Aurora Nebulosa Limited Edition Fountain Pen: A Review

(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)

I don’t swoon often, if ever, but when I saw a photograph of the Aurora Nebulosa, I swooned . . . well, at least I gasped audibly. And I placed a pre-order immediately. Not many pens elicit such a strong reaction in me, but this one did. First, the deep purple auroloide was unlike any material I’d seen from Aurora. Second, the rose gold nib and trim had my mouth watering. I love rose gold, and it complements the purple auroloide perfectly.

I ordered my Nebulosa from Dan Smith who includes a free nib grind with any pen you buy from him. I requested a stubbish italic medium nib.

The pen comes in glorious packaging that almost makes you feel like your money was well spent. I mean, the pen is what matters. But there’s something wonderful about opening a pen that is presented so elegantly. The outer cardboard box protects a heavy black hinged box. When you open that, the pen is presented in all its glory on black satin-like material. There’s a red Aurora seal attached to the clip with a string.

Underneath you’ll fine a bottle of Aurora ink and paperwork.

The Aurora Nebulosa is the 88 model which is a cigar-shaped piston filler. It has a narrow ink window. The top of the cap, piston knob, and pen grip are all black resin.

The clip is Aurora’s elegant ball-tipped clip. The cap ring is engraved with the Aurora name but no other branding.

Because this is a limited edition pen, the cap itself is engraved with the limited edition number (out of 888 models) in pink gold.

The auroloide is absolutely gorgeous. It has flecks of lighter purple mixed with deep, dark purple. It literally glows in sunlight.

I love Aurora nibs, and this one doesn’t disappoint. It’s rose gold with beautiful Aurora scrollwork.

You can see how a medium Aurora nib looks ground into an italic with this juicy close up:

The Aurora 88 holds a good amount of ink (1.10 ml) and you can use the ink window to see when you’re getting low. Plus, Aurora boasts an ink reserve, so if you run out of ink, you can unscrew the piston knob and get about one page more. The piston mechanism is smooth as silk.

The Nebulosa is 5.4 inches in length closed, 6.20 inches posted, and 5.19 inches unposted. It weighs 21.6 grams. This is not a heavy pen. It feels great in the hand.

Aurora nibs are stiff and don’t have much give or bounce. But they are smooth and wet. My italic definitely has a sweet spot, and as long as I keep it there, the nib writes smoothly and offers a bit of line variation. I inked my Nebulosa with Lamy Dark Lilac. It’s a wonderful combination.

The Aurora Nebulosa is definitely a gasp-worthy fountain pen. You can purchase one from Vanness Pens with a stock nib. The models with EF, F, M, and B cost $805. If you want a BB or factory italic, you’ll pay $895. If you’d like a special grind, you can go to Dan Smith’s site and choose from a variety of nib sizes. The nib grind is included with the cost of the pen.

Pros

• If you want a gorgeous purple fountain pen that is a piston filler and writes great, the Nebulosa fits the bill. This color is simply outstanding.
• The rose gold trim and nib complement the auroloide perfectly.
• Aurora makes their own nibs in house and they are top quality.
• The piston on this pen is smooth and holds a good amount of ink.
• If packaging matters at all to you, you’ll love how Aurora presents this limited edition.

Cons

• Limited edition pens are more expensive than regular offerings, and this one is no exception.
• Folks with larger hands may find the Aurora 88 to be too small and light for their taste.

Maruai - The Basic Notebook, Pocket and Mini Size Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter.)

I think we can all agree that you should have a pen or pencil and paper on you at all times. Pocket tech can't replicate all of analog's necessary functions--people need paper. Especially paper that fits in your pocket. It's what makes pocket notebooks so wonderful--except pocket notebooks don't fit well in my pockets. It's not the notebook's fault--it's a known issue with women's jeans: skimpy pockets. It makes me thankful for handy pocket notebook cases, but I still need paper in my pocket. Sometimes it just needs to be that handy.

My solution has been to use mini notebooks. I've been using the Moleskine minis for years, but I don't love their paper, so I was excited to try these new Mini Notebooks from Maruai.

They come in two sizes, the mini and the pocket size. The mini is 3.2" by 2.2" with 48 blank pages, bound with a side staple. The pocket size is tall and narrow at 4.1" by 2.4", with a sewn and glued top binding and 64 5mm grid pages. Both are small enough to fit in a pocket, and the mini can even fit in a wallet card slot. The pocket size works well as a memo pad with its back cover slid into a planner pocket or wallet slot.

They have nicely textured, flexible cardstock covers. They're very durable. I've carried one for weeks, and apart from some blue dye transfer from my darker jeans and a slight gluteus curvature, it looks brand new.

