "I keep my secrets hidden."

The last book in the photo is very interesting. I picked it up in an amazing local gift shop, well worth a visit, if you are in the area - https://m.facebook.com/Studio4Gifts I thought it was an old book in the wrong place, but it was me who was wrong! Bound in cloth and gold stamped, it's called 'Wainwright Notebook' and contains endpapers illustrations by Alfred Wainwright (1907 - 1991) who devoted his spare time drawing and writing about his beloved Lake District, and a biography page about his work. The rest of the book is classic cream lined paper, complete with marker ribbon. It feels like a book to journal in, or for writing your own travel memoir. As it looks like a well-loved novel from a vintage bookshop, like an original print of Dracula, Frankenstein, The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Wuthering Heights or The Picture of Dorian Gray. I'm going to use it for a first draft of my own making. If nothing comes from it, at least my writing will appear in one hardback volume. 

Please return again tomorrow to read part four of 'Notable Notebooks' - When a Notebook isn't a Notebook. 

Happy Scribing!

*Yes, I did mean to mention Supernatural twice, and even that isn't enough! ;-)

Important Notes

1. Please note that I am not connected to any company mentioned in this post. I do not receive any products, funding or gifting from these businesses. All products shown have been bought by me, or gifts from family or friends. I mention the items because I like them or have my own private opinion about them. It's just little old me talking about ma stuff! ;-)

2. If you are a glutton for punishment and would like to see the rest of my notebook collection, or anything else in this series, please write a comment below, or 'like' and leave a comment by my Notable Notebooks Instagram photo, letting me know what you would like me to post photos and write about. (I'll even show you my T.A.R.D.I.S'ssss, if you want?)

3. If you like what you read, don't forget to bookmark this site, and please share it with your friends. 

4. You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram - @TheCraftyScribe which I update regularly with all things crafty, scribbling, beauty, fashion, the cats, sci-fi, fantasy, and the ephemera of 42*................... *42 = Life, The Universe and Everything!

Notable Notebooks Part 1 of 5 - My Ultimate Quality Favourites (and a plea to Smythson!)

Dear Scribblers

I think I've said this to you before, nothing really changes, does it?

In my last post, I mentioned the importance of keeping a good notebook beside you. Then I looked to a post way back on 30 June 2011, as part of my 'Favourite Things' series, I discussed my love of Smythson notebooks and stationery - 

http://thecraftyscribe.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/my-favourite-things-part-3-project-of.html

I still feel the same now. Please, welcome to my new short series 'Notable Notebooks' (One of Five):

Over the next five days, the series will include:

1: My Ultimate Quality Favourites 

2: The Organiser

3: My Newest Arrivals

4: When a Notebook isn't a Notebook

5: Used, Loved, Never to be Thrown away

Please read the important note at the bottom of the post. 

There's nothing like the sensation of a great quality notebook, and I find, for me, that no-one comes close to Smythson -  http://www.smythson.com/

These leather bound books, with the smooth pages that let your pen glide with ease, makes writing a pleasure. I especially adore the feather-weight pale blue papers. They may be a little pricey, but you can start with a wafer notebook for £35 (even for less, if you can find an outlet price, such as their store at Bicester Village, or their on-line New Year sale), but be warned, once you have one, they become addictive! 

Over the years, I've used two lockable journals (please bring back the red version with the flat gold lock, Smythson. Please? Please?!), Runway 11.5x13.5cm tuck fastening black notebook (yet to fill), a number of Panama 9x14cm and Wafer 7x10.5cm notebooks (I always write my poetry in the wafer books, I don't know why, it just feels 'right' http://555poet.blogspot.co.uk/), a featherweight replaceable pad in leather cover and little silver pen (which makes me feel like a Film Noir Detective!), along with my yearly diary, A4 pads (white lined pages) and something of a find, this year, the blue featherweight lined notepapers in Duke size which fit my A5 Filofax. 

For those who love their organisers, this may be your way in to try Smythson stationery. You get 25 sheets for £10, which I think is quite reasonable for the quality - an affordable luxury. As I said, I've found that their Dukes size fits the A5 rings (paper size 15x21cm). So, I'm thinking that their Bond Street refills may fit the Personal size (paper size 9.5x17cm), there's also a smaller size (paper size 8x12.5cm - I've checked on the UK in-line store, diary refills are in stock, but the notepaper isn't at the present time) called the Bijou, which I think may be the Pocket size, but please don't quite me on that as I haven't tried them. 

Most of these have been birthday/Christmas/special presents from my hubby - he knows me well!

Please come back tomorrow and see the next instalment of 'Notable Notebooks' - The Organiser. 

Happy Scribing!

