Pen fashion police?

[HDoug]

Most of the folks here at FPN love pens and writing and also appreciate and respect other members' tastes. I was wondering, though, if there were any traditional rules or conventions when it came to pens the way there are with watches. (dress watch with suit, strap color matches belt/shoes, etc.) I'm thinking there may have been, even if they have not survived to the current day. Just wondering...

 

Doug

[winedoc]

Only thing I do is to make sure the pen fits the pocket. I found this harder and harder to do with many modern shirts with tiny pockets or no pockets at all. I also don't like saggy pockets, so no heavy pens in my pockets or multiple pens in shirt pocket. I do have multiple pens in my brief case of course, especially the heavy ones or the oversized one.

 

Kev

[Guest Denis Richard]

Interesting comment. As far as I remember the old world etiquette that I vaguely learned, pens are simply absent from formal dressing rules. I think traditionaly a pen was simply not to be carried around in social situations. Could it explain the absence of clips in early pens ?

 

The corollary is that I have not heard any "fashion rule" for pens.

[TheNobleSavage]

Really the only time I put a pen in my shirt pocket is when I get completely dressed up or when I am at a pen show. The rest of the time I cart around my 3 pen case when I am away from my desk or I leave the house.

[HesNot]

There are many who would argue that a nothing should be in a shirt pocket and a pen should be kept in an inside coat pocket or a briefcase. I suspect many here violate that rule, myself included, as I don't wear my coat around the office and frequently need quick access to a pen. I often have two pens, one with Noodler's black and one with something else. I have a nice 4 pen case I keep in my briefcase but am thinking about a two pen case to tote about during the day rather than putting them in my shirt pocket.

 

And I agree about the small pockets in shirts. It is one reason I have resisted larger pens and why some pens get carried less than others. Heck, even a "51" is too long for many shirts these days.

[KCat]

There are many who would argue that a nothing should be in a shirt pocket

but then... why have a pocket at all?

 

Kcat - who wears the wrong white during winter and doesn't give a rat's patootey.

[Brian Anderson]

As far as I remember the old world etiquette that I vaguely learned, pens are simply absent from formal dressing rules. I think traditionaly a pen was simply not to be carried around in social situations.

Back when I thought it mattered, and was trying to impress the world (which really means I had just graduated college and needed a job), I answered an ad in GQ magazine for a book entitled "Clothes and the Man". Sadly, I took parts of the book to heart, much to the chagrin of my pocketbook at the time, but do recall that the book explicitly stated a fine gentleman's shirt would have no pockets in it. When I had my first (and only) custom shirt made, it had no pocket. Too bad, great looking shirt, but wouldn't wear it these days. A shirt must have a pocket to be worn!!

 

Best-

Brian

[JeffTL]

A GF-cap Parker "51" goes well with everything and is my usual pocket pen for school, church, or occasions.

[The Man]

GREAT topic. I think pens SHOULD be accepted in the same vein as watches or jewelry.

 

I now carry an Engraved Chrome Cross Apogee (this is a great pen). I'm usually in a buttoned-down short-sleeve collared dress shirt each day of the work week and this Apogee is noticeable -- I've gotten a buncha' "Is that a pen?" or "Cool pen" just on a glance from some folk. Even more compliments when I remove and have to write something.

 

I can only speak for myself -- chrome goes with just about everything, I suppose. I tend to wear a lot of dark colors and chrome compliments that, I guess. I mean, there's nothing to match the chrome with what I'm wearing, much like how your belt color should match your shoes.

[HesNot]

I work for a big 4 firm and as far as I can tell the only other fountain pen user in the firm is the head of all the consolidated service lines in the Carolinas. Some have noticed my pens but as a lawyer in the tax practice (rather than a CPA) most seem to write it off as an eccentricity of my profession (the practice leader is also a lawyer). Business casual for me generally means a pressed dress shirt, trousers and a sport coat. I do, at times, coordinate my pen with the colors of my attire (broke out my green/gold striped duofold today since I'm wearing olive green trousers and a white shirt). But on my desk is an assortment of pens at any given moment. If I'm wearing a suit I will usually go with the duofold or more likely the "51" flighter due to the gold accents.

 

But I am also a conservative dresser - I prefer classic styles and materials, and my limited accessories reflect that as well. I wear a plain gold wedding band. Most days I wear a Swiss Army automatic "flieger" style chronograph on a stainless bracelet (I have a gold Hamilton tank watch and a Seiko automatic diver as well). Other than my glasses, my only other accessories are my pens and most of them are neither oversize nor outwardly "flashy".

[Rique]

There are many who would argue that a nothing should be in a shirt pocket

but then... why have a pocket at all?

