His Nibs.com update -- Year of the Pig

His Nibs.com update --
Year of the Pig
March 17th, 2007

I learned from Acura pens this week that
although behind schedule, their overlay pen
commemorating the Chinese 'Year of the Pig'
is progressing. I'll keep everyone informed
of the progress.

I thought you might enjoy a cartoon of how
His Nibs spends his time when not working
slavishly to fill your pen orders.

On the blog....how could I resist an article
from the Financial Times of London, entitled
His nibs?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
in this issue
* Chinese Zodiac pens
* The Mighty Pen
* On the blog....London's take on His Nibs

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chinese Zodiac pens

Although I don't yet have the 'Year of the
Pig' prototype in hand to share a photo with
you, I'll continue to stock the very popular
'Year of the Dog', pictured here.

Read more here.... - http://www.hisnibs.com/chinese_zodiac.htm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Mighty Pen

His Nibs contemplates which is
mightier...

Click on the cartoon when on the homepage, in
order to enlarge it.

Click on the cartoon here for larger image - http://www.hisnibs.com/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On the blog....London's take on His Nibs

"If the masters of industry or politics were
to sit down to sign some big merger deal or
trade treaty, only to pull out a yellow Bic,
a sense of the inappropriate might strike
even the most ardent fan of disposable pens.
In distinct contrast to the kind of pen found
by the box-load in office stationery
cupboards, the Montblanc Meisterstück, one of
the largest fountain pens on the market, is
often referred to as the Power Pen, given its
use for signing important documents by
various leaders.

Part of the appeal of the fountain pen is
that it is symbolic -- and enduringly so.
Other pens may be much less expensive,
lighter, require less maintenance and would
be less sorely missed if lost (if missed at
all). But the reason to buy and use a
fountain pen is more psychological than
practical. The fountain pen, which has seen
sales growth of 18 per cent from 2001 to
2005, embodies a desirable degree of ceremony
and prestige that lesser pens forego.

"I use a pencil at work because I make too
many mistakes, a ballpen for checking
finances but a fountain pen when I need to
sign anything personal or of importance,"
says Mark Ivory, director of sales for pen
brand Cross.

The image of the fountain pen as
temperamental, fragile and prone to spills no
longer holds true. Technology has led to more
free-flowing inks and less likelihood of
blockage or leakage, with new materials
meaning the modern fountain pen is able to
operate, for instance, in the pressurised
cabin of an aircraft.

"Getting out of a plane with a big blue spot
on your shirt is not good for the reputation
of the brand -- or the man," says Wolff
Heinrichsdorff, chief executive of Montblanc.
Indeed, he is happy to point out that the
brand's "new" Rouge et Noir -- a pen designed
in 1908 and reissued as an exact replica to
celebrate the company's 100th anniversary
last year -- is likely to leave your fingers
inky. But it is a testament to the fountain
pen's popularity that the industry's steady
flow of limited editions is snapped up by a
healthy collectors' market."

Read more of the article, linked on the blog here... - http://hisnibs.blogspot.com

Regards,

Norman Haase
His Nibs.com
www.hisnibs.com
Blog: http://hisnibs.blogspot.com