Posts Tagged ‘handwriting’

h1

Putting That Ink and Pen to Good Use

2009/11/16

Need to put that fabulous ink and handsome fountain pen to use? The Letter Writers Alliance will help you find a pen pal who will appreciate your efforts. According to the website, “The Letter Writers Alliance is a member based organization dedicated to keeping the art of letter writing alive.” Indeed!

For those with limited time, Fountain Pen Network makes short work of correspondence by offering postcard pen pals. And for writers who refuse to be confined to those itty bitty spaces, there is an FPN group interested in exchanging full-on missives. Something for everyone, eh?

Know of another source for pen pals? Post a link in the comments below so others can make new friends, too.

h1

The Mechanics of Flexible Nibs

2009/10/29

To some fountain pen users, nothing beats the allure of a pen with a flexible nib. There is elegance about it from the rhythm and control necessary to dance one across smooth paper to the fabulous forms in the trail of ink left behind. Getting the hang of simple forms isn’t terribly hard but it does require patience and practice. Check out some of the links in the sidebar for some good online resources.

If you want to get an understanding of nib mechanics, I’ve just discovered a fine post about flex nibs from Tao at Bleubug’s blog. This is pen geek stuff to be sure but everyone can enjoy his video.

If you have a favorite website or even know of a good post about using flexible nibs, please add it to the comments. Some of us can’t get enough of such things.

h1

Even More Handwriting Links

2009/10/29
h1

Calligraphy Video Demonstration

2009/10/08

Wanna see how it’s done? Check out Caliken’s DVD.

h1

A Handful of Handwriting Links

2009/09/27

In September there was a spate of articles about handwriting from its delights to its difficulty to its datedness to its demise. Check out the links, then post your comments. I expect your opinions will be just as strong as those expressed below.

If all that inspires you to work on your penmanship, check out some earlier posts on the subject here and here or visit the Calligraphy & Penmanship links in the sidebar. Let me know if you have a favorite handwriting site that should be included. That’s one list that will always have room for growth.

h1

Back to Black

2009/09/03

It’s been a long summer and life is now starting up on the other side of the break. Back to the desk, a little writing, and a few reviews.

Needing to test a pen without ink prejudice, I decided to bring out my old bottle of Noodler’s Black. Several years ago NB was one of three inks, along with Noodler’s Legal Lapis and Parker Quink BBk, in my business rotation. For a couple of 1940’s Parker “51″ fountain pens, those inks worked beautifully in my Moleskine journals but there were other benefits at least to the black. Its lack of color helped me focus on the words and screen out thoughts about the ink. It also allowed me to judge a pen’s performance without considering aesthetics like shading or outlining, quite useful when I am undecided about a nib. Yesterday was one of those days.

The pen in question was a Leonardo Black Lacquer Calligraphy pen intended for Chinese calligraphy. The nib turns up and allows for a variety of line widths. A review of the pen is on my To Do List but for now suffice it to say it is not for everyone but it is great fun for a change of pace.

The bigger point (Ha!) is that using Noodler’s Black allowed me to focus on the nib and the writing without being swayed by the beauty of the ink. Noodler’s has a good degree of blackness to it though the Leonardo can make it shade from charcoal to black. More importantly the writing flowed unhesitatingly from my thoughts to the paper. That is good. Very, very good. I wrote until the letters blurred and I could no longer be certain the letters were sitting on the paper’s lines, there being multiples of them by day’s end.

When was the last time you wrote that intensely? The black made me do it. I swear it did. So if you haven’t tried it lately, grab a fill of black and see if your thoughts don’t embellish the written word far better than the color of your ink. I dare you!

Leonardo Calligraphy Pen Meets Noodlers Black Ink

Leonardo Calligraphy Pen Meets Noodler's Black Ink

h1

New Handwriting Links + E-Books from Gunnlaugur Briem

2009/07/18

Kate Gladstone of Handwriting That Works informed me this afternoon that Gunnlaugur SE Briem has moved his main handwriting site to Briem.net and added free e-books written by himself plus a variety of other authors. Whether you are an expert or someone in need of a little handwriting repair or somewhere in between, there is good stuff at this site for everyone.

