Archive for April, 2010

More hand-drawn maps

Posted April 30, 2010 by
in Beautiful Creations, Cabinet of Curiosities, Pens, Paper & People | 1 comment »

Image via Matt From London

What makes hand-drawn maps so cool? A recent article in Slate talks about them not in terms of quirkiness or beauty, but efficiency:

The crucial advantage of the handmade map is that it is designed for a particular person confronting a particular task… the minimal amount of information makes for a map that’s easier to use than one that’s cluttered with detail.

The Slate piece features plenty of interesting maps that were submitted by readers, and there are a few others in an earlier article that’s part of a larger series about signs. If you want to dive deeper into the subject, check out the online archives of the Hand Drawn Map Association (HDMA). Unsurprisingly, there’s also a lot of great stuff on Flickr.

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Rouge Hematite: Ink, blood, and sailors

Posted April 29, 2010 by
in Cabinet of Curiosities, Pens, Paper & People | 3 comments »

Image via Biffybeans

As I mentioned yesterday, the word “hematite” is derived from the Greek word for “blood,” which matches the earthy red tones of J. Herbin’s new anniversary ink.

It also points to some nautical associations: according to legend, sailors wrote with blood whenever ink was not available. I can’t seem to find any further information about this idea (the words “ink” and “blood” and “sailors” turn up a lot of stuff about tattoos; there’s also Sailor brand ink), but perhaps others have heard of it?

J. Herbin was a sailor — according to the Herbin website, he brought back new formulas for sealing wax from his many trips to India, and made ink for Louis XIV. The drawings that adorn the Rouge Hematite box were inspired by his life:

• The ship, anchor, and palm tree stand for navigation and discovery
• The crown is a reference to the red sealing wax that was used in correspondence with the royal courts in Europe

Interesting stuff, eh?

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The inspiration behind J. Herbin’s Rouge Hematite

Posted April 28, 2010 by
in Announcements, Pens, Paper & People | 3 comments »

I had the privilege recently of asking Laurent Nusse, CEO of J. Herbin, a couple of questions via email about Rouge Hematite, the much-heralded red ink that was created to mark the company’s 340th anniversary.

Why red? Blue is the most common color, but Laurent said the company felt it was too conventional for an anniversary ink. They asked a few customers what colors would interest them, and a lot of people mentioned red; since Herbin’s original logo is red, the choice seemed obvious.

Why the name “hematite”? Hematite is a mineral that can be red, and the word is derived from the Greek word for “blood.” Since the ink has a dark red earth tone, Herbin felt that it matched the hematite association.

What’s up with the wax on the cap? It’s reminiscent of the way French grand crus are packaged, where sealing wax proves the authenticity and origin of the wine. Speaking of which, I should note that the company is apparently working on a new cap that’s sealed with stronger wax. (The 300 bottles we currently have in stock all have the old, fragile wax that’s been frustrating users and reviewers, unfortunately. UPDATE: The new bottles should be available in June.)

More lore and information to come…

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The Exaclair Writers’ Project

Posted April 27, 2010 by
in Announcements, Beautiful Creations | 2 comments »

Exciting news this morning: We’ve just launched a new feature on the website of our parent company, Exaclair, to celebrate writing, creativity, and the tools and minds that make it all possible.

Called the Writers’ Project, it includes interviews with authors from around the world who share tips and techniques and talk about their latest projects. Australian author Damon Young is our inaugural feature; visit the Writers’ Project homepage to learn more about Damon’s writing habits, his new book, Distraction, and the “tangible, intimate quality to the marriage of pen, ink and paper.”

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Eco-friendly GLO pens

Posted April 22, 2010 by
in Pens, Paper & People | 2 comments »

I made an impulse purchase the other day at a store in Chelsea Market: a $2 ballpoint “GLO” pen. GLO stands for “Global Learning Outreach,” and sales proceeds help fund student scholarships and educational grants (learn more on the Project GLO website).

I’ve never been a huge fan of ballpoint pens, but these ones are pretty cool. They’re made from biodegradable paper and “corn plastic,” which apparently takes 65% less energy to produce and can be composted, incinerated, or recycled. Performance is as you’d expect — no better or worse than a Bic — and of course you’re also contributing to a very worthy cause.

