Category Archives: INKS

INK REVIEW: Delta Brown

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Delta Brown, what’s that flower you have on?

I couldn’t stop singing while preparing the handwritten review. Poor Mr. Pentulant – the things he puts up with!

It’s brown.

That pretty much sums up my review. And coincidentally, the final score is 50 – right in the middle of the pack.

It’s nice looking, well-behaved in the pen. Not water-resistant (not a surprise).

The remarkable thing about the browns in the Compare Squares? Delta Brown, Stipula Sepia, and Omas Sepia are all kinda the same.

If you’re looking for a good solid brown, this could be your ink. I can see using it in a professional setting as easily as some blues or grays. I could really see drawing with it. If you’re into matching your inks to your pens, you might love brown. But I won’t be buying a full-sized bottle.

Dear Brown,

I’m just not that into you.

Love,
Pentulant

P.S. You do know the song Delta Dawn, yes? Here’s a link to it on iTunes if you’re in the mood to get your 1970s on.

INK REVIEW: Montblanc Winter Glow

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hello gorgeous
Now. There is some red!  That in-yo-face color that I adore!
Highlight test went (surprisingly) well.
The colors in the Compare Squares don’t really compare at all – even for a second try! Even Tiananmen from Noodler’s and not even Florentine Red from Stipula.  No, Winter Glow from Montblanc is in a class by itself.

On very close inspection, it’s has a bit of spread. Spread = not quite perfect, but not really feathering. With the naked eye, though, this just isn’t noticeable on any of the papers I’ve used with this pen/ink combination.

Speaking of the pen/ink combination, you’ll notice that I used a Montblanc Boheme for this test. That’s because the ink is in a cartridge rather than a bottle. I have a bottle, too, just wasn’t ready to open it. 
Wait, let’s be honest here, I wanted to try a MB ink in a MB pen and this is what I went with.

Suggest keeping it dry
The only bit of trouble I had was on the review paper (HP Premium Choice 32 lb.). Just a little hard starting.
The letter to Mr. P below is written on Whitelines Paper and it worked out just fine.

In closing, I’d like you to notice how kind I am to refer to the pen as his. Everyone knows all of the pens in the house (and in the cars, and in the world) belong to me.

The End 🙂

INK REVIEW: Noodler’s Turquoise Eel

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Noodler’s Turquoise Eel

Now. This is what I’m talkin’ about!

Some real, in-yo-face, color.

And, bonus! It writes like a dream.

Noodler’s Turquoise Eel rivals Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-peki in every way. It has great color and saturation. It writes beautifully – flow from the pen is just right.

Smear factor isn’t bad.  Not much shading. Is there a turquoise that shades wonderfully? Guess I’ll have to try them all and find out!

Back to the ink . . .

. . . I really don’t have anything negative to say – if I don’t talk about the water test – ha! It’s a great well-behaved ink that I would consider purchasing if I didn’t already own a couple of other turquoise inks. (I test from sample vials, but you probably knew that already.)

A bunch of side notes…

…this is my first review with my new form. Totally excited. Let me know what you think?

…my ink reviews all fall into broad color categories (new this year). This one ended up with the blues because it’s more blue than green. Maybe I need a turquoise – but then I’d need a teal – and sometimes it’s hard to decide. I’ll just keep doing the best I can.

…omg, did you notice the first Compare Square? De Atramentis Hyacinth. I’m excited about reviewing that one sometime soon. Pretttttty.

…Waterman Mysterious Blue felt watery compared to the other inks on this page. Wonder how that will translate in a pen when I get around to testing it.

INK REVIEW: Private Reserve Chocolat

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Well.
You know what I love? An ink that has a great name. Chocolat from Private Reserve. Yum. I can practically taste the cocoa.
And even with the swab above, it’s easy to see that this is one glossy shiny ink. I love that, too. Love.
Maybe just a tiny bit too red.  And not water resistant, though I’m not surprised by that.
A little smeary. 
Bottom Line:  I dig it! If I wanted a brown, I’d probably buy a full bottle.

INK PREVIEW: Oops.

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Pffft.

I’d completed the review of Montblanc’s Winter Glow and then went to my stash – grabbed four red inks out of my red inks sample bag – and above is the result.

Dude. Those aren’t red. Maybeeeeeee Rouge Caroubier is close – but even it is more of a pinky color.

Heaven only knows why I didn’t stop after the first – or the second – OR THE THIRD – but I kept right on going.

So..what you have here is a mess. But at least you can see the swab of Winter Glow and a bit of writing. It’s darker than I thought it would be coming out of the pen.

