There are quite a few photos for your viewing pleasure here http://www.flickr.com/photos/heritagepens/
There may be some confusion over the definition of “big bucks”. I’m just looking for folks who are interested in more than $3 pens from a big box store.
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January 30
As promised a few months ago, here is some information about the Pen Makers Guild. You can see why we are so please with Lou’s successful application!
The Pen Makers Guild is a loosely knit group of independent pen makers from around the world. There are currently less than 70 members. Membership is gained by submitting a masterwork to a “jury” of five well-established pen makers who review each submission to the Pen Makers Guild.
This committee of Guild “elders” (relating to experience and not biological age) view each pen, going over every detail and paying attention to the minutiae which the untrained eye does not necessarily focus on. Not only must the masterwork be technically perfect (or as close as we ever come to perfection), but it must also demonstrate an elementary and a certain sense of newness in technique, design elements, engineering or expression of artistic beauty. A pretty pen is not enough. Functionality and technical excellence must also reach the highest level for admission into the Guild.
For the independent pen artist, the Pen Makers Guild is a crowning achievement in their development. The organization and its members have been recognized in both Pen World International and Stylus magazines.
January 21
One of the most common questions asked of us is “Why do you work so hard to produce handcrafted pens one at a time when their are machines out there that will do all of the work much quicker? You will find many reasons offered by master craftsmen, but I like to offer this simple quote from a guy whose name is probably familiar to you all.
“Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art”. — Leonardo da Vinci
December 26
Wow! This was a busy season for Heritage Pens…and 2007 looks to be even busier. We were fortunate to be able to bring some smiles to some folks faces at Christmas. There’s not much more we could ask for. More changes to the website. We’ve explained our site search function as well as our new gallery of Sold Pens. Now you can still order a pen in a design or wood that may not be in our current offerings. Of course, if you have a treasured piece, we will create a customer piece from what you have. Just contact us for a quote. As the end of 2006 approaches, we thank your for being a part of our success and we look forward to working with you in 2007!
October 13
I ran across this little quote awhile back. I like to think all of my customers have a good understanding of what Mr. Ruskin is saying.
VALUE
It’s unwise to pay too much…but it’s worse to pay too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money…that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do.
The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot…it can’t be done.
If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run. And if you do that, you will have enough for something better.
–John Ruskin (English Critic and Essayist, 1819-1900)
September 10
There are some HUGE changes to the website. We have a new return policy and a warranty that’s longer than any offered by other pen crafters. And, finally, we’ve changed our shipping policies. I don’t want to spoil the rest of the site, so that’s all I’ll say for now!
Also, we’ve added ballpoint and rollerball refills from Schmidt. We feel that they are some of the finest refills on the market…and our prices are much more reasonable than your office supply store!
August 16
The Washington DC Fountain Pen Supershow is behind us for another year. It was certainly wonderful to meet so many of you in person. It was our first pen show, but will not be the last. There are shows all over the country so we will post where we will be right here. If we’re in your town, please stop by for a visit. It’s always great to put a face with the name. Also, you will get to see the hands that created your custom, handcrafted pen!
June 21, 2006
In a delightful email message we learned that our Owner/Artist, Lou Metcalf, was accepted into the Pen Makers Guild. More on this later, but we MUST celebrate a bit! Excuse me while I break out the champagne!
June 12, 2006
This whole internet thing got started innocently enough. Back in February, I had the opportunity to help out the American Cancer Society by donating a pen for their Silent Auction. Simple enough…or so it seemed. Then they mentioned that they would like to be able to put a small card by donations, listing information about the donor, including website. Hmmm…I didn’t have a website. I’d done fairly well selling pens through gift shops as well as to friends, neighbors, relatives and co-workers.
So, I figured the only thing to do was to put a website up. The only wrinkle in the plan was that I didn’t know html or anything else required to put up a site. A good friend of mine had a beautiful website, so I figured to talk with him. As usual, he provided lots of insight, including the fact that he had purchased a template and put his own site up with only three long days of work. Of course, he knew how to do it!
First things being first, I reviewed the templates at the site he suggested. I found one I liked a lot and that didn’t have too many terms I hadn’t seen before. The price was reasonable, so I jumped right in and bought it…nothing ventured, nothing gained. The download couldn’t have been easier and the manual downloaded with the software…all 300 pages of it. Uh oh. Danger ahead.
I breezed through the first 6 pages before I realized that I wouldn’t even finish the manual before the auction. Fortunately, when I returned to the template site, I found a listing for a company that specialized in what I was looking for. A couple of quick phone calls, a few bucks and a week later I had a fully functional site.
I put a small amount of content on the site so it wouldn’t look so bare and had a quiet launch through the auction. The donation brought a nice amount of cash, so my work was well worth it. Of course, now I had a website that needed some serious care and feeding. A month of adding content, tweaking and refining and I finally officially launched the site. It’s been a couple of months now and I’m very pleased with how it’s grown. I’m getting some favorable emails and sales, too, so we must be doing something right!
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