Ink Blotters

[AndyH]

I use mine (that exact model - an antique flea market find for ten bucks), made by Osvaldo Agresti of Florence, for signatures and pretty much anything written with a big, wet nib.

 

Blot a few lines at a time, and don't worry about replacing the paper - when it needs it, you'll know it!

Andy,

 

That's the very best rocker blotter I've EVER seen. Congratulations!!! Briarwood makes it "come to life" IMHO ... something that metal simply cannot replicate. And the price was certainly right, seeing as how you got it at a flea market.

 

Now you've really got my curiosity piqued.

 

-Clive

 

Clive, it's been absolutely amazing - since I joined FPN these flea market and thrift shop bargains have sort of been drawn to me like iron filings to a magnet. In addition to the blotter, which I absolutely love, I've picked up a ten dollar leather covered "tube" humidor, a Levenger pen cup, and a nice leather three-pocket cigar/pen case, all for ten dollars or less. Karma rocks!

 

Andy

 

[Clive Merrick Morel]

Clive, it's been absolutely amazing - since I joined FPN these flea market and thrift shop bargains have sort of been drawn to me like iron filings to a magnet. In addition to the blotter, which I absolutely love, I've picked up a ten dollar leather covered "tube" humidor, a Levenger pen cup, and a nice leather three-pocket cigar/pen case, all for ten dollars or less. Karma rocks!

 

Andy

Andy,

 

It sounds amazing!

 

It's great to hear how Karma has befriended you so richly ... while concurrently providing such ecomomy! :roflmho:

 

The leather covered "tube" humidor, Levenger pen cup and nice leather three-pocket cigar/pen case are little treasures in of themselves ... and you literally stole them for ten dollars!!! Not too darned shabby, Andy!

 

Great hearing from you.

 

Cheers!

 

-Clive

Edited March 11, 2009 by Clive Merrick Morel

[Shangas]

I've got a wooden rocker blotter covered in faux red leather, dating, so the shopkeeper told me, from the mid 1940s. I use it almost every day.

[memm]

I use this ink blotter in the office

http://www.manufactum.co.uk/Produkt/193718...Inkblotter.html

 

and this blotting roller at home

http://www.manufactum.co.uk/Produkt/0/1400...tingroller.html

It's made from bakelite, and a few decades ago you could get this design from many different companies (just the colour and the logo varies).

 

 

In another forum somebody asked the German foreign office what ink, pen, blotter they use and they replied that they use MB FPs, MB ink (black) and an El Casco blotter (a manufacturer from the Basque Country of Northern Spain).

http://www.hodgsonsmith.co.uk/content/43/e...ing_blotter.php

 

[Clive Merrick Morel]

I've got a wooden rocker blotter covered in faux red leather, dating, so the shopkeeper told me, from the mid 1940s. I use it almost every day.

Shangas,

 

That's the type of rocker I'd most enjoy owning & using, i.e., something built during the 30's, 40's or 50's that sports the classic looks of the era.

 

Congratulations! I hope it continues to provide you with many years of faithful service.

 

Very Best Regards,

 

-Clive

[jbb]

I've got this rocking blotter in the sale section:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...mp;#entry971988

[AndyH]

That's beautiful jbb! Nice set...

[Clive Merrick Morel]

And this blotting roller at home:

http://www.manufactum.co.uk/Produkt/0/1400...tingroller.html

It's made from bakelite, and a few decades ago you could get this design from many different companies (just the colour and the logo varies).

Memm,

 

That's an interesting roller blotter you're using at home. I've never seen this type of blotter before in any of the shops around here. Of course, for that matter, there aren't too many blotters of any kind out and about nowadays (sadly). Thanks for sharing the info on your blotting roller.

 

Cheers!

 

-Clive

[jbb]

That's beautiful jbb! Nice set...

 

Thanks. I hope it finds a good home. I'm a big fan of old desk paraphernalia.

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...mp;?do=findComment&comment=971988

 

Edited March 12, 2009 by jbb

[Clive Merrick Morel]

That's beautiful jbb! Nice set...

+1!

 

Yes ... that certainly is a nice set, JBB!

 

Very Best Regards,

 

-Clive

[jbb]

That's beautiful jbb! Nice set...

+1!

 

Yes ... that certainly is a nice set, JBB!

 

Very Best Regards,

 

-Clive

 

Great, maybe someone will buy it. I'm trying to make my pen passion self-sufficient: selling one thing to buy another.

I consider Paypal-Money play money.... I never touch it, it just transforms from one pen thing to another.

Edited March 12, 2009 by jbb

[Clive Merrick Morel]

I'm trying to make my pen passion self-sufficient: selling one thing to buy another.

I consider Paypal-Money play money.... I never touch it, it just transforms from one pen thing to another.

JBB,

 

That's a great (and very clever) self-sufficient system you have going on. I just may take your lead and give it a go.

 

Thank you, Sir!

 

Cheers!

 

-Clive

Edited March 12, 2009 by Clive Merrick Morel

[memm]

That's an interesting [/color]roller blotter you're using at home. I've never seen this type of blotter before in any of the shops around here. Of course, for that matter, there aren't too many blotters of any kind out and about nowadays (sadly). Thanks for sharing the info on your blotting roller.

 

There are often some old ones from the 1920s on eBay Germany / Austria.

http://shop.ebay.de/?_from=R40&_trksid...-All-Categories

Helit still make new ones. They seem to have made a mould using one of the old rollers, as their rollers seem to have some imperfections near the corners, that are then manually removed by them.

Their mould seems to be a few decades old: there is the sentence "Made in Western Germany" on the inside. All the companies who produced those in the past seem to have used the same mould, just with different logos (some of the company logos you can find are beautiful, some extremely plain).

