The Japanese White Collection

by Stuart Lennon
First up - Field Notes Fanatics. We know. We want them to arrive too. The truth is, that in normal times, Field Notes HQ in Chicago bring in extra pairs of hands for New Edition despatch. Thing is, these are not normal times. Safety of customer and crew is top priority, and so despatch from the Windy City is not as speedy as normal. Please bear with us. As soon as we have these lovely new Letterpress editions, we will bounce them straight out to you.

Stuart has officially entered his white period. Ikea may be to blame, with all that white office furniture.



Let’s get the electronics out of the way. The keyboard in the foreground is, wait for it, The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard. STOP! Before you hit the link, please be warned. It’s incredible. So, if you are the type likely to be seduced by a hand-assembled mechanical keyboard, packed full of features, don’t click it. It’ll cost you. There. Don’t say I didn’t tell you. There may be a better keyboard out there, but I haven’t seen it. And…it’s Hungarian. What’s not to love?

Artfully placed in soft focus behind the UHK is:

1. A Sailor Pro Gear, that I purchased from Cult Pens. This is my first Pro Gear, and I got it with a broad nib. As widely-believed, it is, one hell of a pen. Whatever you do, don’t tell them that I said so, but Cult Pens is an excellent place to buy pens.
2. The Blackwing Pearl. In hardness, this sits between the Blackwing and the 602, and for many, it’s the perfect fit. For ageing stationers with an Ikea obsession, it also happens to be white. Just in passing, the graphite used, is from Japan.
3. The Notebook. This understated Japanese beauty gets less attention than its quality deserves. MD is the paper division of Midori, famous for the traveler’s notebooks. If you visit their website, you are likely to become mired in tortuous Tofu similes, but don’t let detract from the beautiful paper. MD works beautifully with both graphite and ink.

Maybe it’s not a white period, but a Japanese one?

Be in no doubt. All three pieces are top of their class stationery items.

Finally, there’s a little trio of plastic pot plants from the mighty Ikea.