Diamine Bilberry Ink Review

The Bilberry is a wild-growing fruit found mainly in northern and central Europe and is a close relative to the blueberry found in North America. It is also the name of an extra-funky fountain pen ink made by Diamine.

While the ink is sometimes referred to as Bilberry Blue, in my short time with it I have found it to be distinctly purple. An electric purple at that. Breakin' 2: Electric Purple Boogaloo.

Like most Diamine inks I have used, Bilberry is well behaved. The color is rich, the shading is nice, and in this particular case there is a slight sheen left behind which you can see in the image below. Dry time is nothing special - average at best on my Rhodia DotPad.

When I did the handwritten part of the review I was enamored with the ink. I still am, but I haven't found it to be an every day go to ink like I thought it might be. Still, it is nice to have around and I thank Thomas for sending me this sample.

You can pick up a bottle of Diamine Bilberry at JetPens for $12.50.

As an added bonus, here is Bill Berry back on drums with some of his R.E.M. bandmates at Peter Buck's wedding this summer:

Noodler's Heart of Darkness review

The "Heart of Darkness" conjures up alluring yet terrifying visions in my mind of being lost in an imperceptibly dense and living jungle labyrinth. Luckily for us, we're only talking about a fountain pen ink and not Joseph Conrad's depiction of the African wilderness.

Noodler's Heart of Darkness is my staple black ink for all my pens. You could call it my sweetheart ink, but that might be taking it too far. If a better looking black ink comes by, my loyalty will quickly vanish.

What is there to say about a black ink? Every black ink I've tried is similar. This is why it's so much fun to experiment with other color inks -- they have unique and beautiful properties that just don't exist in a black ink. But even though black can be "boring," it's also a beautiful thing in its own right. So, how does it differ from the other black inks out there?

In my experience, Heart of Darkness plays nicely with all types of paper. Sure, it will bleed and feather a tad on cheaper, thinner paper, but that's expected. It's a very lubricated, smooth ink, which is something I hear often about Noodler's in general.

The ink dries quickly in most cases. It took a bit longer to dry on my Rhodia notebook because of the paper properties. There's no shading qualities to speak of, and I had a difficult time producing any line variations. It also has a matte look once dried.

The main reason I like this ink and always come back to it is the color. It's a deep, deep black. Some of the black inks I've tried have hints of gray or brown in them. This ink is black like a moonless night in the African jungle (at least in my imagination). I've also found that it's extremely friendly when it's time to clean out your pen.

Another positive note about this ink is that it has no smell that I can detect. Both Pilot and Sailor black inks that I use have a very distinctive odor that I don't really enjoy.

Overall, this is an excellent black to keep on hand for when you need a solid, dark black ink.

Pelikan Edelstein Topaz Ink Review

Image via JetPens.

Did you know that "Edelstein" is German for gemstone? It is obvious now looking at the color names - Ruby, Sapphire, Jade, Onyx, etc. - but somehow I remained oblivious. Tell me I'm not alone!

Edelstein Topaz is a wonderful shade of blue. It has great depth with lighter shades showing through that make it pop off the page. It has none of the green tones found in many turquoise inks either, which is something I prefer not to see in my bright blues.

What is does have is an excellent sheen, something all Edelstein inks are known for. Topaz has a reddish-purple tone on top of the ink when it dries. It was hard to capture on my writing sample but look at the bottle rim in JetPens picture above and you can barely make it out. That's all it is on the page too. Subtle and beautiful.

While it didn't make my Top 5 fountain pen inks it makes the next five without question. It is silky smooth in all nibs, even fine ones like in my 03 Platinum Plaisir. I ink it up whenever I get the chance.

(JetPens is an advertiser on The Pen Addict and I received this product at no charge.)