Since getting into the fountain pen hobby late last year, something I’ve heard a lot about is pen shows. Most of the ones I see referenced online are the large American pen shows, which sound incredible, but are obviously very far away from me here in England. So I was very curious as to what the UK pen show scene would be like. 

I would have loved to visit the London Pen Show earlier this year, as that’s the biggest UK pen show, but it costs a lot to travel from here to London, so unfortunately that’s a trip I would have to save up to make (maybe I’ll make it to the Autumn show?). So instead I decided to try out the pen show nearest to me, which is the Northern Pen Show, that took place on the 28th April this year in Chester. 

I recruited my fiancé to go along with me, as well as my parents. My Dad is also a big stationery person, but my fiancé and Mum are less so, but we all had a lovely time, regardless! 

We were actually incredibly impressed with the venue itself, as the Doubletree by Hilton hotel literally has a rolling lawn and huge fountain as you drive in, and is such a beautiful building! The conference room itself where the pen show was held wasn’t enormous, but there were a lot of stalls to look at, and excitingly, more pens than I’d ever seen in my life! 

A lot of the stalls we saw when we initially went in were selling vintage pens, and we spent a long time browsing and admiring them, even though none of us really had any knowledge of them. That’s definitely a blind spot for me on my fountain pen journey, and something I’d definitely like to learn more about before I go to another pen show, as there were so many there, I’m sure there were some gems to be had!

However, once we reached the back of the room, I spotted my first purchase: the Sailor Shikiori Tsukuyo-no-Minamo fountain pen in Yozakura. This pen has been on my wishlist for a long time, as it’s such a stunning pen, and also one of the Sailor steel-nib pens that I’ve heard is most similar to Sailor’s gold nib pens (and therefore a good opportunity to try out the famed Sailor feedback at a lower price point). It retails for around £67, but I spotted one on the back table for £30 – less than half price! 

I had initially planned to do a full sweep of the room before I bought anything, to make sure I got the things I wanted most. But there was only one of these pens left, and it was such a good price I had to snap it up! I’m not even sure what the stall was called (I was too excited to be honest to really notice these things!), but I’m so happy with this pen, and this was definitely the deal of the day. 

Once I broke the purchasing barrier though, they kept coming thick and fast! Literally at the next table I spotted the brand new TWSBI Eco in Caffe, and bought it. I already knew I was going to buy this pen at some point, but seeing it in real life gave me that push, especially as I got it a few pounds below retail price. 

I also ended up ordering two packs of 5 ink samples from the Pick N’ Mix samples table, which is great because ink samples seem to be very hard to come by here in the UK. I’ve heard that a lot of the larger pen retailers in the US sell samples, but you only seem to be able to get full bottles in the UK. I ordered the pastels sample pack and a sheening sample pack, and they arrived a couple of days ago and they’re all so lovely! This has also led me to discovering a new ink favourite – Ferris Wheel Press Morningside Mint – so I am going to have to buy a bottle of that at some point. 

I also bought a bottle of ink and another pen on my way out of the pen show, as something had caught my eye right as you entered the room. All Noodler’s ink was for sale for £10, so I bought a bottle of Concord Bream. I’ve been on the lookout for the perfect lilac ink for quite a while, and thought I’d found it in Faber Castell Violet Blue, but I actually think Concord Bream is even better!

I also grabbed an unusual pen that I’d never even heard of that they were selling by the ticket table: a WRITECH Retractable Fountain Pen. You could try this pen out, and for such an inexpensive pen it wrote really smoothly, and was such an interesting design with its little hatch door that opens when you click it. I ended up buying the lilac one, and even my fiancé (who isn’t a pen person) liked it so much he bought one in black. 

And the last thing I got at the pen show was something my parents bought me from the Giraffe Gifts table: a cute little Legami erasable pen. It’s a black cat, just like my actual cat Mona, and is so adorable, I absolutely love it! 

All in all, we were there for way longer than I expected, given the place wasn’t super huge. There was a lot packed into there though, and so much to look at, that I’m quite glad I started off with a smaller show rather than something like London, as at times it was a little overwhelming! 

It was so great though to be able to really immerse myself in the world of fountain pens, and just be in a room where I was surrounded by other enthusiasts. As a major introvert I didn’t really go around striking up conversations with people, but all the stall holders I spoke to were really lovely, and I feel like I got some great deals, and some things that I’ll treasure as my first pen show haul!

I’m definitely hoping to attend the Northern Pen Show again next year, and who knows, maybe I’ll make it to one of the other UK pen shows this year!

So have you ever been to a pen show? How did you find it, and what did you buy?