Archive for the ‘Fountain Pens’ Category

A lunchly escape

Tuesday, June 29th, 2010

Sometimes the morning at work can be pretty intense.  On such days if the weather is cooperative, I often leave the office for lunch, grab some food somewhere and enjoy being away for a few minutes.

I’ve found some free WiFi (I can always use my phone and tether anyway) and here I am, making a blog post.  One less thing to do at home in the evening now.

I’ve also had time to make a journal entry (I’m involved in two traveling journal projects – all written in fountain pen, of course – as well as keeping my own journal).  There’s something that feels right about being in the fresh air on a nice summer day and putting thoughts to paper.  Blue sky makes it easier to think, perhaps.

I’m somewhat protective of my lunch hour – certainly sometimes something will come up at work that requires attention then – but I find that my mind needs the rest and the break and that helps me to be more productive for the rest of the day.  Being away from work for the hour guarantees that I won’t be interrupted (I suppose the office could call but it’s hardly worthwhile if I’ll be back in less than an hour).

A few minutes left and to the mayhem I return… here’s hoping for a productive afternoon!

Tags:
Posted in Fountain Pens, Random Thoughts | No Comments »

Back at home.

Sunday, June 13th, 2010

After nearly three weeks away I’m home again.  Returning from holidays is always somewhat bittersweet; it’s so lovely to be away but it’s also nice to have the conveniences of home.

I broke out my bottle of de Atramentis Sky Blue ink that I got at Laywine’s in Toronto in late May.  It’s a lovely ink.  “How lovely?” you ask, since I haven’t scanned an image.  Very lovely, I reply!  There is a review of it at Fountain Pen Network that will give you a good idea of what to expect.  It’s not as turquoisy as I expected; it’s a little darker, at least with the Lamy Vista and M nib that I used to test it.

I still have some Mont Blanc Violet and some Herbin Vert Empire (I finally found some) to test, but I will empty out some currently filled pens first.

Tags:, , ,
Posted in Fountain Pens, Random Thoughts | No Comments »

The wonder of the Hero 616

Friday, April 2nd, 2010

I just found a terrific blog post about the Hero 616 fountain pen and thought I should share it with you.

I got ten of these pens a few months ago because I only had a couple of pens and wanted some more to use with more obscure and interesting inks.  (A person doesn’t want one of their only two good pens full of an ink like Private Reserve Shoreline Gold when a person doesn’t want to be using it every day.)

I’ve found them to be decent writers with many inks (Waterman Florida Blue ink particular) but not as nice to use as a better pen.  While the Hero 616s look a lot like the Parker 51, it doesn’t write as nicely as one.  The 51 lays a much wetter, nicer line.

Still, if you’re on a budget or want to introduce fountain pens to someone who may or may not like them, it’s hard to go wrong when you can get ten for under twenty bucks including shipping.

Tags:, , , ,
Posted in Fountain Pens | No Comments »

New additions

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

A couple of fountain pens followed me home.  :)

First, a really nice Aurora 88 – a cousin to the Parker 51 but with a piston-filler instead of the Vacumatic or Aerometric fillers of the Parker pen.  It was made in Torino, Italy… and I bought it from an Italian seller… in Torino, Italy.  How fitting!  It was made in 1948.

The second one is a Parker Vacumatic in green from 1946.  What a gorgeous pen.  (I’ll post pictures of it in another blog post – I need to get the time to take some photos of it.)  The writing feel of it is absolutely wonderful.  This is a third-generation Vacumatic so as Vacs go, it’s probably one of the less desirable ones but if this is the bottom of the Vacumatic barrel, I will take the whole barrel.  I think that a blue one will be in my future.

I think the Vac might well become my go-to pen, and I have a few nice fountain pens now.

Tags:, , , , ,
Posted in Fountain Pens | No Comments »

The simple matter of ink

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

Having relatively recently acquired a passion for fountain pens, I have had to begin subscribing to the habit of reinking.  Somehow, it’s become one of my favourite aspects of fountain pens.

One of the big advantages of fountain pens is the ability to use any ink in any pen… and there are so many different inks to use.  Right now, I have pens inked with blue, black, red, green, brown and gold ink.  Who knew writing could be so fun?

