Show Us Your Handwriting - Vintage Penmanship!

[DerMann]

I would give anything to be able to proficiently write in Spencerian Script. My pen is up to the task (Waterman 52 V with a No.2 Nib), but I just haven't been taught properly (there's only so much a computer monitor can do).

I've been able to do up my signature in semi-Spencerian, but my pen is a medium nib, so I can't get the really nice and thin lines that are characteristic of Spencerian.

 

[Foofoogal]

Nice topic. My father had the prettiest handwriting of anyone I ever saw. It was taught to him in school.
I do remember learning cursive but how or what they did to teach the pretty handwriting I don't know. Practice makes perfect I guess. I will try to find something he wrote if I can. Just beautiful penmanship.

 

[pgoat]

me too....I bought some new fountain pens last year and had some old pens reconditioned, and they are all beyond my awful handwriting. But I am slowly learning to not rush it and make with the pretty letters....

As an archivist, I see lots of old correspondence, and the penmanship is often stunning.

 

[nobodyspecial]

I very much admire beautiful penmanship. My writing looks as if it were done by a drunken, illerate sailor. Someday I mean to practice just basic cursive penmanship. If I got that far I would be quite pleased.

 

[The Reno Kid]

If anyone is really interested, there's a ton of instructional material on the web. This is a good place to start.

 

[zaika]

wow...we're on the same wavelength. before heading over here, i was taking a look at some penmanship sites. lol

my letter writing penmanship is okay...but the daily stuff is horrible. wish i could write beautifully like my granmda.

thank you for the links!

 

[cooncatbob]

I have my Father's High School year book from 1927 and everyone writing is so much nicer then what you see today. Even though they were probably quickly writing in my dad's year book.

 

[Lulu-in-Ny]

I have been in awe of Spencerian Script since I was a young girl. My daily penmanship is atrocious; it always has been. I try, really I do, but even if it starts off well, by the end of whatever I'm writing it has deteriorated into a hot mess...[huh] Hence, at work at least, I try as often as possible to communicate via computer. Perhaps it should be a resolution to improve the handwriting...

 

[GwenLake]

Ooh, I love handwriting! I sometimes get complements on my penmanship. The most important part of handwriting, though, is legibility. It doesn't matter how many curves and loops it has if no one can read it.

The best website, in my opinion, for lessons is IAMPETH. My favorite lesson on that site is Practical Penmanship by the Spencer Brothers.

*sigh*, I am such a handwriting dork. I even wrote & revised this small post on paper!

 

[pgoat]

Thank you all for these great links!

Fwiw, I find my big errors include squeezing letters too close together (not a recent thing - I recall elementary school teachers telling me not to do this), and just plain writing too fast. I often am skipping letters ("writng" instead of "writing").

I do think a nice pen, ie a fountain or good roller ball - helps, as it is a smoother more pleasant experience in general, leaves a more bold and striking line which for me inspires better penmanship, and because you don't have to use as much pressure as with a ball point, I find I can relax and slow down more.

 

[pgoat]

I would give anything to be able to proficiently write in Spencerian Script. My pen is up to the task (Waterman 52 V with a No.2 Nib), but I just haven't been taught properly (there's only so much a computer monitor can do).

I've been able to do up my signature in semi-Spencerian, but my pen is a medium nib, so I can't get the really nice and thin lines that are characteristic of Spencerian.

btw - maybe you should pick up an inexpensive new or vintage pen with a fine nib. For new I'd go with a Lamy - under $50 will get you a fine new pen - or for vintage, try Esterbrook. My parents had two old medium sized pens from the 1950s which were considered inexpensive for their day but now are considered an excellent low priced vintage American pen. Mine both had the 'student' nib intended for learning writers and note takers - they are great for fine script.

Of course, I dunno if you can - but if so, why not swap out your pen's nib for a finer point instead?

Finally, I sometimes write with a dip pen - I make a total mess with it (Some of you may recall the old Peanut Strips where Charley Brown ended up wearing more ink than his page, and wound up writing to his "Pencil Pal" due to his incompetence) but it is a lot of fun - one step beyond using a goose quill....

