My Daily Desk Set (January 2021)

In the before times, we all had an EDC (every day carry). Those few pens and notebooks that we had to have with us. As we move around less in the pandemic era, many of us are working from home and no longer carrying anything anywhere. So today I’m going to tell you about my EDDS (every day desk set). These are the pens and notebooks I can’t do without right now.

From left to right: TWSBI Eco, M Nib; TWSBI Eco Rose Gold, F Nib; Caran D’Ache 849, F nib; Vanness Exclusive Pocket 45 from Franklin Christoph, F Nib

Let’s start with the pens and inks!

TWSBI Eco, M Nib and TWSBI Eco Rose Gold, F Nib

I’m grouping these two together because with the exception of aesthetics, they’re both the same pen. TWSBIs aren’t the most elegant or the most refined, and they don’t have the precision nibs of Sailors. What they do have going for them is that the write every single time. Whether I wrote with them yesterday, or 6 weeks ago, every time I pick up my TWSBIs they’re ready to write. This makes them tops in my desk set, because when I’m on a phone call and need to jot a note down, I don’t want a pen that is a little dry and doesn’t start. Add in that I feel safe putting any ink in them, they’re sturdy and can take a bit of a beating, and I can see exactly how much ink I’ve got left and I love ’em. My clear one is inked with Robert Oster Fire & Ice (from recent Christmas card addressing!) and my Rose Gold is inked with Lamy Vibrant Pink.

Caran D’Ache 849, F Nib

This pen is actually one of the few purchases I made in 2020 and is the newest to the crew so it’s hanging out on my desk. Yes it’s really this bright – I needed something cheerful! I didn’t bother with a converter when I got it, just played cartridge roulette (remember all those random cartridges you have? The ones you throw in a random container? Pick one!) and got going. This one is a quick writer, has a fun snap cap (oh the fidgeting) and can store an extra cartridge in the barrel so you never run out of ink.

Vanness Limited Edition Pocket 45 from Franklin Christoph

This one might be my favorite pen in my entire collection, at least for the joy I get from  writing with it. Like the TWSBIs it is always ready to go as a writer. And between the Jim Rouse nib that was expertly tuned and smoothed by Audrey Matteson, it writes like butter. I went with a darker shade of green for this one – so far I’ve stuck with Colorverse Morningstar since I got the pen.

Notebooks:

I’ve also got a stack of notebooks that I’m using. For the post part, I’ve decided that I like spiral bound the best. I love being able to lay the notebook completely flat, and the spiral keeps things tidy and easy for me to flip between pages. From top to bottom my current notebooks are:

• • Leuchetturm 1917 A6 Dot Grid in a Coal Creek Bainbridge A6 Leather Cover – This notebook carries all my knitting design ideas. Perfect to jot down a quick not.
  • Story Supply Co. Ithaca – This holds all my work notes that I want to keep for future reference. Notes I take at seminars or professional development, procedures I want to document so I don’t forget them, etc. This notebook I’ll be keeping even when it’s full.
  • Write Notepads Dot Steno Notebook, A5 – This one holds all the work notes that I don’t need to keep forever. It’s my notes from phone calls, team meetings, to-dos that I need to add to my calendar, etc. Eventually, when it’s full I’ll throw it away, but it’s still useful to refer to at various time
  • 2021 Year of the Optimist Planner – I wrote about this one last week, so you can find more info and links in that post.

So that’s it for my daily desk set for January of 2021. What are your favorites right now? Do you still do an EDC?

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DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided to us free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.