To enable your best calligraphy or illustration work, you’ll need a reliable set of pens. Dip pens, which draw ink when dunked into an inkwell and deposit pigment as you write, are a fantastic alternative or complement to fountain pens and brushes. With lots of nibs to choose from, dip pens offer a great level of flexibility and therefore more control over your final designs or decorative writing. Depending on their size, shape, and degree of rigidness, nibs can be used to combine thick and thin upstrokes and downstrokes—whereas fountain pens maintain a consistent line width with every stroke. Breathe a little more life into your pen work with our recommendations below.