Thoughts on the Bic Cristal

There has been some chatter lately about the Bic Cristal, from Brad at The Pen Addict to the Erasable Podcast (I can't remember which episode, so if you know it, let me know!) to a Facebook group entirely devoted to this modest ballpoint pen.  And, at $1.59 for a pack of ten, I didn't have a good excuse to not see what all the fuss was about.

View fullsize

I hate to say it, but I just don't love the Cristal.  Don't get me wrong, I want to soooo bad.  The Cristal has been described as "the pencil of pens" and I 100% agree.  It's simple, it's cheap, it works without being fiddly.  

But for me, the Cristal has no joy.  The colors are a bit washed out and sad and the body feels cheap (hey, it is cheap!).  While I am pretty sure that the Cristal is water resistant, my prior ink testing experience showed that a Bic Roundstic did not hold up well to sunlight, so I hesitate to use something like this for anything where permanence is key.

If you are looking for a way to spend less than $2, have a handful of pens that will be really reliable and not require further thought, go get you some Cristals.  But for me, I need a bit more joy in my writing than this pen can provide.

Felt tip face-off: Sharpie Pen vs. Sakura Pigma Micron

I have recently discovered a strong fondness for felt tipped pens.  They seem to give me a lot of the things I like about pencils in terms of how they feel on paper, but with the convenience of a pen (no sharpening or smearing, consistent tip size, and an array of color options).  I have the luxury of an art supply store on campus that sells singles of a wide variety of pens, so I thought that I would do some comparisons and start off with two of my favorites - the Sharpie Pen and the Sakura Pigma Micron.  These are two great pens that really set the bar for what a felt tipped pen should be.

View fullsize

Sharpie Pen
Things I like:

• Pretty inexpensive
• Very water and light resistant (see tests here for light resistance)
• Of the two, this pen is the more comfortable to hold
• Tip seems finer/able to resist mushing better
• Dries quickly
• Fairly mainstream

Things I don't like:

• Ink seems like a "light black" 

View fullsize

Pigma Micron
Things I like:

• Truly black ink
• Color variety is better
• Wide range of tip sizes
• Metal clip can be adjusted, to a point
• Water resistant and would assume light resistant as well

Things I don't like:

• Slightly harder to find in normal stores and slightly more expensive
• Lots of sharp edges and short section
• Body color scheme is drab

View fullsize

I have a really hard time picking a clear winner between these two.  I wish I could mix the body of the Sharpie with the ink of the Micron - that would probably be my perfect felt pen.  Until then, I reach for them both equally and the difference in cost is so slight that it will not affect my purchasing habits.  If all you have available is big-box retailers, I would highly recommend the Sharpie and I doubt you will find yourself unhappy with it.  But, if you have an art supplier nearby, give a Micron a try - maybe for you there will be a clear winner but for me, there's room at the top for two.

Tiny review - Blackwing 725

I'm a big fan of the Blackwing Pearl, so I also like the 725. Except that mine looks like someone bit it, so I don't know what happened there... Paper used is a Story Supply Co pocket notebook. 

Tiny review - Ticonderoga Groove

I didn't expect to like this pencil. I really don't enjoy the looks or hand-feel, but it is a great writer so I can overlook some aesthetic issues. Review done in a Story Supply Co pocket notebook. 

Gift Guide for the Write Curious

Welcome to my 2015 gift guide!  This is meant for that person in your life who has taken a mild interest into your writing instrument/stationary hobby, but it seems like they might need that extra push to explore it a bit themselves.  Most of the things I talk about are under $20 and can be mixed and matched to give complete "packages" up to any price point you desire.

Here are links to products that I mention in the video (none of these are affiliate or sponsored links -  I recommend certain retailers because I prefer them to faceless, money-grubbing entities like Amazon):

Pens

• Pilot Metropolitan, via Jetpens or Goulet Pens
• Pilot Kakuno, via Jetpens
• Kaweco Sport, via Jetpens or Goulet Pens
• Pilot Juice, via Jetpens
• Zebra Sarasa Clip, via Jetpens

Pencils

• Palomino Collection Pack, via Pencils.com
• Jetpens Wooden Pencil Sampler, via Jetpens
• Tombow Mono Drawing Pencil Set, via Pencils.com
• Literally everything, via CW Pencils

Paper

• Field Notes, via pretty much any retailer that sells decent writing instruments or FN HQ
• Write Notepads, via their website
• Story Supply Co, via their website
• Leuchtturn 1917 notebooks, via Goulet Pens

I hope this was helpful!  If you are reading this in the future (you crazy time-traveller, you) and the links are broken, please let me know and I'll do my best to fix the problems.