Ink Review #1198: KWZ Discovery Green

Dromgoole’s has a new KWZ exclusive ink! KWZ Discovery Green is another version of KWZ Sheen Machine but in green. Thanks to Dromgoole’s for sending this ink over for review!

The color:

Discovery Green is a dark green that leans toward teal.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks more teal and has some pretty red 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: 15 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: Medium-there was feathering in the three larger nib sizes on Rhodia and Leuchtturm.

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Medium-there was bleeding on Rhodia and Leuchtturm.

Other properties: low shading (there may be more but it’s hidden under all the sheen), high sheen, and no shimmer. The sheen is visible in all nib sizes on Tomoe River paper, and just a little bit in the flex nib on Leuchtturm paper.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering and bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Discovery Green is pretty close to Diamine November Rain. Click here to see the KWZ inks together, and click here to see the green inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Sailor Pro Gear Shamrock with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a wet flow.

Overall, I love the color, flow and the pretty sheen, but it does have quite a bit of feathering and bleeding, and it is prone to smearing on Tomoe River paper.

Disclaimer: This ink was provided by Dromgoole’s 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.

Lennon Tool Bar 2019 Winter Inks

Lennon Tool Bar’s 2019 Winter collection includes: Plastic Sky, Winter Bamboo Shoots and Hard Rime. Thanks to Shigure Inks for sending samples over for review!

Swabs:

Left to right: Winter Bamboo Shoots, Hard Rime and Plastic Sky.

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: Medium-there was feathering on Rhodia and Leuchtturm in both medium and flex nibs.

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Medium-there was bleeding on Rhodia and Leuchtturm in both medium and flex nibs.

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

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

Comparison Swabs:

Winter Bamboo Shoots is closest to Troublemaker Kelp Tea.

Hard Rime is a pale grey-blue, similar to how Lennon Tool Bar Cloudy Day is grey-blue.

Plastic Sky is closest to Vinta Perya.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All three inks had a wet and watery flow.

Overall, I’m not in love with these inks. There’s a lot more feathering and bleeding than I prefer, mostly due to the watery consistency. I like the color of Plastic Sky the best, but it’s too light in most nib sizes.

Disclaimer: These inks were 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 is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1194: Diamine Quartz Black

Let’s take a look at an older ink today, Diamine Quartz Black. I purchased my bottle of ink from Cult Pens a few years ago.

The color:

Quartz Black is a medium, slightly unsaturated black.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has a bit of 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: 15 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering but no bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Quartz Black is closest to Jacques Herbin Noir Abyssal. Click here to see the Diamine inks together, and click here to see the black inks together.

Longer writing:

I started with a my new Platinum Curidas with a medium nib, but the nib was so messed up I quickly switched to an Esterbrook Estie Lilac with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook (I’ve sent the Curidas off to be fixed). The ink had an average flow.

Overall, it’s a nice basic ink, but not one that stands out from all of the black inks out there.

Disclaimer: I purchased this ink myself, and 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 #1193: Monteverde Raven Noir

Today’s ink is Monteverde Raven Noir from the Noir collection. These inks came out quite a while ago and this is the last one I need to review. I purchased my sample of ink from Goulet Pens quite a while ago.

The color:

Raven Noir is a dark grey/light black.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has just a little bit of gold 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: 40 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, tiny gold sheen, and no shimmer. The sheen is only visible in large swabs.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in most nib sizes and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Raven Noir is pretty close to Monteverde Coal Noir. Click here to see the Monteverde inks together, and click here to see the black inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Pilot Vanishing Point Crossed Lines with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a slightly wetter than average flow.

Overall, it’s a good black ink but not my favorite one. Monteverde makes some other black inks I like better.

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

Tono & Lims Earth Contact Inks Part 2

Tono & Lims has recently added three new inks to their Earth Contact lineup: 003 Opal, 004 Mali Garnet and 005 Diamond Dust. Thanks to Shigure Inks for sending samples over for review!

Swabs:

Left to right: 003 Opal, 004 Mali Garnet and 005 Diamond Dust.

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: Low-there was some feathering on Rhodia and Leuchtturm.

