This is the first in this batch of ink reviews, which will focus on the Cult Pens Deep Dark series. This review is for Cult Pens Deep Dark Blue ink.

The Cult Pens Deep Dark series of inks are manufactured by Diamine in the UK – even if this wasn’t mentioned on the Cult Pens Website it would be obvious for the bottle and box which are exactly the same as those described in the review of Diamine Crimson ink. No surprise either that Cult Pens is the sole supplier of these inks, hence the direct link. For the avoidance of doubt, I bought the inks, they were not supplied for the purposes of this review. They all cost a shade under £6.00, the typical price for standard 80ml bottles of Diamine inks, so I would class these as low priced.

The only differences between the standard Diamine 80ml bottle and this example relate to the labeling. The normal front label has been replaced with a bespoke one showing the name of the ink. The Diamine logo is also present. There’s an additional label on the back of the bottle (not present on standard inks) which gives the volume of ink. the country of origin, a link to the Cult Pens website and the slogan “The write stuff”. Both of these labels look like small shipping labels, which may have been printed and added later, and haven’t been tailored to the arched side of the bottle, unlike the standard Diamine labels. The silver label on the cap which is normally the only indication of the ink in the bottle is missing in this case, although there is one on the box. This is inconsistent across the series – some have one or the other, neither or both. The label on the box obviously makes it possible to determine which ink it is without opening the box.

The test pen in this case was the Pilot MR Silver with a medium nib.

Cult Pens Deep Dark Blue showed negligible water resistance, leaving a few faint blue lines when held under running water, and lines were obliterated by water droplets. Cleaning was very easy, and the drying time was around a minute (the longest for this series of inks).

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

The ink looks almost black in this scan – it’s only in the lighter shading that the blue colour can be seen. I wrote that that the blue looks “steely” but to clarify I mean that it’s reminiscent of the range of blue colours produced by tempering.

By Zaereth – Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19914298

The Cult Pens website also indicates that the ink has hints of purple, which I can see now it’s been pointed it out, but possibly wouldn’t have otherwise.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Barely a hint of blue left in this scan.

Yellow Post-It

Interestingly the yellow seems to bring out the contrasting purple here.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

The spread brings out the blue here.

Mnemosyne Word Card

Very dark here, and there’s even a reddish sheen towards the bottom of the swab. This didn’t appear in any of the writings samples though. It would be interesting the try this ink with a very wet pen to see if it does appear in normal use, but the drying time could then be an issue.

Cult Pens Deep Dark Blue – Conclusion

I do like this ink and it’s one of my preferred blue-blacks. Despite my comments in the Rhodia Dot Pad sample, this ink does hold some surprises regarding the colour, but on different papers ranging from almost black (with a red sheen), dark grey to purplish blue. The ink itself is a good performer overall, albeit with the slightly longer drying time, and to use my stock phrase again – more water resistance would be welcome.

Cult Pens Deep Dark Blue

Cult Pens Deep Dark Blue - Close Up

Cult Pens (Diamine) Deep Dark Blue - Word Card

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The second in this batch of ink reviews is for one of my favourite blue inks, Pilot Iroshizuku Asa-Gao.

As is typically the case with Iroshizuku inks, there’s no great backstory to the name of the ink. “Asa-Gao” means Morning Glory, so the name derives from the mainly blue coloured flowering plant. I say mainly blue because there’s not only blue forms but white, purple and pink too. Even the blue form varies a great deal, but the name is still appropriate for this deeply saturated ink with a hint of purple.

The bottle came from an Ebay supplier – this was before I was aware of a more reasonably priced Amazon supplier. At the time of writing the price can vary from about £15 to an eye-watering £90. Since there are still some lower priced suppliers around at the moment I’ll class this is moderately priced for the purposes of this review.

I have already desribed the typical 50ml Iroshizuku bottle and box in my review of Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-Gaki, so I won’t repeat myself. The difference here is that the labels on the bottle and box are coloured to fairly closely match the ink, although I think they look a bit washed out compared to the ink.

The test pen in this instance was a Pilot MR Silver with a medium nib.

The ink showed little water resistance although faint blue lines were left under running water. The droplet test obliterated the lines completely. Cleaning was easy, and the drying time was quite quick at around 20 seconds.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

This really shows why I like this ink – no feathering, moderate shading without ever looking washed out, good flow and above all the colour is a really nice, no nonsense, business blue leaning towards purple. I typically use this ink in a Lamy 2000 with a fine nib, so there’s a quick writing sample with that pen (not that there’s any appreciable difference).

