Watches, Pens, and the Craft of Analog Living
Ellen Ashford · July 26, 2026
A few years ago, I paid $340 for a vintage Parker 51 at an estate sale. The seller called it a “bargain.” My husband called it something less flattering. But the moment I inked that pen and felt the hooded nib glide across Rhodia paper, I understood something fundamental about vintage versus modern value — … Read more
Ellen Ashford · July 17, 2026
A few years ago, a friend texted me a photo of a watch he’d found at a flea market. “Is this real?” he asked. It was a Rolex Submariner — pristine, green dial, cyclops lens — priced at $180. I knew immediately it wasn’t. But explaining homage watches vs counterfeits to someone who’d never heard … Read more
Ellen Ashford · July 14, 2026
Five years ago, I bought a mechanical pencil in what I thought was a standard size. It was 0.9mm. I spent three months wondering why my handwriting looked like a toddler had taken over my hand. When I finally switched to 0.5mm, the difference was immediate—crisp, controlled, precise. That small mistake taught me something important: … Read more
Ellen Ashford · July 11, 2026
The debate over fountain pen converter vs cartridge sounds simple on the surface. Pick one, fill it, write. But after a decade of collecting everything from a $15 Pilot Metropolitan to a vintage Montblanc 149 with a broad flex nib, I can tell you this choice matters far more than most beginners realize. It affects … Read more
Ellen Ashford · July 3, 2026
A few years ago, I sat across from a watchmaker named Hiroshi at a small repair bench in Kyoto. He had just serviced a 1968 Seiko 5 that belonged to my grandfather. He held it up to the light, wound the crown three turns, and said: “This watch does not need batteries. It does not … Read more
Ellen Ashford · June 30, 2026
I’ve owned exactly one watch strap that made me feel genuinely stupid. It was a gorgeous cognac leather band on a dive watch I wore kayaking in the Chesapeake. By the time I paddled back to shore, the strap had absorbed so much water it felt like wet cardboard against my wrist. The buckle had … Read more
Ellen Ashford · June 23, 2026
I’ve filled more notebooks than I can count. Somewhere around my fortieth journal, I stopped grabbing whatever was on the shelf and started thinking seriously about dot grid vs lined vs blank notebook formats — and how each one actually changes the way I write, sketch, and think. That shift made a bigger difference than … Read more
Ellen Ashford · June 22, 2026
I’ve carried a pocket notebook every single day for the better part of a decade. It started, oddly enough, with watches — specifically a vintage Seiko 5 with a 7S26 movement I picked up at an estate sale for $40. I needed somewhere to jot the serial number, the caseback engravings, the seller’s notes. That … Read more
Ellen Ashford · June 20, 2026
The pen-versus-pencil debate sounds simple until you’re standing in a stationery aisle second-guessing yourself. I’ve been there more times than I can count. After a decade of collecting analog tools — watches, fountain pens, ballpoints, mechanical pencils — I still get asked this question constantly. People assume there’s one right answer. In reality, the answer … Read more