I’ll get a proper review of Winter Glow done soon.

After I try sorting my samples by color one more time 😉

INK REVIEW: Pelikan Edelstein Sapphire

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Despite whatever else I say below – I like this ink. I do. 
It failed the water test. See?

It’s not really sapphire in color. I realize there are different colored sapphires out in the world, but most people think of them as blue. This is more of a purple – or even a very bright periwinkle.  I like all of those colors.

It’s bright. Love that.  It’s BOLD. Really love that.

Tiny bit of shading.
Not the driest ink in the land.

And some feathering upon close examination.

So..Pelikan Edelstein isn’t a perfect ink, but I like it. I’m not sure that I’ll get a full bottle of the stuff (this review was from a sample vial), but I like it.  No matter its issues.
Have you tried Sapphire? Maybe I need to try it again with another pen/paper.

INK REVIEW: Pilot Iroshizuku – Syo Ro

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Another very pretty teal color from Pilot Iroshizuku.

Pricing is pretty much the same at $28 all over the place. When pricing is the same in all of my usual places, I generally go for the one that offers the best customer service (heck, I’ll even pay a few dollars more for excellent customer service).

One thing I didn’t mention in my other Pilot Iroshizuku reviews is how lovely the bottle is. Here’s an image I dug up on Flickr from user InkyJournal. Gorgeous, yes? I can almost feel the coolness of the thick thick glass.

Still, I’m not going to invest in a full bottle of this ink. I’m holding out for something different – something with more bOOm bOOm pOw. Hopefully, I’ll find that perfect ink – or have fun on the search.  Hahah..it’s definitely the journey when it comes to inks.

Syo ro writes very well.  No problems with flow. Not much sheen. Decent saturation.  There’s little feathering on my Hammermill Premium paper. And there’s even a tiny bit of shading.

Dry time was perfectly acceptable.

I was surprised at how well it did on the water test. Not perfect, but not too bad for a non-black.

Wrapping things up…I like it, I don’t love it.  I’m looking for love.

But don’t take my word for it. Here’s what others are saying about Syo ro:

Fountain Pen Network Review 1

Fountain Pen Network Review 2

INK REVIEW: Private Reserve – DC Supershow Blue

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Woo Woo!
I love you!
DC Supershow
Blue!
Look at that color! Super-saturated. In yo face, blue!  Private Reserve did a great job with DC Supershow Blue.
But..it’s not perfect, is it?  Look at the water test. Check out, especially, where “from” should be written. That is where a droplet of water was placed and allowed to sit. Fail. And the smear? It definitely smeared, oh yeah. But this is a blue, not a black – we can’t expect perfection, right?

This is a blue I could fall in love with. I get all blue from this color – I don’t see purple like I did with Noodler’s Baystate Blue.

This is a blue I could fall in love with. I want to fall in love. I want to. I neeeed to fall in love with this blue. Except – it’s feathery. And it’s wet. And it smears like cheap peanut butter (what does that even mean!).

I want to love it, but I cant. Not yet, anyway. I’m going to give this another go. In a different pen. Maybe something with a super fine nib to slow it down just a bit. Maybe on a different paper.
What Others Say…
Goulet Pens where it’s available for $8.75
Stay Tuned….Later today, I’m going to be talking about the Edison Nouveau LE Encore!

INK REVIEW: Pilot Iroshizuku – Fuyu Syogun

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Wrapping up a couple of reviews before we move on to the new form…

Another sweet shade of gray from Pilot Iroshizuku – Fuyu-syogun does not disappoint!  I’m usually a purist when it comes to colors – I don’t dig muted shades, for example, give me a real, full color! But this gray (grey?) with a touch of blue is jussssst right.

I’ll spare you suspense. I’m totally ordering a bottle of this. It’s available most everywhere for $28 per bottle. Kind of expensive, right? But it’s such a joy to write with. Some of this must be the pen – I’m a sucker for a broad nib – and you know that I love me some Lamy Safari – but still. I’m swooning over here.

Not too wet. Didn’t seem too dry either.

Really. Look at this shading? And there’s not much feathering – even on this mid-quality paper.
 And .. my (limited) understanding is that this ink is also known as Old Man Winter. How cool is that?

And! The news just keeps getting better. Look at that water test. What water test, you ask? Exactly!  (Actually, look in “from,” that’s the droplet test area and you can see just a bit of fading.)

I’ll stop blathering on so you can see what others are saying…
Inky Journal
There aren’t a lot of people talking about this one. Have you tried it?