Recently I had the pleasure of speaking with Jared Joyce (Check out Jared on Twitter and FaceBook) who is an inventor that just so happens to have quite a few cool office supplies that he is working on.  In addition to inventing innovative office supplies, Jared also introduced me to an awesome website, Quirky.com which  is a Social Network focused on the new product development process.  The site relies on group feedback to influence products in areas like potential names, packaging, logos, and tag lines.  If you contribute some of this information to a product that ends up being successfully produced and sold, you can in turn earn a small % of revenue from the sale of the products.

As I said, Jared Joyce has lots of awesome ideas for some really cool office supplies, and the videos below show one of those great ideas that you can check out and also influence if you sign up over on Quirky.com.  One of Jared’s office supply inventions that is currently on Quirky.com is called the Tape Stamper, which the videos below do a great job of demonstrating, so check them out.

Personally, once I saw the videos I was convinced of the simple brilliance of the idea, and I’ve already signed up on Quirky.com to vote for it.  I feel like it is the kind of invention that someone like 3M Brands (makers of Post-it notes and Scotch Tape) should be looking into as well.  Go ahead and check it out if you are so inclined, there are a ton of great inventions on the site that are fun to look at and read about, and who knows, maybe you can even make a few bucks, or submit an invention of your own.  Also, please feel free to leave any feedback her on your thoughts about the product, as I’m sure Jared would be happy to hear what you have to say about it.  Here are some quick instructions to find Jared’s Tape Stamper on Quirky:

1) Go to the Influence tab
2) Click on Product #0040
3) Find Tape Stamper among the 32 submissions for the week, you will need to scroll down a bit.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

-I am excited that Sharpie has come out with a new Medium Point Sharpie Pen which of course I’ve ordered and hope to review soon.  Many thanks to one of my awesome readers, wild violet for pointing this out.

-Jennifer Love Hewitt has an official invitation to write a guest post here at OfficeSupplyGeek.com after this comment:

“I love office supplies,” Hewitt told PEOPLE at Tuesday’s grand opening of Esprit’s flagship store in New York.  “I love being organized. It’s the folders and the tech … [Staples] is a place to take me if you want me to get hot and bothered.” (link)

So if Ms. Hewitt is reading, feel free to use the contact link above and we can work on that guest post or an interview.

And also I think Staples is missing out on a hysterically funny opportunity with that “Wow!” guy from their commercials, I can think of plenty of scenarios for a commercial with him and JLH that would be really funny.

-Lastly, I didn’t even know there was a US National Inventors Hall of Fame, but there is, and last week they inducted Art Fry and Spencer Silver, the inventors of the 3M brand Post-it pad.  Seems like it would be long over due for them to get this type of recognition.

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

In my previous post I highlighted the top 10 office supply reviews from 2009, based on the number of visitors to each review.  Today, in what I hope will be an annual tradition, I wanted to highlight those items that I personally thought stood out from the pack.  I try to make sure that all of the reviews here are reviews of really cool office supplies that arent the type of thing that you might find in your standard office supply cabinet, so to pick the cream of the crop from this already unique group wasn’t easy.  Id love to hear your thoughts in the comments section, if you would have picked different items.

I’m going to keep the list small, because I think that if I make the list too long, it probably dilutes the significance of being selected.  For each of the following categories there will be one winner: Best Pen or Pencil, Best Special Purpose Writing Tool, Best Notebook, Best Organizational Tool,  Best Green Office Supply, and Best New Product.

Best Pen or Pencil - Although there were 3 different versions of the Sharpie Pen to select from, the Sharpie Pen Grip outdid the other two versions in terms of style, functionality, and writing comfort.  The Original Sharpie Pen got a ton of recognition and praise, but quickly people started to find some minor issues with it, and provided some feedback for other things they would like to see with the pen.  Eventually Sharpie came out with a Retractable Sharpie Pen, and finally what they called the Sharpie Pen Grip which managed to combine the best features of both previous versions of the Sharpie Pen.  Kudos to Sharpie for not only producing such a great product, but for also listening to customer feedback to even further improve upon the Sharpie Pen. (Buy)

