Links From Ice Cream to Mickey to Coffee

Set aside some time for the Besties link. It’s a real charmer. But the true gem is the last one. Sam has found his “voice” and its a pleasure to read writing so well written and full of joy.

• Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson has a pen collection (h/t Edison Pen Company)
• Ice cream goes on a crazy streak this summer
• Munson Pens: Mickey Mouse Fountain Pens (h/t HisNibs.com)
• FPGeeks: Ink Reviews of Diamine Ochre and Sargasso Sea
• Real Simple: What to Say in Awkward Social Situations
• Not for fountain pens but Winsor & Newton has released A Precious Ink to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee!
• Besties!
• Lifehacker: How to Make Coffee with Minimal Equipment and Maintenance
• Sam Neill, one of my favorite bloggers, writes with unabashed enthusiasm.

Musings From The Bird Gossip

Wow, did I get sidetracked today. Beth called my bird-related musings “bird gossip” and I just had to run with it. In fact I like it so well I’ve added it as a category so bird lovers can find those posts easily.

To bring you up to date, the mockingbird hasn’t menaced me in a week though I am told one or two continue to perch on nearby utility wires. The Anna’s Hummingbirds have relocated to the backyard but a Pacific-slope flycatcher has moved into their former digs, a camellia tree that brushes against my kitchen window. I miss the hummers but the calm presence of the less flighty new resident is a worthy replacement. He is more difficult to spot even at close quarters. That lovely, soft green is nearly indistinguishable from the camellia leaves, the perfect camouflage against any predators. He is quite the clever fellow for finding such an ideal home.

Yesterday a robin serenaded us from the patio and was quite miffed when he spied me listening through the french doors. The acoustics of the 3/4 enclosed space are wonderful as we’ve learned over the past several years when Mourning Doves nested there. I hope the robin returns soon for another concert.

Mid-afternoon is nap time but around 5:00 or so the finches and sparrows chime together reminding us life is good and we should take time for some joy when the day’s work is done.

But that does make me wonder. Since they are so chatty, do they gossip about us, too?

Musicians Pen Collection From Acme Studio

ACME’s June Pen(s) of the Month: Musicians Collection by Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, and Lenny White!

Inkophile Is Four Years Old!

Gobsmacked? I sure am. Where did the time go? To put things in perspective, that’s 426 posts, 1,995 comments, 54,789 spam comments, and 461,175 views. That last statistic is yours. Thanks for hanging out with me.

Inkophile has become an integral part my daily life along with Twitter, Google+, and new this month, Pinterest. Social media is fine but writing about ink and pens is reserved for my blog. There are always unfinished posts awaiting tweaks and additional content. Some subjects take months while others spring up fully formed. Hey, if the muse strikes, who am I to decline its offer?

Playing with pens and inks as well as writing about them are only two aspects of what makes maintaining this blog interesting. The final ingredients are the readers and what interests them. So tell me what you want and I’ll see what I can put together for you. I’m listening…

Watercolor Travel Sets for Sale

Are you interested in painting with watercolors? Now that it’s summer and vacation season in the U.S., one of my unused travel sets might be just the thing to get you painting on the road.

• W&N Cotman Compact Set – 14 half-pan set filled with student grade paint. Cardboard sleeve is a little warn at corners. $20
• Rembrandt Luxury Pocket Box – 12 half-pan set in a plastic case with five mixing areas and a sable brush. $50
• W&N Artists’ Water Colour – The Bijou Box – 8 half-pan set of artist grade paints that can hold up to 12 half-pans. Additional pans can be found at a variety of online sources. This kit includes a sable pocket brush. Cardboard sleeve is worn but intact. The tin is smaller than a large Altoids box and definitely pocket-sized. The Bijou is the most sought after kit in this group. It is rarely available in the U. S.although I did see one for around $90 two weeks ago. $65
• Schmincke Horadam Finest Artists’ Watercolours – 12 half-pan set with DaVinci #5 travel brush. Daniel Smith now has an exclusive on this set at $125 but not sure it includes the brush. Retail for the paint and brush would be at least $111 though I don’t know if the half-pans are available in the U.S. Pegasus has the empty box for $29 but that’s UK shipping. Not as keen to sell this one but will consider offers.
• Japanese Brush Set in a cardboard box – 6 colors with a black pen and a water brush. This is not a travel set but it is small. The pans are large and not glued to a backing though some of the paint has cracked. They could be attached to a suitable metal box like an old watercolor tin if you like this sort of paint and want it for travel. On hold.

