Creamy Blog

08/07/2023:

I've got some equipment! Jacobs chuck, CA glue and accelerant, etc..... and my carbide cutters! What I don't have, and it turns out is difficult to procure from Teknatool, the maker of Nova lathes, is the damned lathe. 

Once I have the lathe, I should be good to actually start breaking some stuff on my way to making crappy stuff on my way to making good-looking stuff! Just have to be patient while I wait for the delivery and hope I can bribe the delivery guys to help me carry the damn thing to the workshop!

07/21/2023:

Jumping the gun a little bit, but I have a name for my workshop as well as a simple logo. 

Taking inspiration from Jason  and Brad of 'As the Pen Turns', I decided to start my workshop with a central idea before setting tool to wood. 

I want to create pens that properly balance subtle designs with tasteful flair and high attention to minute detail. Proper textures, dimensions, and transitions between segments matter a great deal. Pens are tactile instruments and should feel as good as they look.  Aesthetics are incredibly important, but if it does not feel right in the hand, the whole design suffers and ends up taking space in a desk drawer.  I want to design, experiment, execute, iterate,  and repeat with every material, every thread, and every chamfered edge. 

Looking forward to getting started!

07/16/2023:

Welp. Finally taking the plunge... I've officially lost my damn mind.

I have been tinkering with the idea of making my own pens for a while now. I feel as though I have gotten to a comfortable enough place where I know what I like in a pen. I have also convinced myself (hopefully not delusionally) that I have the creativity, drive, and resources to build a workshop to bring some of the ideas that I have bouncing around in my skull to life. I plan on focusing on bespoke creations right off the bat by focusing on the basics of turning on a lathe and finding my way through the resources available here in Seattle and of course the community.

One of the main itches that I am dying to scratch is the answer to the question, "Why won't Pilot make the Custom 912 in a color other than black, special editions notwithstanding?!"

It's a great pen. It's well-refined with Pilot's well-known attention to detail, a beautiful nib that performs wonderfully in a variety of sizes/grinds, and a classic shape that seems to be JUST the right size.  It could, in my opinion, be a Pro Gear-killer if given "The Treatment." I want to give it "The Treatment."

I also use a Pilot G2 almost every day, but I would love a wood or acrylic body that is really 'premium.' There are plenty of machined bodies out there, but I want to go all-out with some really beautiful materials and eventually foray into inlays as well.

I'll be using this space to track my progress in my journey. I don't even have a lathe. But I have a workspace, a little funding, and a loving, supportive wife. So let's see where this goes!