Atop that, though, is the contemplative, even therapeutic process of filling the pen.  Somehow, it’s a relaxing respite from the chaos of the everyday things we all have to do.  Even better, when a person decides to change the colour of ink in a pen, one must first rinse out the dregs of the prior ink.  Even this is somehow a relaxing process.

So today, Waterman Florida Blue in a Lamy Al-Star (my first fountain pen), and Diamine Saddle Brown in a Lamy Safari.  Both of these inks are ones I find myself using frequently.  (Who knew I’d like brown ink?)

Tags:, ,
Posted in Fountain Pens | No Comments »

Fountain pens and film photography… kindred spirits

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

Last night while having a chat at APUG I had a bit of an epiphany.

I’ve enjoyed film photography since my childhood.  Of course, at that time (the 1970s) film was the only medium available for imaging.  However, as digital imaging developed, while most photographers switched, I never did.  Despite my passion for computers and technology, I never shared the passion for digital imaging.   (To some degree I even resented it, but that’s not germane to this discussion!)

It is occasionally frustrating when people don’t understand why I continue to conduct photography traditionally.  To those who have taken up photography in the past few years, digital was the method that came naturally.  To have chosen to shoot film would have been peculiar.

Fountain pens are much the same.  My chat mate was surprised to learn that not only were fountain pens in active use by many, but that pens and inks continue to be produced and to be sold.  Her perspective on fountain pens gave us both a very interesting perspective on how many others must view our photography.

No one would naturally choose a fountain pen as a tool for writing.  The desire to use such a pen comes from curiosity.  At a point, the curiosity overtakes the natural hesitation that exists and a person makes an effort to acquire a fountain pen and ink.  There is no practicality about it, although there are many practical reasons that one might choose to use fountain pens.  Most writers stumble upon these advantages.

For both hobbies, it must be said that the Internet is a godsend.  There is a wealth of information about both pursuits – and about many scores of pursuits beyond these.  Latent or even unknown curiosity can be nurtured and developed.  Technology may be the ironic saviour of traditional methods.

Tags:,
Posted in Fountain Pens, Photography | No Comments »

Making marking more pleasant: the pen

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

Marking assignments is a lot nicer when you use a nice pen.

My choice:  a Lamy Vista with cartridge converter Z24 and a fine steel nib, loaded with Private Reserve Dakota Red ink.

I suppose I could go back to using a Bic red ballpoint pen, but this combination is so nice and smooth… it really makes the marking more pleasant.

Tags:,
Posted in Fountain Pens, Teaching | No Comments »

The joy of fountain pens

Saturday, March 13th, 2010

A few months ago I got interested in fountain pens in earnest.  I’d been interested in them for a few years, to be sure, but it’s one thing to have a latent interest; it’s another entirely to actually do something about the issue.

My first pen, purchased last August (a birthday gift to myself?) was a Lamy Al-Star in aluminum silver, with an LH nib (a medium nib designed for left-handers).  I took to it right away.

Here we are, a few months later, and I seem to have a significant collection of them now:  several Lamys (a 2000, a couple of Al-Stars including the one above, and a few Safaris), a Marxton lever-fill from the 1920s, a Parker 51 from 1947 (the year my mother was born, to put it into context), and a 1980s Sheaffer 313, plus ten Hero 616s – the cheapest pen in my arsenal (about $2 each) and not a bad writer, actually, if you use the right ink with it.  The current problem is that fountain pens like regular use and I have 11 pens with ink in them, so I need to downsize that list.

The interesting thing about diversions such as these is that often, you end up going in other directions as a result.  I find myself journalling now (in a lovely Moleskine notebook), and have joined a journal-by-mail project where we keep a journal and every couple of weeks, send that journal to the next person on the list.  I think we have six people in the project so by the time you get your own journal back (we started in January; I get mine back on Monday next week) you have a massive conversation to read and to which to reply.  It’s quite fun.

Of course, every time you journal you can use a different pen and a different ink, and different pens have different nibs.  You can write very fine lines or very broad ones, or use nibs with little or lots of flex.  The character of the writing is different with each.

And the different inks… pretty colours!  You’d think a guy would be happy to write in black or blue but then you find out there are hues of blue out there and then you try a green and see that it really fits your mood sometimes, and you find out that brown complements a slightly creamy paper perfectly…

It’s a vicious circle.  What can I say?  But it’s fun.

Tags:, , , , , , , ,
Posted in Fountain Pens | No Comments »