);

Pen Vibe

Bringing you Pen and Pencil News, Reviews & Tutorials

Ink Drops In Water – Beautiful To Watch

By Tony Bridges Leave a Comment | Last Updated

We’ve never seen ink look so gorgeous. Just had to share it.

https://youtu.be/k_okcNVZqqI

 

We reached out to Jacob Schwartz, the film director who made the ink-drop video, to ask what kinds of ink he used in this project. He said he doesn’t remember the brand, but that he used calligraphy ink.

In the meantime, if you think that video is beautiful, you also should check out this ink-drop gallery by photographer/artist Bernd Geh. We spoke to him briefly while he was traveling in Europe, and he told us he also used calligraphy ink that he found in a Hobby Lobby store.

The result is stunning. He also made a video of how the ink looked as he was photographing it.

http://youtu.be/2R2QjbQyzcY

 

We can already here the gears turning in the minds of some of our most ink-obsessed readers. What kind of colors and combinations would you use to make beautiful works like these?

 

Interview: Pen-And-Ink Illustrator Rob Turpin

By Tony Bridges Leave a Comment | Last Updated

While we all love pens in their various incarnations, ultimately, they’re just the tools that channel the creativity of craftsmen, both artistic and practical.

Here at The Pen Vibe, we’re all about those craftsmen, the pens they use, and what they choose to do with them. So it’s always exciting for us when one chooses to share his story with our readers.

Today, it’s Rob Turpin, an illustrator known for his sci-fi and fantasy-inspired drawings done in pen and ink.

This is our interview with him.

Please tell us a little about you.

Originally from Yorkshire, but now living in the suburbs of southwest London, I trained and worked as a graphic designer before making the leap in to illustration. I’ve just completed my first book illustration project, and I’m working on another about robots. [Read more…]

The Uni-ball Power Tank: Better than the Fisher Space Pen?

By Tony Bridges 5 Comments | Last Updated

OK, credit where it’s due: The Fisher Space Pen was one of those brilliant little byproducts of the American space program like Tang and cordless drills. With its pressurized ink cartridge that could write on any surface from any angle, it did for ballpoint pens what the iPhone did for cell phones.

But that was more than 40 years ago. [Read more…]

10 Favorite Quotes About Pens

By Tony Bridges Leave a Comment | Last Updated

The other day, I asked a woman at the doctor’s office if I could take a look at her pen. She gave me kind of an odd stare, so I said, “I’ve got a thing about pens.”

It wasn’t the most elegant way to explain my interest in writing instruments. That got me to thinking about how other people have said it. One thing led to another, and I ended up looking at pithy quotes about pens on the internet.

Here are some of the pen quotes that either amused me or seemed to have a particular resonance: [Read more…]

Why a Pen is a ‘Biro’ in the UK

By Tony Bridges 4 Comments | Last Updated

For our American readers, a pen is usually just a pen. But those of you in the UK know that cheap ballpoints are often referred to as “biros.” If you’ve ever wondered about the reason for that, it’s this:

The first ballpoint pen, utilizing a steel ball bearing held in place by a socket, was developed in the late 19th century by a man named John Loud. Unfortunately, his invention didn’t work too well on paper and was used mainly for marking leather, according to a report from the BBC. [Read more…]