You asked for information about the nibs and what they're used for. I hope this will help. Essentially, there are 2 kinds of nibs when working with dip pens: broad points and pointed. The broad points are used for elaborate, decorative writing and the difference in width of each tip dictates the width and length of the strokes you will make with each one. They have a reservoir to hold more ink while creating something like a Roman Gothic alphabet. The nibs are designed so that you make wide vertical lines, and thin accent lines going diagonally or horizontally. You can find many examples on the Internet. Also, many calligraphers will use a dropper to place ink into the reservoir, rather than dipping the entire nib into the bottle. This minimizes the chances of stray droplets that fall off the nib as you move the pen from ink to paper. The pointed tips have a smaller reservoir as you have noted, because we use them mostly for writing, without attention to line variation and the decorative flourishes that are inherent with the more elaborate calligraphic alphabets. Pointed tips are also great for shading - either dots (pointillism) or cross-hatching - in pen and ink drawings.
I don't love Rhodia paper for that reason -too smooth. I think Midori has been my favorite, just the right amount of feedback, but has the ability to show off ink properties like shading or sheen (I don't really use shimmer). As for the "blackest" ink, I am wanting to try the new Platinum Chou Kuro -supposed to be the best and darkest that will work for a fountain pen and still clean out okay. Crossing Fingers to get my hands on some of that to try out :) I think you're right about ink shelf life -it seems to last a long time but it can break down especially if not kept in the right temperature, or exposed to sunlight etc.
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You asked for information about the nibs and what they're used for. I hope this will help.
Essentially, there are 2 kinds of nibs when working with dip pens: broad points and pointed. The broad points are used for elaborate, decorative writing and the difference in width of each tip dictates the width and length of the strokes you will make with each one. They have a reservoir to hold more ink while creating something like a Roman Gothic alphabet. The nibs are designed so that you make wide vertical lines, and thin accent lines going diagonally or horizontally. You can find many examples on the Internet.
Also, many calligraphers will use a dropper to place ink into the reservoir, rather than dipping the entire nib into the bottle. This minimizes the chances of stray droplets that fall off the nib as you move the pen from ink to paper.
The pointed tips have a smaller reservoir as you have noted, because we use them mostly for writing, without attention to line variation and the decorative flourishes that are inherent with the more elaborate calligraphic alphabets. Pointed tips are also great for shading - either dots (pointillism) or cross-hatching - in pen and ink drawings.
Thank you! Much more informative than my guessing. Such beautiful objects, I wish I had the skills to use them properly.
Thanks for that explanation. Great tip about using a dropper!
Beautiful set!
It is!
I don't love Rhodia paper for that reason -too smooth. I think Midori has been my favorite, just the right amount of feedback, but has the ability to show off ink properties like shading or sheen (I don't really use shimmer). As for the "blackest" ink, I am wanting to try the new Platinum Chou Kuro -supposed to be the best and darkest that will work for a fountain pen and still clean out okay. Crossing Fingers to get my hands on some of that to try out :)
I think you're right about ink shelf life -it seems to last a long time but it can break down especially if not kept in the right temperature, or exposed to sunlight etc.
Agreed on Rhodia. I bought the Chou Kuro recently - it lives up to the hype. It dries completely black, amazing!