2026 SF Stationery Fest in the books
Enjoyed my cherry blossom hanami too!
It’s been a while since I wrote, but I finally could surface for air after a whirlwind of three weekends hosting friends who are visiting and going on a short trip myself. It may feel like a wild read but let me squeeze in three weeks’ worth of content into this single post since I still have 10 hours to go until I reach Taipei and I have nothing better to do other than finish binge watching Pursuit of Jade. I have a lot to catch up on anyway.
National Park, bookstores, and marine mammals on the pier
Two weeks ago, my friend and The Stationery Café co-host Kelly and her ex-roommate Maddie came up to Seattle and stayed over at my place for the weekend. Of course, we had to go on some stationery adventures around town. As I typically do, I stuffed our itinerary to the max from morning café to dinner plans. Our first stop on a promising sunny Saturday was delicious sesame latte at Aroom on the waterfront as we poured over each other’s TRAVELER’S notebook.
A few blocks away was a national park I’ve always wanted to visit. The Klondike Gold Rush National Park isn’t a piece of land, but instead was an old hotel converted into a museum that documents the story and history of when people pass through Seattle as they head north to find gold in Alaska. Even though I’ve lived in Seattle since 2017 and even worked at Pioneer Square for two years, I never knew about this national park nestled next to my favorite sandwich place. Naturally, we found all the embossing machines and went ham with those devices in our notebooks. Stickers and stamps were also acquired at the National Park store.
Another reason we choose to explore Pioneer Square was for the opportunity to sneak peek a fellow stationery enthusiast’s Seattle project – a new stationery store called Outpost Stationery. Santiago’s cool venture is opened right by Occidental Square, and he is kind enough to offer us a quick tour before his official opening date. I’m elated about a new stationery haven to open in town. Nearby, we checked off two bookstores on our to-do list: the elegant Arundel Bookstore and the heartthrob Beguiled Books.
We spent the rest of the weekend sunbathing on the waterfront park at Pike Place; the weather was just right and the warm sun a welcoming blanket on this cold start to March (you saw that it snowed earlier that week!) After thoroughly sunning ourselves on the deck, we visited the Aquarium on my membership to in turn watch seals and otters enjoy the good weather. Maddie was in love with the giant pacific octopus while I enjoyed the presence of a harbor seal zoning out in the outdoor enclosure. A delightful sea otter feeding session tied the perfect bow on a beautiful day and we went home with content.
Before the girls head home to Portland on Sunday, I cajoled them into a café journaling meetup with local friends at Cedar Hall (a beautiful third space). While we’re in the area, we had to hit Happy Hues, the newly rebranded Pikrar and Friends, which carried a huge array of artist creations and even Tono & Lims inks! I had to restrain myself from buying stickers because I have SF Stationery Fest in my future, but everyone had a great time. A warm and comforting chowder for lunch in the sun marked a great end to that weekend.
Springing into Spring
This spring, Seattle’s cherry blossom season blessed me with 70% bloom before I had to leave for my next work event at San Francisco Stationery Fest.
I had to take advantage of the pink fluffy clouds before I left for SF, despite their best effort to attack me with spring allergies (I’ve never felt such discomfort from itchy eyes). Last week, my friend was in town visiting with friends and I took great pleasure taking them around Pike Place, my favorite views from Kerry Park, and I even squeezed in a little hanami picnic session at the UW quad.
The quad was filled with people because everyone had to endure a week long rain before the cherry blossoms made their peek this past sunny weekend. We picked a corner of the yard to laid down our picnic blanket and chowed down on cheddar pull-apart from Moonrise Bakery, my favorite tradition. Sadly, we were on a tight schedule so I didn’t get to paint per my ritual. However, I was content to watch all the adorable doggos wiggle their tail and weaving amongst the fray. It’s like the entire city finally woke up and are ready to receive this year with positive feelings.
On Sunday afternoon, I met up with Ellie from @Handtopaper and we enjoyed a casual urban sketching session at the Lakeview Cemetery right next to Bruce Lee’s grave. I’ve always wanted to paint the dynamic scene of the cemetery’s cherry blossoms blooming against the green lawn and the contours of Lake Washington and mountains beyond. It’s safe to say that I felt extremely satiated from all the flower viewing of this season.
A beautiful start in San Francisco
It feels weird to touchdown on San Francisco on a Wednesday morning, it feels like I was just home from the busy San Francisco Pen Show last year. However, this time we are here for the San Francisco Stationery Fest, another event put on at the same location by the same organizers of the pen show. Although this is the inaugural show of its namesake, the routine feels comfortingly familiar. I flew in to SF early into the week to host a series of meetup events on Thursday afternoon before the real chaos begin from Friday through Sunday.
