Ink Review #2669: Diamine Icy Lilac

/

It’s Day 5 of the Diamine Inkvent 2024 Calendar! You can still find the Inkvent Calendar for sale at Cult Pens, along with many others. Thanks to Diamine for sending the Inkvent Calendar over for review!

The color:

Icy Lilac is a medium lilac with silver 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 plenty of 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: low shading, no sheen, and silver shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Icy Lilac is closest to Vinta Tandikan. Click here to see the purple inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Lamy Safari Pink Cliff, with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a slightly dry flow.

Overall, this is a lovely shimmer ink. It’s a little drier than I prefer, but I enjoyed the color, the silver shimmer and the little bit of shading.

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 Diamine 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.

Ink Review #2668: Diamine Forest Gateau

/

It’s Day 4 of the Diamine Inkvent 2024 Calendar! You can still find the Inkvent Calendar for sale at Cult Pens, along with many others. Thanks to Diamine for sending the Inkvent Calendar over for review!

The color:

Forest Gateau is a deep red-violet. This ink is scented.

*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 a little more violet than red.

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: Low

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low

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

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

Comparison Swabs:

Forest Gateau is closest to Montblanc Antoine de Saint-Euxpery. Click here to see the red inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pilot Ishime Magenta, with a fine nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, I love the base color of this ink, but it’s scented which naturally means that there’s some feathering and bleeding. I’m not a fan of scented inks just because they normally don’t perform well, so this is not an ink for me.

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 Diamine 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.

Ink Review #2667: Diamine Noble Fir

/

It’s Day 3 of the Diamine Inkvent 2024 Calendar! You can still find the Inkvent Calendar for sale at Vanness Pens, along with many others. Thanks to Diamine for sending the Inkvent Calendar over for review!

The color:

Noble Fir is an emerald green with lots of 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 both blue and silver shimmer, and is labeled as a “Star Bright” ink (I’m not quite sure what that means).

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: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

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

Comparison Swabs:

Noble Fir is closest to Van Dieman’s Emerald Eyes. It’s lighter than Diamine Magical Forest. Click here to see the green inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pelikan M600 Vibrant Green, with a fine nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, I love this ink! I love the color, the good flow, the nice shading and the interesting shimmer. It’s not often that I want to buy a full bottle of an Inkvent ink, (especially not a shimmer) usually the small bottles are sufficient for me, but I would actually buy a full bottle of Noble Fir.

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 Diamine 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.

Ink Review #2666: Diamine Wilted Rose

/

Let’s take a look at Day 2 of the Diamine Inkvent 2024 Calendar! You can still find the Inkvent Calendar for sale at Vanness Pens, along with many others. Thanks to Diamine for sending the Inkvent Calendar over for review!

The color:

Wilted Rose is a hard color to describe. On Col-o-ring swabs it’s brownish pink, but on Tomoe River paper the ink is more reddish 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 just looks rather blah and sad.

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 no shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Wilted Rose is pinker than these other brown inks. Click here to see the brown inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Lamy Al-star Purple, with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a slightly dry flow.

Overall, I’m not a fan. The flow is a little too dry and frankly I don’t like the color. It’s just not an ink for me.

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 Diamine 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.

Ink Review #2665: Diamine Baltic Breeze

/

It’s time to open the Diamine Inkvent Calendar! I’ve purposefully waited until the end of the day to make sure those who don’t want spoilers don’t have their surprise ruined. You can still find the Inkvent Calendar for sale at Vanness Pens, along with many others. Thanks to Diamine for sending the Inkvent Calendar over for review! Let’s take a look at day 1!

The color:

Baltic Breeze is a cornflower blue with rose gold 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.

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 rose gold shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Baltic Breeze is lighter than Dominant Industry Periwinkle Twinkle. Click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pilot Vanishing Point Black Ice, with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a dry flow.

Overall, this is a lovely shimmer ink, but it can be rather light in the smallest nib sizes. I love all the pretty shading. I do wish the flow was wetter, but it’s a solid start on a good Inkvent.

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 Diamine 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.

Festive December Ink Palettes

/

It’s the first of December, so it’s time for some new ink palettes! It’s started snowing occasionally here in Eastern Washington, and I both love and hate the snow. I love seeing it and walking in it but I hate driving in it. I actually love all five of these inks, but Robert Oster Tranquility is always a stand-out for me.