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, no sheen, and silver shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Opal is much lighter and less saturated than the other yellow inks. Mali Garnet is lighter and brighter than the other green inks. Diamine Dust is much lighter and less saturated than Birmingham M. River Luster.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All three inks had an average flow.

Overall, out of the three I like Diamond Dust the best. Opal is too light for me to easily read it.

Disclaimer: These inks were 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 is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1189: Monteverde Coal Noir

Today’s ink is Monteverde Coal Noir from the Noir collection. These inks came out quite a while ago but I’ve yet to review all of them. I purchased my sample of ink from Vanness Pens quite a while ago.

The color:

Coal Noir is a dark grey/light black.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has just a little bit of coppery 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: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, tiny copper sheen, and no shimmer. The sheen is only visible in large swabs.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in most nib sizes and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Coal Noir is similar to Monteverde Raven Noir and Waterman Intense Black. Click here to see the Monteverde inks together, and click here to see the black inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Pilot Custom 823 Smoke with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a slightly wetter than average flow.

Overall, it’s a nice ink, but not my favorite black by a long shot. I just wish it was a little bit darker, with a little more shading and a little bit wetter. It’s a good ink for someone, just not a great one for me.

Disclaimer: I purchased this ink myself, and 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 #1188: Diamine Presidential Blue

Diamine Presidential blue has been sitting in my ink drawer for white a while, so it’s time to test it out! I purchased my bottle of ink from Cult Pens a few years ago.

The color:

Presidential Blue is a medium dusky blue.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper you can see some of the brown 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: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in most nib sizes as well as some bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Presidential Blue has a little bit more green in it than Diamine Washable Blue. Click here to see the Diamine inks together, and click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Franklin-Christoph 45L Salmon Glow with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had an average flow, but didn’t perform as well in this pen than it did in some others, the ink just didn’t flow quite as well.

Overall, it’s pretty well behaved, but did perform better in my Pilot Vanishing Points than it did in the Franklin-Christoph.

Disclaimer: I purchased this ink myself, and 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 #1187: Diamine Pink

We’ve been looking at some new inks recently, so let’s take a look at an oldie today, Diamine Pink. I purchased my bottle of ink from Cult Pens.

The color:

Pink is a medium warm pink.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has a little bit of gold 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: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: no shading, tiny sheen, and no shimmer. The sheen is only visible in large swabs.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering in most nib sizes and just a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Pink is a little less orange than Diamine Coral, but not as bright as Diamine Flamingo Pink. Click here to see the Diamine inks together, and click here to see the pink inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a TWSBI Eco-T Coral with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, I really like this ink. It’s a great color and is a good classic ink-no shading and just a tiny bit of sheen.

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

Tono & Lims Star Light Inks

It’s time to take a look at two really interesting inks, Tono & Lims e=mc2 and Regulus from the Star Light collection. Thanks to Shigure Inks for sending samples over for review!

E=mc2 starts grey when wet and dries to a dusky green. Regulus starts blue (and stays blue on Col-o-ring paper) and dries to teal on most papers. Both are uv reactive.

Swabs:

Left to right: e=mc2 and Regulus

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-medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

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

Comparison Swabs:

E=mc2 is less saturated than Platinum Classic Forest Black. Regulus is lighter and brighter on the Col-o-ring paper than Pilot Iroshizuku Ku-jaku.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. Both inks had a slightly dry flow.

Overall, both are really interesting, but out of the two I like Regulus the best (and not only because the name reminds me of Harry Potter).

Disclaimer: These inks were 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 is not sponsored in any way.

Tono & Lims Baby Color Inks Part 2

Let’s take a look at three new additions to the Tono & Lims Baby Color collection: Protect U, Disturbing U and Yakiimo. Thanks to Shigure Inks for sending samples over for review!

Swabs:

Left to right: Protect U, Disturbing U and Yakiimo.

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: Low-there was some feathering on Rhodia and Leuchtturm.

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

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

Comparison Swabs:

Protect U is a little bit lighter and cooler in tone than De Atramentis Mouse Grey. Disturbing U is a little cooler-toned than J Herbin Rouille d’ancre. Yakiimo is close to Private Reserve Buttercup.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All three inks had an average flow.

Overall, all three are nice but nothing I have to have. Out of the three I like Yakiimo the best.

Disclaimer: These inks were 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 is not sponsored in any way.