Church House, Skelton, Penrith, Cumbria CA11 9TE, England Tel UK 01768484300  International 44 1768484300  Email ppgallery@aol.com

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Partners- Jim & Jane Marshall

Our key activities

Restoration,  Selling,   Writing, Buying  with attendance at some trade and antique shows. 

The Company

In 1996 Marestin Ltd was renamed The Pen & Pencil Gallery to give a clearer indication of what we were about. Marestin Ltd had been embryonic since 1989 and in business since 1992 dealing with domestic item antique restoration and innovation. From the beginning we were enthusiasts of shows and societies, particularly in the USA and in 1995 we sponsored the first annual Northern Pen show in the UK. Jim was a council member of the UK Writing Equipment Society and we joined and promoted the PCA, US Inkwell Society and the Belgium Pen Club.

We moved to Skelton near Penrith, Cumbria in 1995 , where we rebuilt an adjoining barn as a gallery and workshops. This was in its basic form in 1996 and has gradually been improved and modified. We have three workshops:-one for turning, engraving, slotting and grinding; another for polishing and buffing plus material storage and the third is the repair, cleaning, testing workshop with smaller equipment and two equipped repair benches. We are currently re-equipping to make more intricate pieces for pencils and dip pens and now have small scale commercial plating equipment.

It was always our aim to promote interest in old writing equipment and particularly the renovation and actual use of items. From the start, we had a wide range of writing equipment for sale however the emphasis shifted in the last few years to the late C18th and early C19th. Dip pens, pencils, quill knives and accessories feature more in our range than in the past. (which incidentally has made our new website more complex than our first over 4 years ago).

Pen portraits

Jane is the owner of JM pens, and a partner in PPG. She looks after the interface with the Pen Exchange in London and other outlets, the show and exhibitions schedules and the general administration. After bringing up four daughters in 6 countries, coping with Jim, and a few grandchildren- writing equipment is easy. She has a specific interest in treen, small silver and ornate pencils and has been known to raise the price of an item, she likes, beyond the reach of any customer.

Jim (John)  spent 30 years with Unilever, mostly overseas in technical and development roles. He looks after the hands on repair and restoring and does most of the writing and research.( He is currently writing three books due out next year.) He regularly emphasises three important factors which influenced his writing equipment apprenticeship; US shows, meeting Arthur Twydle and Michael Finlays book. His main interests are early C19th accessories, quill knives, silver and the intricacies of pencil and fountain pen repair.

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