1300 Inks!

We’ve passed 1300 inks so it’s time for another favorites post! Since we are so close to the holidays I decided to make this not only my current favorites but also a gift guide of sorts, based on ink properties.

This year has been really difficult, especially for small retailers. When you are doing your holiday shopping please remember to support small businesses! I did a blog post awhile back about my favorite small businesses and another post about custom pen makers if you are looking for more pen people to support.

Water-resistant Inks:

Water-resistant inks are perfect for the journaler who wants their writing to last, the klutzy friend who always spills their coffee or the artist who loves to mix fountain pens and watercolors.

• Sailor Sei-boku

• Rohrer & Klingner Salix

• Sailor Souboku

• Platinum Carbon Black

• Monteverde Documental Black

Copy Paper Inks:

These inks perform well on cheap paper so these inks are perfect for the penny pincher friend who doesn’t want to buy nice paper, the office-dweller who doesn’t get to pick their paper or the student stuck with school papers.

• Rohrer & Klingner Salix

• Rohrer & Klingner Alt-goldgrun

• Lamy Benitoite

• Sailor Kiwa-guro

• Bungubox Ebisu Gold

Wet Inks:

Wet inks are great for the writer who loves big juicy broad nibs or the calligrapher who uses flex and stub nibs.

• Platinum Carbon Black

• Rohrer & Klingner Verdigris

• Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-kai

• KWZ Butterscotch

• Monteverde Ocean Noir

Dry Inks:

Dry inks are great when you have a nib that’s too wet and needs a little taming.

• Robert Oster Bishop to King

• Platinum Lavender Black

• Kyo-iro 01 Stone Road of Gion

• Diamine Citrus Ice

Iron Gall Inks:

Iron Gall inks are great for the archive journaler, artist or historian.

• Platinum Lavender Black

• Rohrer & Klingner Salix

• KWZ Iron Gall Gummiberry

Non-shading Inks:

Non-shading inks are great for the office-dweller when shading isn’t appropriate, the boring friend who wants their writing to look like “normal” or the perfectionist who hates variation.

• Platinum Carbon Black

• Aurora Black

• Diamine Oxford Blue

• Sailor Jentle Shigure

• Pilot Iroshizuku Take-sumi

Shading Inks:

Shading inks are a great gift for 99% of pen users, especially when they are as pretty as these ones!

• Sailor’s Sailor

• Taccia Tuchi Golden Wheat

• Robert Oster Tokyo Blue Denim

• Colorverse String

• Colorverse Saturn V

Crazy Shading Inks:

Dual shaders, chromo shaders, multi shaders-whatever you call them, they are fabulous for the artist in your life. They are rather pale in writing so I stick to broad and flex nibs to see the gorgeous shading.

• Sailor Ink Studio 123

• Sailor Manyo Nekoyanagi

• Sailor Ink Studio 150

• Troublemaker Abalone

• Sailor Manyo Haha

Sheeny Inks:

While I love a good sheeny ink, I hate ones that smear. I tend to stay in the medium to high sheeners, where Sailor and Colorverse perform well.

• Sailor Jentle Yama-dori

• Sailor Jentle Irori

• Colorverse Andromeda

• Blackstone Barrier Reef Blue

• Colorverse Gravity Wave

Shimmer Inks:

Shimmer inks are great for those in your life that want a bit of sparkle and shine in their writing.

• Robert Oster Heart of Gold

• Robert Oster Rose Gilt Tynte

• J Herbin 1670 Emerald of Chivor

• Diamine Winter Miracle

• Nemosine Coalsack Nebula

So now that we’ve covered the first 1300 inks, on to the next ones! What’s your number one ink to penable a friend? Let me know in the comments below!

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