Technology threatens the ancient art, but people still love to put pen to paper. They love the feel of the flow of ink through a sensitive gold nib, and the texture of hand-pressed pulp. They love the soft deckled edges of Arturo paper from Italy (which Napoleon chose for cards that announced his wedding to Marie-Louise). They love the satisfying click of a stainless-steel pen cap once the job is done. "It's a tactile world," says Joan Flax, owner of Westwood's Flax Pen to Paper. "In a world of e-mails, writing is so personal. When you sit in front of a computer you think differently; when you are sitting with a fountain pen, it pours out of the depths of who you are."
--Elizabeth Khuri
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PEN POINTERS
Of all writing instruments, the fountain pen, with its refillable reservoir of free-flowing ink, is the most expensive. If you're going to spend hundreds of dollars, you should know how to purchase and protect your investment.
1. WRITE BEFORE YOU BUY
Scribbling on the back of an envelope at the store won't teach you much about a nib. Spell out "Egypt" in flowing strokes; it's a word that forces a pen to move every which way so you'll get the feel of it.
