I Won A Giveaway!

Ana Reinert of The Well-Appointed Desk ran a Virtual Chicago Stationery Fest Giveway on March 31st.

I won’t say I’m unlucky, but I don’t usually win giveaways. So I was surprised when I won the stationery bag. I attended the California Pen Show in February and couldn’t even think about going to The Chicago Stationery Fest. My wallet would never forgive and neither would my husband. Love you Jim!

I’m going to tell you about everything I got in this stickered pouch (big bonus points for this!). The package was neatly wrapped and had multiple stickers on the outside. Inside, the goodies were packaged and protected (even more bonus points). When I got to the Paper & Pencil canvas mini tote that held the other items I had won, I was so excited. The canvas bag is 10.25″ x 8″ x 5″. It’s the perfect size for someone who lives in a motor coach full-time. It has two handles that are 7″ long. The canvas feels thick and I tink it will last a very long time. The printing on the front looks like I could paint it in and make it my own.

Inside the mini canvas tote was another bag. Inside the bag was an Endless Recorder Stealth “Chicago” notebook. The outside and page ends are black. Chicago is stamped on the front cover with icons of stationery. The paper is a 80 gsm acid-free Regalia paper with a dotted page layout. There are 187 pages with 16 of these being perforated. There are two index pages in the front of the notebook and an expandable inner pocket in the back. The book is 8.3″ x 5.5″. The cover has a quality feel to it and a little heft. I wrote with a fine nib Sailor Pro Gear Slim with Diamine Imperial Purple ink in it. The paper was smooth with a teeny-tiny bit of show through, but no bleeding or feathering. I would definitely write on both sides of the paper. Inside the book was a piece of paper reminding you to register your notebook, which I did immediately. You can get your own recorder at madebyendless.com for $26.00 + shipping.

I also received a Chicag-o-ring (Col-O-Ring) . This is a product that was designed by The Well-Appointed Desk. I finally have a better way to swatch my ink collection. There are 100 sheets that are 2″ x 4″ with 100 LB/160 GSM paper that is acid-free. I love that you can move the swatches around on the ring. I like to categorize my inks by manufacturer right now. But I may decide to change and file them by ink color later. I only have 35 bottles of ink, so as my collection grows, I might change things up. This Chicag-o-ring will make this an easy task and I’m all for work smarter, not harder. Ana also included a roll of washi tape called Inky Dreams. This washi tape has various bottles of ink on it and it melts my heart. I love stationery and washi tape is on the top of the list. You can get this roll and many, many other beautiful things at wellappointeddesk.com. This roll is $4.00 and a bargain for its cuteness. Ana included her business card and a Well-Appointed Desk sticker which went to my hungry A5 Hobonichi planner. It’s getting chunky and that’s a good thing!

deeorbraNext were the two stickers from Chicago Stationery Fest 2025. Those will be relegated to my A5 Hobonichi as well. There was a card included for the Paper + Craft Pantry. They are a woman-owned Austin, Texas retail stationery shop & workshop studio. Check out their website at thepapercraftpantry.com. I saw lots of really cute things on their pages. Topdrawer.com had a flyer in the bag. I looked them up and they sell some very nice items. The Washi Station & Riley’s Desk had a postcard in the bag too. See them at thewashistation.com and rileysdesk.com, respectively. I got to see The Washi Station in person at the California Pen Show. I drooled over almost everything there.

The last two items in the bag were a Pouch magazine and the CSF booklet. The Pouch Magazine cover states that it is a magazine for stationery lovers and this is issue #2. It is hefty and I can’t wait to study each page individually. There is a lot of exciting things in it. And last, was the Chicago Stationery Fest official booklet with all the details of the show. It even included a place for 12 stamps (stamp rally). There were goodie bags that could be whisked away if you got there while supplies lasted.

I want to thank Ana Reinert and The Well-Appointed Desk for this awesome giveaway and a chance to virtually benefit from the Chicago Stationery Fest. I hope I get to attend next year because it seems like a good place to be if you love stationery!