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Some feathering here, but still acceptable.

Yellow Post-It

Looking a little bit washed out, but still okay.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

This paper also drains the colour a little, but performamnce on this paper is still okay overall.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This gives a good indication of the shading this ink is capable of.

Conclusion

As is usually the case, my liking for this ink comes down to the colour. It’s as close to my ideal blue as I’ve seen so far. It performs well on mosts papers and while more water resistance would be nice, I’ve yet to come across another blue ink that ticks all the boxes. Until I do this will suit me for everyday use.

Reflections on the colour

Pilot Iroshizuku Asa Gao

Pilot Iroshizuku Asa Gao - Close Up

Pilot Iroshizuku Asa-Gao - Word Card

The post Pilot Iroshizuku Asa-Gao Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

This is the third in this batch of ink reviews, for Diamine 150th Anniversary Blue Velvet ink.

What is the name “Blue Velvet” meant to evoke? Probably not the 1986 David Lynch movie of the same name, although the shade of blue used on the poster (see the linked Wikipedia page) is quite similar. Beyond that a Google search yielded many similar colours, all indicating something closer to a lighter Royal Blue.

The ink cost £7.75 (including VAT), for a 40ml bottle, from a UK supplier, which along with the other inks in this series I would class as moderately priced.

I gave descriptions of the box and bottle of the 150th Anniversary series in my review of Diamine Anniversary 1864 Blue Black Ink, so I won’t repeat them here. The only difference is that the backgrounds of the box and bottle labels are a close approximation of the Blue Velvet ink colour.

The test pen in this case was a silver Pilot MR with a medium nib.

This ink showed no water resistance and water drops obliterated text easily. Cleaning the test pen was easy. Drying time was relatively quick at around 10 seconds.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

Although this seems intended more as a mid-blue, it is still deeply saturated and with a wet pen on this paper came out quite dark. It is very attractive though. I was able to get it to smudge slightly, although based on my experience with other inks in this series I am looking for this more than I would normally. Overall the ink performed well.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Good performance but still a little smudging.

Yellow Post-It

Good performance again and only slight smudging.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

I’ve been hard on the ink again in my written comments – this really isn’t too bad.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This shows a little more shading than the writing samples.

Conclusion

Of this series of 8 eight inks, two are blue, and another a blue-black (although in my writing tests it appeared to be almost black). They are all very different colours but still suitable for business use (smudging aside). If I had to choose, my preference from all three would be Blue Velvet, not least because of the faster drying time and a reduced tendency to smudge.

Diamine 150th Anniversary Blue Velvet - Word Card

Diamine 150th Anniversary Blue Velvet

Diamine 150th Anniversary Blue Velvet - Close Up

Diamine 150th Anniversary Blue Velvet - Word Card

The post Diamine 150th Anniversary Blue Velvet Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

This is the second in this batch of ink reviews, for Diamine 150th Anniversary Regency Blue ink.

I had expected Google or Wikipedia to give some guidance on what distinguishes “Regency Blue” as a description from other darker blues, such as the traditional version of Royal Blue, but I drew a blank. Wikipedia itself doesn’t even have an entry for the colour, so I won’t read anything into special into the name.

The ink cost £7.75 (including VAT), for a 40ml bottle, from a UK supplier, which along with the other inks in this series I would class as moderately priced.

I gave descriptions of the box and bottle of the 150th Anniversary series in my review of Diamine Anniversary 1864 Blue Black Ink, so I won’t repeat them here. The only difference is that the backgrounds of the box and bottle labels are a close approximation of the Regency Blue ink colour.

The test pen was a Pilot Metropolitan Violet Leopard with a medium nib.

Water resistance was non-existent and text was obliterated by water drops. The pen was very easy to clean. Drying time was around 20 seconds on Rhodia paper.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

A good performing ink, and an attractive deep shade of blue, with a hint of violet. Some slight smudging, but not as pronounced as 1864 Blue Black.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Good performance on this paper, with slight smudging again.

Yellow Post-It

Nice contrast, good performance, a little more smudging that on Rhodia or the Ryman Memo Block.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

No smudging this time. The written comments are a little harsh in hindsight – the writing sample isn’t too bad at all.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This shows much more violet than the writing samples.