The Sharpie Pen Grip - Editors Choice for Best Pen or Pencil of 2009

Best Special Purpose Writing Tool – Next up is a category that can encompass quite a few different products.  One of the most useful, nicely designed, and practical items that I reviewed this year was the 3M Post-it Brand Flag Plus Highlighters.  These thick and chunky highlighters provide a vast storage of ink, while also neatly fitting in a nice stack of Post-it flags to super charge your highlighting and note taking sessions.  In addition to the nicely integrated design of this product, you can also tell just from holding them, that quality construction was a focus on these. You probably cant do any better than these highlighters for your note taking, studying, or reasearching, so go ahead and check them out. (Buy)

The Post-it Flag Plus Highlighter - Best Special Purpose Writing Tool of 2009

Best Notebook – There was some good competition in this category, but the high quality and amazing writing experience provided by Rhodia’s Web Notebook with 90g paper far surpassed that of any other notebook that I used this year.  Between the fantastic paper that makes for a super smooth writing experience with no feathering, bleed through or show through, and the high quality cover and elastic closure, this notebook is one that nobody should be without. (Buy)

The Rhodia Web Notebook with 90g paper - Best Notebook of 2009

Best Organizational Tool – Good looks, multiple functions, and a unique green twist make the Bamboo Dry Erase Entry Butler from Three by Three one of the most functional and helpful organizational tools that I had the privilege to try out this year.  I saw this item at the 2009 National Stationery Show, which has me excited about hopefully attending the 2010 National Stationery Show to find even mroe great products to share with you here.  Anyway, if you are looking for a great looking dry erase board that uses sustainable resources, provides all kinds of space for storage and hanging things, is also a dry erase baord, and just looks great, this is the one for you.  (Buy)

The Dry Erase Entry Butler - Best Organizational Tool of 2009

Best Green Office Supply – Quite often Green Office Supplies lack a certain quality or functionality that is sacrificed in order to meet the goal of being environmentally friendly.  The Ecosystem Environmentally Friendly Journals and Planners that I reviewed not that long ago were quite surprisingly some of the better notebooks I used this year, regardless of any environmental claims.  The paper was great to write on, the overall quality of construction was superb, and its all made from post-consumer recycled paper, and completely made in the US.  Hard to go wrong with this fantastic line of green office supplies from Ecosystem. (Buy)

Ecosystem Planners and Journals - Best Green Office Supplies of 2009

Best New Product – Out of all the new office supplies that were introduced this year, it was actually the re-introduction of an old favorite that captured the attention of this Office Supply Geek.  The Stainless Steel Sharpie Permanent Marker that was introduced this year, really impressed with its amazingly good looks, and high quality feel.  The folks at Sharpie managed to take what has long been viewed as a more of a strictly functional tool, and turn it into a luxury product over night.  Not a simple feat, but I think Sharpie really nailed it with this one, which is why I’ve decided to make it my Best New Office Supply of 2009. (Buy)

The Stainless Steel Sharpie - Best New Office Supply of 2009

So there you have it, those are my picks for the best office supplies of the year.  Now we have a 2010 to look forward to that is full of more fun, unique, and cool home office supplies, and I’ve already got a few new giveaways lined up for all of my fantastic readers.  Make sure to sign up for my RSS feed so you don’t miss any of the new products or giveaways!

© 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

When I read the Top 10 Pen Reviews that @dowdyism over at The Pen Addict wrote, I thought it was such a great idea that…well…Ill be honest, I couldn’t help but steal it and do something similar here.  : ) Before you continue on here, make sure you check out his post and also make sure you sign up for his RSS feed and follow him on Twitter too because if you are missing what he is writing, you are missing a ton of good stuff.

Ok, now that I feel slightly less guilty about blatantly stealing his idea, lets take a look at the top 10 office supply reviews for 2009.  Keep in mind, these are not my selections, they are simply the reviews that readers of this humble blog about cool home office supplies happened to click on the most over the last 364 days.  There will however also be an “Editors Choice” post early in 2010 where I select what I think were the best in some of the different office supply categories, because by default there is  a significant advantage/disadvantage for today’s post for any items that were reviewed either very early, or very late in the year this year.  So without further delay, here they are starting with number 10……….

