Materials

It started with a pen …

I have always liked art materials — possibly rather more than I have liked actually using them. For the last few years I accumulated brushes, paper, paints and sketchbooks with the firm intention that the next purchase would finally turn me into someone who sketched regularly. It never did. Retirement removed that excuse, and a weekend sketching course in Grantchester at the beginning of 2026 made matters considerably worse. Until then I had been reasonably content with my hoard. Then I met people who talked enthusiastically about fountain pens, fountain pens with Ultra Extra Fine nibs, Posting nibs, Music nibs and all manner of other things I didn’t know I needed. A few weeks later I introduced myself to the course group with the words, “My name is David and I am a penaholic.” Things have not improved.
The Materials section of The Loose Nib is where I will record the pens, inks, paper, sketchbooks, paints and other equipment I actually use as I learn to sketch again. These won’t be technical reviews full of measurements and specifications; there are plenty of people who do that and far better than I could. They will simply be my experiences of using these things for sketching: what I like, what I don’t, what works for me and, occasionally, why on earth I bought it in the first place. Inevitably there will be rather a lot about fountain pens. After all, there is a reason this website is called The Loose Nib.