Conclusion

It should be clear from previous reviews that I’m a sucker for deeply saturated blues, especially if they lean towards violet, so I’m taken with this ink. Yes, some smudging is present, but not serious enough to discourage me from using it again. I’m thinking of creating a new tag for inks like this along the lines of “challenging but worth it” – I need to find a more eloquent way of expressing that first.

Diamine 150th Anniversary Regency Blue - Word Card

Diamine 150th Anniversary Regency Blue

Diamine 150th Anniversary Regency Blue - Close Up

Diamine 150th Anniversary Regency Blue - Word Card

The post Diamine 150th Anniversary Regency Blue Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The eighth and final in this batch of reviews is for Kaweco Paradise Blue ink. I’ve ended on a short sprint!

This ink was supplied free of charge by Kaweco. I was not paid to write the review, which is my honest assessment of the ink, and is not influenced by the fact it was supplied free of charge.

All the comments that I made regarding the bottle, box and cost of the ink in my Kaweco Pearl Black Ink Review apply to this case too, so I shall not repeat them here. The only difference in this case is that the front and top labels have white text on blue, matching the colour of the ink.

The test pen was a Pilot MR in silver with a medium nib.

Water resistance was almost nil – no lines were left after holding a writing sample under running water, and text was obliterated by water drops. Cleaning was easy.

The drying time was good at around 20 seconds.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

Another good performing ink. While the colour is attractive it’s not something I would normally like in an ink. The shading is interesting though.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Some feedback on this paper but still good overall.

Yellow Post-It

Still good on the Post-It

Field Notes – Pitch Black

Feathering and bleed are acceptable, so this isn’t too bad.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This shows some rather nice shading.

An updated image of the Word Card is here:

Conclusion

The name of the ink suits the colour, light blue with a hint of green, alluding to the Bird of Paradise. It’s too light for me for normal use, but could have a role as a highlighter ink. I will conclude with the same comment that I’ve made the in other reviews of Kaweco inks: if you like the colour, and are willing to pay for the reassurance that comes with a pen manufacturer’s ink, then you won’t be disappointed.

Kaweco Paradise Blue - Word Card

Kaweco Paradise Blue - Close Up

Kaweco Paradise Blue

Kaweco Paradise Blue - Word Card

The post Kaweco Paradise Blue Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The second in this batch of reviews is for Kaweco Royal Blue Ink.

This ink was supplied free of charge by Kaweco. I was not paid to write the review, which is my honest assessment of the ink, and is not influenced by the fact it was supplied free of charge.

All the comments that I made regarding the bottle, box and cost of the ink in my Kaweco Pearl Black Ink Review apply to this case too, so I shall not repeat them here. The only real differences are that the front label states the colour of the ink, and the front and top labels have white text on blue, which is a fairly close match to the colour.

The test pen in this case was a Pilot MR Silver with a medium nib.

Water resistance was almost nil – no traces of lines were left after holding a writing sample under running water, and text was obliterated by water drops. Cleaning was very easy which was not surprising considering the low water resistance of the ink.

I was much more surprised by the drying time – which was around 10 seconds. This is one of the quickest drying inks that I have come across so far.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

Overall the performance was good but the writing experience was a little more dry than I would like, and colour was a little watery. If it had been a little more saturated this would have been a very impressive ink.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Still a good experience.

Yellow Post-It

Still good on this challenging paper, but looks a little washed out.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

Considering this is the paper that trips up most inks, this is not too bad at all.

Mnemosyne Word Card

I wish the writing samples popped of the page in the same way that the swab does.

An updated image of the Word Card is here:

Conclusion

The ink itself is not what I would normally consider to be a Royal Blue, but if the Wikipedia Page on the colour is to be believed it is quite close to the bright shade and quite similar to the Royal Blue web colour. Although it’s slightly too watery to be an instant favourite with me, it is not unattractive and I may give it the occasional run in rotation. The same general comments apply as in my last review – it is an expensive ink, but it does come with the peace of mind of being from a respected pen manufacturer. If you are happy to bear the cost and like the colour then it is unlikely to disappoint. The quick dry time is an unexpected bonus.

