Let's Declare A National Fountain Pen Day

[N2theBreach]

Maybe we could tie international fountain pen day into Guy Fawkes day in England. :roflmho:

We could ask Noodlers to release "Executioner Black" or maybe "Gunpowder Grey" ink in a limited edition.

For the fountain pen we could ask Brian Gray to turn it out of oak as that was one of the popular woods gallows were made out of.

There would be 13 rings on the pen to signify the 13 steps to the top of the gallows.

The clip would be in the shape of a hangmans noose.

So what does everyone think?

1. Good Idea

2. You need serious medication

3. How much have you had to drink?

 

Yeah, that would sure encourage the masses to rush out and get a pen of thei very own! So, let's see, do I have to limit myself to just one of your choices? I can't decide between 2 & 3. :roflmho:

[N2theBreach]

If there's going to be a national fountain pen day, we need a slogan. You can't expect to have a national anything day without a slogan. Can you?

 

For instance: "The fountain pen, it's not as bad as you remember!". Or...

" It's not your grandpaw's fountain pen."

 

Yep. Whatever slogan we choose, it has to be catchy. I won't even copyright those two! they can be used free of charge.

[Vulcan1066]

A slogan would be good. How about "Fountain pen users; enviromentally friendly since November 4th, 1884"

[Plume145]

If this international fountain pen day idea is serious, then read on.

If it's meant to be fun talk, a joke, then ignore my serious comments below, and chalk me up to someone who tends to think too seriously about silly stuff. :embarrassed_smile:

 

For a national HOLIDAY, it does take a government stamp of approval. But for a National (INSERT NAME HERE) Day, all it takes is followers.

 

I know of MANY gals who "celebrate" National Scrapbooking Day. This was started by a major scrapbook manufacturer in 1994. Stores, wanting to benefit from the sales, started to promote the day. Now, scrapbooking companies everywhere are running sales and promotions for this national day, which always takes place on the first Saturday in May. There are even people who hold National Scrapbooking Day crops (day where women gather to cut, glue, eat chocolate, laugh, etc.) with as few a couple friends to paid gatherings with a hundred or more gals coming together for the fun.

 

Those of you who are really serious about an International Fountain Pen Day would do well to collaborate with the FPGeeks.com organizers (Dan Smith & Eric Schneider) and FPN grass roots pen manufacturers and retail owners.

 

Maybe Brian Gray might want to create a special 2012/2013 International Fountain Pen Day inaugural pen to start the ball rolling? (NOTE: Feel free, Brian to name it the "Melissa" and make it very affordable so even I can buy one!)

 

Maybe the Goulets could work with Nathan Tardiff to come up with an International Fountain Pen Day inaugural ink, maybe something that could color-coordinate with the IFPD inaugural pen?

 

If you want to do this for Nov. 2012, you need to start NOW!

It might even be best to plan now for a 2013 inaugural event.

 

An official FPN International Fountain Pen Inaugural Committee should be formed. Dates should be finalized. Collaborators should be brought on board.

 

Someone with awesome & readable fountain pen handwriting (GClef???)should write up a press release to send to all the major and minor pen manufacturers this group can come up with. (Normally, I would say to use a typewriter because handwritten press-releases are frowned upon in the journalism field, but the idea is to attract pen makers and pen retailers to the action, so I think a handwritten note would be appropriate.)

 

The big pen manufacturers will likely blow it off. But if the good folks here keep the celebrating the international day with fountain pen purchases, giveaways, celebrations, etc. the hype will spread and the Big Dogs will jump on board. Be careful, one of them might even try to take credit for the international day!

 

I know everyone is thinking November, but you might want to talk to our local pen retailers and find out when the promotion might be best for them, fiscally speaking. For retailers, a dry month (month with low sales) will likely be the best time to hold such an event.

 

As a poor consumer, I think November, December and January would be the WORST time to hold such a day. Why? Because any extra cash I have in November and December goes toward buying Christmas gifts for other people. January, for many people, is "catch up on the bills" month ... except for those lucky enough to get a little green in their stockings from Santa.

 

Yes, I do tend to over think things a bit. :embarrassed_smile:

 

Melissa

 

love this! If you're an over-thinking nerd, then so am I, because my mind started working in that direction as soon as I read the beginning of the thread! Right now, I can't start something like that myself - I've already started a number of other projects (some of them similar, too!) so I just don't have the time. But I CAN do smaller tasks to help out, like put together promotional text or do research or really anything that I can do one afternoon at a time. So, count me in if anyone starts it!

