From The Netherlands An Introduction On Wandar

[WandaR]

First things first, my name is indeed Wanda and my family name starts with an R so that's the explanation for my username here on the FPN.

 

I'm 36 years young and got infected with the bug that causes a love for fountain pens just over a year ago. Even though here in the Netherlands it was (and on some schools still is) mandatory for kids to start learning to write with a fountain pen in 1st grade after first using pencil in practice booklets.

 

I had a lot of troubles learning how to write because of a condition called Dystonia so my teacher tried to learn me writing with both hands. My hands started cramping after a maximum of 15 minutes each time I had a pen or pencil in my hands.

It was a small succes but legible or readable was always a problem.

 

After receiving the diagnosis of Dystonia finally at age 21 I started with medications and my handwriting slightly improved. But it took a lot of time to write and I still had to take breaks after writing for about 15 minutes.

 

Besides my diagnosis of Dystonia there are 2 other diseases that are very disabling and the combination made me completely bedridden in 2017. I also have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and CRPS/RSD. Both cause a lot of pain and other problems next to the Dystonia.

 

But now on with the reason why I got infected with the fountain pen virus.

After coming across a YouTube video from Brian Goulet about a new fountain pen in their shop, though I can't for the love of God remember which one anymore, I started to watch more and more videos about fountain pens and the benefits they could have for your handwriting. I think I saw about 100 hours of all sorts of users and explanations and what not. Until it felt right to give it a go.

 

My first cautious buy was a very cheap knockoff through Joom.com which turned out to be quite a nice smooth writer for the 2.00 it had cost me. Even on the cheap standard papers that I was using at that point.

So for my birthday I bought myself a real Lamy Alstar (Pacific) with an EF nib and converter, some nice looking Diamine inks and a Leuchtturm notebook and a Rhodia notepad and Rhodiarama notebook. And a new addiction was born.

 

Since then I have also bought several TWSBI ECO's and a TWSBI Classic and an Online Switch Plus to use with my tablet and phone and a small notebook I keep close for quick notes.

 

If anyone has any questions please ask. I don't care if they have to do with my medical conditions or my FPs. Or anything else for that matter.

 

With kind regards,

 

Wanda

*who still feels like a newbie almost every day*

[Olya]

Welcome Wanda!

Maybe getting into pens, ink and paper will get you also into not only more writing, but also art!

[Albrecht17]

Wanda, welcome from a fellow Dutchie!

[WandaR]

Welcome Wanda!

Maybe getting into pens, ink and paper will get you also into not only more writing, but also art!

Thank you Olya. And I truly hope so. I don't remember a time where I didn't like to doodle or make art. I just has been impossible for so long that I'm anxious to start even though I know that I don't need to be.

 

Wanda, welcome from a fellow Dutchie!

Thank you! Always nice to see other Dutchies!

[Olya]

Thank you Olya. And I truly hope so. I don't remember a time where I didn't like to doodle or make art. I just has been impossible for so long that I'm anxious to start even though I know that I don't need to be.

I get that... Now that you're down the rabbit hole, maybe you'll find being creative even easier with the wide offer of mechanical pencils, waterbrushes etc etc...

[jar]

http://www.fototime.com/3C5F1D3947DF501/orig.gif

[7is]

Hi Wanda, best wishes from Oxford! You said ask anything, so, what is your dream pen, and what are you planning or thinking of for your next birthday? Best, k

[northstar]

Hello and welcome to FPN.

[Helen350]

Welcome to the FP family!!

[Wahl]

Hi Wanda,

[ThomasB]

Hello and welcome from Baton Rouge, Louisiana...Enjoy your time here

[dinupravin]

Greetings, Welcome to FPN

[Henricum_Tropen]

Hello Wanda and welcome to FPN, from Cape Town, South Africa.

[PAKMAN]

Hello and Welcome to FPN!! Glad to have you as a member!!

[mitto]

Greetings and welcome to FPN.

[WandaR]

Hi Wanda, best wishes from Oxford! You said ask anything, so, what is your dream pen, and what are you planning or thinking of for your next birthday? Best, k

Hi k, thank you very much! Indeed I said anything so here the answers come :

My dream pen is any fountain pen with maki-e and/or raden, like the Pilot Namiki Capless Raden Water Surface. Or a Visconti Homo Sapiens Bronze Age.

On my own birthday I don't usually buy myself a new pen, but I do around my painversary (CRPS anniversary) in October. And this year I am tempted to choose between the Opus 88 Picnic in blue, the Platinum Procyon in Turqoise blue, the Visconti Breeze in blueberry, the Conklin Duragraph in Ice blue or the Stylograph in Artic blue or the Edison Beaumont Unicorn. See the common denominator between these? ;-)

And next year's painversary will be my 30th so I'm planning on a slightly bigger budget for that pen.

Last year it was the TWSBI Classic in Turqoise that was my painversary pen. And I am using it to write a fictional book about CRPS with some of my own experiences woven into it. In the hope of publishing and create a foundation to help with research funds for medical professionals around the world. But first the writing must be done.