Kaweco Royal Blue - Word Card

Kaweco Royal Blue - Close Up

Kaweco Royal Blue

Kaweco Royal Blue - Word Card

The post Kaweco Royal Blue Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The next in this batch of ink reviews, and second in the trio of fast-drying Noodler’s inks, is for Bernanke Blue.

Two ink reviews in one day – is this the start of a sprint? No, but much of what I said in my last review of Bernanke Black apply here, so for the backstory and video I refer you back to that review. The only outward difference here is that the label says “Bernanke Blue” instead of “Bernanke Black” otherwise the labels appear the same.

This ink also came from a UK supplier for £10.00, so I would class this as a low cost ink.

The test pen on this occasion was a Pilot Prera Green Demonstrator with a medium nib.

Water resistance was almost non-existent, and water drops completely obliterated and text. Cleaning was easy.

As with Bernanke Black, I was unable to get near-instant drying on good quality paper – although the drying time was noticeably faster at around 20 seconds on Rhodia.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

Generally okay – but it feathers on Rhodia.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Some spread and feathering.

Yellow Post-It

Possibly the most extreme feathering I’ve seen so far.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

It spread so much it was like writing with a felt tip.

Mnemosyne Word Card

Feathering is visible on the top edge.

An updated image of the Word Card is here:

Conclusion

This is a shame. The blue is bright, vibrant and saturated – reminiscent of Baystate Blue, although leaning less towards violet. I really like it. However, the combination of feathering and spread makes it a non-starter for me, at least in fountain pens. I may try it in a rollerball pen when I next have one free for curiosity’s sake.

Noodler's Bernanke Blue - Word Card

Noodler's Bernanke Blue - Close Up

Noodler's Bernanke Blue

Noodler's Bernanke Blue

Noodler's Bernanke Blue

Noodler's Bernanke Blue

The post Noodler’s Bernanke Blue Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The second in this batch of ink reviews is for Noodler’s Blue. This should be a bog standard ink, but is it?

Following from the last review, this ink has no backstory, and no special properties. Instead, the boldest claim on the minimalist catfish label is “Always pH Neutral” – exciting stuff. Other than this, the ink came in the standard 3oz bottle enclosed in the standard box. The only mysterious thing about this ink is I can’t recall who I actually bought it from – and I can’t find anything in my emails either – which is strange. It’s not one of Noodler’s more expensive inks so it should fall into the moderately priced category.

The test pen in this case was a Silver Pilot MR with a medium nib.

Water resistance was negligible – almost nothing was left on the paper after holding it under running water for 30 seconds, and drops of water obscured lines quickly. Drying time was slow at over 2 minutes. The ink was however very easy to clean from the pen.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

The ink flowed exceptionally well, even after being in the pen for several weeks. The hint of teal doesn’t really show in the scan.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Another smooth flowing writing experience.

Yellow Post-It

The yellow background brings out the teal in this scan.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

Field Notes papaer triumphs again – the ink is washed out and feathers badly.

Mnemosyne Word Card

The Word Card doesn’t really show the depth of shading this ink is capable of.

An updated image of the Word Card is here:

Conclusion

This ink show almost no water resistance and is slow to dry (at least on Rhodia), but it’s smooth flowing and easy to clean. So it has it’s advantages and disadvantages. Why has it become one of my favourite inks? One property trumps the rest – the colour. My inner poet has let me down on this occasion, and I can’t really say what sets this blue apart from so many others. The scans and photos above don’t really show is either. So instead, below is a rough and ready shading test on Rhodia Paper – all settings on auto under artificial light. The teal still doesn’t show through, but I think it gives a better idea of the depth of colour this ink can give.

If you find blue inks boring, then this is unlikely to sway you, but for someone like me, who enjoys a blue ink if the colour is just right, then this one is worth trying out, even just a sample.

Noodler's Blue - Word Card

Noodler's Blue - Close Up

Noodler's Blue - Word Card

The post Noodler’s Blue Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The next in this series of ink reviews is for Noodler’s Upper Ganges Blue, an eternal blue ink.

When I bought this ink I was under the impression that it was exclusive to the Goulet Pen Company, so that’s where I bought it from, although I can find no reference to that now. That being said, I can’t find any other suppliers who stock it either.

At $18.50 the 3oz bottle was more expensive than usual, but still within the range of what I would consider to be moderately priced. The bottle and box are of the standard type.

