Not long ago I rediscovered a couple of fountain pens in my desk drawer. I cleaned them, filled them with ink, and found they still work fine. On most paper the ink dries almost immediately, but on some papers it takes a while. I remember from my old school days that often we would have to use a blotter to keep fountain pen ink from smearing, so I scanned the internet to see if ink blotters were still available.

The good news was that you can still buy a rocking ink blotter. The bad news was that the cheaper ones ($10-$20 range) have terrible reviews (too bumpy, fall apart, terrible finish, etc.). Some specialty shops offer nicer ones, but they are more in the price range of $30-$80.

So, I decided to make my own.

Supplies

Supplies needed were:

scrap wood
small bolt & nut
wood cabinet knob
sandpaper
stain & varnish
wood glue
epoxy glue
blotting paper

Tools used were:

drill & bit
bandsaw
electric sander (optional)

Step 1: Make a Pattern

You can make the rocker piece any dimension that suits you, but I settled on one that is 4" long (measuring the curvature). This size would take care of my needs and be easy to store.

Step 2: Cut Out the Parts

I made the rocker first. I used a sandwitch of pine and oak glued together with wood glue, just because I had some small pieces in my scrap pile. I wanted a width of 1.75 inches, and the scraps I had just happened to equal this thickness. I marked my paper pattern onto the wood, cut it to shape on the bandsaw, then sanded it where it would rock back and forth smoothly.

The top piece I cut from a piece of pine 1/4 inch thick. It is sized to fit on top of the rocker.

Before going further, a bolt needs to be inserted into the top of the rocker, and a corresponding hole drilled into the top piece. I threaded a hole in the rocker, and added a little epoxy to make sure it wouldn't loosen.

At this point I made sure all surfaces were sanded smooth, then stained and varnished each piece.

Step 3: The Knob

I drilled out the hole in the wooden knob so that I could press fit a nut in it. Before inserting the nut, I added a thin coat of epoxy to retain the nut and let it cure.

Step 4: Attach the Blotting Paper

Trim your blotting paper to fit the curve of the bottom piece, leaving about 1/2 inch to fold over and tape to the top, as shown in the photos.

SIDE NOTE ON BLOTTING PAPER: I couldn't find blotting paper locally, but you can order it from several places on the internet, although it's sort of expensive for what it is. Or, you can do what I did. Paper coffee filters make for good blotting paper. I flattened a coffee filter, folded it in half (so I could get double thickness) and cut it to fit.

Step 5: Assemble the Blotter

Assemble the pieces as shown in the photos, and you are done!

Step 6: Use It!

To use the blotter, simply rock it back and forth on any ink that is not fully dry and it will absorb the excess. The blotting paper lasts a long time, and when it needs replacing simply unscrew the knob and replace it.

This is a very easy project and can be done for pennies.