Oh, and one other thing since I’ve already admitted to stealing, I also lied…this will actually be a top 11 list because two of the items were so similar that I thought it would be better to add an 11th to the list.  Each item in the list will link back to the original post, and at the end there is also a “Buy” link so you can locate it quickly if you just cant resist the urge to restock your home office supply cabinet.

11. Old School 4 Color Bic Multi- Pen – I feel like anyone old enough to read this blog has at least seen or used one of these, and most likely has some fond memories of it.  It isnt a pen I use every day, but I just like knowing its there in my pen drawer if I have the urge to use it. (Buy)

10. Rhodia Web Notebook w/ 90g Paper – Incredibly high quality notebook from Rhodia, with probably some of the best paper you will ever write on.  (Buy)

9. Platinum Preppy Fountain Pen – If you have never used a fountain pen before, and want an inexpensive way to try it out, this is a great place to start. (Buy)

8. Noodler’s Blue Black Ink – This is by far my favorite ink to write with, very professional looking, but not boring like straight blue or straight black. (Buy)

7. Uniball Kuru Toga – I dont even like writing with a pencil, but this is probably the best pencil ever, its totally changed my tunej regarding pencils (Buy)

6. Whitelines A4 Wired Squared -  The concept behind these notebooks is great, and the quality is also quite outstanding. (Buy)

5. Lamy Safari Fountain Pen – Another great inexpensive fountain pen, a step up from the Platinum Preppy. (Buy)

4. Pelikan Tradition M215 Fountain Pen – This was a fun review of a great pen, sadly I’ve managed to ruin the tie in the pictures since then. (Buy)

3. Retractable Sharpie Pen – Nothing seemed to get more attention than any time I posted a new review of a Sharpie pen, and when these new retractable versions came out, it was no exception. (Buy)

2. Stainless Steel Sharpie – This might have been one of the most anticipated items that I was lucky enough to write about this year.  The folks at Sharpie were really kind in letting me get my hands on this one before it was even released. (Buy)

1. Sharpie Pen – Like I said, there was one item that kind of showed up twice, and this was it.  There was a lot of interst in the Sharpie pens, so its no surprise to see them show up in the #1 and #3 spot. (Buy)

So there you have it, based on all the visits accumulated over the course of 2009 these were the most popular reviews.  Since most of these happen to be pens, and because of how items reviewed later in the year might not have had a chance to rack up enough page views to make the list, I will also be posting my “Editors Choice” picks of the top home office supplies from this year.

© 2009 – 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

• Win $150 worth of free fashion office supplies from Carolina Pad.  Your deadline to enter is Monday, May 25th at 11:59 PM Easeten.
• Check out the always interesting Ink Links from The Pen Addict.
• My Moleskine 2.0 Contest to show off how you hack your Moleskine and win a lifetime supply of Moleskines.  Contest deadline is May 31, 2009.
• More love for the Sharpie Pen.
• Free Office Supply Icons.
• Oh Staples…I’m already bad enough at math, this calculator doesnt help things any.
• A case for the small office supply store.
• Office Supply Addiction, its a sickness.
• If anyone wants to by me this office chair, Id be glad to do a full review of it, as a huge Yankee fan, this is a must have.
• Some really cool sculptures made from Scotch Tape.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

This will be my last summary post regarding the National Stationery Show and then we will be back to office supply reviews, and as I said before I do still plan on doing individual reviews of products that I saw there once they become available.  This last post covers some of the products from familiar names that held some surprises for me when I visited their booths in person.

The Online Business Line Fountain Pen

I have had an on and off fascination with the Online brand of pens, particularly the one pictured above which is the Business Line.  When I see this pen on the various sites that I shop at for pens, such as Goldspot, I can never really tell if it seems like a good quality pen or not.  Having now officially seen one of these pens in person at the show, Ive completely committed to liking this pen…a lot.

The rep Online rep who showed me around their booth was incredibly nice, he gave me a full walk through of EVERY pen in their line, and even showed me individual cases and display cases for them knowing full well that I was not some major buyer, just a guy with a blog about office supplies.  He was really proud of these pens, and it was obvious…he pointed out the small details and the various things that showed the thought and quality that goes into these pens.  Normally Im not too thrilled with the almost throwaway quality boxes and cases that some pens come with, but the Online cases are even a step above the rest in terms of quality.

