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Topics - NicholasC

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Everyday Handwriting | Penmanship / A script that feels like home
« on: July 08, 2016, 03:33:51 PM »
I began learning about calligraphy and dip pens with the intent of finding a script for everyday handwriting.  My search began by googling "old style cursive" and then stumbling upon Spencerian.  This lead to cursive italic, which led to several different broad edge scripts, and then to calligraphy in general.  I became interested in calligraphy, but soon found myself loosing interest in anything that I could not use for everyday writing (Foundational and Uncial may look cool, but they just do not lend themselves to rapid note taking or general writing).  My progress was slow, partly due to a general decrease in overall interest, and partly due to the fact that I am a left-hand dominant person who was forced to use my right hand when I was in elementary school (which resulted in less than ideal fine motor skills).  I felt a bit lost and even began reverting back to my despised Palmer script.

With much work and dedication, I discovered that I could use a slightly personalized version of cursive italic almost as well as I could write with my traditional Palmer script.  It was still a bit messy and inconsistent, but it looked much better than my usual chicken-scratch Palmer cursive  (I even had some people tell me that it looked as if I had printed out my notes on a computer).  But, even though I made good progress with cursive italic, it did not feel like the best script for me.  I began to feel lost again.

Then, while randomly wandering around YouTube, I saw a video in which a Spencerian Business script was used.  I never had much interest in monoline versions of Spencerian, but I really liked what I saw.  This was something that I could write with any pen, and still have it look interesting.  I added some lightly shaded, italic inspired, capitals as well as some beginning and ending flourishes and suddenly I had my script.  I struggle with consistent letterforms, spacing, and angle much more than I did with cursive italic; and I don't have the speed that I do with either cursive italic or Palmer, but I feel much happier with this script than I did with any other.  I have a long road ahead of me, but it finally feels like I am on the right track.  I finally have a script that feels like home.

I'm sure that I am not alone here, so I am curious as to what other folks have found to be their ideal handwriting scripts.  What scripts did you try that just did not work out?  What script did you end up with?  What difficulties did you have to overcome on your journey to finding the perfect handwriting script?

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Coffee & Nib-bles / Just Vacuumed Up A Dozen Departementale 2552 Nibs
« on: December 09, 2015, 03:46:21 PM »
AAAHHHHHH!!!  I just vacuumed up a dozen Gilbert & Blazny-Poure Departementale 2552 nibs!  I knew that the vacuum had grabbed something, but I didn't realize that this was what I had sucked up until I saw my precious nibs being spit back out.  I had to root through the vacuum cleaner to recover them all.  Luckily most of them were basically fine.  Two were slightly sprung and a couple had some finish removed, but were otherwise OK. 
 
For those of you who do not know, these are very nice, very flexible nibs.  They are not terribly expensive, but they are becoming much harder to find.
 
This will teach me to not thoroughly check the carpet before vacuuming.  Has anyone else managed to do something stupid like this?  Share your mishaps and make me feel a little less foolish.

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Tools & Supplies / Looking for info on some Gilbert & Blanzy nibs
« on: November 17, 2015, 07:01:32 PM »
I found some interesting Gilbert & Blanzy nibs, but I can not find any useful information about them.  I am hoping that some of you folks will be able to help me.

The first is a No.682 and looks exactly like a Hiro 41.

The second looks similar to some tar coated nibs that I have seen, but the only identifier that I see is a shiny "J" on the nib.

The last one looks sort of pinched in the middle and is a No. 605.

I know that this is not a lot of information, so anything that anyone can add about performance, history, comparisons, etc. would be greatly appreciated.

4
Tools & Supplies / Esterbrook Falcon 048
« on: November 08, 2015, 12:29:01 AM »
When I first got back into dip pens, I began by using the few nibs that I already had on hand.  I was mostly interested in using dip pens for general writing, so big smooth nibs were the things that interested me.  My favorites were the Hunt 512 and Hunt 513, so to increase my available stock I went looking for similar nibs.  I found an auction for Esterbrook 788s, and picked up about 60 of them for a few bucks.  Mixed in with the 788s were a dozen Esterbrook Falcon 048 nibs.  I liked both Esterbrook nibs and used them to write quite a bit, but after a while I became interested in Spencerian and calligraphy.  My writing nibs went into storage and I began using more flexible nibs.  Today, while playing around with some nibs that I hadn't used in a while, I broke out my Falcon 048s.  I am extremely glad that I did.

