Do you know about Dudek Modern Goods and Mr. Mike Dudek?

Not only is Mike into pens and pencils, he’s also into woodworking and made The Cube shown above. I originally bought it for Mr. Pentulant (it’s true!), but my greed for all things pen-related took over and The Cube ended up living on my desk. Oops 🙂

I had a Major Pen Organization Issue. Pens everywhere + very little organization. I realize this is a problem many people would love to have – so many pens that they aren’t staying organized – but it’s still a problem and it was driving me cRazY.

And then I had an idea and sent Mike a message that went something like the following:

Hey Mr. Mike. I have an idea and I think you can help. I need a pen holder. A BIG pen holder – something like The Groove so I can use it to hold small notebooks, but bigger. Way bigger. Like – big. 

Within a few hours, I had a sketch. Within a few weeks, I had this . . .

Like. Whoa. Right?

It originally had a second Groove on the other end, but the post office seriously manhandled the package (ugggg) and it had to go back to Mr. Mike for a little fix-it revision. No big deal and the repair is perfect – if I didn’t tell you, you’d never know. Perfect!

So perfect so that I wanted another. Yes, another.

And then Mr. Mike had an idea that went something like this:

Hey Mrs. Darling, (we’re so formal) I have an idea. What if we put the grooves further into the design  to give you pen holders on either side of the notebooks.

Yes!  And that’s when I ended up with this . . .

And as much as I love the first. OMG, this one? Yes x 1000.  I love that the end sections look like the original Cube.

Not the best quality image, but here they are next to each other . . .

And here are all three of them . . .

Wait. What? Four?!  Mr. Mike tossed in the Cube on the bottom for Mr. Darling. Of course, I’ve claimed it as my own! (Just kidding – Mr. Darling Pentulant is taking this one to his fancy new job – probably so I can’t get my hands on it!)

A few more pictures . . .

Here’s what I love about Mike Dudek and Dudek Modern Goods . . .

..amazing quality – I saw a competing product at the LA Pen Show, but there was really no comparison. Mr. Mike’s items are solid walnut – they are weighty. The finish is stunning and smooth and allows the natural grain of the wood to take center stage. I love that the “groove” is actually grooved, too. Not only does it add a bit of texture to the design, it also helps keep the notebooks upright. The quality is 100%.

..Mr. Mike – I love entrepreneurship. Small businesses grown organically from love. Go find what you love and freakin’ do it. That’s what Mr. Mike is doing and he’s doing a fantastic job. Quality products, good prices, and outstanding service. (And he’s into, “Hey, I have an idea!”)

..my pens are organized! The small openings the perfect size for Lamy Safari and the larger openings easily hold the Al-Star and larger pens. Mike can do all small openings or a mix of small/large. I like a mix.

Even after really really thinking about it, I have nothing negative to say about Dudek Modern Goods. The pens aren’t as well protected in these holders as they would be in a velvet-lined drawer. How’s that?

In the end, I sent Mr. Mike a note, thanking him for working so hard on my projects, telling him how wonderful they are, and closed with something like the following:

He said yes to that, too! I’ll be back later today to share that with you.