So back to the pen.  This pen has such a sturdy, strong, and well made feel to it, its hard to put into words.  As soon as I had a chance to hold it in my hand I knew that at some point Id probably be buying this thing.  I really like the way that the entire black portion of the pen acts as the cap, sliding over nearly the entire body of the pen…if you have every worried about the cap coming off while being posted, this pen will solve that issue for you.  The rubberized grip and hefty feel just make this a pen that I must have at some point.  I didnt get a chance to write with it, but based on the feel alone, I know Ill enjoy it.  The only thing I dont like is the fact that it only takes cartridges, however I think I can get past that, or I can just buy the roller ball version.

Also, dont let my fascination with this one pen let you lose sight of the fact that they have an entire line of other pens to check out that have the same great design and quality behind them.

Jac Zagoory - Desk Art & Accessories

Jac Zagoory is a very talented designer who makes those unique pen holders that you have probably seen at many of the usual pen stores, including one of my favorites (of course) Goldspot.  I’ve always wondered about these pen holders, the designs are in fact very unique, and the art itself is very well done, however I like a few other people I have spoken with have looked at the price and thought, “well that is a little expensive” and moved on.  Similar to the pens I discussed before, all it took was having the opportunity to hold some of his pens and pen holders in my hands and see them up close and I was totally sold.

Creativity and quality from Jac Zagoory

The above picture showcases the creativity and quality that you get with products from Jac Zagoory, Im biased with this one though as it is by far my favorite pen holder in his collection.  When I met Jac at the show, he was very enthusiastic about his designs and he spoke very passionately about the focus on quality that goes into all of his products.  Sometimes when I know exactly who I am buying from it makes me feel a lot better about spending the money, and Jac is no exception to that rule.

The Star Spangled Banner Pen by Jac Zagoory.

A quick look at The Star Spangled Banner pen above again gives you some insight into the creative mind of Mr. Zagoory.  He explained to me that his inspiration for this pen came from a politician who shockingly couldnt remember the words to The Star Spangled Banner.  Again, all of his work is quite interesting, and he seems like a person that totally stands behind his product which means a lot to me when I am spending my hard earned money.  Great work by Jac, and it was a pleasure meeting such an interesting person.

The Revamped line of Clairefontaine Basics

Last but not least was my discovery at the Exaclair booth where I saw the line of Clairefontaine Basics for the first time.  Previously these only came in the beige color which is why I probably never noticed them before, but they have now added multiple colors to this line.  I tend to like more simple things but that are done very well, which is why I really like these.  You get the high quality Clairefontaine paper, and in addition to that, the heavy textured stock used for the covers of these notebooks is really nice.  It is also nice to see that these come in both cloth and spiral bindings so you have some variety here.

The Rhodia Webnotebook.

In addition to the great products that Exaclair had on display such as the Cllairefontaine Basics and the Rhodia Webnotebooks pictured above, it was also great to finally get to meet Karen from The Quo Vadis Blog who is always so responsive and helpful to customer inquiries and has in the past been kind enough to provide sample products for me and other bloggers to review.  I have been using one of these for lots of my ink reviews and not only is the paper fantastic, but the covers on these are great.  They have a very smooth and rubberized feel, which makes them pretty durable and very clean and neat looking.   One of my favorite bloggers, Chris at the Amateur Economist (@speedmaster on Twitter) did a review of the Rhodia Webnotebook on his site, which is basically like GQ Magazine, but 100 times better, and updated daily.

As I said, thats it for my summaries from the 2009 National Stationery Show, and now its back to office supply reviews, and the usual stuff.  I hope that these posts have been informative, and hopefully Ill be able to cover the 2010 National Stationery Show.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

First things first, I know I promised to get lots of pictures of new office supplies at the National Stationery Show, however I have to say it was not as easy as I had hoped it would be, so I left with exactly zero pictures, but I did get to see plenty of great new items that I am working on getting to review.  I’ve got a bunch of items that I will be posting about over the next few days, no review samples yet though because for the most part the rules of the show are that merchandise is not supposed to leave the facility.  All of the vendors were very receptive to shipping me samples to review, so I will probably introduce these items with some descriptions and links and then follow up with actual reviews once I have been able to get back in touch with the vendors and arrange for samples to be sent.  In some cases the products just wont be available for a little while though.