The ivory paper is very smooth and pleasant to use. It stands up to a variety of inks. Broad or wet fountain pens had significant bleed-through, but fine fountain pens with dry inks worked well, and rollerball, gel, ballpoint, and pencils were all great. These notebooks pair naturally with a pocket pen like the Fisher Space Pen or the Midori Brass Bullet Ballpoint pen.

One downside to the notebooks is that the pages are not perforated. My pocket notebook is often my "have you got a piece of paper" go-to, for handing out contact info or book/recipe/website/pen recommendations to friends. I'm still going to tear pages out of these books--I'm just going to have to mangle the notebook a bit to do it. It should work okay for the top-bound book, but tearing a sheet from the staple-bound book could cause the other half of the leaf to loosen and fall out. Still, pocket notebooks were made to be mangled. I look forward to mangling a whole stack of these.

They do cost nearly twice as much as the Moleskine minis (which have perforated pages), which is a bit of a bummer. The paper and covers are definitely nicer on the Maruai, but I can't say they're twice as nice. They feel good in my hand, though, and they'll be the perfect thing to drop in my cart to bump it up over that free shipping threshold. I'm glad to see more mini notebooks out in the world, and these are lovely, useful things.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Cleo Skribent Copper Colour Ballpoint Pen Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Cleo Skribent is a German pen manufacturer that has been in business since the World War II era. While this is my first experience with the company, they're more well known and recognized in other parts of the world. The company focuses on making fine writing instruments of high quality and craftsmanship. If this particular pen on my desk is any indication, the Cleo Skribent brand is well-made and fairly priced.

The Colour line of pens is available in mechanical pencil, ballpoint, and fountain pen versions, but I have a special edition made exclusively for Papier Plume of the ballpoint Colour. The all copper version is a beautiful pen that looks and feels like a well-tuned machine. This version is also billed as the exclusive "antimicrobial" ballpoint pen, which is something afforded by the copper materials. I didn't know this before, but copper (and its alloys) is a natural antimicrobial material. Neat!

If you've ever owned a copper or brass pen (or jewelry, for that matter), you probably know what happens pretty quickly after it comes in contact with your skin: oxidation. Yep, and this pen is no different. You can expect a patina to start developing after a few days of use, though it might take a couple or four weeks to see a drastic transformation. The pace of oxidation also depends on the humidity levels, how often you touch the pen, and the level of acidity in the oils on your fingers. I like the look of a nice patina, but I also love the look of freshly polished copper. It's so bright and golden, but it fades so quickly. Luckily, this pen ships with a small polishing rag for removing the patina. You'll only get a couple of uses out of the rag before needing to replace it, but it does provide an immediate solution for keeping your pen nice and bright.

Now, onto the non-copper aspects of this pen. The pen has a unique shape that provides a nice writing surface on the grip. The top portion of the pen that houses the nock is a bit subdued and reminds me of a Parker Jotter ballpoint pen. It's professional, and doesn't scream, "I'm a custom machined pen." Even though the tip and grip section of the pen do have more of that machined look, it's still a polished, professional look.

The nock is solid, but it's gotten stuck a couple of times while I've been using it. Nothing major, but worth noting. This clip is strong, but also has plenty of give to make it easy to use. Clipping this to your shirt or pants pocket is no problem.

The pen uses a Cleo-branded Schmidt 9000 EasyFlow refill, which is a great choice on their part. The EasyFlow has a dark, smooth ink that makes writing a pleasure.

Writing with this pen is great because of the machined grip area that provides a nice slope and ridge for your fingers to rest against while writing. Even though the body of the pen is completely smooth, I haven't had any issues with the pen slipping out of my grip. Keep in mind that as the patina develops, it will provide a grip surface that offers more texture and grip.

The pen has a small amount of weight, but not nearly as much as I would expect from a solid copper pen. To compare, the Colour weighs in at 31g, a standard Kaweco AL Sport weighs 20g (with short international cartridge, and a Lamy AL Star weighs 23g (with Lamy converter). It's not a heavy pen, but it's on the moderate side. You will notice the weight of this pen after a couple of pages of writing, but it's manageable.

One more thing that is worth mentioning for this pen (and any pen made from copper or brass) is the smell. Copper has a distinct smell that intensifies as it oxidizes, and it's not for everyone. For me, it depends on the task and my mood. Sometimes the smell is attractive, while other time it really puts me off. It's not a huge deal, but something to note for any pen made from these materials.

Overall, the Cleo Skribent Colour Copper edition is a sleek, well-made pen that is comfortable in the hand and smooth on the page. Given the Schmidt EasyFlow refill, you also have many options as far as replacement refills (any standard Parker refill will do) if you run out or decide you don't like it. The Copper edition runs about $90, which is really fair compared to other all-metal pens.

(Papier Plume provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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