However, I was determined to take it easy and enjoy the day around downtown San Francisco with my colleague who flew in from Tokyo. I told him the best way to beat jetlag is to get as much sun as possible – the weather cooperated and we didn’t even see Karl the fog covering the Golden Gate Bridge!
It’s tough to work for a stationery company, our research chores include visiting stationery stores around town; fine, I’ll fall on that sword. Conveniently located next to Maido is Jina Bakes, my favorite Korean bakery in town. I had to wake up very early to catch the morning flight and the honeycomb latte hit the perfect spot before we started visiting the stores.
The empty shelf display of the ZENTO Signature in Champagne Gold taunted me at Maido but I’m happy to report that I eventually scored this pen (although in black) later at the stationery festival from Vaness Pen Shop. I admired the huge display of local artist sticker sheets at the gift-store section of Maido and couldn’t help picking up a few pieces in prelude to the stationery show this weekend.
Kei, my colleague, wanted to visit FLAX Art and Design so we hailed a Waymo from Japan town to Fort Mason. This was my first time riding these self-driving cars and I was rightfully intimidated as it made its way up and down the steep hills across town. There’s a section as we cross Pacific Heights that felt like a roller coaster as we careened down towards the water.
The bridge was fully visible and glorious in the sun. The foliage around Fort Mason was filled with some bright purple flowers and I’m happy to report that I didn’t suffer any spring allergies from these local pollens. From FLAX, I was happy to score a watercolor sketchpad to bring with me for my upcoming trip to South Korea!
The rest of my team drove up from Los Angeles to San Francisco on the same day and we reconvened on Thursday morning to get brunch before the afternoon’s events. We drove towards the Mission district and enjoyed a leisurely stroll around Heath Ceramics and Tartine Manufactory. Coming back to this neighborhood made me reminisce about our wonderful memories participating at the TRAVELER’S COMPANY ROAD TRIP event back in 2024. It was also a sunny and breezy afternoon and the joy of analog was able to help us cope with the devastating loss at the elections. Ugh, those were better days then.
It is now another tradition of our team to devour massive burritos and bowls from Senor Sisig, a local institution serving Californian street food with a Filipino twist. My go-to was the loaded fries, smothered with guacamole, sour cream, and sweet and savory fried tofu. We thought we’d pop into Topdrawer on the way home but they were closed for lunch. Instead, we detoured to BAGGU and I accidentally purchased another bowler bag…is this becoming tradition too?
Ethan took a wrong turn on the drive back to The Westin San Francisco Airport and we had a spontaneous view of the city hall plaza and the beautiful Asian Art Museum. I didn’t mind the calm and the peaceful view before the storm of the San Francisco Stationery Fest. It’s going to be a wild one for sure.
The small storm before the storm
The inaugural San Francisco Stationery Fest (SFSF for short) run from March 27th through March 29th, but just like the yearly SF Pen Show, vendors and attendees start trickling in throughout Thursday. This year, on behalf of my company, I proposed two events on Thursday to occupy people’s time if they are in town early for the show.
The first event and meetup of the day was the PLOTTER’S Lounge where we transferred a small ballroom into a jazz-filled lounge with a variety of creative activities one could participate in. My colleague Job and I prepared tables filled with collaging materials for people looking to junk journal or create spontaneous spreads in their PLOTTER. I also set up a Creative Writing Bar with a selection of journaling prompts for visitors to write free form on our writing pads. I hosted the PLOTTER’S Plaza, a corner piled with all kinds of leather binders so that new users can learn about the ring system and our leather types. Finally, at the back of the room, my team set up a mini pop-up shop with a PLOTTER Paper Cocktail Bar where customers can curate their own set of “cocktail” from a huge selection of PLOTTER decorated papers.
Two hours later, we stripped down the entire room and transformed the same space into a different vibe – TRAVELER’S SPIRIT Gallery and meetup space. Unlike at the SF Pen Show, I decided to forego the RSVP system since it’s a casual event. However, the attendance blew me away… a long queue looking to shop from our makeshift pop-up snaked around the entire room.
The other highlight of the evening’s event was a gallery showcasing amazing TRAVELER’S notebook spreads from my friends: Chelsea (Words in the Margin), Jackie (IG at Brokenhalo81), Micaela (IG via.micaela), and Anastasha (IG thepostaltype).
I flit around the room playing host but also excited to catch up from friends from all over town. There were familiar faces I remembered from SF Pen Show but also a lot of new friends that came specifically because this was a stationery-focused show! The meetup (party?) lasted late into eight thirty before we all retire back into our rooms. That’s the best thing about a show taking place inside a hotel’s ballroom space, you are only a few floors away from bed!
