My fountain pen journey has taken me from a few entry-level pens to pens that cost a lot more money to buy. Cost is of course relative and when I mention the term "cost a lot more money", I am referring to myself and my pens and stationery budget. Thus, while I may consider a certain pen to be very expensive, it may be considered just an entry-level pen to others. Similarly, a pen whose cost I consider to be entry-level may instead be a grail pen for others. Thus, depending on our personal budgets, cost is rather relative.
Every year, I set aside a small amount of money to fund my pens and stationery hobby. This is my so-called pens and stationery budget. Of course, I must admit that I have consistently broken this budget by spending more than the amount of funds I had initially allocated for the year. That being said, being over budget had often resulted in me pulling back on more purchases for the year and that I think, at least indicated that the pre-set budget had done its job to help control my spendings on pens and other pens-related stuff.
Of course, I have never regretted adopting this hobby. My pens collection and by extension, my almost daily habit of journaling and using my pens have contributed immensely to my work-life balance. For me, nothing can be more relaxing than to sit down in my study after a hectic day of work meetings and reports rushing, to journal about anything that comes to mind. Sometimes, I even use my pens to doodle although I must admit that I am no artist.
And at times when I don't feel in the mood to journal or doodle, I will simply take out and admire my pen collection, re-arrange them in the pen storage cases and maybe, clean them. I enjoy my pen collection and my pens a lot. While my taste in pens has certainly evolved during the course of my journey in this hobby, I still treat all my pens with respect and care, whatever plumages they come in and irregardless of the amount of money I paid to acquire them.
This hobby has also allow me to meet other like-minded individuals. Regular local pen meets, online pen groups and international pen shows have all contributed in expanding my social circle beyond those in my professional industry. I had also gifted pens to friends and colleagues, pen-abling more people into this hobby!
As we head into 2025, I am looking forward to not just acquiring new pens, but more importantly, to enjoy and use those pens that I already owned. 🖋
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