My new fountain pen purchasing philosophy

My interest for fountain pens has plateaued over time – which is natural for those in a collection hobby. I only recently got back into the hobby when I started to journal again. As I was organizing my pens and having talked to a few people I met at a pen show, I noticed that my take on fountain pens have changed (not in a bad way).

Read: Fountain Pen Lessons I Learned as a Beginner

After I spent good money on the last pen show I attended, I noticed that I approached purchasing fountain pen (and all related things) differently compared to when I was at the peak of my fountain pen journey.

🧪 If you don’t know what type of nib you like, experiment with cheaper fountain pens

So here’s the thing – I am an extra fine nib girl. I’ve known this since I started collecting fountain pens especially because I knew how I’d be using my fountain pens (for journaling).

Of course, I tried to “expand my reach” and tried other nibs from medium to broad to stub. When I did, I made sure that I just purchased fountain pens around $30 like a Platinum Plaisir or a Pilot Metropolitan.

👑 When buying more expensive fountain pens, make sure you like the nib

What I noticed with my collection right now is that – my more premium fountain pens (the gold nibs) are mostly medium nibs (my Pilot Custom 74, Sailor Pro Gear). Medium nibs are okay but it doesn’t suit my narrow penmanship so I don’t use my medium gold nibs as often as I would like.

I often gravitate towards my fine gold nib Platinum #3776 because I just appreciates how it brings out the beauty of my handwriting,

When you are sure of your nib preference, buy a pen with that nib. There would be a higher possibility of you using it more frequently.

But of course, it truly boils down to the purpose of your purchase. Take me for example, I am one of the fountain pen collectors who use their fountain pens. I value usability whenever I add more pens in my collection.

🖋️ Samples before ink bottles

Now this one has been a purchasing mindset of mine after a year into the hobby. When I first started, I bought bottles of inks on a whim.

I have a few bottles I regret buying and they kind of just end up as a shelf display. There were some that I’ve purchased out of impulse, like the Sailor Inks and some just because it was overly hyped at that time (👀 Colorverse).

Over time, I realized that I didn’t really like these inks and ended up giving them away. I would have been better off purchasing ink samples especially with inks that I’m unsure of. Then if I like it enough, decide on purchasing bottles – which brings me to my next point.

⭐️ Bottles for favorites

Over the past few years of buying ink samples, I have accumulated some favorites. Diamine Marine is one of the inks that I have favored amongst all of the teal inks I’ve tried. And for some reason, I just decided on repeatedly purchasing a sample of it rather than buying a bottle. Diamine is quite affordable and I can’t believe it took me years before I decided to purchase a 30ml bottle.

✨ Buying bottles with a good design

Oh I am a sucker for bottles that look so damn good. There’s just something about how it’s presented, you know. One of my favorites would be the Jacques Herbin Anniversary inks – just like this Amethyste de l’Oural. If the ink is something I know I’d use and looks good on display, I’m buying it.

🌈 One bottle per color

I am guilty of having one too many ink bottles of the same-ish color. I have at least 5 blues (which are almost the same) and a few teals. I feel that there hasn’t been any variety with the ink bottles I own. This new ink bottle purchasing mindset came in quiet late and maybe switch things up once I start rebuilding my collection again.

🏷️ Wait for sales

Now that I’m looking into expanding my gold nib fountain pen collection, I’ve noticed that I take more time researching, comparing prices between retailers, and waiting for sales. I find myself checking Goulet Pen’s Bottom Shelf every now and then, hoping to score a deal – I’ve purchased 2 of my gold nibs from there. I also subscribed to Endless Pens newsletter to make sure that I don’t miss out on a deal.

I’m quite proud of my collection and how I have been approaching the hobby lately. I feel that I put more thought into whatever I buy and hopefully have less buyer’s remorse.