 

I find the roller more convenient than a rocker, but I also love my rocker.

 

 

I asked my mother to check with her aunt whether she still has some old desktop accessories they don't use anymore. They found a rocker blotter, probably made from bakelite, maybe from the 1930s. I'm already looking forward to picking the blotter up next time when I go to the continent to visit them

Edited March 12, 2009 by memm

[Clive Merrick Morel]

There are often some old ones from the 1920s on eBay Germany / Austria:

• http://shop.ebay.de/?_from=R40&_trksid...-All-Categories

Helit still make new ones. They seem to have made a mould using one of the old rollers, as their rollers seem to have some imperfections near the corners, that are then manually removed by them. Their mould seems to be a few decades old: there is the sentence "Made in Western Germany" on the inside. All the companies who produced those in the past seem to have used the same mould, just with different logos (some of the company logos you can find are beautiful, some extremely plain). I find the roller more convenient than a rocker, but I also love my rocker.

 

I asked my mother to check with her aunt whether she still has some old desktop accessories they don't use anymore. They found a rocker blotter, probably made from bakelite, maybe from the 1930s. I'm already looking forward to picking the blotter up next time when I go to the continent to visit them

Memm,

 

Exceptional post / great info - thank you! The blotters ( 1 2 ) you provded the links to are perfect examples of what I was looking for ... very much appreciated.

 

You've persuaded me to buy two blotters ... a rocker and a roller ("Rock-'n-Roller"...? :embarrassed_smile: ). I'm curious to see what the differences are in daily use.

 

I really enjoyed your comments. Thanks again.

 

Very Best Regards,

 

-Clive

Edited March 13, 2009 by Clive Merrick Morel

[memm]

Memm,

Exceptional post / great info - thank you! The blotters (

1 2 ) you provded the links to are perfect examples of what I was looking for ... very much appreciated.

 

You've persuaded me to buy two blotters ... a rocker and a roller ("Rock-'n-Roller"...? :embarrassed_smile: ). I'm curious to see what the differences are in daily use.

 

Hello Clive,

 

I am happy there is a blotter topic again, as I really like using blotters (as much as using FPs)

manufactum.com ship internationally, but unfortunately the Euro is too strong at the moment, so it's expensive to order their roller blotter

 

Best wishes

Edited March 13, 2009 by memm

[pathobby]

 

I use a pretty standard blotter which I purchased on E-bay for about £6. When it came I saw it had the letters S.R embossed on the side. A quick search on the net showed that it was a regular office blotter from Southern Railways. The blotter also had M.P. scratched on the top. This seemed to me to be interesting so I did a bit more research. It turns out that the offices of the Southern Railway in the UK town from which I bought the blotter were used by the Military Police in WW2 to coordinate lots of military transport issues. M.P. = Military Police ... who knows.

 

However, history aside, what really interests me is the Jackson Pollock type abstract art you get if you photograph the blotter once it has been used.

 

 

 

 

[Clive Merrick Morel]

Hello Clive,

 

I am happy there is a blotter topic again, as I really like using blotters (as much as using FPs)

 

Manufactum.com ship internationally, but unfortunately the Euro is too strong at the moment, so it's expensive to order their roller blotter

 

Best wishes

Hi, Memm.

 

Sorry for taking so long to reply ... been busy fulfilling obligations 'round the home (I'm the sole care provider for my 96-year-old Mother, who is in the latter stages of Alzheimer's Disease and requires my assistance virtually 24/7. Been doing this now, with absolutely NO help whatsoever, for close to 9 years straight. Now you know why I'm crazy!!! ).

 

Thank you so very much for providing the info in order for me to peruse the outstanding blotters for sale on your side of the Pond. From what I've observed so far, the British and the Italians appear to make the very best blotters on the planet.

 

The U.S. economy is currently in pretty darned miserable shape, so holding off on purchasing a blotter may be the way to go ... unless our economy REALLY tanks, at which point a $50 blotter will likely exceed $400. In any case, it sure would be nice to own at least one in the meantime; so ... by virtue of what you'd stated, a roller blotter sounds like a winner.

 

Take care.

 

Very Best Regards,

 

-Clive

[Clive Merrick Morel]

I use a pretty standard blotter which I purchased on E-bay for about £6. When it came I saw it had the letters S.R embossed on the side. A quick search on the net showed that it was a regular office blotter from Southern Railways. The blotter also had M.P. scratched on the top. This seemed to me to be interesting so I did a bit more research. It turns out that the offices of the Southern Railway in the UK town from which I bought the blotter were used by the Military Police in WW2 to coordinate lots of military transport issues. M.P. = Military Police ... who knows.

 

However, history aside, what really interests me is the Jackson Pollock type abstract art you get if you photograph the blotter once it has been used.

Hello, Pathobby,

 

Wow!!! I am very impressed by your eBay purchase!!!! I used to be an engineer for the Southern Pacific Railroad here in California (over 20 years ago), so *anything* remotely connected with trains is of great interest to Yours truly.

 

That's quite a historical artifact you own, to be sure. It's not every day that one comes across such an item, leastwise not from my experience.

 

Your association between the patterns generated by the use of the blotter and Jackson Pollock's abstract art is spot-on!!!

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Exceptional post, Pathobby.

 

Very Best Regards,

 

-Clive

 

 

[hookem11]

Clive,

Bless you. My late Mother had Alzheimer's. I know the heartache you are both experiencing. Know that you will never regret returning your Mother's kindness to you

[AndyH]

Clive,

Bless you. My late Mother had Alzheimer's. I know the heartache you are both experiencing. Know that you will never regret returning your Mother's kindness to you

 

Amen. Been through it a couple of times with various family members.