Robert Oster Holiday 2023

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I am absurdly late with this post, but let’s take a look at Robert Oster’s Holiday 2023 collection. You can finds these inks for sale at a Vanness Pens.

Swabs:

Left to right: The Grinch, Sun on the Snow, Candied Mint, and Tinsel Town.

Writing samples:

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

Dry Time: 40-50 seconds

Water Resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: All have medium shading and shimmer. The Grinch has silver shimmer. Candied Mint has green shimmer. Sun on the Snow has gold shimmer. Tinseltown has bronze shimmer.

On Walmart Pen + Gear copy paper there was some feathering in every nib size and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

The Grinch is closest to Vinta Nahan.

Sun on the Snow is closest to Van Dieman’s Golden Orb Web.

Candied Mint isn’t super close to any of these, but it’s probably closes to Ferris Wheel Press Brilliant Beanstalk.

Tinseltown is less blue than J Herbin 1670 Violet Imperial.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All three had slightly dry flows.

Overall, these are lovely inks. I didn’t have any issues with clogging or hard starts. These are absolutely worth a try. I think The Grinch is my favorite out of the four.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #2586: Parker Quink Blue

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Parker Quink Blue is a classic fountain pen ink. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

Blue is a traditional medium blue ink.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has 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.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 40 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering in all nib sizes and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

There are so many similar inks to Parker Blue, including Lamy Blue. Click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pelikan M200 Blue Marbled with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, this is a really good traditional ink. It’s a classic for a reason.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Color Traveler Grey Inks

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Today let’s take a look at three grey inks from Color Traveler: Yamato Gray, Oyster Silver and Sardines Griege. You can finds these inks for sale at a Vanness Pens.

Swabs:

Left to right: Yamato Gray, Oyster Silver and Sardines Griege.

Writing samples:

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

Dry Time: 30-50 seconds

Water Resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: All have medium shading.

On Walmart Pen + Gear copy paper there was some feathering in every nib size and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Yamato Gray is closest to 3 Oysters Cool Gray.

Oyster Silver is closest to Pelikan Edelstein Moonstone, Sardines Greige is close to Octopus Fluids Pebble Stone.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All three had average flows.

Overall, these are good inks. Yamato Gray is my favorite out of the three but I like all three.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #2582: Robert Oster Rust Orange

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The color:

Rust Orange is a deep red-orange.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has some shading.

Writing samples:

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

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 40 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and bleeding in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Rust Orange is lighter than Robert Oster Orange Zest but darker than Robert Oster Fire on Fire. Click here to see the orange inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used an Edison Collier Persimmon Swirl with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a slightly dry flow.

Overall, I love the color. Robert Oster does a great job with his inks and this one is no exception.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: This product was provided by Galen Leather 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.

Wet vs Dry Inks

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One of the questions I get the most is what’s the difference between wet and dry inks so it’s finally time to tackle the issue.

Wet Inks:

Wet inks put down more ink on the page than average or dry inks. They often have lubricants added like Sailor or Monteverde’s ITF technology. So many people tout wet inks as having the most shading, but often wet inks put down too much ink on the page to show the difference between the light and dark part of the ink. Monteverde, Pilot, De Atramentis, and KWZ are wet brands overall in my experience.

If you have a dry nib and want it to feel more of an average flow you can use a wet ink to tame the dry nib a bit. Some wet inks will spread out on the page as you write and they are more likely to bleed through the page. If your ink is too wet, you can add some distilled water to dry it up a bit.

Let’s look at some wet examples:

monteverde documental blue

pilot iroshizuku ajisai

de atramentis emerald green

kwz discovery green

Dry Inks:

Dry inks put down less ink on the page than average or wet inks. They have more water content than other inks, which makes the ink sink down into the page faster and therefore seem dryer as you write. In my experience there are a lot of brands that are dry overall: Callifolio, Ferris Wheel Press, Kyoto TAG, L’Artisan Pastillier, Papier Plume, Pelikan, Platinum Classic inks and Troublemaker.