It was a long day to say the least, but I was fueled by all the enthusiasm of stationery lover. Lelani (from Sari Sari Stationery) came through with a take-out order of San Tung’s original dried fried chicken…they are the best fried chicken in the world. Other friends stuffed us with pineapple buns and Portuguese egg tarts throughout the evening. I found myself still suckling my fingers with leftover fried chicken at the end of the night in my hotel room. Nothing beats a good show with good food involved.
We love a good Stationery Festival
I’ve been coming to the SF Pen Show for years and I knew that the organizers will still do a good job even with this new stationery-focused show. It was 80% stationery/small makers and 20% pens and inks. I was able to learn about so many creatives local to SF and some who traveled from afar. Vendors such as Yamamoto and Sanby came all the way from Japan. I also know of friends Tokubetsumemori and TPL Stationery who flew from Taiwan. I really appreciate how west coast shows attract creative talents from Asia.
Plus, the show has the best mascots of all the events around the country – I traded kisses with Ace the (full-size) puppy the day before we set up. Odin, the mascot of SF Pen Show, was also by Todd’s feet (he’s the organizer) and he absolutely gave the new guy some contemptuous glances throughout the event.
However, unlike at the SF Pen Show, we were all forced to set up on the same morning the show begins on Friday due to an event space conflict from the hotel side. It was a daunting task but we all woke up at 5:30 in the morning to lug boxes of products into our alleyway on the show floor. Thankfully, this wasn’t our first rodeo so we finished setting up with an hour to spare before the organizers let in the hungry piranhas, I mean customers, lining up at the door.
Friday’s crowd came in fierce during the first opening hour but we still found pockets of time to relax and enjoy the slower pace throughout the day compared to SF Pen Show. I was pleasantly surprised that I had time to chat with old friends and catch up, instead of our typical mobbed status at shows like this. Yet, I knew I talked too soon because Saturday was a completely different story. The good weather and the cheaper admissions tickets brought a rolling wave of fans and new customers throughout the day. I remember walking through the hallway and trading glazed and petrified glances with vendor friends as we weave through the crowd for the bathroom.
Despite the smaller roster of vendors, I think it attracted just as many crowds of a different type. It is evident that the SF analog lovers have a huge appetite for stationery!
I found the San Francisco Stationery Show to be filled with whimsy and delight. Sanby, the stamp company from Japan, brought huge Godzilla stamps and set it out each day for fans to try out on our own notebooks – I totally missed out on the different Godzillas set out for each day. The staff gave great encouraging words from the sideline as people attempt the massive stamp – I left it to the experts to help with my stamp impression.
Yamamoto Paper designed an entire “Paper Town” filled with towers of colorful paper pads with a miniature train running through the display – you can pick 10 pcs to fill your own “paper house” for just $25!
On another corner of the room was a huge inflatable balloon character brought by Rins Studio, an artist from China and their huge selection of sticker sheets and tapes. The shop staff generously shared with me their SF Pen Show exclusive sticker! 2jingis2jing’s booth had decorative curtains drawn to reveal her booth filled with colorful sticker sheets and notebooks. She made tiny stamps featuring her iconic bunny character and I scooped up a few of her SF Pen Show exclusives too. Sari Sari Stationery brought the tropical vibe to their pop-up shop…apparently there was a questionable “barrel man” toy that will flip you…interesting things if you tried to lift it.
There were a huge variety of Asian stationery everywhere, which is what I found missing in the pen show scene. I love Tokubetsumemori’s never ending selection of Taiwanese and Korean artist’s goods (including some of her own exclusives). I could barely catch a glimpse of Judy throughout the show as she worked her PET tape magic with workshops throughout the weekend. My documented Journey also took up two long tables with shelves filled with Malaysian artist stamps and tape samples from Taiwanese artists. TPL Stationery from Taiwan banded with Banana Hand (Toronto) and Yipee studio to display a huge variety of PET tapes and postcard selections. Of course, another star of the show was Linchianing with her hand drawn designs realized through stamps, wax seals, tapes, and sticker sets. Her show-exclusive brass charm sold out on day 1 and left me coveting for one long after the show. Overall, I was so happy to see the huge selection of stationery that I love and use in my style of journaling – the Asian creative journaling aesthetic.
A great complement and addition to the show are local Asian American artists showcasing their unique humor and style…all hand-drawn, no AI shenanigans for these amazing artists at the show! I love browsing through Ilootpaperie’s punny cards and stationery designs (Hi Alice and Doris!). Aggie from Little Red House brought a huge display of her signature cozy animal styles. Christine Herrin and her endless creativity through clear stamps at Everyday Explorers Co drew a consistent crowd throughout the weekend. I didn’t even get to see what the show exclusive design looks like before it’s all sold out.
