writing and drawing with a dip pen

So, I'm not very good yet.  But I decided the other day that I wanted to try dip pen calligraphy.  More spicifically, I want to write in Spencerian calligraphy and this seemed like a good tool to add to my arsenal.  

It's way harder than it looks.

See

Day one



Day two



Day three



Not feeling like I'm making any improvement yet, but it's only day three.  

I got the practice sheet from the postmans knock.  The site has some great free downloads for practising penmanship.  

My dip pen practices are improving slightly.  

My biggest problem is that my eyes can't see what I'm supposed to be following.  Or more to the point, I can't analyze what I'm looking at.  This is the same problem I'm having with my penmanship practice.  I can trace the letters, but when it comes time to drawing them without a guide, I forget how they go.  Very frustrating and I suspect related to my dyslexia and my slowness to learn to spell/write/read.  It takes weeks dedicated to learning to spell each word and in school, they would 'teach' us 20 to 50 words a day.  That was far too fast.

The next problem - ink feathering/bleeding.  I switched from fountain pen ink to calligraphy ink (which feels more like paint, it's so thick) which has solved most of this problem.  Maybe later, I'll get some better paper.

Today I tried something different since I'm 'writing' in 'paint', I decided to treat my nib more like a paintbrush.  Instant improvement.  

The dip pen is sensitive to the angle and the way we hold it.  It's a lot more like a paintbrush than a pen and remembering that seems to be the key for me to get the hang of stuff.

But I am having trouble with the grip so I'm posting pictures here in hopes of gettins some thoughts on how to improve.

The straight holder is very easy for me to use, but the oblique holder seems to force my hand on its side which makes it hurt.  

Gosh, it's been a while.

What would I tell myself nearly 8 years later?

Mostly, forget about writing, drawing is where you'll (aka, past me) will fall in love with this medium.


1. G-nib for the win.  

G nibs are used by comic and manga artists and can draw a great range of line width from a single nib.  Because it is often used in commercial industry, the nib is much easier to find, cheaper, and more durable than fancy nibs.  Even when my nib gets a bit old, and can't do the finest lines, it can still be useful for thicker marks with less precision which looks good in sketching. Then use a new nib for the finest details.

2. Ink

Manga ink 4 is my current favourite.  It dries quite quickly, matte, and doesn't seem to fuss about what paper.  It's also waterproof when...i want to say dry, but all these inks seem to need more time than just dry to finish bonding to the paper.  

W&N black spider picture on the bottle ink is also a favourite.  I'm half way through my third bottle, but they do seem to dry up on their own when lwss than a quarter full.  It's more fussy about paper than manga ink.

Kuretake has an ink I'm keen to try as this is another Manga supply.  It looks good for drawing on various paper types.

3. Paper

This is where I faltered the first 10 times I tried this.

Printer paper is crap.  Most mixed media paper is pretty good,  watercolour paper is also fairly good.  But always test that nib, ink, and paper will be friends first.  Before starting a fancy drawing.   Smooth paper is often recommended, but I am falling in love with less smoth rag paper lately because the paper can help give different effects.

4. Practice.

Now I've played around a bit, it's time to find some exercises to help me understand how to achieve different values and textures.  What direction to hatch when and when not to hatch, but make a different kind of mark?

John and I have been playing with dip & fountain pens for the last several months. He's been practicing far more than I, and with a stronger focus on calligraphy. I'm embarrassed at this point to admit to the number of pens, inks, and papers we've accumulated. He gets a new pen, tells me how wonderful it is, and has me try it. Then, he gifts me with one... but, I does.

Something I'm discovering and loving about them for writing, is that they're forcing me to retain my hands to release my death grip, when writing. It's easing the pain in my hand, from writing, and allowing me to write more often and much longer - and more beautifully. His writing has improved dramatically, too.

I suspect it would be difficult to get too many pens.  Each handle has its own feel and well,,nibs wear out, so it's important to have as many extra as one can find places to keep them.