Late Limited Editions
Finally! Blackwing 223 is here. Here's Blackwing's copy.
“All you can write is what you see.”
On February 23, 1940, Woody Guthrie scribbled these words at the bottom of a lyric. Above them was a song he had just written about the inequality he witnessed in his travels across the United States. This Land Is Your Land would go on to become one of the most poignant and iconic folk songs in history.
Woody is often depicted in sepia tones reminiscent of the Dust Bowl, but his artistic palette extended much further. He filled composition notebooks and day planners with sketches, poems and paintings on his countless journeys. His art was playful and vibrant, despite its often gritty content. He described his fusion of old compositions and new ideas as a mashup of “what is” and “what could be.” Woody believed we could be better, and used his creations to inspire people to believe the same.
The Blackwing 223 is a tribute to Woody Guthrie and his immutable optimism. Each pencil features a design inspired by This Land’s “ribbon of highway,” “endless skyway” and “golden valley.” The matte black ferrule and earth-toned eraser are a nod to the many miles Woody traveled. We used our balanced graphite formulation that works well for both writing and sketching so you, too, can fill your pages with what you see.
So there. Grab yours here.
Field Notes 50 has been ordered, and will be winging their way here as soon as the guys in Chicago can get them packed.
They say:
Our latest Quarterly Edition commemorates the forty-nine preceding releases in our ongoing series that started with designing “Butcher Orange” way back in 2008. We’ve gone back to basics for the 3-Packs. Simple, beautiful, “Red Hot” French Paper Co. covers with silver metallic ink, surrounding 48 pages of silver Graph Grid. Metallic ink on a colored cover first appeared in our 5th release in 2009, “Just Below Zero,” and has made an appearance here and there since then.
We’ve used a lot of French Paper over the years but surprisingly this is our first use of Pop-Tone “Red Hot” stock. The books also feature an almost-blank flyleaf, with a Futura “50” peeking through a die-cut circle. Each 3-Pack contains three different flyleaf colors recalling a specific Quarterly Edition: Safety Orange from “Dime Novel,” Nightshift Blue from “End Papers,” and Gumdrop Green from “Grass Stain Green.”
In creating this set, we’ve been thinking a lot about all the editions that came before it, and what — if anything — we can conclude from this anniversary. Jim took a stab at it in his essay, “Counting to Fifty.”
Up for pre-order today, but we can only send them once FN have sent them and customs have cleared them. Hopefully next week - but maybe not! Field Notes subscribers will be getting an "Anniversary Desk Ledger" with their 50s. We will NOT have these. They are exclusive to Field Notes Subscribers - which you can still become - here.
What are these editions like? I'll let you know once I've seen them in person.
Have a lovely weekend!
“All you can write is what you see.”
On February 23, 1940, Woody Guthrie scribbled these words at the bottom of a lyric. Above them was a song he had just written about the inequality he witnessed in his travels across the United States. This Land Is Your Land would go on to become one of the most poignant and iconic folk songs in history.
Woody is often depicted in sepia tones reminiscent of the Dust Bowl, but his artistic palette extended much further. He filled composition notebooks and day planners with sketches, poems and paintings on his countless journeys. His art was playful and vibrant, despite its often gritty content. He described his fusion of old compositions and new ideas as a mashup of “what is” and “what could be.” Woody believed we could be better, and used his creations to inspire people to believe the same.
The Blackwing 223 is a tribute to Woody Guthrie and his immutable optimism. Each pencil features a design inspired by This Land’s “ribbon of highway,” “endless skyway” and “golden valley.” The matte black ferrule and earth-toned eraser are a nod to the many miles Woody traveled. We used our balanced graphite formulation that works well for both writing and sketching so you, too, can fill your pages with what you see.
So there. Grab yours here.
Field Notes 50 has been ordered, and will be winging their way here as soon as the guys in Chicago can get them packed.
They say:
Our latest Quarterly Edition commemorates the forty-nine preceding releases in our ongoing series that started with designing “Butcher Orange” way back in 2008. We’ve gone back to basics for the 3-Packs. Simple, beautiful, “Red Hot” French Paper Co. covers with silver metallic ink, surrounding 48 pages of silver Graph Grid. Metallic ink on a colored cover first appeared in our 5th release in 2009, “Just Below Zero,” and has made an appearance here and there since then.
We’ve used a lot of French Paper over the years but surprisingly this is our first use of Pop-Tone “Red Hot” stock. The books also feature an almost-blank flyleaf, with a Futura “50” peeking through a die-cut circle. Each 3-Pack contains three different flyleaf colors recalling a specific Quarterly Edition: Safety Orange from “Dime Novel,” Nightshift Blue from “End Papers,” and Gumdrop Green from “Grass Stain Green.”
In creating this set, we’ve been thinking a lot about all the editions that came before it, and what — if anything — we can conclude from this anniversary. Jim took a stab at it in his essay, “Counting to Fifty.”
Up for pre-order today, but we can only send them once FN have sent them and customs have cleared them. Hopefully next week - but maybe not! Field Notes subscribers will be getting an "Anniversary Desk Ledger" with their 50s. We will NOT have these. They are exclusive to Field Notes Subscribers - which you can still become - here.
What are these editions like? I'll let you know once I've seen them in person.
Have a lovely weekend!