The label is more difficult to interpret that usual. The hand drawn label shows what I take to be the Hindu God Ganesha riding on the back of a giant catfish. Almost all of the text on the label is in Sanskrit, apart from “pH” and “USA”, and I wouldn’t know where to start trying to translate it. I’ll leave that as an exercise to those who know the language. In the bottle the ink has a distinct purple tinge to it, which disappears when used.

The test pen in this case was a silver Pilot MR with a medium nib.

Drying time was the shortest in this batch, at around 20 seconds. Water resistance was good. Cleaning was a little more tricky than usual with what I can best describe as a few blue “clots” present in the feed.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

This inks leans more towards grey, and I did find note some hard starts. Possibly not my favourite blue, but not disagreeable either.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

More hard starts, but the ink actually looks a little better on this paper.

Yellow Post-It

Feathering noted, but still okay overall.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

Feathering, bleed and a washed out appearance. Not an ink for this papaer.

Mnemosyne Word Card

Looks quite good on a Word Card – if I went on this aloneI would be more positive about this ink.

Conclusion

In normal use this ink is a little too understated for my tastes. However it’s water resistance and quick drying time are positives, and it could well go into rotation from time to time.

The post Noodler’s Upper Ganges Blue – Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The third in this batch of ink reviews is for Noodler’s La Couleur Royale, which unsurprisingly is a deeply saturated royal blue, leaning towards violet.

The label depicts the early demise of a French aristocrat. Although I could find the same image online through Google, at the time of writing this review the original page was unavailable – so I don’t know if the unfortunate aristo is identified on that page, and if he was, in fact, a royal.

This was an Ebay purchase from the US for a 3oz bottle, so the price was in my view moderate. Box and bottle held no surprises. The test pen on this occasion was a Pilot Metropolitan Violet Leopard with a medium nib – a perfect match.

Water resistance was minimal. Cleaning was easy enough. Drying time was very long at over 2 minutes – meaning that the ink smudged easily for a long time after writing.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

This is a lovely ink to write with. The only drawback is the extended drying time, leading to inadvertent smudging. I really like the colour, which overrides the drying problem. The fact that flow was moderate didn’t detract from the writing experience, and is something I will come back to later.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

The flow felt a little more free on this paper, and overall the experience was good, despite my fumbled writing.

Yellow Post-It

Another good experience, just a slight problem with smudging.

Field Note – Pitch Black

Not too bad overall.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This swab shows more of a purple tint in reality compared to the writing samples, but it doesn’t really come over in this image, which leans more to blue.

Conclusion

This is a really attractive ink, with only the drying time as a drawback. The moderate flow tempted me to use this in my Pilot Capless Fountain Pen which has very free flow. The two together are a good combination and I can see the ink staying in that pen for a while.

The post Noodler’s La Couleur Royale – Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

The fourth in this batch of tests is for Noodler’s Ottoman Azure. When I originally bought this ink I thought the name was chosen to evoke the deep blue skies of Turkey, which was reinforced by the label until I looked closer and saw the text “The color of the tiles within the Sultan’s six minarettes”. A trip to Wikipedia came next.

Do you agree? Looks pretty close to me.

“Blue Mosque Ceiling Blue Tiles” by Bjørn Christian Tørrissen – Own work by uploader, http://bjornfree.com/galleries.html. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Okay, the photo was taken within the Blue Mosque itself, not the minarets, but I couldn’t find any photos of the tiles within the minarets, assuming there really are any. I’m not planning any trips to Istanbul soon, much less to get inside a minaret to check the color of a tile against a bottle of ink, so that’s the best I can do.

Before going any further, this review marks a move to increased sizes for images, so they can be seen at a reasonable size without having to click on them. I’ve also been dissatisfied with the scans produced by my Epson 3170 Photo Scanner, which I have been using for the Field Notes pages, while the loose sheets go through a ScanSnap document scanner. I stopped using the Epson to scan Word Cards in favour of digital photos, not because of the quality of the image (which I think is slightly better than the ScanSnap), but because the colours always looked too saturated – great for scanning print photos, but not getting truthful scans of ink samples. The ScanSnap isn’t perfect either, but it is more realistic. It does mean however that I’ve had to resort to cutting the pages out of the notebook to run them through the ScanSnap – which I’m sure is really bad Karma. I suppose the next step is to start photographing the writing samples as well. I’ll think about that further before the new batch of ink reviews.

