Nothing Shy About This Lot

Warmer weather always brightens my ink rotation. Orange, pink, and a paler shade of green add some fun to the hold-overs from early spring.

In addition, Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa is getting a run in the Namiki Falcon SB fire hose. So far – so good with that test. It’s a muted gray-purple that suits clouds more than unrelenting sunshine, but if it tames the beast, it will be a good choice.

• Kyoto Levenger True Writer custom stub with Diamine Dark Brown
• Clementine Retro 51 Scriptmaster II fine with Iroshizuku fuyu-gaki
• Lamy AL-Star custom fine italic with Iroshizuku tsutsuji
• Montblanc 220 OB with Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses
• Namiki Falcon SB with Rohrer & Klinger Scabiosa
• Namiki Falcon SF with Diamine Violet
• Waterman Deluxe Carene Stub with Iroshizuku asa-gao
• Platinum Century B Chartres Blue with Diamine China Blue
• Platinum #3776 music nib with Diamine Mediterranean Blue
• Namiki Falcon SF with Diamine Kelly Green

It’s Getting Old At Inkophile

Can you believe it? Inkophile is five years old today. You thought it was older? Yeah, it seems like it has been around forever. The number of page views per month has more than doubled in the past year and I hope that indicates a sizable increase in the number of people who have grown to love fountain pens as much as it represents repeat visits from my steady followers. A larger community will expand the marketplace and in turn increase the available products. That would be a very good thing.

Looking back at new acquisitions this past year, the Platinum Century B nib and the Platinum #3776 music nib were very welcome additions to my collection and handily won slots on my top five pens list. Noodler’s Purple Martin was a surprise addition to my favorite inks while Stillman & Birn moved onto my favorite journals list. The Epsilon and Zeta Series are good with pens while the other journals are lovely with watercolors, not that you can’t mix them up any way you want. For lined paper that works well with fountain pens, the Miguelrius notebook is getting a lot of use. Two inexpensive finds at Staples were the Arc Collection and the filler paper from Brazil. Both made fast friends with a variety of inks.

None of this discounts some of my continuing favorites like Rhodia and Clairefontaine paper, Levenger True Writers, Namiki Falcon soft fine nibs, my Waterman Carene stub from Leigh Reyes, Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses, Diamine Mediterranean Blue, J. Herbin Lie de Thé, or Montblanc Racing Green plus so many others.

My other favorites are Inkophile visitors. Without you, this blog would have been put to rest a long time ago. You are the best!

Most viewed Inkophile image:

Related Inkophile links:

• Platinum Century B
• Platinum #3776 Music Nib
• Noodler’s Purple Martin
• Stillman & Birn
• Miguelrius
• Staples Arc Collection
• Staples Filler Paper
• Rhodia paper
• Clairefontaine paper
• Levenger True Writer
• Namiki Falcon SF
• Waterman Carene stub
• Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses
• Montblanc Racing Green

Do You Have A Signature Ink?

There is little in life that is more unique than a signature. Unlike fingerprints that are immutable from birth, we get to choose the color by which we are best known as well as the design (signature) by which we are most easily recognized. As testament, my parents have been gone many years but I can still picture their signatures quite vividly. So much else has faded but not that.

Using a real pen with real ink to sign documents may eventually go the way of the dodo bird. Until then, what do you choose in all of inkdom to make your signature memorable? If I had a bottle, Pendemonium‘s Noodler’s Legal Lapis would be mine. In its absence, Noodler’s Ottoman Azure or Diamine Mediterranean Blue will do.

Noodler’s Ottoman Azure with a Brause dip nib and Diamine Mediterranean Blue in a Platinum #3776 Music nib doodled on Clairefontaine GraF it 90g Sketch paper. It has a slightly rough surface well suited to pencil sketching but a little less ideal for pen use. I like the way ink skips over the paper and enjoy the break from perfection found with more fountain pen friendly paper.

A Burgundy By Any Other Name

Not that anyone has to have a burgundy ink in their color wardrobe, but a true inkophile does love variety. My collection is lacking a Diamine in this color range, something I intend to remedy soon with either Oxblood or Syrah.

For now, the long-discontinued Parker Penman Ruby and Noodler’s Red-Black will do while Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses is perfect for something a bit more pink. All three show a degree of shading with the right pens and good to excellent flow in any pen. None are fast drying but I like the colors so well that this quirk doesn’t deter me .

Noodler’s Tiananmen and Cayenne are my choices for red though Diamine Monaco Red is a good option for a slightly less saturated look.

Noodler’s Black Swan in English Roses would be another good addition to this group but it’s a lot more difficult to find as the good ones so often are.

The dots are more representative of the color produced with a pen except Noodler’s Tiananmen which is less red and more rose colored than reflected in the scan.

An Ink Rotation And Its Worksheet

You are not alone if you wonder/aren’t certain/debate which inks make a rotation. Truthfully, it’s anything that makes you happy but a worksheet can help narrow and refine choices without inking a gazillion or even a dozen pens.

The pens in the upper right section were already inked and some will continue into the summer with the same colors.

The bottom section is a test of possible inks culled from a review of my ink journal. The dots of color were made with the tip of a cotton swab. The paper is from my daily journal which will see the most use of my rotation. It is tinted pale gray which has a mildly dulling effect on ink color so I like to test directly on it for better accuracy.

The upper left section of my worksheet reflects the most likely prospects along with possible pens. Though good colors for the season, some of the inks were eliminated due to degradation or poor performance.

This rotation is in flux. Waiting in the wings are Sailor Uranari, olive green, Sailor Yaki-Akari, pale aqua, Diamine Steel Blue, turquoise, and Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses. If a red is needed, Noodler’s Tiananmen or J. Herbin  ’1670′ Rouge Hematite will do depending on whether subtle or flashy suits the occasion. China Blue will replace asa-gao and Noodler’s Cayenne will replace Vermillion for summer. BSAR might eliminate Claret and Solferino as well. Chocolate and Pilot BBk will return in autumn. That will leave a nine pen rotation which is plenty even for me.

What I don’t like about this group of inks is that the colors don’t come together thematically. What I do like is that it provides lots of options for duos and trios. In addition, the inks are well-matched to their pens so writing will be very enjoyable.

The Levenger True Writer (TW) dominates for now but that is in part because it uses an easy to fill converter and the fine nibs aren’t terribly narrow. My collection needs more broad nibs and stubs to show ink color better. Skinny nibs just don’t have enough punch for a color addict but do not tell me there is a 12-step program for that addiction. I absolutely will not listen. No, no, no, no, no.

What Does Fountain Pen Ink Have To Do With Chocolate?

Such a range of browns! Hard to pick just one but for my spring rotation, it will be Diamine Chocolate Brown with a firm nib and Noodler’s Beaver or Kiowa Pecan with a flex nib. Which one would you choose?

A Few Colorful Inks To Mimic Spring Flowers

Spring has arrived as evidenced by the floating heads of Gerber daisies visible from my kitchen window. No need for a hint from the calendar but there is a need to freshen my ink rotation in celebration of the season. The slot for red/orange had some intense competition that Rohrer & Klingner Morinda won with Noodler’s Cayenne and J. Herbin ’1670′ Rouge Hematite close behind. Maybe at the next fill…