So with all of that out of the way, I thought I would start with three office supply related products that I thought were among the most innovative that I saw at the show…keeping in mind there are over 1000 vendors though, Im sure that I either missed some, or there are some that just dont fall into what we cover here on this blog.  Of the three office supplies that I found to be “most innovative” there is one notebook, one organizational aid, and one multi use pen.

The Revolver Bound Journal in Red and Black.

At first glance, the notebooks by Revolver Bound Books and Journals, just looks your usual high end journal that you would expect to see at any office supply or stationary store.  This is a case where you shouldnt judge a book by its cover though, and since I’ve already categorized this as one of the more innovative products at the Stationery Show, I am sure that you are expecting some sort of surprise here, and the Revolver wont let you down.  The name alone should give you some hint as to what is going on with this unique journal.  Although there are two journals in the picture above, the Revolver is actually only one journal that just happens to have two different covers.  Sound confusing?  Its not, its actually quite impressive.  The journal is designed with what is described as a “floating spine” that allows the notebook to fold over itself, creating two distinct journals with two separate covers, all in one package.

The above illustration shows the Revolver Journal opening and folding over itslef step by step.

It is hard to imagine exactly how this journal works without seeing it in action, however the above illustration shows a step by step walk through of opening the journal to the first writing surface, and then folding itself over to its second.  Essentially what you end up with is one singular notebook that has two different covers, and also two different formats of paper, one side has ruled pages, while the other is unruled.  The entire journal is held firmly shut with a magnetic clasp on its outer edge.

Getting to hold one of these and go through the motions of opening it, and then folding it over itself to reveal the second side was really interesting.  I had my initial reservations before picking it up and seeing it in motion, with my assumption that it might have a less than high quality feel to it.  I was expecting that with the amount of focus that had to go into the complex design, there would be a shortfall when it came to the quality of the journal and the paper itself, but I was proven wrong as soon as I had the journal in my hands.  The cover and binding seemed to be of very high quality, and the paper looked and felt like that of some of the nicer journals that I have used before.  I did not get a chance to write in it, as they had only a few samples there on display for the show, however I do expect that I should be able to get a review sample in my hands soon so I can do a full test and review.  The target availability for these journals is July 27th, but in the mean time, keep an eye on the Revolver Bound Books and Journals website for more information, or to contact them directly for more information.  Please note that the photos here are scans that I made from their press kit.

Dry Erase Real Wood by Three by Three. Yep, thats wood, well bamboo to be specific, and it is a magnetic dry erase board.

The second very interesting product that I saw at the show was the Dry Erase Real Wood, from Three by Three Seattle.  They have a ton of nicely designed magnetic, dry erase, and organizing products to help you organize in the office, at home, or at school, but when I passed their booth at the show I pretty much stopped in my tracks and did a double take when I realized that their dry erase product was made from real bamboo.  At first I thought it was just a dry erase board with a pattern printed on it, but when I looked closely I realized that it was in fact made from real bamboo.  It was one of those situations where I didnt actually believe that the product was going to do what they claimed it did, so I had to try it for myself, and sure enough I was able to quickly and easily erase the letters that had been written on their display board.  In addition to the dry erase working effortlessly, I was also surprised by how strong the magnets were, and how firmly they attached to the bamboo.

The dry erase bamboo Entry Butler from Three by Three Seattle.

After chatting a bit about the product and its top secret design, I was also shown another of their products that uses the dry erase bamboo, which they call the Entry Butler.  The Entry Butler utilizes the bamboo dry erase board, but also incorporates some storage compartments and hooks.  The Entry Butler is the perfect item to place at the front door to so you can just grab your mail, and keys on the way out, and also see any important messages that someone may have left for you.  This is a real upgrade from your standard white board, the elegant look of the bamboo makes it a much more appealing item to have displayed in the type of high traffic areas that it was intended to be used in.  Check out Three by Three Seattle for more of their great products, and you can also become their fan on FaceBook.

UPDATE 10/28/09 – I received and reviewed a sample of the bamboo dry erase entry butler from Three by Three, its a really great product, check out the link for the review.