[terminal]

A slogan would be good. How about "Fountain pen users; enviromentally friendly since November 4th, 1884"

 

LOL! Very nice.

 

How about, "Ink the tines of time"

 

Erm... let me think about it...

[terminal]

...snip...

Melissa

 

love this! If you're an over-thinking nerd, then so am I, because my mind started working in that direction as soon as I read the beginning of the thread! Right now, I can't start something like that myself - I've already started a number of other projects (some of them similar, too!) so I just don't have the time. But I CAN do smaller tasks to help out, like put together promotional text or do research or really anything that I can do one afternoon at a time. So, count me in if anyone starts it!

 

+1000

[tonydent84]

Any new developments with this?

[Earthdawn]

 

 

 

 

love this! If you're an over-thinking nerd, then so am I, because my mind started working in that direction as soon as I read the beginning of the thread! Right now, I can't start something like that myself - I've already started a number of other projects (some of them similar, too!) so I just don't have the time. But I CAN do smaller tasks to help out, like put together promotional text or do research or really anything that I can do one afternoon at a time. So, count me in if anyone starts it!

 

I'm all in and would love to help any way I could.

 

I'm actually very surprised there is not one already

[melissa59]

I say we should make it February 12 -- the date that Lewis Waterman filed his patent for what was to become the First PRACTICAL Fountain Pen.

 

Then, on Feb. 12, 2014, we can celebrate the 50th anniversary of Waterman's patent.

(As slow as we are to do this, it may be the 50th anniversary before we settle on a date, a project, and whether or not we really will do this. LOL)

 

Excerpts from a couple websites:

 

"In 1883 Lewis Waterman, then working as an insurance salesman, patented the first practical fountain pen -- instead of being dipped into an inkwell, the pen held its own ink supply and used capillary action to control ink flow. There had been hundreds of patents for fountain pens before Waterman filed his claim on 12 February 1884, but Waterman's was the first to reliably work." ( http://www.nndb.com/people/648/000167147 )

 

"Lewis Waterman patented the first practical fountain pen in 1884. Writing instruments designed to carry their own supply of ink had existed in principle for over one hundred years before Waterman's patent." ( http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa100897.htm )

[XiaoMG]

I say we should make it February 12 -- the date that Lewis Waterman filed his patent for what was to become the First PRACTICAL Fountain Pen.

 

Then, on Feb. 12, 2014, we can celebrate the 50th anniversary of Waterman's patent.

(As slow as we are to do this, it may be the 50th anniversary before we settle on a date, a project, and whether or not we really will do this. LOL)

Coincides nicely with Darwin Day.

[jjlax10]

All we need is a legislator to take on our cause.

[melissa59]

I say we should make it February 12 -- the date that Lewis Waterman filed his patent for what was to become the First PRACTICAL Fountain Pen.

 

Then, on Feb. 12, 2014, we can celebrate the 50th anniversary of Waterman's patent.

(As slow as we are to do this, it may be the 50th anniversary before we settle on a date, a project, and whether or not we really will do this. LOL)

Coincides nicely with Darwin Day.

 

As someone who has a hard time believing my ancestors were fish who grew legs, crawled up on the land, turned into monkeys then became humans, Darwin Day is not a day I'll be celebrating. But if it gives you an excuse to buy a pen, then go for it! Start saving up now, so you can buy this pen in February: http://www.amazon.com/Conway-Stewart-Darwin-Fountain-Pen/dp/B0043YQYZ4

 

jjlax10, there is no need for a legislature for people to create an annual Fountain Pen Day. All we need is a bunch of people to say it's so and, after a couple of years, have the big businesses catch on to the same. (that last part's the tricky part) We'd only need the help of a government official if we were going to request it be a national holiday, recognized by our government(s).

[VikramShah4819]

I think it should be on the 4th of November; closer to the start of the school year and much nicer weather-wise, especially here in Chicago.

 

Hope this thing actually gets off the ground! I for one will spread the word.

 

Vikram

[Plume145]

What date did they sign the West Germany/East Germany unification? They used Montblanc on that date.

wow, that's an interesting fact! I guess it makes sense though But for a date wouldn't it be a bit too specific - to a nation AND to a brand? I mean it in the sense that it could be good for germans to set as an FP day, or for everyone to set as a Montblanc day (if either was wanted) but not for a more universal FP day - does that make sense?

 

I say we should make it February 12 -- the date that Lewis Waterman filed his patent for what was to become the First PRACTICAL Fountain Pen.

 

Then, on Feb. 12, 2014, we can celebrate the 50th anniversary of Waterman's patent.