Given, as I recently discovered, that 6 billion pens are thrown out in the US each year, it seems like a good investment. If you’re interested, you can buy one online, or see if there are any local retailers near where you live.

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New features, and an RSS question

Posted April 20, 2010 by
in Announcements | 1 comment »

You may have already noticed that this blog’s got a brand new look (thanks, April!). It’s also got some nifty new features: new categories, a new word cloud, a new list of our most popular posts… From a usability perspective, there’s also a new plugin that enables you to edit any comments you post, provided that:

• It’s within a certain time frame (around 30 minutes), and
• You are still at the same IP address.

Last but not least, there’s a new RSS feed that’s just for comments, which makes me wonder… Currently, the comments RSS signs you up for all comments that are posted to the site. Would it be more useful to have an(other) RSS feed for the comments to individual posts? If so, please let us know, and we will implement one!

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Notebooks and professional development

Posted April 19, 2010 by
in Pens, Paper & People, Planning Tips | 2 comments »

Here’s another idea from our friend Greg Davis that should work for non-attorneys, too:

I’ve started using the Habana Notebooks for various journal type duties. I have one for all my notes about the jury trials I’ve done — keeping track of the good things, or bad things for each trial, what happened and what mistakes I made that I never want to repeat.

It reminded me of Diane’s guest post about keeping track of what she does at work each month… In any case, it sounds like a very good way to keep yourself inspired and find ways to improve!

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Agatha Christie’s notebooks

Posted April 16, 2010 by
in Beautiful Creations, Pens, Paper & People | Add your comment »

Agatha Christie, disorganized writer — who knew? According to an article on Slate, a newly discovered stash of notebooks reveals the “utter derangement” in her method:

Her less-than-refined writerly day began with finding her notebook, which surely she’d left right there. Then, having found a notebook (not the one she’d used yesterday), and staring in stunned amazement at the illegible chicken scratchings therein, she would finally settle down to jab at elusive characters and oil creaky plots.

At any one time, Christie would have half a dozen notebooks going … [her] promiscuous note-taking meant that any one novel or play might be distributed over multiple notebooks and many, many years.

To learn more about the notebooks, check out John Curran’s newly published book, Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks: Fifty Years of Mysteries in the Making.

Image via.

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Do you stand or sit when you write?

Posted April 15, 2010 by
in Editorial, Pens, Paper & People | 4 comments »

There are a lot of things I enjoyed about that Lapham’s Quarterly chart I blogged about last week — for instance, the discovery that Victor Hugo fought procrastination by giving his clothes to a valet and telling him not to return them until he’d finished writing.

Another point that got me thinking was the fact that several authors wrote while standing up. Ernest Hemingway stood at his desk, Thomas Wolfe used the top of his refrigerator, and Emily Dickinson and Wallace Stevens composed poetry while doing chores and walking. And then there’s Jonathan Lethem, who’s jury-rigged a system that involves a treadmill and a cordless keyboard.

I have a normal desk and can’t imagine replacing it, but if I had some extra space I would love to get some sort of supplementary stand-up system… What do you think? Do you write standing up, or want to?

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User review: Lauren on the Habana

Posted April 14, 2010 by
in Product Reviews | 2 comments »

Lauren from Prescott, Arizona took one of our large Habanas for a test drive recently; here’s what she had to say…

I’ve developed a true respect and affection for this notebook. I use it to record my textiles activity: ongoing projects, lists, dreams, materials, reference charts, etc. It’s a perfect size to throw into any type of project bag (or handbag). The construction feels ballistic solid: I imagine it will last the years it will take me to fill the journal, and that it will look as new when that time comes as it did when it arrived last November. The elastic piece that keeps the journal closed is perfect.

I use the blank pages in the front to write up reference charts, the pocket in the back for miscellaneous patterns. The Clairefontaine paper is delightful. I write mostly with a mechanical pencil or fountain pen on the paper, and both look great and hold up like new. The paper is beautiful, smooth, and accommodating. The bookmark perfect for setting the place where I’m working. (Does make me dream of a notebook with a few, different colored bookmarks! :)

Thank you so much for this wonderful notebook! It’s truly a delight. Inspirational. Practical. I’m fantasizing about one for each category of my life! (And a larger one for each of the smaller ones. :)

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