I stopped at Kinokuniya on my way to Philadelphia last weekend, and got a Hobonichi Cousin (A6, about 5x8 in) and a Day-Free Techo (A5, about 4x6in) for next year.
The books use the same paper. Tomoe River paper looks and feels almost like onionskin paper — which makes page-a-day planners not bulky — but it’s surprisingly durable and fountain pen friendly. Here’s some more information. People tend to love or hate Tomoe River paper — many online stores sell sample pages so that you can try before you commit to something more substantial.
I’ve been a Techo user for a long time. I don’t use my Techo as a journal — I have a totally different system for that — but I do need a place to write down reminders and important info.
The Cousin is for the day job. I started using a Cousin for that because I had to keep a fairly detailed account of my last project. Now, I like having the space for note-taking and thinking on paper. And maybe my next project will need detailed tracking again.
Even though Tomoe River paper is fountain pen friendly, I tend to use other types of pens for the Cousin. I think it’s because I’m often in a position at work where I'm listening, then I realize I need to start writing, and it’s just easier to grab something from a cup on my desk.
Anyway, when I got home from Philly, I decided it was time to take a hard look in that cup on my desk from a Tomoe River perspective. I wrote the name of the pen, counted to five out loud, and then dragged my finger across the text. Here are the results:
Sarasa Dry: Didn’t surprise me — it’s JetPens’s top recommendation for gel pens in a Hobonichi.
Pharma conference swag pen: Ballpoint, so no surprise there. I tend to press down when I write, so I usually avoid ballpoints.
Sharpie S-Gel: It really is impressive overall! I’m still getting used to Sharpie non-permanent pens not sucking anymore!
Pilot Razor Point: Of course, this makes me a little sad.
Uniball Signo: Biggest surprise of the experiment, because I don’t think of Uniball pens as particularly juicy.
Pilot G-2 Limited: Something I have noticed lately about G-2s is that age and level of maintenance are important. More on this in a minute.
Sakura: I have no idea where I got this pen or what it is. Further investigation needed.
Zebra Tapli: Fail due to fits and starts, but goes into my “pens with emotional attachment” drawer. (Note to self: future entries here could definitely come from that drawer.)
PaperMate InkJoy: As a lefty, I have a long-standing grudge against PaperMate. In the 20th century even their non-erasable ballpoints were smudgy AF. I had entire blue hands from them, and used to stamp-doodle on my notes in class all the time. All of that said: I know the smudge here is from my finger, and not the InkJoy. It stays in the cup, but I need to work out my PaperMate issues.
Uniball Signo in a cool color: Dammit! What the hell, Uniball?
Regular Pilot G-2: I’m a fan, but possibly unpopular opinion: As G-2s age, especially the disposable ones, they get finicky.
Pilot envelope addressing pen that’s basically doomed: Discontinued. I love bold juicy pens and there aren’t many in this genre, so I hoarded when I heard that was coming. But it’s not for Tomoe River paper, that’s for sure.
Pilot B2P: I always forget how much I like this one, which has been around for more than a decade! It’s a G-2 that’s made from recycled plastic bottles and designed to look like them. To me, the B2P looks and feels bigger and yet lighter than the standard G-2. I don’t know if it’s still available in lots of colors, but I have blue, green, and pink around here somewhere.
Until next time!
P.S. Now thinking about my emotional attachment pen drawer. Hmmm.
P.P.S. I also bought a 6mm Pilot Parallel pen, but very quickly found out what NOT to do with it. More on that at some point, I’m sure.