Slope Angles For All Scripts

[Italicist]

Caliken's method of angles has been working very well indeed for me during the last few weeks. In order to make the process of rotating the page even easier, I've cut a small wedge of thin plywood at an angle of eight degrees and placed it on the lower ledge of the writing board on which I do most of my work at home. As you can see from the photograph below, the wedge supports one's paper at exactly the right angle so that one doesn't have to concentrate on keeping the paper in position. Since I rarely write in anything other than italic, I haven't yet cut any other supports at other angles, but I suspect that any angle that one likes could be made and used without difficulty. Thanks again for this great method, Caliken!

 

with best wishes,

Italicist

 

 

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_JnXXB0RwRlk/TP9zDG5eP3I/AAAAAAAAAPY/PzFAFqrIiU4/s400/8%20degree%20board.jpgFrom Misc reading and writing

[caliken]

That's a brilliant idea, Italicist!

 

For even, consistent writing, the hand should stay in the same position and the paper should be shifted from left to right across the table or writing board. In this way, the hand, arm and eye stay in the same position regardless of where the writing is, on the paper.

 

Using your angled board, the paper can be moved gradually down the slope whilst the hand stays in the same position!......much, much easier to maintain the correct paper angle!

 

My only regret is that I didn't think of it first!

 

.....now, where did I put my saw? :hmm1:

 

 

Ken

Edited December 8, 2010 by caliken

[bigstick]

now I am seeing even greater justification for that used drafting table I've been drooling over. Not sure it fits up the stairs, though....

[caliken]

bigstick,

 

I'm really glad that you found the angles technique to be of use. Your results are certainly consistent and attractive.

 

I'd be very interested to hear your opinion of Italicist's brilliant idea with the angled board when you test it out.

It's possible to test it with a piece of thick, firm cardboard. I'm really impressed with how easy it is to maintain a consistent slope right across the paper without having to think about it as you move the paper gradually down the slope. You're always writing in exactly the same position, which is ideal.

 

That's one of the great things about FPN....the constant free and constructive exchange of ideas. IMO Italicist's idea is brilliant in its simplicity, and one I'll certainly be adopting.

 

Ken

Edited December 8, 2010 by caliken

[caliken]

I printed onto the new paper my usual letter guidelines, but removed the angle guidelines. Then I simply set the paper at the proper angle under my hand and away I wrote.

 

http://i266.photobucket.com/albums/ii241/bigstickpilot/Bulletin%20Board/FPN101125a.jpg

 

Bigstick makes a good point here - once the paper is set at the correct angle, slope guidelines are unnecessary as all writing is done vertically, at right angles to the body.

 

Italicist takes this technique a stage further and his "sloping board" makes this easier to achieve with absolute consistency.

 

Ken

Edited December 8, 2010 by caliken

[Italicist]

I'd be very interested to hear your opinion of Italicist's brilliant idea with the angled board when you test it out.

It's possible to test it with a piece of thick, firm cardboard. I'm really impressed with how easy it is to maintain a consistent slope right across the paper without having to think about it as you move the paper gradually down the slope. You're always writing in exactly the same position, which is ideal.

 

That's one of the great things about FPN....the constant free and constructive exchange of ideas. IMO Italicist's idea is brilliant in its simplicity, and one I'll certainly be adopting.

 

Ken

 

 

Ach, I'm delighted that you like the idea, Caliken. It's really just a tiny refinement of your technique, and I'm happy to be able to give a little extra polish to your great idea. The suggestion of trying the slope with cardboard is a good idea, since plywood isn't exactly ideal for this. It's difficult to get the edge smooth enough that it won't catch one's sleeve, so I think that I'll probably make a better wedge out of thin solid wood stock soon.

 

 

[bigstick]

I'd be very interested to hear your opinion of Italicist's brilliant idea with the angled board when you test it out.

It's possible to test it with a piece of thick, firm cardboard. I'm really impressed with how easy it is to maintain a consistent slope right across the paper without having to think about it as you move the paper gradually down the slope. You're always writing in exactly the same position, which is ideal.

 

That's one of the great things about FPN....the constant free and constructive exchange of ideas. IMO Italicist's idea is brilliant in its simplicity, and one I'll certainly be adopting.

 

Ken

 

 

Ach, I'm delighted that you like the idea, Caliken. It's really just a tiny refinement of your technique, and I'm happy to be able to give a little extra polish to your great idea. The suggestion of trying the slope with cardboard is a good idea, since plywood isn't exactly ideal for this. It's difficult to get the edge smooth enough that it won't catch one's sleeve, so I think that I'll probably make a better wedge out of thin solid wood stock soon.

 

 

 

I'm thinking that cardboard will have a similar problem once the corrogated core is exposed at the edge. Perhaps a bit of tape will be of benefit on the edge of either material?

[Bronze]

Great idea

[caliken]

I'll probably make a better wedge out of thin solid wood stock soon.