Other notable mentions were Fog Cat & Yanchako (they had a Bluetooth speaker playing city pop right by the entrance), Thousand Skies, SimplyMKO, Michela Made, Dana ate Oatmeal, Bloom Paper Studio (I love their cute bears from CA Pen Show), The Wednesday Company, and Panty Cat (who were a big hit from Little Craft Fest). Overall: so many artists, too little time, and a very drained wallet!
There were so many stationery business and friends also at the show. Yushing from Kubo and Lucy brought a huge collection featuring San Francisco drawn by Catdoo, one of my favorite Malaysian artist. Erick from Amarillo Stationery returned to San Francisco with his Latin America inspired curation of goods and inks. Tom and his Sugar Turtle Studio creation fit right into this crowd as well.
American stationery stores such as Oblation Papers and Press (Portland), FLAX Pen to Paper (LA), Gentleman Stationers (Nashville), and Vaness Pen Shop (Little Rock, Arkansas) added a great balance to the show, while the local store Maido brought their popular DIY Kaweco to the show experience too. Fountain pens and inks were a little lacking but not missed, there are more than enough stationery goods to fill a stationery nerd’s heart. I’d like to think that our Japanese stationery brands: TRAVELER’S COMPANY, PLOTTER, and MD PRODUCT were a good complement to the bespoke and artisanal vibe at the show.
At this show, I mostly manned the MD PRODUCT table alongside my Japanese colleague. Our notebooks flew off the shelves, and I was equally enamored with our tiny A7 notebooks that attendees purchased and used to collect stamp impressions throughout the event venue (it might be a little too small for the Godzilla stamp). PLOTTER is busy as usual and surprisingly the TRAVELER’S COMPANY tables weren’t as swamped as they do at the SF Pen Show, which was a nice reprieve for the team.
Workshops were held throughout the day in the smaller rooms surrounding the main ballroom (at SF Pen Show, those were filled with vendors too), but I didn’t have time to participate in any of them. I barely had time to get away from our tables on the weekend! However, I finally made time on Saturday evening to hang out with a few friends (the lovely girls from Oblation) over delicious pork cutlet with curry (Curry Hyuga) and a spontaneous journaling meetup after dark at the Aloft lobby.
I love that the evenings were also filled with stationery-themed events: On Friday night, Joe and Lisa from On The Paper Trail performed a live recording of their new pen podcast. On Saturday night, crowd favorite Sakura Dragon hosted a journaling meeting filled with stamp stations and stationery raffles late into the night. While pen shows have a lively organic after-dark scene, I think the Stationery Fest boasted a community-focused round table hangout in a “the more the merrier” style.
I’m glad I skipped the karaoke (my throat can never) on Saturday night and engaged in some bar journaling instead. New friends and old were not shy to trade PET tape samples, swap stickers, and even do some buy-sell-trade over fountain pens. I don’t think I’ve talked as much as I did during any other show but thankfully I retained my voice this time unlike at CA Pen Show. The whole event was quite memorable (our business did great too), so I was content to leave the show early on Sunday to catch an afternoon flight home.
Throughout the weekend, Kelly and I were happy to hear from friends and strangers who tuned in to our podcast. We’re also embarrassed that we haven’t been recording as many episodes as we used to. I sometimes wonder if I’m entering a slow-down era of stationery enthusiasm – but this SF Stationery Fest event proved me wrong. I love the artistry and the enthusiasms creators have for their craft. Fans and consumers purchase artist’s works and curate them in their journals and notebooks because it brings them joy in their life. This exchange of creativity is definitely something that the technology of Generative AI lacks. At the show it is evident that people adore more stories and crave more soul.
The cherry blossom petals are dancing as they fall to the ground in Seattle, forming lovely pink carpets in the neighborhoods. I have a one-day turnover at home before heading to the airport again for my next short trip – Taiwan and South Korea. Cookie was so happy to see me and was suspicious about my larger suitcase making its way to the front door.
I made my annual tour of the Ballard cherry blossom streets before bidding the season goodbye. The weather app promised 28 to 32 degree Celsius in Taipei…I don’t think I’m ready for the increased humidity either. However, Illustration Expo awaits me as well as a little sketching retreat at South Korea. I’ll report back soon!
Thank you for an excellent review. Now I want to go to the SFSF instead of the SFPS, being more of a stationery lover.
Thanks so much for sharing your review April. I really enjoyed reading about two of my favourite things as well, blossoms and stationery. SFSF looked wonderful, I hope to be able to make the trip to the US one of these days for a pen show or stationery show. Hope you enjoy Taiwan and Korea!