I don’t know anybody that likes ruling up. As previously mentioned the X-Height Calculator and consequently the business, started from not enjoying ruling the paper. (see starting scribblers post for more background on the business).However, from observations in the classroom, many students have made ruling up hard work. These tips may help:Accuracy is most important. Time taken to accurately rule up will save a great deal of frustration later on. Ruling up needs to be accurate and consistent. I have seen people produce roughs and then rule up the final piece inaccurately. This caused their writing to be slightly smaller, creating a line of text not as long as their rough, which meant the text was no longer centrered.How many people try and rule-up a small x-height using a blunt pencil? Blunt pencils cause two problems. Firstly, the marks you make on the paper will be thick – first opportunity for an inaccuracy to occur. Secondly, the lines themselves are thick. With a large x-height you can get away with it but not with a small x-height.Choice of pencils. I like to use a softer pencil (B or 2B). Many calligraphers prefer a harder pencil (4H or harder). I’m not sure if the grade of the pencil lead is important? What does matter is how hard you press the pencil on the paper to produce the guidelines. With a softer pencil you can get away with more pressure than you can using a hard pencil. Too much pressure with a hard pencil will permanently mark the paper even after erasing the pencil lines.Sharp pencil. Use a sharp pencil for finer lines. Or alternatively you could use an Automatic Pencil, with a lead thickness of 0.5mm or even 0.3mm.

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I have found another very useful video from Yang Haiying. Actually, Yang has lots of good videos on YouTube.In this clip, Yang talks about preparing and using a Chinese brush for the first time. Also, what do you do with those plastic caps that are usually found covering a new brush?Yang’s website www.yanghaiying.com

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Some papers ideally need treating before writing to give a sharper, crisper surface. Pounce gives a tooth to smooth paper helping produce crisper letters.Pounce is also used to remove the grease from the paper surface, preventing the ink from spreading. It can help prevent ink from spreading on unsized paper or over an erasure, as well as to prepare vellum to take writing ink.Pounce can be used for a paper that is too absorbent, on which the ink sinks into spreading and bleeding.Pounce is a finely ground powder prepared from gum Sandarac mixed with pumice or cuttlefish bone.To use, sprinkle a little Pounce over the surface and gently rub in with a soft cloth. Then, remove the excess with a soft brush. If there is a gritty feeling on the paper or the Pounce collects in the nib, you need to have another go at dusting the paper.Pounce Powder

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This blog first appeared last year – but is worth repeating! By preparing your nib you will get better results Customers sometimes ask why they cannot get the ink to flow very well in their new nib. The most common reason is that the new nib has not been prepared before using it. New nibs are usually coated with a thin coat of lacquer to protect them. This should be removed before you start writing. There are 3 ways of removing the lacquer.The most popular method is to use boiling water. You need 2 cups of water; one with boiling water and the other with cold water.

• Place the nib in a penholder (to keep your fingers away from the boiling water); gently stir the boiling water with the nib (being careful not to dip the nib too deeply and get the penholder wet) for 3-4 seconds;
• Now dip the nib in the cold water and gently stir for 3-4 seconds;
• Repeat these stages 3 times, carefully dry the nib and it is ready for use. (note: sometimes the nib will look duller after the treatment)

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Transfer gold leaf is very delicate, so be careful when storing it. Transfer leaf should not be stored near a source of heat (direct sunlight, radiator etc.) as the thin wax on the transfer paper can melt and affect the gold leaf. Also, transfer leaf should not be stored flat under any weight (books etc.) as this may cause the leaf to be further pressed onto the wax paper, possibly resulting in difficulties when gilding.

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I often get asked by customers why at first a new nib does not work well or why the ink does not flow very well in it.The most common reason is that the new nib has not been prepared before using it.New nibs are usually coated with a thin coat of lacquer to protect them. This should be removed before you start writing. There are 3 ways of removing the lacquer.The most popular method is to use boiling water. You need 2 cups of water; one with boiling water and the other with cold water.

• Place the nib in a penholder (to keep your fingers away from the boiling water); gently stir the boiling water with the nib for 3-4 seconds (being careful not to dip the nib too deeply and get the penholder wet)
• Now dip the nib in the cold water and gently stir again for 3-4 seconds

Repeat these stages several times, carefully dry the nib and it is ready for use.(note: sometimes the nib will look duller after the treatment)

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Which paint colours to choose can be quite daunting -so many colours are available. But you do not need to buy them all!All colours can be mixed from the 3 primary colours; red, blue and yellow. However, mixing a yellow and blue together may not always give you a vibrant green, if the colours being mixed are not pure and contain a small amount of another primary colour, it may differ the tone. For instance a yellow which contains a small amount of blue pigment would result in a greener tone. Don’t be afraid to experiment to find the exact desired colour.You will be able to achieve a much wider range of colours by mixing secondary colours e.g. purple, green and orange together rather than just the primary pigments. Therefore buying 6 colours of paint rather than just the 3 primary colours, will enable you to mix any colour you want.The 6 colours are:Ultramarine (blue-red)Paris Blue (blue-yellow)Lemon Yellow (yellow-blue)Cadmium Yellow (yellow-red)Vermilion / Cadium Red (red-yellow)Madder Red / Alizarin (red-blue)Schmincke Calligraphy GouacheColour Wheel

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For Copperplate I occasionally stir the ink, but for the more delicate Spencerian Script I never stir it.Iron gall ink, being a chemically based ink, tends to form an insoluble pigment when exposed to air. This is the galling thing about iron gall ink! Occasionally therefore, scoop out the ‘sludge’ from the bottom of the bottle with a soft paintbrush and replace the lost volume with fresh ink. I have adapted the recipe in the making of the ink to try to reduce the possibility of too much pigment forming, but users are advised to avoid leaving the top off the bottle for long periods.Also, iron gall ink by necessity is an acid ink. A drop or two of water occasionally will help to replace any evaporation ,but to maintain the pH level of the ink, and therefore keep the ink black, it is advisable to also occasionally add a drop or two of lemon juice or vinegar. In this way I’ve been using the same bottle of ink successfully now for about two months.Walker’s Copperplate Ink

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