Our Recap of Pen Paper Palooza!

What a week! From vibrant conversations to inspiring exhibits, Pen Paper Palooza in Santa Monica delivered—and we’re excited to share the highlights!

The energy of sunny Santa Monica was evident right from the start, as people began arriving Friday morning, May 16. The local sunny disposition was a warm welcome for our team, who traveled all the way from rainy New York to attend the first-ever iteration of this California stationery event. Ryan and Justin both had a great time interacting with all the attendees, vendors, and show organizers as they worked through the packed room.

The new Avalanche Estie stole the show, as people were mesmerized by the beautiful shades of white, blue, and brown that make up the newest Diamondcast Esterbrook pen. This didn’t distract from the overwhelming popularity of Esterbrook’s newest collaboration with TheCoffeeMonsterzCo, which had the tables buzzing right from the start of the show! Crowds were wowed by our pens, inks, blotters, and washi tape.

“It was a ton of fun interacting with people who wanted to see all the different pens,” said Justin when speaking about the first day of the show. “Everyone was excited to see the different versions of their favorite new releases. Whether it's the swirl of TheCoffeeMonsterzCo. grip sections or the combination of blues and browns in the Avalanche Esties, it was great to see the uniqueness you get with each pen. Even though you can get the same pen as your friends, you’ll seemingly always have something unique at the same time—and it was great to see how everyone resonated with that.”

As day two rolled around, the excitement only grew as crowds returned for another chance to explore the first-year stationery event. Excitement and wonder filled the room as fans of stationery and pens alike entered, eager to see what the show had to offer. From traditional stationery to loads of stickers and notebooks, to pens, inks, and everything in between, fans were able to stay for hours taking in everything Pen Paper Palooza had to offer.

Esterbrook fans were especially excited to see some rare, limited editions and prototypes make an appearance on day two. The sold-out Seasonal Editions of the Winter White and Jurassic Estie were among the most popular surprises!

Esterbrook was also excited to have their first live release of the multicolored Spring Nib Stickers at Pen Paper Palooza. Every customer that stopped by was able to grab a free sticker or two at the table! People were also excited for the opportunity to see the reemergence of the Esterbrook Paradise Pin Set, which had been previously sold out for a time.

Pen Paper Palooza was definitely a blast! We can’t wait to head back to Santa Monica. A special thanks to show organizer Michelle MaliZaki for having us at this wonderful event! Michelle was great to work with and made the entire weekend a great experience. Make sure to make your way to the next Esterbrook live event to see what other surprises may be in store—we can't wait to see you there!