Important Notes

1. Please note that I am not connected to any company mentioned in this post. I do not receive any products, funding or gifting from these businesses. All products shown have been bought by me, or gifts from family or friends. I mention the items because I like them or have my own private opinion about them. It's just little old me talking about ma stuff! ;-)

2. If you would like to see a more in depth look into the individual Smythson notebooks, or the diaries and books I've used in the past, or anything else in this series, please write a comment below, or 'like' and leave a comment by my Notable Notebooks Instagram photo, letting me know what you would like me to post photos and write about. 

3. If you like what you read, don't forget to bookmark this site, and please share it with your friends. 

4. You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram - @TheCraftyScribe which I update regularly with all things crafty, scribbling, beauty, fashion, the cats, sci-fi, fantasy, and the ephemera of 42*................... *42 = Life, The Universe and Everything!

The Crafty Scribe Communique - Smythson Diaries

Communiqué - News Flash - Communiqué 

Dear Scribblers

It’s that time again, when you begin to think about Christmas (or the Winter festival you celebrate) and of course, New Year.

2010 - A brand new decade!

Why not treat yourself to a new diary? In my opinion, the top purveyor of fine leather diaries is: Smythson of Bond Street

I have been lucky enough to own their exquisite notebooks, stationery items and of course, for a couple of years, their diaries. There are many sizes, page formats and colours available. Even diaries for specialist subjects such as; travel, art and sports, or organiser pages for the methodical amongst you.

My favourite diaries are the Bijou Soho, Bijou Portobello and Fashion varieties - they all contain sizeable notes sections which are perfect for the out-and-about scribbler. I also love the personalisation - there’s nothing like a bound leather diary with your name on.

Try the Smythson Diary Selector which will match you to your perfect diary.

For further information, check them out! Their diaries range from £25 to £250+, but the quality is outstanding. Once you have a Smythson diary, you'll never want anything else.  I know that the red Bijou Soho diary with slide closure will, once again, be on the top of my Santa’s wish list this year.

Happy Scribing!

Communique Ends - Communique Ends

Coming Soon - Part Three of Harnessing Your Alternative Computer Programmes for use in Journalling and Scrapbooking - Using Your Regular Word Processing Software in New Ways.

Crafty Scribe Communiqué - Make Journalling Easier

Communiqué - News Flash - Communiqué - News Flash

Dear Scribblers

Do you often come to journal on your scrapbook layout, or write in your diary, and realise that you can’t remember the details?

Does someone say something funny, and you want to use it in your journalling or as your title, but by the time you get around to putting pen to paper, you’ve completely forgotten what was said?

If you answer yes to either of these questions, you need to carry a notebook.

Here’s some ideas to get you started:

1. Will your notebook be electronic or paper based? Are you a tactile pen type of a person? Or do you like to use screens?
   • Also are you happy to been seen sitting are writing pad and pencil style? Or would you prefer to disguise your writing by tapping away at keys?
2. How do you normally carry your ‘stuff’ around on a daily basis? In a handbag? In a briefcase? In your pockets? This will help decide on the size, and format?
3. Do you have space for a separate item, or will you utilise your existing products?
   • There are a number of items you probably already use daily which you can use to jot down your ideas.
   • Phone - Maybe your phone has a notes function; this is a pretty standard feature on most phones now. You could also send yourself a text message with the info. Or use your email account - that way your note will be sitting on your computer ready to use. You could even leave yourself a phone message with the information, and then write it down later when you have more time.
   • Diary - Write your note on the actual day as a way of recording events chronologically, or within the notes section. Maybe this will influence you when you buy your new 2010 diary.
   • Existing Notebooks - One place for all your thoughts and to-do’s.
   • MP3 Players - Some music players have a recording facility, ready to take your voice notes.
   • Laptops/Netbooks - Speak for themselves!
   • Dictaphone - There are many cheap and cheerful Dictaphones available, for you to slip into your pocket or handbag, out in the marketplace. Take a look, this may be the perfect way for you to keep notes.
   • Apps - iPhone & Google apps a-plenty to keep notes.
   • Internet or Specialist software - There are a number of sites which provide space to keep notes/voice messages/to-do lists - browse around and find out.

Or are you a traditionalist? Do you want to keep one notebook to use specifically for your journalling thoughts?

You can either buy a specific pad, such as; Creative Imaginations - Journaler’s Notebook (which I sometimes use) or Making Mermories - Spiral Journaling Notebook, part of their Noteworthy Collection.

Or create your own - take a blank notebook of your choice (think about binding, un/lined paper, size) and decorate it! Get crafty.


Communiqué Project for Today: Start to carry around your preferred method of keeping journalling notes, and teach yourself to write down whenever something useful comes your way. You’ll be surprised how quickly this will become a habit.

Happy Scribing!

End of Communique - End of Communique - End of Communique


Next - Part Three of Harnessing Your Alternative Computer Programmes for use in Journalling and Scrapbooking - Using Your Regular Word Processing Software in New Ways.