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Expos of 1969 said:
So pleased that Spotify has dumped the Harry and Meghan circus. The press release states that it was a mutual decision. Of course it was...NOT. The pair of scam artists took the millions and ran and produced far less "product" than stipulated in the contract. Harry was bamboozled by that American social climber from the get go and now has a family life in tatters as well as an embarrassing public image. Brother Willie warned him years ago. Maybe Oprah will hire them as house staff for her Montecito estate.
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I couldn’t care less what they do or don’t do. I’d love them to just disappear from the news to be honest along with the rest of the Windsors.
 
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DaveFromCampbelltown said:
Try IAMPETH to start with.
Also The Fountain Pen Network has a number of discussions on improving your handwriting, and the websites and books to help.
You can create and download your own practice papers from Incompetech

As for the pen, it depends on what sort of handwriting you want to do (Spencerian, Business Script, Italic, etc.)
There are fountain pens with a range of nibs, from round to stub to italic and Naginata Togi and Architectural.
There are modern dip nibs such as the Hunt 513EF for normal writing to the Brause 361b or Leonardt 40 for italic style. I think the Hunt easier to start with.
View attachment 2218723
(Note, as you can see from the scan, I do not do calligraphy, I just write...)

There are also fibre tip pens for Calligraphy, such as those by Artline.

If you are going to use dip nibs, do not get conned into buying expensive "calligraphy" inks. Sheaffer Skrip (blue or black) is good enough. (Also Pelikan 4001 Blue-Black - not Blue, not Black, Blue-Black, it has special features that will help you.)

Learn to develop a "Light Hand", The pen should write with only the weight of the pen on the paper. You should then hold the pen with only enough pressure that the nib writes with just its own weight and perhaps a tiny bit more. Somebody should be able to come behind you and slide the pen from your hand. You should not normally be able to hear the pen writing on the paper. If you can hear "scratching", you are pressing too hard.
Ballpoints are bad because they make you press hard.

Learn the "Tripod Grip
View attachment 2218724 Note the first joint of the index finger is curved outwards. If it is pressed inwards, you are pressing too hard.

For papers Rhodia, Clairefontaine, Oxford are all good enough if you want lined paper.
If you want to print your own, then HP Color Choice 100 or 120 GSM is suitable.

Don't forget, you are practising, not producing saleable artwork, so don't buy expensive inks or expensive "art" paper.

PS, if you are buying a dip pen holder and nibs, buy a straight handle/holder, not an oblique one.
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Wow!!! Thanks for the links and the tips!! I think I’ll go with a regular fountain pen, as it can be used at work too. I was thinking about that Spencerian book advertised in one of the links.
 
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yaxomoxay said:
Wow!!! Thanks for the links and the tips!! I think I’ll go with a regular fountain pen, as it can be used at work too. I was thinking about that Spencerian book advertised in one of the links.
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Do not ignore the Chinese fountain pens you can get on eBay.
My favourites are --
  • Jinhao X-159 (comes with a Fine nib, but you can get Medium ones separately
  • Wing Sung 699 (Vacuum filler if you want a bit heaver, Piston filler if you want a bit lighter)
  • PenBBS 267 or 308
  • Jinhao X-850
For work purposes you can get the Koh-i-noor Document ink in Blue or Black. Both are ISO certified to be permanent.
 
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DaveFromCampbelltown said:
Try IAMPETH to start with.
Also The Fountain Pen Network has a number of discussions on improving your handwriting, and the websites and books to help.
You can create and download your own practice papers from Incompetech

As for the pen, it depends on what sort of handwriting you want to do (Spencerian, Business Script, Italic, etc.)
There are fountain pens with a range of nibs, from round to stub to italic and Naginata Togi and Architectural.
There are modern dip nibs such as the Hunt 513EF for normal writing to the Brause 361b or Leonardt 40 for italic style. I think the Hunt easier to start with.
View attachment 2218723
(Note, as you can see from the scan, I do not do calligraphy, I just write...)

There are also fibre tip pens for Calligraphy, such as those by Artline.

If you are going to use dip nibs, do not get conned into buying expensive "calligraphy" inks. Sheaffer Skrip (blue or black) is good enough. (Also Pelikan 4001 Blue-Black - not Blue, not Black, Blue-Black, it has special features that will help you.)

Learn to develop a "Light Hand", The pen should write with only the weight of the pen on the paper. You should then hold the pen with only enough pressure that the nib writes with just its own weight and perhaps a tiny bit more. Somebody should be able to come behind you and slide the pen from your hand. You should not normally be able to hear the pen writing on the paper. If you can hear "scratching", you are pressing too hard.
Ballpoints are bad because they make you press hard.

Learn the "Tripod Grip
View attachment 2218724 Note the first joint of the index finger is curved outwards. If it is pressed inwards, you are pressing too hard.

For papers Rhodia, Clairefontaine, Oxford are all good enough if you want lined paper.
If you want to print your own, then HP Color Choice 100 or 120 GSM is suitable.

Don't forget, you are practising, not producing saleable artwork, so don't buy expensive inks or expensive "art" paper.

PS, if you are buying a dip pen holder and nibs, buy a straight handle/holder, not an oblique one.
Click to expand...
For paper, I also recommend Leuchtturm1917, who produce excellent paper.
 
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AVBeatMan said:
I'm a ferocious journal writer. I write with a fountain pen in a Leuchtturm1917 diary, on my MacBook via Day One and also in a reMarkable 2 tablet. Bit of an overkill as I just repeat myself! But I do enjoy it which is the main thing.
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Same here! Although now it’s mostly the remarkable and Day One. How do you go about getting your stuff from the remarkable over into Day One though, if at all? Exporting each page to text and emailing that over? Or do you just keep them separate for now?
 
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AVBeatMan said:
I'm a ferocious journal writer. I write with a fountain pen in a Leuchtturm1917 diary, on my MacBook via Day One and also in a reMarkable 2 tablet.
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Yes, I write with a fountain pen (my obsolete Mont Blanc Meisterstuck 144) in a Leuchtturm1917 note book, and I also use (as I am now doing) my much-travelled MBA when writing.

AVBeatMan said:
Bit of an overkill as I just repeat myself! But I do enjoy it which is the main thing.
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Agreed, oh, yes.

And yes, sometimes, I find myself writing the same material in both formats.

However, the physical act of writing helps the mind analyse and concentrate on the subject matter while writing.
 
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DaveFromCampbelltown said:
I agree, except that in Aus. it is very expensive. That's why I mentioned the other papers, which I can get here at a reasonable cost. I also neglected to mention Kokuyo Campus (refills and notebooks) and Muji (refills and notebooks).
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Agreed, it (the Leuchtturm1917) is expensive.

However, to my mind, (because I have used both), I think it considerably better than Rhodia.
 
ericwn said:
Same here! Although now it’s mostly the remarkable and Day One. How do you go about getting your stuff from the remarkable over into Day One though, if at all? Exporting each page to text and emailing that over? Or do you just keep them separate for now?
Click to expand...
I just keep them separate for now. Not really thought of copying over? I do do a bit of cut and paste into Day One though.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
I certainly did. Not drinking means I am enjoying my Saturday morning as well.
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Oh, gosh, yes.

I hear you.

I remember that time (for me, it arrived in my early thirties), when the relief of being sober - and free of any such thing resembling a headache - on a Saturday morning, came to outweigh the dubious joys of indulgence on a Friday night.
 
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