Dry inks often have the most shading, especially chromoshaders/duo shaders. They don’t spread out on the page like some wet inks do. In general dry inks are better for left handers since they usually dry faster than wet inks. I have found that when I write a whole page with a dry ink that the further down the page I get the drier the ink gets. Occasionally a dry ink will become so dry by the middle of the page that I have to prime the feed a bit to keep it writing.

If I put a dry ink in a wet pen it can feel average (like Pelikan 4001 in a Pelikan nib), but then if I use a paper that sucks up ink more than average than the ink can feel extra dry. Here’s an example: a Pelikan M600 medium nib full of Kyo-no-oto Hisoku on Midori MD can feel awfully dry to me even though I’m using a wet pen. If your ink is too dry and you want it wetter, you can add a drop of an ink additive like White Lighting, which will lubricate it and make it flow better.

Let’s look at some dry examples:

callifolio bleu pacifique

ferris wheel press blue cotton candy

kyo-no-oto ochiguri-iro

papier plume bloody pumpkin

pelikan 4001 violet

platinum classic lavender black

troublemaker foxglove

Wet and dry inks can be such a subjective thing because they can feel different based on paper, pen and nib. My personal preference is to use wet or slightly wet inks because I prefer a smooth flow.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and is not sponsored.

Ink Review #2581: Wearingeul Anna Karenina

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Wearingeul Anna Karenina is from the World Literature collection. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

Anna Karenina is a burgundy red with red shimmer.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has lots of shimmer but it’s hard to see in the photo.

Writing samples:

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

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and some bleeding in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Anna Karenina is closest to Diamine All the Best. Click here to see the red inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pelikan M205 Star Ruby with a fine nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an dry flow.

Overall, I like the color but the flow is too dry for me. The only other red ink with red shimmer that I know of is Diamine Bah Humbug, so it’s not a very common combo.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #2580: Octopus Fluids Phoenix

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Octopus Fluids Phoenix is from the Octopus Fluids Sheening collection. You can find this ink for sale at Vanness Pens.

The color:

Phoenix is a bright red with gold sheen.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has lots of sheen but it’s hard to see in the photo.

Writing samples:

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

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 40 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: no shading, monster gold sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and a dot or two of bleeding in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Phoenix is closest to Aurora Red. Click here to see the red inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pilot Vanishing Point Coral with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, this ink is an interesting ink. This is the first red monster sheener I’ve found, so it’s rather unique.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #2579: Octopus Fluids Pink Rhino

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Octopus Fluids Pink Rhino is from Write & Draw collection. You can find this ink for sale at Vanness Pens.

The color:

Pink Rhino is a medium bubblegum pink.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has just a little 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.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: High

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and a tiny bit of bleeding in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Pink Rhino isn’t super close to any of these other pink inks. Click here to see the pink inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pilot Decimo Pink White with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a slightly wet flow.

Overall, I really like this ink. I love the little bit of shading, high water resistance and slightly wet flow.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #2578: Ferris Wheel Press Frontenac Blue

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Ferris Wheel Press Frontenac Blue is from the Frosted Carnival collection. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

Frontenac Blue is a pale blue-green.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks more blue with blue shimmer.

Writing samples:

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

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 20 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering in all nib sizes and some bleeding in the flex nib.

Comparison Swabs:

Frontenac Blue is right in-between blue and teal, so it isn’t close to any of the blue or teal shimmer inks I have. Click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Leonardo Mother of Pearl with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a dry flow.

Overall, I love the color but it can be too light in the smaller nib sizes and it’s a bit too dry for my preference.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #2577: Kobe Dream of a Shooting Star

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Kobe Dream of a Shooting Star is a collaboration ink between Kyupo-do and Kobe INK Monogatari. I got my sample from Vanness Pens but they are currently out of stock so I’m not sure where you can get some.

The color:

Dream of a Shooting Star is a pale icy blue.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks much darker than it does on the Col-o-ring swab.

Writing samples:

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

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering in all nib sizes and a tiny bit of bleeding in the flex nib.

Comparison Swabs:

Dream of a Shooting Star is closest to Sailor Ink Studio 340. Click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Montegrappa Elmo with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, I like the color but it can be too light in the smaller nib sizes.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.