Welcome! to the home page of Pensations --
dealing in modern and vintage writing instruments,
and related items.

Letters in the Mail by Rumpus magazine

American arts magazine the Rumpus invites readers to receive letters from authors. For $5 per month, subscribers receive a letter, in the mail, nearly every week from an author. Letter writers will include Dave Eggers, Tao Lin, Stephen Elliott, Janet Fitch, Nick Flynn, Margaret Cho, Cheryl Strayed, Marc Maron, Elissa Schappel, Wendy MacNaughton, Emily Gould, and Jonathan Ames. Read about the program here.

New Section on Handwriting Added to Resources Page

I have been collecting news stories and blog entries related to hand writing and letters for a few months. The list is now long enough that I added a section on Handwriting to the Web Resources page. Click here to go directly to the Handwriting section.

The Month of Letters Challenge

Hugo-award winning author Mary Robinette Kowal has launched The Month of Letters Challenge. The concept is quite simple:

• In the month of February, mail at least one item through the post every day it runs. Write a postcard, a letter, send a picture, or a cutting from a newspaper, or a fabric swatch.
• Write back to everyone who writes to you. This can count as one of your mailed items.

Read Ms. Kowal's blog entry on the challenge for additional information. This is a good idea and I hope many will participate. We own pens, ink, refills and paper -- let's use them!

SOPA & PIPA: Bad. Very, very bad.

SOPA & PIPA are gaining news as many web sites plan to "go black" on January 18 to protest these bills. Like most web site owners, I oppose SOPA & PIPA. I am against piracy and I am in favor of copyright protection. I produce some original content and I appreciate the protection of copyrights. SOPA & PIPA attempt to protect against piracy but in this case the cure is much worse than the disease. Here are two sites which provide good information on these bills and provide a form to contact your representative and senators. I urge you to learn about SOPA & PIPA and to urge congressional leaders to vote against these bills. SOPA & PIPA would result in irreparable and unjustified harm to web site owners and to the viewers of web sites.
Mashable: Why SOPA is Dangerous
Google: End Piracy, Not Liberty

Many people contacted their representatives and senators on January 18 -- so many that some of their web sites were not able to handle all the traffic. Here's a page with additional information.

Do your senators or representative support SOPA/PIPA? You can find out on this page.

Physics of writing is derived at last

"While humans have been writing for at least 5000 years, we have surprisingly little understanding of the physics underlying how ink moves from pen to paper." However, physicists in the US and South Korea have worked out a theory regarding the ink flow rate in pens and tested it with experiments. A synopsis of the work can be read on PhysicsWorld.com.

Amazon Introduces New Kindle Models and Reduces Prices

Amazon announced new Kindle models including the Kindle Touch and the Kindle Fire. The Touch -- as you probably guessed -- offers a touch screen. It is available with Wi-Fi for $99 or with Wi-Fi and 3G wireless for $149. Joining the Kindle family is Amazon's Android color tablet, the Kindle Fire which sells for $199. The price of Kindle with sponsored screensavers is now only $79 -- a low price for the world's best-selling eReader. Click on one of the links and view the Kindle line-up with new, lower prices.

Sheaffer ViewPoint Fountain Pen

Sheaffer ViewPoint pens were produced in several models; they were a follow-up to the very successful No Nonsense pens. This model, called 'Jelly' is one of the last models produced. It has a snap-on cap and the cap & barrel are see-through plastic in orange, blue or green. The orange is a neon-type color, the green is bright and the blue is a medium blue. The trim & clip are silver colored. The nib is silver colored, iridium tipped, size medium (M). The section has dimpled rubber grip. This is a nice pen at a reasonable price ($12). Click here to view the Sheaffer ViewPoint Jelly fountain pen.

Penmen Comic Strip

Click on the comic strip to visit Penmen.com for posters or to view past Penmen strips (featured in Pen World magazine).

Phenomenology & a Fountain Pen

"I say that my fountain-pen is black, and I see it as black under the sun's rays. But this blackness is less the sensible quality of blackness than a sombre power which radiates from the object, even when it is overlaid with reflected light, and it is visible only in the sense in which moral blackness is visible. The real colour persists beneath appearances as the background persists beneath the figure, that is, not as a seen or thought-of quality, but through a non-sensory presence. Physics and also psychology give an arbitrary definition of colour, which in reality fits only one of its modes of appearance and has for long obscured the rest."
Phenomenology of Perception, M. Merleau-Ponty, trans. Colin Smith

Click here for quotes about pens and writing.

Customer Comments

I'm delighted to hear from cutomers -- e-mail me with your comments or suggestions; let me know what you think of the web site, the products, the prices or your experience with Pensations. Thank you for your business, and ejoy the pens!.

Customer Testimonials

I often receive feedback from customers and I enjoy reading these messages very much. I try to provide the best customer service combined with low prices, and customer feedback helps me know whether I'm reaching my goals. I have decided to share some of the messages I receive, and I've printed portions below. These are unsolicited comments, and no one received any type of compensation for the remarks or for the publication of the remarks.

"I am so impressed with the excellent and quick manner in which I received the pens I ordered. Your service is GREAT!" [D.H.]

"M.B. told me about you and even sent me one of your pens. I love it so much, I had to buy more. I'm so excited. Thanks for everything" [B.R.]

"Many thanks for your quick shipment and notification. Looking forward to our doing business again." [J.M.]

"Pensations is a WONDERFUL seller. I'm telling my friends, 'This is the place to buy your pens'" [P.T.]

"You are much more than a correct and agreeable seller -- you are A TRUE GENTLEMAN" [S.N.]

"... very friendly and you delivered as promised" [T.J.]

"I'm a repeat customer and I commend you as a conscientious seller" [C.S.]

"I will be back again -- you are 100% the best" [G.T.]

"Dealing with you is very nice, you provide quality products always" [P.B.]

Click here or on the "On-line Catalog" menu item on the left to view the catalog. Let me know what you think of the catalog and shopping cart system by e-mailing me at admin@pensations.com.

Pensations is located in beautiful and historic Danville, Kentucky. Danville offers a wealth of historical, educational and cultural institutions and activities. Danville is home to Centre College (site of the 2000 Vice Presidential debate), Pioneer Playhouse (now in its 58th year) and the Great American Brass Band Festival. For more information on Pensations and Danville, click here or on the "About Us" menu item in the left column.

We have a large inventory of writing instruments including limited editions, modern pens and vintage pens. We also sell ink and refills, and pen-related items including cases and stationery. View the on-line catalog to see items which interest you. E-mail us if you're interested in an item which is not listed.

We list resources for those interested in writing instruments, including books, contact information for pen companies and a list of pen-related web sites. The books page features selected books on writing instruments, penmanship, turning pens and other books of interest. From the book pages you can also search Amazon.com for books, CDs, videos, DVDs, tools, toys and other items.

Many people with an interest in fine writing instruments also have a desire to improve their handwriting. A resource which has been used successfully by many is Barbara Getty's Write Now: A Complete Self-Teaching Program for Better Handwriting (click on the title for additional information). Other useful books include Calligraphy Made Easy by Margaret Shepherd, and Italic Calligraphy and Handwriting: Exercises and Text by Lloyd Reynolds. Click on any of these book titles to see more information, or click here to visit our web page of books, including these and other titles brought to you in association with Amazon.com.

If you have an interest in vintage or modern writing instruments, you should join the Pen Collectors of America. Click here (or on the logo in the left column) for more information.

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