The BookMarker Flag Pen and Bookmark.

My final pick for being one of the more innovative office supplies at the show this year is from Everyday Innovations.  The BookMarker, takes a pretty simple concept and goes one step further in being even more useful.  It is a flag pen that not only holds your sticky flags for you, but it also serves as a bookmark and a closure strap for your book or journal.  The flat design, easily accessible flags, refillable pen, and functional elastic strap make for a really handy tool in a compact and portable package.  This seems like the ultimate all in one study aid, and is particularly great because when you are done you can just slide it in your book, slip the elastic strap around the outside of your book and you not only have a reminder for what page you were on, but you also dont have to worry about gathering up your pen and flags and then storing them somewhere.

The BookMarker may sell itself, but here are some extra photos and details for you anyway.

I think this is one of those products that just sells itself.   If you ever find yourself picking up and going from class to class, or from meeting to meeting, its hard not to immediately see the value of having this multi-function and super portable tool with you while you are on the go.  Although final production versions are not quite ready yet, I did get to see a working model, and it seems pretty useful, but for now,  Everyday Innovations also has some other portable stationary solutions besides the BookMarker, so check out their site and see if any of them suit your needs.

That wraps up my pics for the most innovative office supplies from the 2009 National Stationary Show,  and hopefully I’ll have some samples to write up complete reviews on soon.  In the coming days I will have some more groups of products to share with you that I am sure you will enjoy.  Dont forget to check out the websites for all of these products, the folks behind these companies and products were all very friendly and generous with their time, and I am sure that any feedback or questions you might have would be greatly appreciated.  You can also always leave your comments on the comments section here and I will do my best to answer them…anything I cant answer, I would be happy to try and find out from the people I spoke with.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

With graduation season here, you might be looking for a good gift for the grad that you know, so Ive gathered up some of the sales that have come to my in box.

• Goldspot Luxury Gifts is offering free standard shipping on any order over $120 and they have a nice section on graduation specific gifts. I’m surprised that they dont list their filofax products in that section, I think a nice organizers like the filofax ones make great gifts for someone getting ready to start their first job out of school.
• Paradise Pens also has a section on gifts for grads, as well as an offer to get a free 5280 Pen Set with any $100 purchase in store or online.  The in store coupon is here and the online promo code is TWINBLACK, TWINBLUE, or TWINSILVER depending on the color you want.  This deal is only good until May 31st or as long as supplies last.
• Colorado Pen Direct has a mix of deals on some pens and services (ie. shipping and engraving) but they end today, so check them out here if you are ready to buy anything.

I was really hoping to have a review up today, but I got back from the Stationery Show later than I had expected so I was not able to write something up.  I can say though that I got to meet some great people with some great products that I hope to write up in the coming days and weeks.  Just to quickly name a few, I got to meet Karen from the Quo Vadis Blog, Tom from Goldspot Pens Jac Zagoory, designer of some fantastic pen holders and pens, Sandy (and her dad) from PAPERoot.com, and many others.

Between the Stationery Show, my own purchases, and some other items that have been generously given to me by some manufacturers, I’ve got no shortage of items to review in the coming days and weeks, so I hope to start getting them up soon.

© 2009, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.

I am happy to say that I will be attending The National Stationery Show in NYC this weekend, and according to their website there will be about 1,000 vendors there.  Ill be attending on Sunday, so hopefully I will have a bunch of news and photos of new stationery and office supplies to share with all of you next week…as long as I also survive my birthday celebration of beer at Valhalla and BBQ at Daisy May’s.  Ill probably also try to check out Muji since Ill be close enough, they seem to have a good stock of office supply related stuff there.  I think the National Stationery Show is the closest thing to an office supplies show that I will be able to attend, so I am very excited about it all.

Also, don’t forget that you still have time to enter the office supply contest to win a Uniball Kuru Toga Pencil, which is by far the best pencil I’ve ever had the pleasure of using.

One last thing, if you like markers, @dowdyism has a contest going on to win a set of Copic Markers, but be sure to read the rules, this isnt your standard “leave a comment” kind of contest.

© 2009 – 2010, OfficeSupplyGeek. All rights reserved.