Gentlemen Only Use...

[turban1]

black or blue-black ink, at least according to Miss Manners a generation ago. and in england if one is described as using green ink, he/she is commonly assumed to be a crank. can one get away with more colour today in polite society? Yes? No? Discuss (as they used to ask in exams). many thanks.

[StudyAnimal]

I would add blue to the list. I suppose other colors should be permitted for special purposes. Like red for marking, and don't accountants have a use for green?

 

I used Montblanc sepia in a meeting once and got teased about my "secret diary", and rightly so! What's next? Writing down my Whisky Tasting Club notes in a lockable Hello Kitty diary?

[pensnthings]

black or blue-black ink, at least according to Miss Manners a generation ago. and in england if one is described as using green ink, he/she is commonly assumed to be a crank. can one get away with more colour today in polite society? Yes? No? Discuss (as they used to ask in exams). many thanks.

 

I was told this same limit in rural east Texas as a kid. In fact, green ink was supposed to signify your were homosexual! I never cared much for those rules, but I did find that brown ink was acceptable for business and other conservative use and didn't fit the rule. I used only brown ink for years. It was a trademark for me.

 

I still prefer brown.

[Lloyd]

Uh oh. My wife ain't gonna like THIS news! I've current got the following inks in action: MB Violet, Noodlers Habanero, Iroshizuku Momiji, MB Racing Green, and Noodlers BSB.

[dgturner]

I think Blue ink is OK (at least the darker blues, sorry, BSB is right out for most things, as is the DC Super Show Blue I am about to load for my notes here at work ). Darker Brown, Dark Green (think Zhivago, Ebony Green, etc) are probably now acceptable in most circles as well. Possible the truly dark purples as well (Nightshade and Ebony Purple come to mind), but they may be pushing it..

[jbb]

http://bestsmileys.com/dancing/9.gifIt's absolutely essentialhttp://bestsmileys.com/dancing/9.gif to maintain decorum http://bestsmileys.com/dancing/9.gifand keep protocol.http://bestsmileys.com/dancing/9.gif

[alkman]

I thought that in England green ink was used by the head of one of the intelligence agencies...

 

On the flipside of this there have been discussions about inks that should probably no longer be used, e.g. red ink for grading because of the cognitive reaction it evokes.

 

Most folks don't realize that there are even any other colours for ink than blue or black or red.

 

And there is nothing wrong with a Hello Kitty diary so long a the paper is quality and doesn't feather...

[Northwoods]

I thought that in England green ink was used by the head of one of the intelligence agencies...

And Admirals, as I have read. Not that it disproves anything.

 

 

 

[Edgar Allan Bo]

I like blueish purples

 

 

But if we go back in the time - PINK was the typical color for young boys while BLUE was used for girls.

[alkman]

I thought that in England green ink was used by the head of one of the intelligence agencies...

And Admirals, as I have read. Not that it disproves anything.

 

This leads me to wonder what colour ink Chester Nimitz used...he was an admiral from Texas.

[Sesheta]

I had the idea that black was the only acceptable colour drummed into me in school in England (well actually blue since it was erasable but I switched to black as soon as I possible could). I've only started to diversify in the last couple of years. First with a nice sensible brown, then dark purple in the form of Diamine Damson & Herbin Poussiere de Lune. Almost got round my blue aversion with Legal Lapis and waiting to try out green with Diamine Evergreen. I still lean towards the dark colours though. Anything too bright makes me feel uncomfortable!

[Fuddlestack]

black or blue-black ink, at least according to Miss Manners a generation ago. and in england if one is described as using green ink, he/she is commonly assumed to be a crank. can one get away with more colour today in polite society? Yes? No? Discuss (as they used to ask in exams). many thanks.

 

A gentleman is one who never gives offense or indulges in ostentation. Blue-black does not shock, and is therefore the gentlemanly ideal; however, a heavy black with a broad nib (gentlemen never use anything finer than medium: fine nibs imply bohemian tendencies) may be used in communicating emphatic displeasure to those of a lower degree. Any other colours should be eschewed with the same vigour as one should apply to rejecting loud ties, coloured shirts or socks with clocks on them.

Edited September 1, 2010 by Fuddlestack

[eric47]

gentlemen never use anything finer than medium: fine nibs imply bohemian tendencies

 

:blink: :roflmho:

That's a new one.

Edited September 1, 2010 by eric47

[hardyb]

This leads me to wonder what colour ink Chester Nimitz used.

