There she goes, my beautiful world
This is how I got started with the series of pen and ink drawings of pens and ink bottles. I’m not even sure what it was at first that intrigued me, but it’s not that difficult to figure out. I love my pens and these were good exercises in texture and reflection with a variety of surfaces. There were challenges with these drawings, but they are sketchbook pieces, so I didn’t want to take them too seriously.
My sketchbook is … Read the rest
This is the first in a series of posts which will show the progression of a pen and ink drawing on my drawing table. I intend to upload a scan each day, although I will likely skip days on this piece while I show other work being done. This scan in particular was made about two weeks ago. For some days I have multiple scans to show steps of the process, so this will not be seen in real time, … Read the rest
The Rotring 600 is Rotring’s most popular and well-known fountain pen, with the possible exception of their inexpensive ArtPen line. When people think of Rotring pens, they almost invariably think of either rapidographs or the 600.
There were a couple of 600s in the pen case the day I bought my 700 back in the late nineties. I tried them out and didn’t care for them as much as the 700. Of course, I’m glad that I … Read the rest
I have a project that may have just cost me my favorite pen. I’m exaggerating. A little. It’s not quite over yet, and I knew the Rotring 700 was not going to survive this process. I knew there was some risk involved, and I may yet find a solution.
The problem is that my Rotring 700 had seen better days. The barrel had been dented, the cap no longer fit securely over the nib, the cap also would not post … Read the rest
I’ve long been a fan of Parker fountain pens, but have always had modern Parkers. Come to think of it, until recently I don’t think I’ve ever owned a pen manufactured before I graduated from high school, never mind before I was born. Thanks to a chance encounter at Stylo Pens a few weeks ago, that’s changed.
It came up in conversation with another patron that I’d hoped to get a Parker ‘61’ (essentially a ‘51’ … Read the rest
Last month I reported that I got my hands on my old favorite pen, or the same model of pen anyhow. It wasn’t easy to find but I do now have a stainless steel-barreled Parker Vector fountain pen. I wondered how it would compare to some of the similar models of Parkers, and since they were pretty inexpensive, I ordered some. I had to (virtually) go to Great Britain to find a Parker I.M., which in the UK is marketed … Read the rest
I have two major shopping weaknesses. Well, three if you count electronic junk, but I don’t feel a lot of connection to electronic junk. Sometimes useful toys, but for the most part still toys. No, my virtue and vice gets rolled into two categories: books and pens.
I’ve always bought books faster than I can read them. These days I’m not reading nearly as much as I used to; it’s the end of March and I’ve finished only seven books this … Read the rest
