Let me just say up front that I have absolutely zero experience with calligraphy, and it’s very possible that has everything to do with the way I feel about the Berol Italic Marker.
Because I couldn’t get this thing to perform worth a fig.
The italic marker is as simple as they come. Slender no-frills barrel, medium fiber tip, black ink, a cap. I had high expectations going in, based just on the Berol name. But the problems started as soon as I took off the cap.
Ink from the tip had somehow managed to make its way almost all the way to the grip, and before I realized it, I had smudges on my fingers and my shirt. As I tried to write with the marker, the ink flow seemed to fluctuate between extremes of saturation and near complete dryness.
As you can see in the writing sample, I eventually abandoned any attempt at italic writing and resorted to writing with just one corner of the tip. That produced some consistency and readability, but of course, ordinary writing isn’t the purpose of this marker.
One other small detail I found annoying. The barrel was imprinted with ‘Berol Italic’ in gold lettering. However, that rubbed off completely with just a bit of handling.
Overall, the Berol did not perform nearly as well for me as the Artline Calligraphy Pens I have reviewed previously.
Like I said, this poor experience could very well stem from the fact that I don’t have a clue how to properly use a calligraphy-style pen. If any of you have used the Berol with better results, please let me know…and tell me how you did it.