The Esterbrook Falcon 048 is a large writing nib, and is huge by modern flex pen standards (you could probably fit about 4 or 5 Brause 66EF nibs into the same space that one Falcon 048 takes up).  the nib has a nice bronze looking coating and has one of the coolest designs ever.  The tip is lightly scored and has slits on either side to allow for greater flex.  The nib also has some rounded wing like deals that swoop down from either side to connect to the base of the nib.  The reservoir hole is long and oval, but otherwise unremarkable.  The design has been copied by so many different companies that a "falcon nib" is like a "comic G nib," everyone has a variation of the design.

Now we come to the reason that I am writing about this nib.  The Falcon 048 is buttery smooth, works far better, and has far more uses than any standard writing nib.  This nib holds a lot of ink and, without flex, writes a nice thin and consistent line.  The tip may be fairly sharp, but it glides across even textured paper and is one of the smoothest nibs that I have ever used.  The nib is thick and takes some use to really break in, but once it is aged properly the Falcon 048 has a surprising amount of flex.  This nib is slightly stiffer than a Zebra G, but is actually easier to control and has a better return from thick to thin.  As a general writing nib the Falcon 048 provides a good amount of character that isn't usually available to the stiffer bowl type nibs, but also does not tend to hold as much ink.  As a flex nib the Falcon 048 is a bit stiffer than most, but still flexes well and has some nice spring.  The only down side to this nib is that it is a little large for use in an oblique holder.  It can be done, but it works better in a straight holder.

If you are looking for a nice writing nib that allows for some character to show through in your writing, then this is the perfect nib.  If you want a smooth, semi-flex nib that holds a good amount of ink and writes smooth as butter, then this is the nib to beat.  The Falcon 048 is easy to find and can be bought for a relatively low price.  I am a huge fan of this nib and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a nice all around steel pen.

Below are some pictures showing the Falcon 048 in various states of use, showing the back side of the nib, comparing the nib to a Brause 66EF and a Leonardt Principal, and a writing sample (please forgive the handwriting, I didn't get much sleep and I am still working to improve my poor handwriting).


5
Tools & Supplies / Nib storage boxes
« on: October 25, 2015, 06:52:38 PM »
I have had some small metal boxes sitting around doing nothing for a while now (I got them to store razor blades, but they turned out to be too small), and just suddenly decided that they might work well for nibs.  I was extremely happy to say that these boxes work perfectly for nibs!  They are made of tin and have a slide off top (which also slides onto the bottom for safe keeping when the box is open) with a little nipple that locks them securely in place.  They easily hold an entire broad edge or italic nib set, with reservoirs, and still have plenty of room.  They are a little larger than 10 count G nib boxes, look really nice, and are very secure.

I purchased the 0.25oz size for $0.81 each, but they also come in 0.5oz for $1.01 each:

http://www.sunburstbottle.com/silver-slide-top-tin/p/LBTSL/

http://www.sunburstbottle.com/large-slide-top-tin/p/LBTSLG/



6
Spencerian Script / Not Adhering to Standards
« on: October 03, 2015, 02:23:20 PM »
In my quest to learn Spencerian script I have obtained copies of the Spencerian System of Practical Penmanship theory book as well as all five copy books.  I have read through the theory book and have begun to work in the first copy book, and while arduously writing straight and curved lines over and over again is...oh, so much fun...I decided to download a sheet showing all of the capital and lower case letters, so that I could see the ultimate goal on one page.  While continuing to work on my lines and form I have also been toying around with the actual letters, and I have to say that I really do not like a few of them.  Some of these letters simply do not conform to my ideas of how they should look and feel.  I have come around to the lower case "p" and to the end "t" (both of which look different than what I would normally expect), but a few just do not sit well with me.

I can not get behind the lower case c, f, or x, (although I do not hate the "f" I feel as if it should be more angular and slanty).  I also do not like the upper case C, I, or L.  These letters really bug me and I have decided not to use them as presented.  Both forms of "c" look like "e" to me, the lower case "f" is too loopy, the lower case "x" just isn't x enough for me.  The upper case "I" is not awful, it just doesn't work for me.  It is the upper case "L" that I have the most contempt for.  The upper case "L" looks like an upper case "S" and it is absolutely nothing like I expect. 

