Leah Hill

Today Leah Hill, also known as @handwriting_stylings on instagram talks to us about her favorite pieces, and a piece she created especially for her birthday. 

Hi, I'm Leah Hill, also known as handwriting_stylings on Instagram, and today I'll be answering questions from Iguana Sell.

I started in middle and high school using fountain pens as part of my general pen obsession. I love trying different types of pens and having different writing experiences. If there's a pen I like, I want it in every color. Even since then, fountain pens were part of what I was using.

When I started using Bullet Journal, I went back to ballpoint pens because I wanted a really good Bullet Journal pen. Here is my ink collection, or part of it. I found that with pens and inks funding them is one part of the equation, but finding a way to store them is another part.

I love variety. I like the variety of nibs. I like the variety of inks. I like variety in the feel and look of the pen.

Many times, the perfect pen for that day would depend on my mood or the season, but variety is a big deal to me.

One of my favorites is Esterbrook. I especially like their Estie model and I like the oversized ones because I love nothing more than a big, chunky pen. You may notice that there are a couple of blanks, which are reserved for maybe a couple of purchases when I go to the DC pen show next week.

Another brand I really like is Opus 88. I especially love their large ink capacity and the dropper system they use in their pens. Another brand I especially like is Benu pens. I love the really creative ways they use color in their designs and I'm always up for a good Sparkle.

I created my dream pen for my 60th birthday with the help of Tim Crowe of Turnt Pen Company. I sent Tim an image showing some of my favorite colors and he created a custom blank called Sakura to match that and then he even created my dream pen. I wanted a thick Cigar pen and was able to find a Leonardo Flex nib to put on it.

I love the idea of custom fountain pens, of having creative license to choose the colors, designs, nibs and style of pen that you really like best. Well, the fountain pens themselves are really like having the creative control of being able to choose your writing experience, your ink and the way your pen looks and feels to the community. I really enjoyed having that.

When I got into fountain pens, right around the time of the pandemic, I started with a group on Reddit and, although I heard that Reddit users can be quite snippy and unsympathetic, they were always extremely kind and very helpful when I started this obsession. And then I moved on to Instagram and decided that I would be shocked and thrilled if I had a hundred strangers reply and follow me on Instagram.

And I am shocked and amazed to say that earlier this week I surpassed 2000 followers on Instagram, so there are a lot of weirdos like me.

Thank you Iguana Sell for asking me to do this interview even though I was way out of my comfort zone and all my cats and dogs decided they needed to make some sort of cameo during the filming of this interview. Thank you.