Anyway, back to the ink. It was another Ebay purchase, so still moderately priced, bottle full to the brim in the black and white cardboard box. I’m running out of new ways to say the same thing.

I found the drying time to be on the long side at around a minute. Water resistance was almost no existent, only faint vestiges of the lines remained with the droplet test and the ink washed off completely under a tap. It was very easy to clean out of the pen though.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

The ink itself performed well – no complaints there. The ink does have a cerulean tinge to it, which puts it a little further down my list of preferred blues, but I don’t actively dislike it.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

No problems here – if anything it looks a little better than on Rhodia.

Yellow Post-It

The test itself went well, and the results were satisfactory until I ran my finger over the top of the Post It to stick it to another sheet and the ink smudged as can be seen in the scan. I put this down to the longer dry time, so something to be wary of the next time I use the ink.

Field Note – Pitch Black

The bleeding and feathering were just about tolerable although as in the comments it seemed to spread more as it dried. It would still be okay for a quick note though.

Mnemosyne Word Card

Nicely saturated, the swab gives an idea of the range of shading.

Conclusion

I’m in danger of damning this ink with faint praise, but I’m sure it will make a pleasant change from time to time. The dry time is a mark against it, but then I do use other inks with even longer dry times – yes, Mr Poe, I’m thinking about you again.

It’s also clear my handwriting seems to be getting worse with each of these tests. I must do something about that.

The post Noodler’s Ottoman Azure – Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

This ink is a Goulet Pen Company exclusive, so there are no prizes for guessing where I bought it from. My knowledge of the American War of Independence is no better than most other Britons, so the name of the ink and the images on the label don’t resonate with the in the way they would with Americans, but I must admit that just looking at the label did prompt some Googling, so this is the second time that a Noodler’s ink has helped me understand more about US history.

As an aside, I visited Richmond, Virginia a couple of times in the 1990’s and recall passing St John’s Church where Patrick Henry gave his “Give me liberty, or give me death” speech, which features on the label of this ink. I never visited the church, which I now regret.

The ink arrived well packed, unfortunately there was a minor leak which obscured some of the attractive label. It also stained the box (usual white with black line art) so I threw it away, which is why it is not included in the main photo. Despite this, the 3oz bottle seemed full to the brim.

The order included another item which pushed it just over the limit for customs, and so attracted a charge. I can’t complain about that, and it’s certainly not the fault of the supplier as I knew when I placed the order the risk I was taking. I was less impressed by the courier’s handling charge, which was actually significantly higher than the original customs charge, but again this is not the fault of the supplier and is just something else I have to factor now in when placing overseas orders. So this ink worked out more expensive than usual, but still less than the typical retail price of (for example) Pilot Iroshizuku inks in the UK.

The ink showed what I would describe as moderate water resistance – certainly the drip test moved the ink a little but the lines were still legible. I had no problems cleaning it out of the Pilot MR test pen. I found drying time to be around 20 seconds, which I still consider to be fairly quick.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

I must admit that when I first tried this ink I was slightly underwhelmed. It wasn’t quite as punchy as some other blues I has tried, and there was a slight hit of maybe denim or cerulean blue that’s often not to my taste. But this shows the importance of not jumping to conclusions and why I like to run tests for more than a week. The colour quickly started to grow on me and the sheer please of the writing experience, especially the good flow, rapidly made it one of my favourite blues.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Another good writing experience.

Yellow Post-It

I only wrote in “okay” in the comments – looking a the sample again the coverage looks pretty good to me so I’m not sure why I gave it such a lukewarm assessment.

Field Note – Pitch Black

Oh well, no ink is perfect. Lots of feathering and bleed, and the ink looks washed out. Edit: The scan looks much more saturated than the ink did on the paper in reality.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This looks slightly more punchy on the off-white paper than in the writing tests.

Conclusion

A really good choice for general note taking. Despite the fact that the ink worked out more expensive than usual, its excellent performance more than makes up for it. I will definitely restock when the time comes – I’ll just try harder to keep it under the custom’s limit next time, or include it as part of a much larger order to make the charges worthwhile.

The post Noodler’s Liberty’s Elysium – Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

This Noodler’s ink is part of the V-Mail series, which I understand to be a recreation of a number of vintage inks.