 

[CharlesB]

I'm probably in the minority but I much rather prefer things written on typewriters/computers, etc. than handwriting. It is easier to read and can be done at far faster rates.

I frankly could never be bothered to give a damn about how ornamental ones penmanship is as it seems to me to be much ado about nothing. As long as I can read it thats about all I really give a crap about

 

[DerMann]

I actually have a dip pen, and about 30 nibs for it, too. I bought a set of Copperplate nibs for it (high flex, fine point), but they're made out of steel and catch in the paper very easily (making for an unpleasant writing experience).

In fact, when I went to write an invitation for prom, I tried over and over again to use an oblique nib holder, but the bally thing keep skipping and getting stuck. I just ended up using my 52 V and it worked marvellously.

I'll definitely try to find an antique Waterman with a fine point. I got my 52 V, along with a 52 1/2 V, for less than $20 shipped from eBay. It's just a matter of finding some pens that are in need of rebladdering, and doing the work yourself (it's not very hard at all, I have enough orange shellac to last me several lifetimes of pen rebladdering).

 

[Mojito]

I spend a lot of time transcribing letters and other primary source manuscripts in the course of my research, usually late Victorian / Edwardian. One in particular springs to mind - an Edwardian mercantile marine officer who has nearly perfect handwriting. Professional class, English. I've transcribed his letters from when he was a child of about six years old to just prior to his death at the age of 24 in 1912 - and in all those letters, there would be no more than one or two words that were completely illegible to me.

On the other hand, his mother - whose letters I've worked with from her childhood through to her early death in 1898 - is almost entirely illegible from start to finish. I can get words, and sometimes phrases...but it's a very tenuous reading indeed!

 

[scotrace]

...an Edwardian mercantile marine officer who has nearly perfect handwriting. Professional class, English.......his death at the age of 24 in 1912...

On that famous ship?


This is a great thread. Re-starting pen pal correspondence last week, it was surprising how my penmanship has suffered due to too much typing.

 

[GwenLake]

Scans from Class-Room Method and Management, 1922
Chapter XVIII Penmanship

page 1
page 2
page 3
page 4
page 5

 

[pgoat]

I actually have a dip pen, and about 30 nibs for it, too. I bought a set of Copperplate nibs for it (high flex, fine point), but they're made out of steel and catch in the paper very easily (making for an unpleasant writing experience).

In fact, when I went to write an invitation for prom, I tried over and over again to use an oblique nib holder, but the bally thing keep skipping and getting stuck. I just ended up using my 52 V and it worked marvellously.

I'll definitely try to find an antique Waterman with a fine point. I got my 52 V, along with a 52 1/2 V, for less than $20 shipped from eBay. It's just a matter of finding some pens that are in need of rebladdering, and doing the work yourself (it's not very hard at all, I have enough orange shellac to last me several lifetimes of pen rebladdering).

That's cool - I never thought to try it myself. It cost me about $50 to have my old mom's pen re-bladdered, so I gladly paid it.

You're right - the dip pen is VERY scratchy - but still kinda fun....until I get tired of running out of ink every five seconds!

 

[Phillip Vandamm]

As an occassional dealer in ephemera and historical documents, I marvel at the beauty of proper penmanship that was fairly commonplace at one time. Here is an example of a letter written by Boston Luxury Grocer Silas Peirce. Even in a rather mundane content letter, he uses very elegant pen work.
http://bp1.blogger.com/_Du3I5gQBEoY/Rbq4-0eyRPI/AAAAAAAAAXI/tYYeN0KTD1g/s1600-h/silas1.jpg

 

[Dr Doran]

Nice thread. Nuns forced good handwriting on us, but after learning it, I refused to continue with it and developed an angry style of all-caps printing. I want to write in cursive again and I certainly know how, but no opportunity.

 

[dollydaydream]

What is perfect handwriting? Just out of curiosity.