2022 Pen Show Recap & What’s Next for 2023

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

I was fortunate enough to attend 10 pen shows in 2022 and thought I’d try to distill 10 recaps’ into a single TLDR article (yeah, I’m skeptical about the length too, lol). As you may recall, I decided to make a “report card” for the 2022 pen shows so I could more easily compare them which helps you make informed decisions about future shows you may want to attend.

As a reminder, the 10 categories are Size, Location, Hotel, Tickets, Classes, Nib Workers, Overall Vibe, Food, After Hours, and Other. If you want more info on the individual shows, you can search for 2022 show recaps. I’ll go through each category, pick my favorites and any notable mentions and in the end, I will crown my top 3 shows.

Size

I’ve said it before that Size is a bit of an unfair category since larger doesn’t always mean bigger and smaller doesn’t mean bad. That being said, if you’re looking for a lot of vendors and attendees in a big venue, then DC and SF are your two biggest shows. But if you want a less intimidating experience, I highly recommend Philly, Colorado and Baltimore.

Bigger: DC and SF Smaller: Philly, Baltimore, Colorado

Just a small part of the madness that is DC.

Toyooka Craft was a huge draw at the SF Show.

So good to see Lisa Vanness at the Philly Pen Show.

Location

Another highly subjective category is location, since a city may be more interesting to me but less interesting to you, or easier to travel to, etc. For me, #1 is a no-brainer with the SF Pen Show. Yes, it’s my home show so it’s easy to travel to, but there are so many things to do/eat/see in the Bay Area that it’s tough to compete. #2 would be DC for similar reasons.

1. SF
2. DC

Honorable Mentions: LA, Chicago

Hotel

I mostly ignore actual hotel rooms and instead focus on the hotel’s proximity to airports, common areas, layout for the show as well as cost.

1. SF - fairly close to the airport, lots of vendor areas and classrooms as well
2. CHI - Cool atrium area for post-show hangouts, too bad it’s a bit far from airports and Chicago itself

Honorable Mentions: BWI and Dallas had good space at good rates (though others did too)

Dishonorable Mention: DC - Take this with a grain of salt since they had major renovations at the hotel this year, resulting in a disjointed experience for after hours, not to mention, a small area for food/bar, reception and also not the best location for vendors who were situated downstairs.

Tickets

Prices ranged from $5 per person to as much as $65 for a one day, but overall, prices were around $20-25/day, and weekend passes were an added value too. Some shows added a VIP package which included other bonuses like special lanyard, extra shopping time, etc.

1. Colorado
2. STL

Honorable Mentions: Dallas, BWI

Dishonorable Mention: LA If you could only go to LA for one day but not on the one public day (Sunday), you’d have to fork over a whopping $65. BUT, their rate for Sunday is a very reasonable $10.

Lots of vendors at the STL Show!

Classes

I love the number and variety of classes offered at both SF and STL this year and wished show organizers would arrange more classes and seminars.

1. SF
2. STL

Honorable Mentions: BWI, CHI

Nib Workers

All the shows I attended had at least 1 nib worker and one show had as many as 9?! There was definitely demand for nib workers in 2022 as the pandemic had people piling up their pens waiting for grinds and tunes.

1. DC (9)
2. BWI (8) - though I could argue that 8 may have been too many given the size of the show
3. SF (7)

Anabelle Hiller of Appelboom Pens is checking her nibs at the DC Pen Show.

Overall Vibe

Crowded? Chill? Frantic? Shopper’s paradise? Friendly? Every show has a different feel to it and there are days where I’m all about the madness and shopping and other times when I want a more relaxed experience so I have time to talk to vendors and friends.

1. SF - Not a surprise that this show is often called “The Fun Pen Show” and I definitely have a lot of fun here, whether it’s shopping or hanging out with friends during after hours.
2. BWI - A well-run, medium-sized show that has a little bit of everything including a “share the wealth” table and a fun after-hours scene.

Honorable Mention - CO - This may be a small show but it is easy to feel the sense of community here!

Stationery meetup before the SF Show.

Food

Closely tied with hotel location, food is high on my list of priorities for pen shows! Hard to beat Chicago and LA with its variety of options within a short walk across the way!

1. Chicago, LA (tie)
2. SF and Philly (tie)

Soup Dumplings at Din Tai Fung across from the LA Pen Show is a must!

After Hours

By far my favorite part of pen shows, the After Hours scene is not to be missed at some of these shows! If you were there, you know how much fun was had!

1. SF - I rarely “close down” a late night hang, let alone two nights in a row. Gotta train more for this year’s show!
2. BWI - Lots of fun with friends, lots of places to hang out.

Honorable Mentions: STL and CO

Dishonorable Mention: ATL - Don’t get me wrong, I had a blast hanging out with friends in Atlanta. I did not, however, have a blast getting the lights turned out with 15 seconds of notice before midnight and nowhere to go afterwards.

Me and the Bossman having a grand ol’ time at the SF Pen Show!

Lots of pens and inks and drinks at one of the tall tables at BWI.

Atlanta After Dark with the Bossman and friends was great, until they literally made it dark!

Other

I don’t even know how to compare this one because “Other” means different things for different shows! No surprise, I had a blast at SF because of all the vendors, attendees, activities before, during and after show hours. But did any other show besides Colorado, have a falconer and Owlfred Hitchcock?!? And what other show has a whisk(e)y tasting? Or does any other show have just ONE public day and make their vendors move every day?

1. SF (you know I was gonna say this)
2. Chicago - I don’t like whisk(e)y but it’s always a blast to watch and folks are sharing snacks too! And the Thursday night pizza party is always fun!

Honorable mention - CO - Great show for lots of reasons but Owlfred takes the cake!

Dishonorable mention - LA - Please don’t make me rehash why.