I like blue inks that lean towards violet, but this was the first ink I bought which described itself as such. There is some inconsistency though in the use of the term “violet” – which is often used interchangeably with “purple”. I refer to the Wikipedia entry , which puts violet between purple and blue, but this ink leans more to blue even than the Wikipedia example of colour-wheel violet.

This was another Ebay purchase from the US, so with shipping it worked out to be moderately priced. The ink came in the generously filled 3oz bottle, inside the usual white box with black line art. The label has the silhouette images of WWII planes along with what I take to be flags of the Allied forces – although to my shame I don’t recognise a couple of them.

The pen used for this review was a Pilot Metropolitan Violet Leopard with a medium nib, and the colour matches the ink perfectly. This is currently the only true Metropolitan that I own. It had two drawbacks for the purposes of this review. Firstly it was fitted with a CON 20 converter, which made it hard to check for staining – I will use a CON 50 for future tests. Secondly try as I might I could not remove the nib and feed for cleaning. All my Pilot MRs come apart easily and I can’t find any reference to the nib unit being sealed on any other Pilot Metropolitans, so either this is a faulty pen, one of a limited number with sealed nib units, or I’m just not using enough force – but I didn’t feel safe using any more. This is not enough to put me off using it for ink reviews in the future, but I need to take this into account when considering ease of cleaning with inks.

In fact I didn’t experience any problems cleaning out this ink. Dry time time was around 30 seconds which is on the longer side. Water resistance was good, although not 100% – some of the ink did wash away or cause smudging with water drops.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

The colour on this paper was a very attractive, deep saturated violet – an instant favourite. Flow was slightly restricted, and there were a few hard starts, but nothing remotely unsatisfactory. The smell might bother others, but not me.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Another pleasant experience. I can’t think of anything negative.

Yellow Post-It

Minor skipping over the adhesive areas, but not enough to put me off. The contrast with the paper colour is strikingly attractive to me.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

The feathering and bleeding weren’t good. While I’ve seen worse I can’t claim it’s satisfactory.

Mnemosyne Word Card

If anything the Word Card appears slightly lighter than the handwriting tests – the darker parts of the swab are closer to the deeply saturated violet that I really like.

Conclusion

I really like this ink, and I can see it forming a regular part of my rotation. Definitely one to restock when the time comes.

The post Noodler’s North African Violet – Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

At last, an Ink Review of something other than a Noodler’s ink. This one is an oddity that I bought over a year ago but never got around to testing properly. Following a post on the Rhodia Drive I thought I would run it through its paces after all.

I bought the ink originally for its novelty value (and because I like the smell of Lavender). However, on receiving I found the smell to be reminiscent of Lavender but not wholly convincing, certainly when compared to the Lavender essential oils I have bought in the past. So I didn’t ink a pen up with it. At the time I bought it, it cost £6.95 for 30ml, although it has gone up to £7.95 with the same supplier in the intervening period. The bottle is classy but functional. The small tag gives a brief general description of scented inks.

For this and future reviews, I will no longer include water resistance, drying times and cleaning in the Rhodia Dot Pad entry, because I am actually testing these separately. I test water resistance using two small sheets of Rhodia, one under running water for 10 seconds, the other with drops from a syringe simulating rain. This ink showed no water resistance, leaving only a faint trace under running water, and was illegible from the water drops. I am finding ease of cleaning to be a challenge to assess. For ink reviews I like to leave the test pen inked for a few days so I can assess dry starts, and then clean out the pen after the writing test. However, I’ve found that certain inks only really show how difficult they are to clean out after a few weeks. I didn’t experience any problems with this ink, but if I do in future I will add a comment to that effect later.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

In all respects the writing experience was good and I didn’t experience any dry starts, even on Rhodia. The fragrance disappeared after a few minutes.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

Again the writing experience was good, smooth with no feathering.

Yellow Post-It

The ink didn’t flow well over the coating on the paper (not sure if this actually is adhesive or something to stop the Post-Its sticking together too much). It was still usable though.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

Actually better than the other inks I have tried so far. Still feathering but less bleed through. The scan makes the ink look more saturated than in reality. Still not a viable candidate overall.

Mnemosyne Word Card

This swab shows much less shading than, for example, the Rhodia handwriting test, which is surprising. The Lavender scent persisted for longer (no great surprise as more ink was applied) but was gone the next day. The scan also shows a more vivid blue than in real life – I think colour correction is interfering again.

