Sarah reviewed the Yggdrasil World Tree Leather Journal last week, and 12 Parsecs Designs was kind enough to send over a second one to give away this week. This journal features watercolor-friendly paper in a fun style and unique construction. I have one journal to give away (cat not included,) so read the rules and enter away!
Diamine Sailor’s Warning Ink Review
Sailor's Warning was one of two ink formulations chosen by the /r/fountainpens community on Reddit earlier this year, continuing a wonderful trend by Diamine in working with many collaborators - big and small - to create inks. Given all of the recent changes with Reddit, will they continue this project? Who knows, but let me be the first to ask: Mastodon ink when?
If you are Mastodon curious, check out the wonderful community being built at Penfount, where you can find all the details you need. And if you are shimmer ink curious, well, Sailor’s Warning is one you will want to take a look at asap.
The most interesting thing I noticed out of the box with this ink is the underlying color. I thought it would be bright red, and there is plenty of that shade, but the base color underneath that red is peach. That took me by surprise, in a positive way. My 1.1 mm stub nib in the TWSBI 580ALR Prussian Blue pen I used for this review spreads the ink thin at the top of the line, with the ink pooling more towards the bottom of stroke. That’s how shading happens, and in this case, that’s how the peach shade pokes out from underneath the red.
But let’s be clear, you aren’t buying this ink for the peachy-red color - you are buying it for the peachy-red color with shimmer! Diamine says the shimmer is silver, but I see a faint light blue tone where the shimmer breaks through. I think that shade is a perfect match for this ink, giving the ink a purple tone in some areas.
When I bought Sailor’s Warning, I was interested in how it compared to another favorite shimmer ink of mine, Wearingeul Dracula. My guess was that they would be close enough to be interchangeable, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Dracula is very red in comparison, with a brighter blue shimmer. In the end, these two inks are very different.
If there is any downside to Sailor’s Warning it is that it seems dry, even from this 1.1 mm nib. I expected more ink flow, which shimmer inks need to show off their primary property. I want to give it a try in another pen and a different nib to see if I feel the same way, but I’ve tested several shimmer inks in this pen and flow has never been an issue.
At $22 for a 50 ml bottle, Diamine Sailor’s Warning is priced well. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it, but I would make sure to use a wide, wet nib. That goes for all shimmer inks, so that should come as no surprise, but I find it to be especially true with this one.
That’s my Sailor’s Warning.
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Misfill, Cheater Edition
Each week in Refill, the Pen Addict Members newsletter, I publish Ink Links as part of the additional content you receive for being a member. And each week, after 10 to 15 links, plus my added commentary on each, I'm left with many great items I want to share. Enter Misfill. Here are this weeks links:
— What I’m Enjoying (From the Pen Cup)
— 2200 Inks! (Mountain of Ink)
— At today’s pro democracy protest (Writing at Large)
— 2023 Mid-Year Recap: Reader Favorites from the First Six Months of 2023 (The Gentleman Stationer)
— Pelikan To Be Sold To The Hamelin Group (The Pelikan's Perch0
— Kakimori #06 Toppuri (Inkcredible Colours)
— One more for the community’s exploration of #21PenQuestions (mnmlscholar)
— Maps, Everyday Ephemera, and Watercolor Drawings Record José Naranja's Travels with Fantastic Detail (Colossal)
— Ink of the Week – Troublemaker Petrichor (Fountain Pen Love)
— Maruman Mnemosyne Twin Ring Notebook Review (Blake's Broadcast)
— Mini-Review: Retro51 Rainforest Trust (The Well-Appointed Desk)
— 2023 St. Louis Pen Show (Rachel's Reflections)
— Ensso XS Minimalist Ultem (Figboot on Pens)
— Dominant Industry Standard Ink Swatch Tests (Nick Stewart)
— Exquisite Paintings by Lee Me Kyeoung Are an Ode to the Quaint Corner Stores of South Korea (Colossal)
— The Paris Review - Diary, 2021 (The Paris Review)
— Lit. (Present & Correct)
— Two boring pens that I like anyway (Extra Fine Writing)
— Guide: Pilot FriXion Erasable Pens (Shellshore)
— What’s What 6/25 — 7/1 (Line Variation)
— Nearly Two Dozen Exuberant Works by Ukrainian Folk Artist Maria Prymachenko Go On View in the U.K. For the First Time (Colossal)
— Rob Ball's carpet photos are an ode to the faded glamour of the British seaside (Creative Boom)
Want to catch the rest, plus extra articles, reviews, commentary, discounts, and more? Try out a Pen Addict Membership for only $5 per month!
