Posts filed under Ink Reviews

Robert Oster Thunderstorm Ink Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her first novel, The Bone Weaver’s Orchard, now available where books are sold!)

Robert Oster is an ink wizard. Thunderstom is a newer offering in his lineup of enchanted and enchanting inks. At first glance, it looks black. Just plain old black. But when the light hits it, Ah! Maybe it's navy! Then, do I see teal? Purple? What is happening???

If I had to classify the color, I'd call it a blue-black. It's subtle enough to be a good work ink, but has the complexity to bring some fun to your desk. Fine layers of it show up as a smoky grey-blue and concentrated areas look anywhere from navy blue to black. The color is almost impossible to photograph. Its closest color relatives that I've encountered are Aurora Blue-Black and Kobe 7, though both of those have crazy sheen and Thunderstom has none. Even where it pools it looks like it has a matte finish, which adds to its deep color complexity.

It's very well lubricated and flows out of the pen nicely, but also dries quickly. It has no water resistance--the drip test pretty much erased it all. It doesn't bleed or feather on Rhodia paper or on the ink sample card. It does on regular printer paper, but that's expected.

The most surprising thing about this ink was the chromatography test. I mean... Pink? I did not see that coming! How does blue and grey come from pink? With magic, I guess. But the colors that split were cobalt blue and pink, and somehow they make this awesome, subtle color.

This isn't one of those colors that leaps out at you from first sight, but it gradually makes its character known the more you see it. If you're looking for an ink that can subtly liven up some boring paperwork that still has to appear businesslike, this is a great choice. It's $17 for 50 ml at JetPens, which is fantastic value for ink these days. It's one color I'll always have a use for.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on February 21, 2019 by Sarah Read and filed under Robert Oster, Ink Reviews.

Kyo-no-oto No. 6 Adzuki-iro Ink: A Review

(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)

Several weeks ago, Vanness sent the Pen Addict ink samples for review. One of the inks I received was Kyo-no-oto No. 6 Adzuki-iro, a burgundy ink that I loaded into my TWSBI Eco T to test the pen. I loved the ink so much that I purchased a bottle.

Adzuki-iro means “red beans.” It is a limited edition ink from the TAG Stationery Store in Kyoto, Japan. “Adzuki-iro” sounds more beautiful to my ear than “red beans,” and this color certainly lacks any brown tones that I would associate with red beans. The color is a gorgeous cabernet that reminds me of the deeper hues of cherry blossoms.

In my ink test, you can see how Adzuki-iro performs on Maruman Septcouleur paper. It has lots of saturation, especially when you layer it, and it dries fairly quickly. It is not water resistant.

I was fascinated by the chromatography test. The ink contains a wide array of colors: light blue, lavender, pink, red, and orange.

This complexity gives the ink much more depth and character than two similar inks, Kyo-Iro No. 5 Keage-Sakura and Robert Oster Cherry Blossom.

Although Adzuki-iro isn’t a super sheeny ink, it does exhibit a bit of green sheen when it pools.

The ink performs quite well in my TWSBI stub (I’ve been using it for several weeks), though the shading characteristics are much more noticeable in wider nibs.

I really love this ink. It is not as flashy as Iroshizuku Yama-Budo, which makes it much more versatile--it is dark enough in finer nibs that you could definitely use it at work and for correspondence. In wider nibs, its lovely burgundy-pink tones and shading make it a great choice for cards, art, and calligraphy.

You can purchase a 40ml bottle of Adzuki-iro from Vanness Pens for $28.00. You might want to hurry, though. Since this is a limited edition color that I am crazy about, I may wind up purchasing whatever Vanness has left in stock!

(Vanness Pens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on February 15, 2019 by Susan Pigott and filed under Kyo-no-oto, Ink Reviews.

Diamine Starlit Sea Shimmering Ink Review

Well, it looks like shimmer ink happened to me. And I have Diamine Starlit Sea to thank for that.

I didn’t think it would happen in all honesty. While I always appreciated the look of a good shimmer ink, I had no desire to use one for more than a test run, much less keep it in the rotation. I was scared of them, rightfully or wrongfully. If you don’t have good fountain pen hygiene and maintenance, any fountain pen ink can cause problems in your pen. Why would anyone in their right mind risk adding sparkles into what is often a finely-tuned writing machine?

Because they are awesome.

I began seeing swatches of Diamine Shimmer inks in 2015, and like other popular shimmer inks - J. Herbin for example - I loved how they looked. Still, I had zero desire to use them. But as the lineup expanded, and the color selection exploded, I could no longer contain myself.

Starlit Sea had two things going for it when I chose to use it: An interesting base color, and silver sparkles. The second part is almost mandatory for me personally. Just like with fountain pen hardware, gold is a much higher bar to clear and has do be done just right for me to choose it. Silver sparkles and rhodium trim are my jam.

The first part, the underlying blue black ink color, was kind of a chicken move on my part. I could have gone more experimental, like with Neon Lime or Citrus Ice, but I played it safe this time around. It was the right call too, because this shade is more than interesting enough. There is a bright, turquoise-like tone under the dark blue when the ink first goes down and prior to the sparkle taking over. It’s really fun to watch go down on the page, and the color does peek out from time to time in the finished product.

And that finished product is full of sparkles! Like, a lot of sparkles. I think by coming in at this juncture of the shimmer ink product cycle I’m getting the best version of this style of ink. The particles are super-fine, don’t clog any part of the pen, and have a very high dispersal rate throughout the ink on the page. The more I think about it, the more impressed I become.

So count me in. I’m on the sparkle ink bandwagon. Better late than never, right? I see a future where I have at least one shimmering ink inked up at all times, just for the fun and fascination it provides on the page. And isn’t that what it’s all about?

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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