An updated image of the Word Card is here:

Conclusion

I was pleasantly surprised by this ink. It performed well, although the lack of water resistance could be a problem to some. I may still try it in rotation, but am unlikely to buy it again if I do get to use it all. The novelty of the Lavender scent to me doesn’t offset the extra cost, especially when it doesn’t really smell authentic to me, and there is the large number of other good blue inks on the market. Will I try another from the same range? The swabs I’ve seen of the Rose suggest I wouldn’t like the colour, while I don’t especially like the smell of Violets so I will pass on that one. I was tempted by the Apple scented ink, but again the swabs I have seen make the colour look far too pale for me. The Orange scented ink therefore seems the strongest possibility. The colour looks interesting, and in the comments in the Inkcyclopedia review it was suggested it smelt of Neroli (orange blossom) rather than oranges. I just need to decide if I need yet another orange ink, as I already have quite a few.

J. Herbin Lavender Scented - Word Card

J Herbin Lavender Scented - Word Card

J. Herbin Lavender Scented - Close-Up

J. Herbin Lavender Scented

The post J Herbin Lavender Scented Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.

Well, if I’m going to try an ink review I might as well aim high, with one of the most notorious inks available today – Noodler’s Baystate Blue. Am I insane? I actually bought a whole bottle, which some would say is like bringing a Ouija Board into the house. Fear not dear readers, I had already dipped my toe in with a sampler a few weeks ago, and on that occasion my whole home didn’t turn a brilliant shade of blue and all my pen warranties didn’t spontaneously combust. I did take the precaution of buying a Big Bottle of Bleach to complement the Baystate Blue though.

Noodler’s inks are not easily available from retailers in the UK. There is only one supplier I know of over here (Pure Pens) but the stock is very limited and doesn’t currently include Baystate Blue. This particular 3oz bottle was bought from Ebay. The shipping costs make price comparisons difficult so I won’t attempt to do so on this occasion.

The box is white with standard line drawing. The bottle is simple and functional, filled almost to the brim. The label is attractive, although I can’t claim to be aware of the historical background. The ink itself has a strong smell. I don’t find it unpleasant, but I could understand why some would. So many US inks seem to have strong smells, compared to Europeans and Japanese inks. It’s usually difficult to pin down exactly what the smell is. Often the most I can say is (as in this case) that it reminds me of something I would ave come across in a chemistry lesson may years ago, but I can’t way exactly what. The one word I can think of is “Phenol” – but that’s probably my memory playing tricks. For the purposes of this test I inked up a Pilot MR (similar to a Pilot Metropolitan) with a medium nib.

Rhodia Dot Pad No 16

The flow was very good on this paper, although there were some hard starts. Not a great surprise for a saturated ink with a smooth nib on this paper though. I noted some feathering and bleed through. The colour trumps everything though – it pops off the page and is pretty much everything I could want from a blue ink – striking with a faint hint of violet.

Note to self: take more care with the layout in future.

Ryman Memo Block 9cm x 9cm

I noticed after scanning that I had written 3″ x 3″ – oops. Very smooth writing experience and surprisingly little feathering or bleed through. Looks good.

Yellow Post-it

Skips where the adhesive is (but I’ve seen worse) and feathers a lot. A great contrast with the yellow paper.

Field Notes – Pitch Black

Feathers, bleeds and spreads badly. In the unlikely even that I use a fountain pen in a Field Notes book, it won’t be with this ink.

Mnemosyne Word Card

Update 22/03/2014: Word card now added. Not much to say other than the texture detracts slightly and makes the ink look less saturated.

An updated image of the Word Card is here:

Conclusion

Overall I think the scans give a fairly accurate impression of the colour, which is what makes this one a keeper. It will stay for the time being in my “Lounge Note-Taker”. I wouldn’t use it an expensive pen or even a modestly priced demonstrator, but I’m happy to put it in a Pilot MR which is easy to clean. Fountain pens are all about choice, and that’s mine. I will leave it to others to make their own minds up. I won’t make a habit of linking to loads of other reviews, but I’ll end this one with Nathan Tardiff’s own videos.

Noodler's Baystate Blue - Word Card

Noodler's Baystate Blue - Word Card

Ink Review - Noodler's Baystate Blue

The post Noodler’s Baystate Blue Ink Review appeared first on Stationary Journey.