I know that I am an adult and can form my letters however I please, but I also know that there seems to be a very rigid mindset among those who teach the Spencerian script (at least among the few that I have encountered).  I have seen folks corrected for the slightest variances and told that their letters are incorrect when the differences are so minuscule as to be nearly indetectable.  I understand the need for a standard when teaching a form of writing, but I also realize that no two people will form letters in the exact same way.  I realize that with time and practice I may even see the light with some of these letters (as I have said, I have come around in regards to the Spencerian "p" and end "t"), but I wouldn't count on it.

I am wondering how many folks out there have opted for different forms of certain letters, while still sticking to the overall alphabet of Spencerian script.  If you're out there then, let me know how you feel about this subject.  If you have chosen to use different letter forms, which ones and why?  Let me know that I am not a lone, stubborn holdout in an otherwise happy Spencerian community.

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Introductions / A roundabout journey
« on: September 26, 2015, 01:26:57 PM »
When I was in elementary school I won a young authors contests.  The thing I remember most about this event was not the contest, or the trip to  the local college, or even the story that I wrote.  No, what I remember most about that odd moment in my life were the little blank white books that were handed out for us to write our ideas in.

I loved those little blank white books.  I wanted more of them, volumes of them to write in.  Had I been supplied with an unending stockpile of those little blank white books I would have been the most prolific young writer of all time.  Sadly, they were one to a student.  I had no way of finding a supply of the little blank white books and no money to buy them even if I could have found some.  For years I imagined all of the great things that I could write in a book like that, all the while settling for whatever random paper I could get my hands on.  I was still a prolific writer, but I felt a sense of incompleteness and did not care if a story or idea was lost due to my inability to properly store it in book form (besides, there was always another idea right around the corner willing to take its place).

Years later my writing had slowed to a trickle thanks to a depressing and misguided stint as a Navy hospital corpsman with various Marine Corps reconnaissance units.  I served well and learned much, but I was incredibly unhappy in my role.  After leaving the military I worked in hospice units, health care clinics for the homeless, and the department of juvenile justice...one depressing, albeit necessary, job after the next.  Somehow, through a series of job changes and transfers, I wound up in the odd city of Savannah, GA.  The vast and unique art community of Savannah would turn out to be my way back into the written word.  Savannah is a place where art is everywhere and where shops catering to artists are common.  It was in one of those aforementioned art shops that I purchased my first fountain pen and Moleskine notebook.  It was also in that little shop that I discovered the existence of dip pens.

I have loved fountain pens ever since that first brush with them in that little art shop in Savannah, but it was the Moleskine that really brought me back to a love of words.  When I saw that notebook and read the little insert as to its long (and questionable) history I was hooked.  That little black notebook instantly transported me back to my youth and to that little blank white book that I had loved so much.  That Moleskine was quickly used and abused and it fell apart, but by then its work was done.  I was forever transformed into a paper and ink addict.

My first experience with dip pens was a poor one.  I had a few nibs and a few holders, but no real knowledge of how to properly use them.  My many efforts inevitably turned into inky messes and I quickly decided that people could not have invented the fountain pen sooner.  Luckily, this view was one born of ignorance and was easily banished.  Unluckily, I did not learn the error of my ways until a few years later.

To make a long story less long, I came back to dip pens when I stumbled upon Chancery.  I had been looking for a way to improve my handwriting (years of working in medicine had made it unrecognizable and nearly illegible), when I found Chancery cursive.  From Chancery I discovered calligraphy in general, and from calligraphy I found the reasons as to why my attempts at dip pen usage had failed so completely.  Now I have the equipment and the resources, but not the focus.  Every time I come across a new way of writing I am enchanted.  I have a hard time committing to any one hand and am currently "studying" Uncial, Half Uncial, Chancery, Rustic Capitals, Foundational, Spencerian, and standard Italic.  In short, I am an addict in need of a support group.

My goal is not so much to be a good calligrapher as it is to have spiffy everyday handwriting.  I am hoping that I can put some of my chosen lettering styles on the back burner and just focus on Chancery and Spencerian, but I am going to need some help to stay committed.  I have been lurking on this forum for a while now and feel that this is the right place to help me commit and learn more about those two styles of writing.  It's been a long and roundabout journey, but I think that I am now just about where I am supposed to be.  I hope to be a good addition to this unique and interesting community, and to grow and develop as a wordsmith.

Thank you for your time and for this great forum.

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