New Ink!

As a surprise gift, my loving husband bought me some new ink to play with, Noodler's Baystate Blue.

Ignore the sloppy Copperplate - I haven't done much practice so my technique is still crap (too round, still don't have a grasp on pressure for thicks/thins, etc).  The purpose of this picture is to show off the beautiful cobalt blue hue of this ink.  It's highly pigmented, but a tad sticky, meaning it is not for use in a fountain pen, but works beautifully for dip pens, particularly the copperplate nibs that don't have the separate reservoir.

This weekend we had a bit of a stitch 'n' bitch at my home, though I have been under the weather and wasn't much of a host.  A few lovely ladies came over and played in my art studio, sewing, beading, mending, etc.  I didn't even think to take pictures, but it was nice to share my space, particularly on a hot day when my room is quite chilly.

Adventures in Calligraphy

I purchased an oblique pen holder and some nibs (from John Neal Books) appropriate for Copperplate and Spencerian calligraphy, the two most popular hands for wedding purposes.  This is definitely new territory for me.

Thicks and thins are produced by pressure of pen to paper, somewhat akin to the volume of a note on a piano.  The middle of the nib spreads a bit as you add pressure, thereby providing a thicker line.  In medieval calligraphy, pushing so hard the nib spreads is a big no-no - you'll only serve to damage your paper/parchment and the nibs, and make ink spit all over your work.  These nibs, however, are very flexible and don't have ink reservoirs that helps prevent spitting but leads to constant dipping.

The oblique holder is supposed to help you obtain the angled lettering.  This is something I need serious practice with, as all my calligraphy experience has trained my hand to do everything on a vertical line.  I'll have to pick up some angled practice paper to help out, as my consistency is crap.  My flourishes are also very infantile, but I'm more concerned with mastering the basics before going there.

So in short, I have a lot of work ahead of me, but it's awesome and exciting!