Why Do We Love Fountain Pens?

[a.zy.lee]

A friend asked me why I was into fountain pens when I informed him of my new hobby. I had no idea what to say!

Why do we love these magnificent instruments?

Their superiority over ballpoints shouldn't be considered a reason, because that may be the reason why we use them, but not the reason why we love them.

[pajaro]

That's the way I have always done it.

[legitimate3]

I love fountain pens because they are beautiful in every way.

[william2001]

The look of a fountain pen is wonderful.

The nib is [usually] very smooth, so it writes without any pressure. It feels like the nib is gliding over the paper.

It makes my handwriting look nice.

It looks cool.

-William S. Park

[gweimer1]

Elegant weapons.

[smithno]

There is just a visceral joy when you write on quality paper with a smooth, wet nib and the word you just wrote is shiny and liquid for a few seconds before drying on the page!

[kidde]

Possibly why some only use sable brushes? Only oils, never acrylics? The art of the written word, distilled to a magical union of pen-ink-paper? This may describe some. Collectors of fine things and/or antiquities, others. I have an admiration of the mechanical/artistic that pens speak to. Tools that allow my best, while also holding the promise of never holding me back while I increase my skills. Something about striving to attain the levels my tools are capable of keeps me moving forward.

 

Paul

[Kosmic-kowgirl]

what's not to love?

[BookCat]

Unlike other writing instruments (all ballpoints are very much the same), fountain pens have their own personalities, each one a different experience to write with, a different type of beauty. That's what I say to a friend who wonders "you've already got nice fountain pens, why do you want more?".

 

Also, they're like jewels, aesthetically beautiful, again each one different from the others.

 

To see wet ink being left behind on paper is a visceral pleasure not equalled by word processors or ballpoints. Word processors have their place, but they're work-horses.

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

I like fountain pens because to me they feel nice on the paper, I love all the colours fountain pen ink comes in, and I like using things that can be reused. Every fountain pen writes differently, and the way it writes can be adjusted. I also write a lot more quickly with a fountain pen than with a ballpoint, pencil, or rollerball.

 

Dillon

Edited July 31, 2014 by Dillo

[FountainPages]

They take me back to a slower time, an age of simpler things. For me it is the forties and fifties, a golden age of sorts. When I am writing with a fountain pen I become more introspective, I have time to think before and as I write. I also enjoy the feel of nib to paper, the pure mechanical act of writing. To me the fountain pen reminds me to do better, write better and perhaps, think more. It is a joy to me to hold a piece of history. They just take me back to a very special place.

[Yaakova]

I like fountain pens because none of my coworkers know how to use them. Therefore, they're afraid of them. And, therefore, they never ask to "borrow" them.

 

Besides, a fountain pen can be a thing of beauty, and writing with a fountain pen can be a sensual experience.

Edited August 1, 2014 by Yaakova

[Sasha Royale]

I'm sick. I need help.

[WaskiSquirrel]

They're fun, and most people don't own them.

[lahlahlaw]

I love fountain pens because they are beautiful in every way.

Well said

[Seele]

A greater involvement and understanding of the function of the pen, as a machine, that puts marks on paper. I think few ballpoint users actually have a deep understanding on how it functions to put marks on paper; it's basically a "black box" that comes from the factory and meant to work, and that's all they need to know. This is the reason why some fountain pen novices brought up on ballpoint pens feel they have to learn a lot of things just to get the pen working, but for me, it's natural, and the "black box" nature of a ballpoint is occasionally frustrating too.

[flyshot]

Because fountain pen people are so nice

[FayeV]

It is a much better writing experience ... The feel of pen to paper.

My handwriting looks better.

I enjoy looking at my pen while writing. I have never paused writing to admire the beauty of a Bic Stic (or similar) pen.

I love writing with different colors. (Buying a colorful 20pk of InkJoy ballpoints is not the same!)

It's nice to use something a little less ubiquitous.

[TheDarkFaery]

The fountain pen is old and it is new.

It will live on forever only outlasted by the words it has written on the page.

Too its glistening nib and the swirling acrylics it screams "creativity"

It is magic and it is beauty

and

it is what we love.

It is...

The Fountain Pen

[Icywolfe]

Ink choices. Like the very weird Kung Te-chen which starts dark blue and ends up in a weird purple. To the Kon-Peki that just makes you happy. I want to see a ball point do that.

 

I get wrist pains from Ballpoints though and skipping issues due to me not pressing down hard enough.