Blog - Pen Vibe

Black vs. Blue Ink: Best Pen Color for Different Situations

May 24, 2025October 26, 2015 by Tony Bridges

Illustration showing black vs blue ink pens over official documents with the title "Best Pen Color for Every Situation"

Which pen color is better: black or blue ink for forms, studying, and signatures? The following guide shows you when …

Pen Recommendations by a Child Occupational Therapist

October 14, 2024October 19, 2015 by Tony Bridges

The brilliant thing about pens is that, while they’re capable of producing great art, they also provide one of our simplest, most effective means of communication, aside from speech.

That’s why we love to hear from people who put their pens to that most fundamental task, connecting people through the handwritten word. Especially when they’re helping to pass that skill on to the next generation.

Today, we introduce you to Ruth Stephens, an occupational therapist and pen enthusiast in West Sussex.

8 Stationery-Inspired Halloween Costumes

April 18, 2020October 14, 2015 by Tony Bridges

Halloween’s always a load of fun and a great excuse to play dress-up, especially if you’re going to a costume party.

So why not take the opportunity to flaunt your stationery geekery? and dress up for Halloween in a stationery inspired costume.

There is any number of costumes you can buy or make that will show off your favorite pens, pencils, and paper. We’ll show what a few people have done in years past, then we’ll toss out a couple of ideas of our own.

Laptops Banned – Pens Only Classrooms At University

May 13, 2020October 12, 2015 by Tony Bridges

With everyone back in school, I thought it might be a good time to revisit a topic that pops up in university classrooms every year: the banning of laptops.

The Globe and Mail reported in August that it’s becoming standard practice in Canadian universities to prohibit laptops from lecture halls. American universities are also getting on board with no-laptop policies, as the campus newspaper of the University of North Carolina explained earlier this year. In the UK and Europe, while banning laptops seems to be less widespread, it isn’t entirely uncommon.

Interview: Pen-And-Ink Illustrator Rob Turpin

May 23, 2019October 5, 2015 by Tony Bridges

While we all love pens in their various incarnations, ultimately, they’re just the tools that channel the creativity of craftsmen, both artistic and practical.

Here at The Pen Vibe, we’re all about those craftsmen, the pens they use, and what they choose to do with them. So it’s always exciting for us when one chooses to share his story with our readers.

Today, it’s Rob Turpin, an illustrator known for his sci-fi and fantasy-inspired drawings done in pen and ink.

This is our interview with him.

Please tell us a little about you.

Originally from Yorkshire, but now living in the suburbs of southwest London, I trained and worked as a graphic designer before making the leap in to illustration. I’ve just completed my first book illustration project, and I’m working on another about robots.