November 5th has been known since 2012 to many fountain pen enthusiasts as "Fountain Pen Day", a worldwide event that celebrates something most lay people would consider "old fashioned", but is still a preferred way by pen and paper lovers to write by hand, myself included. I drew a little greeting message for you all using the Rhodia Classic Notepad, Schneider Vivaz Fountain Pen, and Herbin Demonstrator. The inks used were the Herbin Eclat de Saphir, Lierre Sauvage, Perle Noir, and Jacques Herbin Bleu de Minuit, all available on our website.
I will go more into depth in a separate blog post and video review of these two fountain pens, but I did enjoy sketching with them both. They both have medium nibs and the cartridges were easy to insert and use. However, the Jacques Herbin Bleu de Minuit cartridges were rather long and unfortunately, I couldn't use them in the Vivaz or Demonstrator pens. It did work perfectly inside my Schneider Opus Pen we used to carry on the website, but sadly, is no longer available. I would keep that in mind that if you have a pen with a shorter barrel, the Herbin Tin of 6 are the way to go.
The Vivaz is a good affordable option priced at $5.90 if you're new to fountain pens and need a starter model that won't break the bank. I like to match my inks to the color of the clip and body of the pen if I can. For example, the Lemon Lime I used with the Lierre Sauvage (Wild Ivy) cartridge. That just made it more fun to use, matching colors in this way. However, if that isn't the case, the classic Perle Noire (Black) or Eclat de Saphir (Blue) did the job. The nib was a tad scratchy since it's made of steel, but I got used to writing with it after some practice.
The second pen I used was the Herbin Demonstrator, which is what clear, see-through fountain pens are referred to as. Compared to the Vivaz, it has a little bit higher price point at $17.00, but I would also recommend it as another good starter fountain pen. I liked that I could see the ink flowing into the nib as opposed to the Vivaz and the pen seemed to write a little smoother and was more comfortable to hold in the hand. It's small, but mighty! I will definitely be using this baby to write with on a daily basis. It was my first time really writing with a demonstrator and I found I really enjoyed writing with this type of pen.
Anyone who knows about this awesome day to celebrate all things fountain pen related with inky fingers (like I got! Lol), I hope you had a great time writing with your favorites today! If you don't know yet about Fountain Pen Day, you can visit the official website at http://www.fountainpenday.com/
But of course, here at Vegas Fine Pens and Gifts, "Fountain Pen Day" is everyday!