Still Searching

So my dad's birthday is officially in two weeks.  I know, I better get on it.  But I want to get him something handmade.  For Christmas, I got him a lovely cutting board from Delia Sophia (coming soon to Alere, with an exclusive line!!) that he uses every day.  It's going to be hard to top.

Today I got an email from Real Simple about how if you do one thing, you should send an actual, physical, card to someone.   I think it's a great idea.  I have one cousin (out of 30-something) who sends cards all the time.  It is a totally wonderful surprise every time I get one in the mail from her.  I thought the article was especially pogniant, since just the other day we started adding note cards to the site, including these lovely ones from Michel Soares:

Of course, the email also mentioned  "Nine Noteworthy Pens"  -- all were cute, interesting, and "fun" but none really carried the "handmade luxury" feel that we love so much.  That title belongs to this handmade pen by Nayakaya -

I love the simplicity of this pen, and the fact that it is truly, entirely, handmade.  Yes, the $505 price tag may be a little steep, but I suspect that for pen collectors (scratch that, I know that for pen collectors) this isn't really anything to scoff at. 

So while I contemplate the $500 pen, I'll keep looking....