 

They don´t. Expensive dress shirts, particularly ones made to measure, are usually without pockets. Traditionally, the European way to carry a pen is in the inside pocket of the suit jacket - never on the shirt pocket (carrying pens in the shirt pocket, by the way, is considered by many Europeans I know as an American thing.

Also, it is true formal or semi-formal dress (white- or black-tie) have no place for pens, or watches (the reasoning about the watches is: if you are taking part in a formal affair, you should be enjoying yourself instead of worrying about the time. I don´t know what the reasoning for excluding pens is... ).

Edited May 9, 2006 by Rique

[saintsimon]

... Traditionally, the European way to carry a pen is in the inside pocket of the suit jacket ...

Actually, well designed suit jackets (and casual jackets, coats) have one or two additional narrow inner pockets for pens on the left side under the main inner pocket, while nowadays there is sometimes an additional small inner pocket on the right for a mobile phone.

 

 

In the medical profession at hospitals, where there is still a patriarchal hierarchy (at least in Germany that anachronism still exists), the higher a doc is in that hierarchy, the less medical gear (stethoscopes, etc) he/she carries arround. At the top, the Prof/halfgod often wears only a clearly visible, fat fountain pen as the sole 'medical' instrument (often 'that' MB 146/9).

I'm sure, similar observations can be made in other countries, as I've read articles about it. I'm a regular ambulant patient in hospitals and tend to have one of my fat FPs with me either

Edited May 10, 2006 by saintsimon

[amin]

... And I agree about the small pockets in shirts. It is one reason I have resisted larger pens and why some pens get carried less than others. Heck, even a "51" is too long for many shirts these days.

I always keep 1-2 pens in my shirt pocket for easy access. A number of terrific pens are well suited to this location. My Pelikan 100N, Parker 75s, and Aurora Optima fit the bill nicely. Now if only the raw ebonite Densho were collapsible .

[JRodriguez]

In my line of work, and in my academic discipline, I can pretty much get away dressing however I want. When I'm at work I generally keep a fountain pen clipped to the neck of my t-shirt, even if I'm wearing a button down, which will usually have the top two buttons unbuttoned. It probably looks goofy, but it feels more secure (I have never had a pen come unclipped from my shirt, but I have from a shirt pocket).

[DrPJM1]

At the office I lways have a fountain pen in my shirt pocket.

[Michael Wright]

One change in men's fashion I've noticed: where you wear a pen in a jacket. I believe it's in an inside pocket, preferably on the left side (or at least, filling up the left hand side first). In photographs of European gents of the 1930s, however, you see FPs prominently worn in the breast pocket. I am told by someone who is an FP freak and a style guru that Italian gentlemen still wear FPs in that place of honour.

 

If in doubt, remember that a black "51" is never out of place.

 

Best

 

Michael

[Slush99]

I never heard of one, and I don't care. It just has to clash nicely

[Phthalo]

I work on industrial sites, and my main uniform features a long-sleeved beige work shirt with high-visibility striping on the shoulders and back, completed by steel-cap boots and a hardhat.

 

The shirts have that little 'pen-slot' sewn beside the left top pocket, so I always have a pen tucked in there. Luckily beige is a neutral colour, so it sets of any FP I wear wonderfully.

 

As a consultant, I do sometimes wear varying uniforms. I hate when they give me shirts which don't have that tiny pen-slot beside the left pocket - it drives me nuts!

[amh210]

I didn't notice a post with the obvious, even though these rules aren't followed much any longer.

 

Black, Blue, with silver/chrome trim goes with blue, charcoal grey, or black suits.

 

Other colors go with anything else in the brownish family or reddish familybut with gold trim.

 

At one time, gold with blue was a faux pas. "Royalty" wore the royal red/crimson/purple with gold, not silver.

 

Having said that, wear and carry what you like. If you wear brown shoes with a blue suit, you can carry any pen with pride. If your personal style compels you to wear black shoes with blue suits, better stick to the rubric above.

 

BTW, the left breast interior jacket pocket is used for storage first since most of us our right-handed and it is easier to reach into that pocket than the reverse.

 

Andy

[krz]

I'm a rolling fashion trainwreck to start with, but I like to have 2 pens with me. I'll keep a Tuckaway laying down in my front pocket (Aloha shirt) and a Vac. Valiant standing at attention properly clipped in the same pocket. Good to go and slightly less geek.

 

I've got a good friend that gets paid to be a biker, but he likes fountain pens and draws in his other line of work; tattooing. So I gave him a Waterman Harley pen with flames on it so he didn't have to be out of uniform,