U.S. buyers only. Add $5 shipping via USPS Priority Mail. If you want two sets and they will fit in the same box, there will be no extra charge. If a larger box is needed, then shipping will be at cost. Additional insurance will be at cost as well. Buyer assumes all risk for uninsured items.

If interested send email to inkophile*at*gmail.com or post a comment. I moderate those and will reply privately so your info will not be made public.

Update: Schmincke half-pans are available in the US at Wet Paint Art, NY Central Art Supply, and The Fine Art Store.

Da Vinci, Sir Isaac Newton, and Underpants Get Linked

Sometimes you’ve just got to let things go where they will…

• BBC News: Why are fountain pen sales rising?
• How EU farming policies led to a collapse in Europe’s bird population
• What if Leonardo da Vinci designed the Large Hadron Collider?
• German teen solves 300-year-old mathematical riddle posed by Sir Isaac Newton
• Underpants Candy is as Essential as a Clean Pair of Skivvies
• 5-minute film was made in 48 hours, and tells a better story than most features
• BBC News: ‘Extinct’ short-haired bumblebee returns to UK

There Is A Bully Outside My Window

In the guise of a bully, a mockingbird is scaring away my avian neighbors, the hummingbirds, finches, and sparrows. For two weeks this drama has played out turning my formerly peaceful yard into a combat zone.

Today the puff-chested, terrier wannabe had the nerve to posture and flick his tail at me. Silly bird tried to send me scurrying from my kitchen window. How cheeky of him!

The crows just ignore the mockingbird, even when challenged over food. It seems to be the only effective strategy although there is no doubt who would win at hand to hand combat. Hopefully, the super-sized crow, a massive guy who is at least 1/3 larger than the average crow, gets disgusted with the pest and chases him off. Then the smaller birds can return to the bounty in my yard and delight the neighborhood with their antics. If not, it will be a very long, very quiet summer.

Sunday Morning Links

It’s a glorious Sunday so grab a nice cuppa and enjoy a few fresh, hot links…

• The Delahaye Type 165 (h/t Chris Meisenzahl)
• The future of writing? The Boogie Board (h/t Nathan Fillion)
• Montblanc Writing Instruments Auction (h/t hisnibs.com)
• io9: The physics of wine bottle opening
• Louis Vuitton to Expand Into Stationery
• Eight Surprising Secrets About Your Credit Card
• How the Professor Who Fooled Wikipedia Got Caught by Reddit
• Provençal Granola
• Mattias and the artist’s table
• Jet Pens: Brush Pen Use for Celebrations and Condolences in Japan
• Engineer thinks we could build a real starship enterprise in 20 years
• The Perfect Robin’s Egg Blue Paint Color
• Gentian has incredible patience to draw in such detail

Confessions of a Color Addict

Time to ‘fess up. Color is my weakness especially when it comes to the liquid applied to paper variety. Fountain pen ink and watercolor paint not only grab my interest but keep it glued to their gorgeous hues. If only I could make a living working with them or creating them or anything that would keep us close, I would be thrilled.

Last weekend was the perfect example of what happens when I let my addiction run amok. Despite a number of interruptions, I spent nearly an entire day working with swatches, catalogs, samples, tubes and bottles as well as color theory and new palette combinations. Not such a big deal on a weekend but it is easy despite pressing matters to get lost for a weekday evening the same way. Addictions are like that.

A Summer Palette of Inks
Swabs of Diamine Sepia, Diamine Maroon, Caran d’Ache Caribbean Sea, Diamine Royal Blue, and Sailor Gray

Admittedly ink attracts me in a different way than watercolor for ink needs no alteration. Straight from the bottle and plied with a pen, its best qualities come to light. Not that watercolor doesn’t look beautiful directly from a pan or tube, but it is made for mixing. A simple palette of three colors, red, blue, and yellow, can produce a rainbow of hues. Bump that up to a dozen colors and the sky’s the limit.

Five tube colors produced these results and that from a rank novice to be sure.

Watercolor Palette Derived From Five Colors
Cheap Joe’s American Journey Cadmium Yellow Light, Indian Red, Ultramarine Blue, Raw Sienna, and Burnt Umber across the top with mixes below.

There is no help for this addiction but I should like to put it to better use. I’m open to suggestions…

Oh, have you an interest in watercolor? I have a few unused travel sets to sell now that I’ve moved on to creating my own kits with tube paints and old paint boxes. Contact me at inkophile*at*gmail.com for more info.

See also Glorious Color from Inkophile on Pinterest.

Someone Has Taken My Name “In Vein”

It’s not every day that I find something like this even in the vast online world. All I can say is “ugh” but you might like it.