I'm thinking that cardboard will have a similar problem once the corrogated core is exposed at the edge. Perhaps a bit of tape will be of benefit on the edge of either material?

 

I only suggested cardboard as a very temporary method to see how it works; I expect that it would disintegrate pretty quickly.

I think that MDF would be as good as anything. It sands very fine and produces no splinters. I'm not sure that tape would be a good idea as it might prevent the paper moving smoothly down the slope as you write across the paper.

 

Ken

[TrevorML]

the cardboard known as strawboard would be OK as it is like a paper version of MDF, albeit with slightly coarser fibres

[caliken]

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_JnXXB0RwRlk/TP9zDG5eP3I/AAAAAAAAAPY/PzFAFqrIiU4/s400/8%20degree%20board.jpgFrom Misc reading and writing

BTW thanks for posting this photo, Italicist - it's one of those things which is quite difficult to describe but easy to understand when you see it!

 

Ken

[Italicist]

You're welcome, Caliken. I was happy to discover a few scraps of medium-density fibreboard in my basement workshop yesterday, by the way; when time permits I'll see whether I can make a less splintery support than my current one. Either MDF or solid wood would definitely be better than 1/4 inch plywood in that respect!

[bigstick]

I think that I must confess that I don't move the paper right to left, I move my hand left to right. The paper moves upwards each line completed. My total working space is about 50cm square and parallel to the floor. I sit sideways on to get my hand to fall at a natural angle. Apparently, I am doing it all wrong, as usual...I blame the Québec school system of the Sixties.

[caliken]

I think that I must confess that I don't move the paper right to left, I move my hand left to right. The paper moves upwards each line completed. My total working space is about 50cm square and parallel to the floor. I sit sideways on to get my hand to fall at a natural angle. Apparently, I am doing it all wrong, as usual...I blame the Québec school system of the Sixties.

 

If your hand, arm and eye stay in the same position and the paper is moved gradually from right to left, your writing will be consistent. If you keep the paper in the same position and move your hand and arm across the page as you write, you will be looking at your writing increasingly to the right which makes consistency more difficult as you're looking at the writing from an increasing angle.

 

Italicist's sloping board idea, means that the the paper can be moved easily from right to left, maintaining the correct slope angle whilst the hand, arm and eye stay in the same place as you write.

 

It really is much easier to do, than to explain!

 

Ken

Edited December 9, 2010 by caliken

[caliken]

You may have noticed that the above topic has been pinned in the "Handwriting Aids" section at the top of this forum.

 

In view of Italicist's 'Sloping Board' input, I contacted Ann Finley and she agrees with me that equal credit should be given for this topic as he's put the meat on the bare bones of an idea and made it complete as a viable technique.

 

I am very pleased to see that she has amended the attribution accordingly.

 

I know that this is a very small thing, but I do believe that full credit should be given where due.

 

caliken

[Italicist]

In view of Italicist's 'Sloping Board' input, I contacted Ann Finley and she agrees with me that equal credit should be given for this topic as he's put the meat on the bare bones of an idea and made it complete as a viable technique.

 

I am very pleased to see that she has amended the attribution accordingly.

 

 

I know that this is a very small thing, but I do believe that full credit should be given where due.

caliken

 

 

You, sir, are a gentleman indeed. I'm inclined to think that you're probably giving me a little more credit than I'm really due, but I'm very touched by your willingness to share the credit. Thank you very much.

 

 

In further news, with careful sanding and multiple coats of polyeurathane, even plywood can be brought to a silky-smooth finish; I've stopped leaving bits of my sleeve and flesh in my sloping board!

 

with best wishes,

Italicist

[Dueller]

Try this link, the angle for spencerian and copperplate is about 52 degrees (quite a slope)

 

http://www.iampeth.com/lessons.php#cursive_handwriting

 

also check out the artwork page, and scroll down the master penman society page the applicants have to draw/write their own pass certificates.

Edited December 17, 2010 by Dueller

[caliken]

The slope for Spencerian is 52 degrees and for Copperplate 55 degrees.

 

Ken

[singer]

Wow, interesting.. I've always had the habit of turning my paper on an angle when writing on it, for as long as I can remember. I notice my friends who were born in Canada write with the paper straight. Their writing is very uniform, bubble-like. I must have been taught that before moving here, but I have no memory of it

[New_Falcon]

As with all the threads in the penmanship forum, very interesting and very useful.

 

One question, is this technique only for right handed people? Being left handed I have always had the page placed at 45 degrees clockwise, assuming a page held straight up would be 0 degrees. The idea behind this is so that I can actually see what I'm writing.

 

If I turn the page so that it's as shown above I wouldn't be able to see what I'm writing. This seems like an excellent technique to get a very consistent slope, unfortunately the way I see it is that this is not applicable to left handed writers.

 

Is my thinking correct?