Add to FacebookAdd to DiggAdd to Del.icio.usAdd to StumbleuponAdd to RedditAdd to BlinklistAdd to Ma.gnoliaAdd to TechnoratiAdd to FurlAdd to Newsvine

h1

Hey, can I have your autograph?

2009/06/02

Faster than a speeding bullet, you could become a celebrity. Whether sought after or not, the 24 hour news cycle could turn your world upside down in a New York minute. Don’t “pshaw” me. You know it’s possible.

If it did happen and someone asked for your autograph, would you panic or be at ease?  Want to spruce up your writing before the clock on your fifteen minutes of fame starts? It might be easier than you think if you just do it one letter at a time. That’s how I did it and it couldn’t be more simple.

Start with a letter that you use frequently like a capital letter in your signature. Next it’s time to pick a style for that letter. Check the links under Calligraphy & Penmanship in the sidebar for some beautiful examples. Or you can start where I did with Getty-Dubay.

Once you’ve found a few styles you like, test them. Fill a few pages until one style emerges as both suited to your hand and your sense of what makes writing attractive.

“Skill to do comes of doing.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

For some folks the next step may seem difficult or boring but do press on. Use your new letter until it comes naturally. Filling pages with it is the only way to make it yours. It can be a relaxing activity once you get past the newness.

Then just keep adding letters one at a time and before long you’ll have a legible and attractive signature.

Practicing Letterforms

Practicing Letterforms

Don’t get discouraged if it seems you will never get it right. First of all, there is no “right” – only what you like. Second, keep in mind that it took you years to learn to write way back in your personal dark ages. Learning to write your signature a new way will take mere hours in comparison. All you are doing is modifying/improving a skill you already have. It’s simple. Really!

There is one shortcut I discovered as my dissatisfaction with some letters threatened my plans: Find strokes common to several letters. Work on that one stroke and then build other letters around it. Here is one that worked for me. The first stroke is the one with which I started. I only saw it as the letter “T” at first but a little experimentation proved it was far more useful than as just a single letter.

Letters That Have Something In Common

Letters That Have Something In Common

So there you have it. Start with a single letter and build from it until you have a signature that suits you. Do it for you but don’t be surprised to earn the occasional compliment for your eye-catching autograph. Fans love that stuff!

Inkophile

Inkophile

Add to FacebookAdd to DiggAdd to Del.icio.usAdd to StumbleuponAdd to RedditAdd to BlinklistAdd to Ma.gnoliaAdd to TechnoratiAdd to FurlAdd to Newsvine

h1

Calligraphy Demonstrations

2009/04/18

More outstanding calligraphy demonstrations on YouTube, this time from mmjagan in India. “Flowery Flowery Writing” is especially fun.

H/T to AntoniosZ who posted the link on FPN.

Add to FacebookAdd to DiggAdd to Del.icio.usAdd to StumbleuponAdd to RedditAdd to BlinklistAdd to Ma.gnoliaAdd to TechnoratiAdd to FurlAdd to Newsvine

h1

More Handwriting Links

2009/03/19

Yesterday Inkophile had the most page views ever so it looks like handwriting and calligraphy are very hot topics. Just in case you didn’t get enough yesterday, here are some more sites that offer either instruction or calligraphic eye candy. For future reference and inspiration, all related links are compiled in the sidebar.

Chancery Italic by Ann Finley

Handwriting Repair by Gunnlauger Briem

Penmanship Links

Quill Skill

Add to FacebookAdd to DiggAdd to Del.icio.usAdd to StumbleuponAdd to RedditAdd to BlinklistAdd to Ma.gnoliaAdd to TechnoratiAdd to FurlAdd to Newsvine