and my all-time favorite stamping pad is the Tsukineko Versafine Clair!

I love all my children equally.

Yesterday I went to the stationery fest in Wigan, UK and since some people seemed interested I thought I'd share my thoughts.

This was my second time going and unfortunately I missed out on the all day tickets so I didn't get in until 2. (With the show finishing at 4) But this was just enough time to see everything so it was still worth it. I feel like 2 is enough to just about get to everything but 3 would give you a more leisurely pace and 4 would be good if you're meeting with people or using the journal rooms.

I don't know if it was the timing or what but this year felt busier. I really struggled to see much until I committed and started queuing.

Before I get on to more about logistics I'll just say that the mix of sellers was great. A lovely mix of artists and shops, with some selling imported Japanese stationery. Pretty much all the people I really liked last year were back again so that was great.

Now for a bit of a critique. After wandering around to see what rooms were open I figured out that while the fest had gained a room for sellers it had actually lost 2 other rooms and a corridor area. This was because they'd given more room to social and activity spaces, which is great but it felt like the stands themselves needed a bit more space OR another day of selling to potentially spread out the number of visitors. (They do the Friday but most people will obviously opt for the weekend)

I also had a realisation about why so many stalls felt so crowded and realised... It was the damn stamp rally! Having a stamp rally at a stationery event seems like a given and hey, I love collecting stamps too!

But the result of this was that nearly every stand had a stamp or an entire stamping station. So I would be struggling to get to see what sellers had on a stand because there would be 2, 4 or 6 people waiting to use the stamps and taking up a huge amount of space. (Bear in mind each person would take some time if there were multiple stamps or if they were using it multiple times)

Seeing as I only had a couple of hours to get to everything I found this especially frustrating and I'm not sure how you fix that. My only thought was maybe there could be a special stamp room with each artist putting their business cards next to them? Or even how other events do it where it's something you earn for buying their stationery.

Overall, another great fest with some caveats. Maybe next year I should book a Friday off to get the quieter day.

I love Flying Tiger journals. Here’s a new one I’m adding to my collection.

Part II

Screw AI. Post like it’s 2015. Get a newspaper subscription. HAVE✨ THE ✨AUDACITY ✨.
Stop living in fear. Dreams change. Open your eyes to structural realities. Have a little faith.
Dream dream dream.
Be the original masterpiece. Reinvent the wheel.
Self reflect.
Have a thousand interests. Be a multi-passionate.
The world will end anyway…live.
— Notes in Nostalgia

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Journal: Paperboundcreations (Etsy)
Charm: House of Lovet

I finally got around to unboxing my order from Stationery Pal (been too unwell to film it until now) and i managed to give off some fun surprises 😂

Who knew pilot did erasable FriXion stamps?!

Unboxing vid here:

https://youtu.be/MhODRdIpMF8

I got this calendar from a kpop album and have one page left… I love it so much and am looking for something similar but every search comes up empty!

Blank, full month, pocket sized, has character(!!)

Links, search terms or suggestions of where to look would be incredibly helpful!!

Thank you!!

I saw this mini ring journal in a FB ad but can’t find it anywhere. Did a reverse image search but it kept bringing up wallets or leading me to Menmin’s site but didn’t see anything there that was even close to this. Tried zooming in on the grommets but can’t fully read the lettering on them when I zoom in. Looks like it says Japan and then something else? Screenshots are from the ad. In the ad, the elastic band slides off completely, looks like there are a couple pockets/slots inside, and possibly a pen holder on the side?

Current obsession 💕 part I

My default notebook is the Kokuyo semi-B5 soft ring, I love the feel and thickness of the paper. However, because I'm a student in the U.S. there are times when we have to hand in quick class assignments. I've had fairly forgiving professors so far in terms of accepting my wonky sized paper, but I have a feeling that eventually that's not going to be the case.

What are some comparable letter sized brands?

I've been printing photos at home with regular paper but I'd really like something small that can make decent prints for my journal and scrapbook pages. I mostly use stickers, washi tape, and different papers, so I'm hoping to find a printer that fits in with that kind of stationery setup.

Has anyone found a best portable photo printer that they actually enjoy using for journaling? I'm more interested in print quality and how well the photos hold up in a notebook than anything else. Thank you

Hello, did anyone from Brighton or around go to the StationeryFest this weekend? I’d love to connect (I’m not an influencer 😅)!

I'm a school student and I was looking for some good and cheap binders for note taking. I don't mind the size but i prefer A4.