Last Christmas became writing of a fervent nature. A flavour of whirling alphabet letters, warm rustic colours and metal nib scratchings. Ink stained fingers and worrisome thoughts of transferring finger pad inky-ness onto the pages of a favourite book copy when re-reading A Christmas Carol by Dickens.  Dip nibs were being used.

Please tap on all smaller images below to enlarge.

Because the dip nibs are calling again, individual nibs are now in little individual packets. Then these different types of nibs housed collectively in own unique boxes. Graphos nibs, standard italic nibs, unique calligraphy nibs, nibs with ink reservoir/collector, nibs of plain design. Rearranging the various types of nibs has given ideas. Writing some Christmas cards. So may hopefully find a nib that suits this activity splendidly.

Alongside? Hard cover, blank paged writing pads will be ideal for writing a singular page at a time with different dip nibs and a different passage from a book or a poem. Little sample favourites. However. Having learnt the lessons of putting unknown nib and ink combinations together in the past and then to watch the simple twinned synergy go crazy when the third synergy event of paper became involved? Setting aside a small ‘back of writing pad’ test page avoids the disappointment of a rogue display. Combinations that won’t invade the pad’s collective ambience. At worst, ruin the efforts made on previous page/pages with the presence of a deep, sunk through ink blot visitation. Ink blot presence has been known to visit other stories by becoming little party gate crashers. Wonderful previous pages distorted with unwelcome inclusions. Akin to being in a deeply successful Mindfulness session and then becoming suddenly aware that a spectre has crept in the room and is sitting looking at you. Mindfulness changing to the haunting of a Reiki cleanse.  

 

But it cannot be a quiet experience.

 

“To the extent that nature sounds are soothing to most humans, three in particular stand out: wind, water and birds. They are the trifecta of salubrious listening (favourite music and the voices of loved ones are perhaps the happiest of all, engaging almost every part of the brain, according to neuroscientist and musician Daniel Levitin, in ‘This is your brain on music’)”.

 

From ‘the Nature Fix. Why nature makes us happier, healthier and more creative’ by Florence Williams.

 

So a few pieces of favourite music or a New Age CD of nature’s sounds may be a fine addition to the testing and recording of dip nibs.