Answer: Black or Blueblack: 2 examples (website below and copy of actual letter follows):

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/governors/personality/stevenson-nimitz-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/governors/personality/stevenson-nimitz-1.html&usg=__uJcNSJJH09JfiauNJcntw4VyAWE=&h=778&w=514&sz=74&hl=en&start=70&zoom=1&itbs=1&tbnid=RqlMdgI1rImlYM:&tbnh=142&tbnw=94&prev=/images%3Fq%3DChester%2BNimitz%26start%3D60%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26tbs%3Disch:1

Edited September 1, 2010 by hardyb

[sumgaikid]

gentlemen never use anything finer than medium: fine nibs imply bohemian tendencies

 

:blink: :roflmho:

That's a new one.

 

Guess that makes me a Bohemian(though I'm not).............:roflmho:

 

John

[alkman]

That looks like a pretty fine nib on the Nimitz letter...I wonder if he harbored bohemian tendencies.

[Beechwood]

Probably and regrettably, the OP may be correct.

 

Blue, blue/black and black are fine

 

Light Greens are "hmmm what do we have here", please ignore the postscript.

 

Pink - I bought some Lamy red and that was pink, blended that so it was ok. I bought some Herbin Pink and gave it to Carrie, so that was ok too.

 

Tourquise, I have some CdA Carribbean sea, ideal for a gift, cannot use it myself.

 

Got some MB toffee brown last week - (Arthur loves chocolate covered toffee) so thats a treat in store.

 

Got boxes of MB Racing Green, when I am head of MI5, I will use it to sign off covert investigations of all biro users and other ne'er do wells.

 

Red - well. I had some Pelikan red, and that was really truly awful. I have some boxes of some Je T'aime MB Red, but with my life as it is the box should read Ne T'aime Pas so that so that doesnt get used either.

 

What other colours are there anyway?

[Ray-Vigo]

This leads me to wonder what colour ink Chester Nimitz used.

Answer: Black or Blueblack: 2 examples (website below and copy of actual letter follows):

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/governors/personality/stevenson-nimitz-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/governors/personality/stevenson-nimitz-1.html&usg=__uJcNSJJH09JfiauNJcntw4VyAWE=&h=778&w=514&sz=74&hl=en&start=70&zoom=1&itbs=1&tbnid=RqlMdgI1rImlYM:&tbnh=142&tbnw=94&prev=/images%3Fq%3DChester%2BNimitz%26start%3D60%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26tbs%3Disch:1

 

 

Probably black: for many, many years official governmental and military correspondence and forms had to be kept in black ink, and even blue was not allowed. Whether this is still true, I don't know. But it was the rule for the longest time in government and military matters here in the US.

 

Blue, blue-black and black are all acceptable business inks. These are medium to dark colors, not the bright stuff. They convey a traditional formality that goes along with business and official matters. I don't think you can go wrong with them. I can think of one exception though: for quite a long time I did my signatures in blue or blue-black ink to ensure that the reader would know it was original and not a photocopy. Even this is getting difficult now, as more people have color copiers.

 

Green inks can look quite nice, but I don't think are appropriate for a formal business setting. They make nice inks for Christmas cards/spring cards and other personal letters to friends, family etc. The same is true of browns, I think and maybe purple too. For personal stuff it's really a matter of what your taste is and who your reader is.

 

Red ink is one of the few inks I would truly restrict. Red tends to convey error or loss or extreme urgency. Red was long used to convey losses on balance and accounting sheets. They even made typewriter ribbons specifically for that task, in red. It is also used in certain editing or grading situations to convey error and need for correction. It can also be used when an instruction of extreme importance. I would leave red to just these situations, especially bright red. Maroon and darker reds might be ok for personal cards and greetings, etc. But true, bright reds I would leave for those few spots.

[pathobby]

 

On the flipside of this there have been discussions about inks that should probably no longer be used, e.g. red ink for grading because of the cognitive reaction it evokes.

 

 

 

 

I really like and respect my students but getting a 'cognitive reaction' out of some of them would be a real success!

 

PH

[Moynihan]

A gentleman is one who never gives offense or indulges in ostentation. Blue-black does not shock, and is therefore the gentlemanly ideal; however, a heavy black with a broad nib (gentlemen never use anything finer than medium: fine nibs imply bohemian tendencies) may be used in communicating emphatic displeasure to those of a lower degree. Any other colours should be eschewed with the same vigour as one should apply to rejecting loud ties, coloured shirts or socks with clocks on them.

 

Quite right.