Ink Review #1023: Troublemaker Milky Ocean

I’ve been waiting so long to try this ink, so I’m so excited to finally review Troublemaker Milky Ocean. Thanks to Shigure Inks for sending a sample over for review!

The color:

Milky Ocean is a pale blue that shades to a pale purple.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper you can see plenty of purple shading.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry time: 20 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: high shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in all nib sizes but just a tiny bit of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Milky Ocean is similar to Sailor Ink Studio 243, but a bit more vibrant than that. Click here to see the Troublemaker inks together and click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Bonecrusher Studios custom pen with a Regalia Writing Labs Crossflex nib on a Yoseka A5 notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, I love the shading this ink has: blue and purple in various shades. I need to order a full bottle as soon as it’s back in stock!

Disclaimer: This ink was provided by Shigure Inks for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and this post is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1022: Troublemaker Bantayan Turquoise

I love teal inks, they always make me happy. Today’s is Troublemaker Bantayan Turquoise from the Standard collection. Thanks to Shigure Inks for sending a sample over for review! This is the standard “wet” version of the ink.

The color:

Bantayan Turquoise is a medium teal with some pink sheen.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper you can see some of the pretty pink sheen.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry time: 20 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low-there was some bleeding on Leuchtturm paper.

Other properties: medium shading, high sheen, and no shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in all nib sizes and some bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Bantayan Turquoise is a bit greener than Robert Oster Deep Sea, but not quite as green as Noodler’s Turquoise. Click here to see the Troublemaker inks together and click here to see the teal inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Pilot Vanishing Point Tropical Turquoise with a medium nib on a Yoseka A5 notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, this ink is beautiful. It’s a great color, has some wonderful shading and pretty sheen.

Disclaimer: This ink was provided by Shigure Inks for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and this post is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1021: Troublemaker Mango

I’m so excited for the next few reviews! I’ve had a lot of requests for Troublemaker ink reviews but I’ve had a really hard time getting my hands on some. Enter Shigure Inks! They’ve started carrying Troublemaker inks in the US and were so kind to send me some samples for review. Let’s start out with Troublemaker Mango from the standard collection. This is the standard “wet” version of the ink.

The color:

Mango is a medium orange ranging from yellow-orange to red-orange.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink actually looks more flat than it does in writing.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: medium shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in all nib sizes but just a tiny bit of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Mango is similar to Pelikan Edelstein Mandarin, and a bit darker than Sailor Jentle Apricot. Click here to see the Troublemaker inks together, and click here to see the orange inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Pelikan M600 Vibrant Orange with a medium nib on a Yoseka A5 notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, I enjoyed this ink. It’s a nice color and rather well behaved. It’s at a great price point as well, 60ml/$12.

Disclaimer: This ink was provided by Shigure Inks for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and this post is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1020: Sailor Nano Souboku

Today we are testing out Sailor Nano Souboku. A sample of this ink was provided by a reader, and while reviewing it I fell in love with it so much I ordered a bottle from Pen Chalet.

The color:

Souboku is an unsaturated blue black.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink turns black where pooled, almost sheen but not quite.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: High

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: medium shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in all nib sizes but just a tiny bit of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Souboku is darker than Lamy Benitoite and Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-kai. Click here to see the Sailor inks together, and click here to see the blue black inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Lamy 2000 Black Amber with a fine nib on a Yoseka A5 notebook. The ink had a wet flow.

Overall, I really enjoyed this ink-I’m pretty sure it’s my new favorite blue black. I love the color, it’s very water resistant (due to its pigment base) and a great neutral for when you need a professional ink.

Disclaimer: This ink was provided by a reader for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does contain affiliate links, but this post is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1019: Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin

I’m so close to completing reviews of all the Pilot Iroshizuku inks, so today we are taking a look at Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin, aka Bamboo Forest. This sample was provided by a reader, but you can find this ink for sale at Pen Chalet.

The color:

Chiku-rin is a pale, unsaturated green.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks much darker than it does in writing.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry time: 20 seconds

Water resistance: Medium-the yellow washed away, but the blue remains.

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: medium shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in all nib sizes but just a tiny bit of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Chiku-rin is lighter than Lennon Tool Bar Pomelo but darker than Diamine Spring Green. Click here to see the Pilot inks together, and click here to see the green inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Lamy Al-star Charged Green with an extra fine nib on a Yoseka A5 notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, I found this ink to be a little drier in flow than the other Pilot Iroshizuku inks I’ve tried, but it still has a smooth consistent flow and interesting color.

Disclaimer: This ink was provided by a reader for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does contain affiliate links, but this post is not sponsored in any way.

Robert Oster Mudpack Set

Robert Oster has recently started selling some exclusive collections on his website, starting with the Mudpack set. This set includes: Muddy Sand, Muddy Bucket, Muddy Dragon, Muddy Swamp, Muddy Water, Muddy Wine and Muddy Crown. I was able to purchase a set of samples from a pen friend.

Swabs:

Left to right: Muddy Sand, Muddy Bucket, Muddy Dragon, Muddy Swamp, Muddy Water, Muddy Wine and Muddy Crown.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low-there was some bleeding on Leuchtturm.

Other properties: medium shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was lots of feathering in every nib size as well as a little bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Muddy Sand is a little less yellow than Robert Oster Khaki. Muddy Bucket is a bit more vibrant than Pilot Iroshizuku Ina-ho.

Muddy Dragon is a little less saturated than Robert Oster Clay Red.

Muddy Swamp is somewhere between teal, blue-black and grey. It’s a bit more green than Papier Plume Bayou Nightfall. Muddy Water is similar to Lennon Tool Bar Tiegan.

Muddy Crown is a bit lighter than Nemosine Alpha Centauri. Muddy Wine is a bit more red than Krishna Pencil.

I used an A5 Yoseka notebook. All of the inks had an average flow.

Overall, I think Muddy Sand is my favorite from the set. There are a lot of good alternatives for each color if you can’t get your hands on a set.

Disclaimer: I purchased these inks myself, and all photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and is not sponsored in any way.

January Blues

It’s January now, so it’s time to pull out some new ink palette combos! This month I decided to pull the whole month’s worth into one post rather than posting 4 individual ones.

This first week I’ve been using blues and purples. I’m obsessed with Sailor Manyo Nekoyanagi and have been looking for any excuse to use it.

I used Bank paper to create these trees. It really brings out the undertones of these two Sailor inks.

I love neutral inks so sometimes I love a palette full of nothing but neutral. Monteverde Moonstone, Sailor Jentle Black and Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-syogun have all been long-time favorites of mine.

Train doodles make even the best inks better right?

This ink palette is all of my favorite colors. I love all five of these inks!

The Bank paper pulls a bit of the blue tone out of the Sailor Jentle Fuji-musume.

I love this combo so much! It would also work well for early spring.

I used a Waterman 452 1/2 V to draw these flowers, and a little bit of water and a paint brush to soften it up. I love the softer vibe with the pastel colors.

It seems I’m focusing on blues, purples and neutrals this month. What inks are you using lately?

Disclaimer: All opinions are my own. There are no affiliate links on this page, and this post is not sponsored in any way.