Whisk(e)y tasting led by Mario Campa at the Chicago Pen Show.

Owlfred Hitchcock was amazing at the CO Show!

As a reminder, here’s the final report card for my 2022 pen shows:

Report Card:

0-50 Oof, do not attend

51-70 Show is alright

70-80 Show is solid

80-90 Show is pretty darned good!

91-100 REALLY good show and not to be missed

Do the scores accurately depict my favorites? For the most part, yes, but as I’ve said many times before, the scores are very subjective and some “low” scores are due to smaller size which does not mean it’s a bad show. I have thought about what it would take for a show to get a score of 100 and it is pretty darn impossible for any of these shows to get there without a significant change like different hotel or location or size. That said, most of the shows out there are solid shows and I will always say that a “not great show” is still better than “no show”.

So what were my top 3 shows?

1. SF - No surprise to anyone, SF was my favorite show. So much so that I’ve already decided not to work that show so I can enjoy it even more.
2. BWI - Really tough call but I always have such a fun time at this show! It’s a great size, a lot of my friends go to this show due to its proximity to DC, and it’s really conducive to quality time during and after show hours.
3. CHI/PHI/DC - To be honest, I’m not sure how to pick #3 since so many shows are within mere points of each other, so I picked the shows that I had the most fun at.

Honorable Mentions: CO and STL

Even though LA was a standout disappointment for me in 2022, I still had a great time and found a lot of cool pens and products. I am VERY curious to see how it will play out in 2023 as the LA Show organizer was unable to secure a hotel and different organizers have stepped in to produce the California Pen Show in its place for 2023. It will be interesting to see how the show does in 2023 and what will happen to either/both shows in 2024.

For 2023, I will continue to do pen show recaps but will not be using the report card system unless it is a show I did not review in 2022 or if there was something significantly different that changes what I said about it last year. Hope you’ve enjoyed my recaps and report cards last year and I can’t wait to see what this year has in store! I hope to see you at a pen show this year! Until then, stay inky, my friends!

The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 546 - Relax Better

What is dead may never die.

We wouldn’t have it any other way-mentions of the Scribble Pen must continue! We have news of a related product today, and I dig into my 2023 theme, and what my shopping list looks like for the upcoming year.

Show Notes & Download Links

This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:

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Lotus Author Purple Nebula Fountain Pen Review

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

Want to know what my favorite thing is about custom fountain pens? Absolutely the unique colors of the materials that these artists create. There's so much variety and bold representation that can fit any preference or whim. Just when you think you've seen every color combo or mixture, you see a new material that makes you take a second look. Before you know it, you're sitting down to discuss your nib preferences so they can adjust the nib for you after buying the pen.

I'd never heard of Lotus Pens prior to setting eyes on this custom Author model. The pen is made by Lotus Pens in India, and the fit and finish are top notch. In this case, though, the material was poured by Teri Morris at Peyton Street Pens in Santa Cruz, California. It's made of Alumilite resin, and this particular creation is dubbed "Purple Nebula." Put the word nebula in anything, and I'm already ready to buy.

The pen looks sleek and dark at first glance in normal lighting, but if you put it under direct light or close to a lamp, it really comes alive. There are rich purples, blues, and light grays with just a hint of shimmery reflective material to make it look like it's moving under the surface. The silver trim is the perfect complement to the cool tones used in the material. I haven't gotten tired of rotating this pen under the light to see how all the colors shift and change from different angles. There's an illusion of depth that is mesmerizing to me.

So, to recap the material used in this pen: It's beautiful, and I love it.

What about the rest of the pen? This is my first encounter with both Peyton Street Pens (where the resin rod was created) and Lotus Pens (the shop that turned and assembled the pen). There's always a chance that a new experience could prove to be negative, but that's happily not the case here. Everything about the fit, finish, and performance of this pen are top notch. It's sleek, feels solid, and has tight tolerances between all the mated parts.

The clip is a minimal profile with a slight taper down to the tip, which is actually a rolling wheel that makes clipping this pen to stuff easier.

There's zero branding on this pen — not even on the nib (which is a stainless steel JoWo #6). There's no fancy scroll work on the nib, and you have to look really hard to find the nib size indicator on the right shoulder.

And speaking of the nib, that reminds me that this pen isn't only a collaborative effort between two parties, but three! The nib on this unit has been modified by Nivardo Sanchez into a buttery smooth architect shape. Since this nib started as a standard broad, there's a delicious amount of line variation between up and down strokes. The downstrokes are similar in width to a 0.38mm or 0.5mm gel pen, while the lateral strokes are what you'd expect from a broad nib (somewhere between 1 to 1.2mm line width). Despite the drastic difference in line width, the writing experience is incredibly smooth. Tuning nibs to this kind of shape can sometimes lead to scratchy edges. The lines are normally exceptionally crisp in this case, but writing isn't as enjoyable (for me, anyway). This nib hits the balance dead center and provides crisp, confident line edges with plenty of width variation while also remaining glassy smooth. Bravo.

The pen comes with a standard Schmidt cartridge converter, but you could also use standard cartridges. The product information advises against using this pen as an eyedropper, and I have no intention of trying it out.

I'm a huge fan of this pen and especially the material. I can happily recommend it to anyone, but the only bad news here is related to the supply. There were only 11 of these beauties made, so they won't last long at all! Especially considering the price. The model I have is listed at $175, which includes an extra $25 charge for the custom nib grind. All I can say is, if you like how it looks and have the money to spare, just buy it. You have plenty of nib options to fit your writing style. If you opt for a standard nib size, the pen rings up to a cool $150. Along with the pen, it also comes in a super soft kimono and a decorative wooden box that can double as general storage for small items.

Can't wait to see more of the materials and pens that come from Peyton Street Pens and Lotus!

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

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