Every December I make gingerbread houses with my kids, and it always involves a lot of frosting. Diamine Silver Fox is an ink I use often-I just love the color, but I enjoy it the most in wetter nibs since it can be pale in smaller nib sizes.

I am woefully behind on my Christmas presents list. I need to get cracking on it. I love Diamine Sherwood Green, it’s a wonderful green for the holidays.

My daughter decided that she wanted the Christmas tree put up on her birthday in November, so our tree has been up for a while. I love Diamine Espresso’s coloring. It’s a fabulous brown ink.

What inks are you using for the holidays? Let me know in the comments below!

Disclaimer: All opinions are my own. This post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #2664: KWZ Fields of Barley

/

Let’s take a look at KWZ Fields of Barley from the All that Glitters collection. You can find this ink at most retailers including Vanness Pens. Thanks to KWZ for sending this ink over for review!

The color:

Fields of Barley is an emerald green with gold 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 so much shimmer! The shimmer does a great job of staying in suspension though.

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, no sheen, and gold shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Fields of Barley is closest to Diamine Golden Ivy. Click here to see the green inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pelikan M600 Vibrant Green with a fine nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, I really enjoyed this ink. Like KWZ Jurassic Treasure that I reviewed yesterday, I love how small the shimmer is and how well it stays in suspension-I only had to shake the pen at the beginning of the page and the shimmer stayed consistent throughout the rest of the page. This ink is a perfect green to use for holiday cards.

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 KWZ 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.

Ink Review #2663: KWZ Jurassic Treasure

/

Today’s ink is KWZ Jurassic Treasure from the All that Glitters collection. This color is so hard to photograph correctly-you’ve been warned. After a lot of editing the images still aren’t quite right. In this post, the color is most accurate in the comparison photo. The color is right in-between gold and green and some of these images make it seem more green than it is. You can find this ink at most retailers including Vanness Pens! Thanks to KWZ for sending this ink over for review!

The color:

Again, the color is right in-between gold and green with lots of gold 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 so much shimmer! The shimmer does a great job of staying in suspension though!

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: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

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

Comparison Swabs:

Out of all the comparison swabs I have Jurassic Treasure is closest to the golds. It seems closest to Wearingeul Path but it’s not a great match. Click here to see the yellow inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Lamy Safari Savannah with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has an average flow.

Overall, I really love this ink. The color is super interesting and unusual-I don’t have any other inks that quite match the color. I love how small the shimmer is and how well it stays in suspension-I only had to shake the pen at the beginning of the page and the shimmer stayed consistent throughout the whole page. I absolutely recommend this ink.

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 KWZ 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.

Ink Review #2662: KWZ Firecracker

/

KWZ Firecracker is from the “All That Glitters” collection. You can find this ink at some retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

Firecracker is a bright medium red with lots of gold 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 you can see just how much gold shimmer there is, but the shimmer is smaller than other brands, so it flows much better than the average shimmer ink.

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, no sheen, and gold shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Firecracker is closest to De Atramentis Camelian Red Bronze . Click here to see the red inks together.

Longer Writing:

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

Overall, I really love this ink. I love the smaller shimmer that flows really well. I love that I don’t have to agitate the pen as much as when using other brands’ shimmer inks because the shimmer stays in suspension better. Robert Oster Red Gold has been my favorite red ink with gold shimmer, but Firecracker gives Red Gold a run for its money. I think this just might be my new favorite red/gold combo! This ink is absolutely worth a try!

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 #2661: Ferris Wheel Press Knitted Nettle

/

Ferris Wheel Press Knitted Nettle is from the Wild Swans collection. You can find this ink for sale at Ferris Wheel Press and Vanness Pens.

The color:

Knitted Nettle is a petrol teal-green with pink 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 some red sheen along with pink 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: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low

Other properties: low shading, low red sheen, and pink shimmer.

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

Comparison Swabs:

Knitted Nettle is closest to Diamine Best Wishes. Click here to see the teal inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Kaweco Sport Transparent Teal with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a slightly dry flow.

Overall, The color of this ink is a bit unusual-I only have one ink that’s similar. It’s nice and readable, even in smaller nib sizes. I do wish the flow was a bit wetter.

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.