(As slow as we are to do this, it may be the 50th anniversary before we settle on a date, a project, and whether or not we really will do this. LOL)

 

I love this! And I think the '14 date also has the potential to act as a deadline for doing it, to keep us focused (because ideally we will want to have one day under our belt - the '13 one - to iron out the kinks so the '14 commemorating date runs better). Because it would be a deadline (so we don't let it drag endlessly - it's much easier to say okay, we need to stop debating X or Y decision, and MAKE a decision' if you have a visible deadline like that) yet it wouldn't be a deadline so close there's no hope of making it. Like trying to organize it for november of this year or something, which is barely three months away.

[GouletPens]

This is a pretty neat idea, my gears are turning. I've started talking to a couple of distributors/manufacturers and I think we could make something happen. Pursuing an official holiday would be a total waste of time, as most of the effort would be fighting an uphill battle with nothing but red tape. And given the economic situation going on in most of the world, I doubt legislating a day for fountain pens would be a priority for any politician. But, we live in the age of social media, so establishing an enthusiast-inspired 'appreciation' day would be pretty easy to manage. November 4th seems like a good day, but because it's brand specific I don't know if other pen companies would be as willing to jump on board. That's just a theory. I'll think about an idea for a day...I do like November though, that would be a really good time for any retailer or manufacturer to think about it because a lot of new products are developed for the fall/holidays anyway, so it would be more natural to incorporate into that.

[XiaoMG]

As someone who has a hard time believing my ancestors were fish who grew legs, crawled up on the land, turned into monkeys then became humans, Darwin Day is not a day I'll be celebrating. But if it gives you an excuse to buy a pen, then go for it! Start saving up now, so you can buy this pen in February: http://www.amazon.co...n/dp/B0043YQYZ4

Pen isn't really my style. The Delta one looks OK but still not really the direction I'd take. As for beliefs...I don't need to have an easy time believing a fact like evolution by means of natural selection for it to be a fact.

[Scrawler]

I say we should make it February 12 -- the date that Lewis Waterman filed his patent for what was to become the First PRACTICAL Fountain Pen.

 

Then, on Feb. 12, 2014, we can celebrate the 50th anniversary of Waterman's patent.

(As slow as we are to do this, it may be the 50th anniversary before we settle on a date, a project, and whether or not we really will do this. LOL)

Coincides nicely with Darwin Day.

Great city. I would like to be there to celebrate their day.

[Rita_K]

November 4th seems like a good day, but because it's brand specific I don't know if other pen companies would be as willing to jump on board.

 

I love the idea of a National Fountain Pen Day.

I do agree with Brian that we should try to choose a date that has no significance to any particular brand of pen.

[melissa59]

November 4th seems like a good day, but because it's brand specific I don't know if other pen companies would be as willing to jump on board.

I love the idea of a National Fountain Pen Day.

I do agree with Brian that we should try to choose a date that has no significance to any particular brand of pen.

 

I think you and Brian are right. We probably should to steer clear of any dates that coincide with Brands, Religions, Wars, Dictators, Presidents, or anything that could be construed as controversial or partisan.

 

The first thing we need to do is settle on a date ... or a day in a month (3rd Wednesday in April; 1st Tuesday in June).

 

Maybe someone can come up with three to five arbitrary dates. Then we can post the dates and give people a couple weeks to vote on it. Until we are settled on a date, this will never move forward.

[Earthdawn]

November 4th seems like a good day, but because it's brand specific I don't know if other pen companies would be as willing to jump on board.

I love the idea of a National Fountain Pen Day.

I do agree with Brian that we should try to choose a date that has no significance to any particular brand of pen.

 

I think you and Brian are right. We probably should to steer clear of any dates that coincide with Brands, Religions, Wars, Dictators, Presidents, or anything that could be construed as controversial or partisan.

 

The first thing we need to do is settle on a date ... or a day in a month (3rd Wednesday in April; 1st Tuesday in June).

 

Maybe someone can come up with three to five arbitrary dates. Then we can post the dates and give people a couple weeks to vote on it. Until we are settled on a date, this will never move forward.

 

I had emailed Brian about this idea and what he says about a day being brand specific is very true. We wont get nearly as much support from the retailers/producers if it highlights 1 brand.

I agree we need to find some dates and then get a thread with a vote in it so we can get this going. I love the idea and still cant believe one does not exist.

We need to do some research on dates that don't have something big going on already and maybe have some form of fountain pen history to it. Though in the end the date really needs no historical relevance at all since we are creating the day.

 

Ideas ??????