Fountain pens were used by authors throughout history as the primary quality writing instrument available. Predecessors to the fountain pen were created out of a feather, and these quill pens had their tips dipped in an inkwell, and then the quill was dragged across the page for writing purposes. Although there were prototypes of the fountain pen noted as early as the tenth century, they did not come into popular vogue until the eighteenth century. And even then, fountain pens did not reach the modern age of refilling mechanisms until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Today's fountain pens are sleek fine writing instruments that can last a lifetime and can be passed down from generation to generation.

You can find a huge variety of fountain pens for sale from online fine writing instrument merchants. There are many quality name brands that you can look for when you buy fountain pen writing instruments. They include Parker, Waterman, Waterford, Cartier and others. The Parker Sonnet line has deep red lacquer medium point fountain pens for sale. These fountain pens offer superior control and comfort while you write, and are noted as being quality pens. You might choose to buy fountain pen writing instruments from Waterman, who offers the sleek Perspective light blue medium point pen as a shiny example of the quality their company has to offer. For those who like a decorative and larger-sized barrel, Waterford provides discerning writers with the Kilbarry line of copper-colored pens with a medium point as well as gold and black accents. Cartier, the noted jewelery and watch manufacturer, also has a fine writing instrument line called Pasha. These fountain pens come with barrels decorated with gold or platinum trim, and the barrel colors run from ruby lacquer to blue stripe.

These and other types of fountain-style pens have fountain pen refill packs available. You can buy fountain pen supplies such as fountain pen refill ink by brand as well as pen line, in order to get refills that fit the pens and function properly. Refill ink can be purchased online and can be in your hands in as few as twenty-four hours. You can find refills that come in multiple packs, so that you will have an ample supply of ink refills every time you reorder. This is important, because you do not want to run out of ink at an important moment in your work, so it makes sense to keep refills on hand to prevent that from happening.